Text Leveling System

The Australian Boomerang Bonanza

RDQ:	1096	Max Word/Sent	29	Total Words	3031		Diff Words	929
Lex	760	Ave Word/.Sent	7	Hi Freq occurs	2050	67.6%	Hi freq	385	41.4%
AR	3.8	Long Sentences	5.1	Low Freq occurs	166	5.5%	Low freq	130	14%

The Grand. Prize
Snow whipped through the air in thick blankets. Stanley Lambchop trudged on, trying not to flap in the wind.
Up ahead, Stanley could just make out his younger brother, Arthur. "Keep going!" Arthur's voice called. "We're almost there!" 
Since the morning Stanley Lambchop had awakened to discover that he had ]]
been flattened by the bulletin board
over his bed, he had traveled far and
wide. He had trekked through the
Mexican jungle. He had crossed the
African savannah. He had braved
the Canadian Arctic.
But this just might be his most
difficult journey of all.
And it's only the walk home from
school! thought Stanley.
He strained to take another step,
but the wind blew him off his feet yet
again. He flew backward into the side
of a bus shelter with a slap.
Stanley groaned.
Since being flattened, Stanley could
do all sorts of useful things. He could]]
travel by mail, slide under doors, and
fly like a kite. But being half an inch
thick also had its disadvantages.
It sure doesn't help one bit in a
blizzard! Stanley thought.
Arthur ran up. "Are you okay?" he
cried over the howling wind.
Stanley gritted his chattering teeth.
"I hate this weather!"
Arthur nodded and held out his
hand. "Hold on to me!"
Stanley couldn't grab his brother's
outstretched mitten. So Arthur leaned]]
into the wind and battled down the
sidewalk, dragging Stanley's body
flapping behind him like a cape.
"I wish we lived somewhere hot!"
Stanley grumbled.
"Tell me about it!" Arthur called
over his shoulder. "Can you believe that
right now it's summer in Australia?!"
"We could be on a beach!" said
Stanley.
"If only I'd won that Kanga Roos
contest!" said Arthur. Kanga Roos was
Arthur and Stanley's favorite breakfast
cereal. Several months ago, Arthur had
cut out a form from the back of their
cereal box and entered a contest whose
 grand prize was a trip to Australia.]]
Nothing ever happened, though.
Arthur pulled Stanley up the front
steps of their home. Pushing the door
closed behind them, Stanley flattened
himself against it and took a deep
breath. A row of icicles fell from the
side of his body.
"Thank you, Arthur," he said. "I
don't know how I would have made it
without you."
Arthur shrugged. "I don't know how
you make it anywhere without me." He
pulled off his boots. After all, who was
it that saved you on Mount Rushmore?
Who solved all your problems over the
telephone when you were in China?
Who got us down that river in Africa?"]]
You're the one who dropped the
paddle!" cried Stanley, suddenly
thawed under the collar.
"I did not!" replied Arthur. "You
dropped the paddle!
"I did not!" huffed Stanley.
"Arthur, is that you?" their mother's
voice called from the next room.
Arthur held up his hands. "I'm just
saying," he said in a low voice, "the next
time you go somewhere, take me along,
will you?" Then he added, "Especially
if it's Hawaii or Florida."
Stanley couldn't help it. He smiled.
"You're here!" Mrs. Lambchop came
bustling down the hall, her eyes fixed
on Arthur. She seemed very excited.]]
"Wait until you-" The smile fell from
her face. "Why, you look like a wet
dog!"
Arthur scoffed. "I just walked
through a blizzard!"
Their father, George Lambchop,
appeared with a comb and started
dragging it roughly through Arthur's
hair.
"Dad!" protested Arthur.
Mrs. Lambchop bit her lip. "And his
socks are all wet!"
Their parents didn't even seem to
notice that Stanley's socks were wet,
too.
"What is going on?" Arthur and 
Stanley both cried.]]
"There's someone important to
see you, Arthur," Mr. Lambchop said
in a strange voice. He stepped back
to examine his handiwork and then
wrinkled his nose.
"Just say you haven't had a chance
to wash up," Mr. Lambchop whispered,
and led the boys into the living room.
A barrel- chested man wearing
a leather wide-brimmed hat was
standing in the middle of the room. An
official-looking young woman holding
a clipboard stood behind him.
Arthur stopped in his tracks. "It's But
you're-" he sputtered.
Stanley stared at the man. He did
look very familiar.]]
G'day, Arthur," the man said in an 
accent that sounded British? "Do
you have something to say to me?"
Arthur looked at him blankly. "I
haven't had a chance to wash up," he
blurted.
The man's thick eyebrows danced
up and down with amusement. Then,~
very mysteriously, he said: "Isn't there
something else you should say, mate?"
Arthur gulped. He opened and shut
his eyes. He swallowed. He pinched
Stanley.
"Ouch!" Stanley cried.
"I'm not dreaming," Arthur croaked
under his breath. Then, in a very loud,
careful voice he began, "I JUST "]]
Suddenly, Stanley knew exactly who
the man was!
JUMP ... FOR ... KANGAROOS!"
he and his brother shouted together,
hopping up and down in time with
the words just like in the Kanga Roos
commercials.
For the man standing before them
was none other than Billy Wallaby, the
Australian cereal magnate whose face
graced the front of every box! This
could mean only one thing:
"Looks like Arthur and a guest are
coming with me to Australia!" Billy
Wallaby announced.
The living room went wild. The
woman with the clipboard clapped.]]
Arthur did a crazy dance. Harriet
Lambchop started to cry. George
Lambchop shook everybody's hand. Mr.
Wallaby himself slapped Stanley on the
back so hard that Stanley flipped over.
"I can't believe it!" said Arthur. "I
never thought when I cut out that form
from the back of the cereal box-"
"Never say never, mate," said Mr.
Wallaby. "So, who are you going to take
with you? Your mum or your dad?"
Stanley looked at the ground. He
understood, of course. He had gone on
so many trips without Arthur. It was
only fair that Arthur got to have his
own adventure for once.
And then Arthur did something that]]
surprised Stanley even more than an
Australian billionaire showing up in
their living room and giving away. a
trip to the other side of the world. He
said, "Can Stanley come?"]]
The Aussie Crew
It had not been easy for Arthur to
convince Mr. and Mrs. Lambchop to
allow him and Stanley to travel to the
other side of the globe without them.
But the rules of the contest stated clearly
that only two people could go, and Mr.
Wallaby and his assistant, Ms. Perth,
both promised that the boys would be
carefully looked after.]]
Now, the Lambchop family stood on
the tarmac in front of a small private
jet, saying their good-byes as snow fell
lightly around them.
Mrs. Lambchop hugged Stanley
and Arthur tightly. Finally, Stanley
whimpered, "Mom, you're going to
wrinkle me."
"Of course," she said, letting them
go and forcing a brave smile onto her
face. "You know, there is a great deal
of unusual slang in Australia, such
as rhyming slang, where a rhyming
word is used to signify another word.
For instance, dog and bone means
'telephone,' and plates of meat means]]
'feet.' Isn't that fascinating? Did you
know-"
"Mom," Arthur groaned.
"We'll be fine, Mom," Stanley said,
more gently. He knew his mother
was just rambling about the English
language to make herself feel better.
After all, it was her favorite subject.
Mr. Lambchop put a comforting arm
around his wife. "Stanley," he said,
"you are a more experienced traveler
than your younger brother. We expect
you to stay with him at all times."
Stanley saluted.
"Arthur," said Mr. Lambchop. "Keep
the flat kid out of trouble."
Arthur cracked a smile.]]
Mr. Lambchop said nothing for a
moment, and then he stepped forward
and put one gloved hand on Arthur's
shoulder and the other on Stanley's.
Stanley could feel his father's hand
resting near his cheek, like a warm
blanket.
"Do you solemnly promise that you
will take care of each other, no matter
what?"
"We promise," Arthur and Stanley
intoned.
Behind them, Ms. Perth had stepped
out onto the top of the metal staircase
that connected the plane to the tarmac.
"Time to go!" said Arthur. And
before their parents could say another]]
word, he grabbed Stanley's hand and
sprinted for the plane.
"Bye, Mom! Bye, Dad!" called
Stanley, his body once again flapping
in the air behind his brother.
"Wow!" said Arthur, bouncing up and
down. "Leather seats!"
"Arthur, Stanley, I'd like to introduce
you to a few people," said Ms Perth.
An unshaven man wearing shorts, a
T-shirt, and hiking boots ambled into
the aisle . "This is Mr. Billabong, Mr.
Wallaby 's butler."
"You don't look like a butler," said
Stanley.
Mr. Billabong grinned. "Yeah, well]]
you don't look like a person, but you
are, aren't ya? Call me Bongo!"
"And this," continued Ms. Perth, "is
our chef, Sheila." She was an athletic 
looking woman with curly red hair.
"How d'ya do, boys? Hope you like
Vegemite!"
"What's Vegemite?" asked Arthur.
"I was hoping you'd say that!" cried
Sheila, producing a plate from behind
her back with two pieces of toast spread
with a thin of layer of dark brown jam.
"Try some! "
Arthur and Stanley each took a piece
of toast. Exchanging looks, they took a
bite.
Stanley stopped chewing at once. It ]]
tasted like beef stew with old socks.
"Isn't it ace?" said Sheila excitedly.
"That means great,"' Ms. Perth
whispered.
"Oh, yes," said Arthur, his eyes
watering as he forced himself to
swallow.
"May we please have some water?
Stanley croaked.
"'Two waters, coming right up!" said
Bongo.
"Ready to see the pilot?" Ms. Perth
asked.
She led them to the front of the plane
and opened the door to the cockpit. The
pilot turned to greet them, and Stanley ]]
and Arthur gasped: It was Mr. Wallaby
himself!
"Take a seat, copilots," the billionaire
said, his eyebrows dancing. "Let's get
this boomerang in the air!"]]
Getting Down Under
High over the Pacific Ocean? Mr.
Wallaby's voice filled the dim cockpit.
"The United States and Australia .
are like brothers, in my view," he said.
"Almost exactly on opposite sides of the
world, but we both have the same mum
and dad, don't we? England. Then we
traveled across oceans, made our own
destinies. Americans and Australians,]]
we're explorers and adventurers .. Our
countries are almost the same size. Did
you know that? Excluding Hawaii and
Alaska, of course. You boys and me, we
have a lot in common."
The last six hours had. flown by.
Stanley, Arthur, and Mr. Wallaby had
spent the entire time swapping stories
of adventure. Mr. Wallaby had climbed
Mount Everest and jumped off the
tallest building in Asia. He had driven
race cars and sailed around the world.
He had been poor as a child, and then
he made himself into one of the richest
men in Australia.
Arthur sighed. "I wish I could do
everything well, like you," he said.]]
Mr. Wallaby shook his head. "No,
mate, you got it wrong. It's the people
who think they can do everything that
get into trouble. W hat's most important
is to face up to what you can't do, and
make up for that. I learned that the
hard way."
"What do you mean?" asked Arthur.
"Take Stanley here," said Mr.
Wallaby. "He's flat. What's he have to
worry about?"
Arthur thought. "Getting sat on?"
"The ends of escalators?" guessed
Stanley.
"No!" shouted Mr. Wallaby. "The
wind! The wind is your greatest
adversary, mate! You were blown off]]
Mount Rushmore, blown halfway 
across Canada, thrown from the Great
Wall of China! You can barely make it
home from school on a windy day! If
I were you, I'd worry about the wind,
mate. That's the greatest threat to your
 well-being."
Stanley nodded. He'd never thought
about it that way. before. "So what do
you have to worry about, Mr. Wallaby?"
"Me?" The man's bushy eyebrows
collapsed, and he sighed. "Ask Ms.
Perth, she'll tell you. I lose things.
Computers, wallets, watches, papers.
If I were a kangaroo, I'd lose my pouch.
Lost my own brother in the bush once.
Still looking for him, actually."]]
Stanley was about to ask Mr. Wallaby
to explain when Arthur said, "And me?"
"You?" said Mr. Wallaby. He studied
Arthur carefully, and then his eyebrows
rose like the sun. "Cheeseburgers. Your
stomach's growling louder than my jet
engines! Bongo! Sheila!"
Torches lit the beach and music filled
the air. Hundreds of people danced in
the sand. Arthur and Stanley leaned
back against the bamboo counter,
sipping their ginger ales.
Bongo sauntered up beside them.
"Quite a party you're having, Mr.
Lambchop ! "]]
Arthur grinned. "Thanks, Bongo."
"What do you say, boys," called
Sheila from behind the counter.
"Should I throw some more prawns on
the barbie?"
Arthur leaned close to Stanley.
"Maybe this is that rhyming slang Mom
told us about," he said under his breath:
"Prawn means shrimp!" Bongo
boomed between them. "And barbie is
barbecue to you! That last bit rhymed,
didn't it?"
"Oh, grilled shrimp!" said Arthur.
"Sure, Sheila!"
"Thanks, Sheila," Stanley chimed
in. "All the food's delicious!"
"No worries! " said Sheila.]]
Two girls came up to them, giggling.
Are you Arthur Lambchop, the boy
who won the contest?" said the one
with long blonde hair.
Arthur gulped. "Yes," he said.
"Congratulations! " said . the girl.
"I'm Mimi, and this is my sister, Juli.
We read about you in the newspaper!"
Juli leaned close to Stanley. "Is it true
that you were flattened by a bulletin
board?" Her eyes were wide and crystal]]
blue like the ocean.
All Stanley could think to say was,
"Uh huh."
"We're going to dance," said Mimi.
"You should come!" said Juli.
Stanley and Arthur tried to resist,
but Juli and Mimi wouldn't take no
for an answer. Soon, they were out in
the sand, dancing and singing along
with everyone else. Then Mr. Wallaby
took the microphone and said, "To our
 grand prize winner, Arthur Lambchop,
and to his brother, Stanley! To fate and
the spirit of adventure! To Australia!"
The crowd's cheers were louder than
the sound of crashing waves. The next
thing Stanley knew, both he and his]]
brother had been hoisted into the air
and were being passed over people's
heads in time with the music.
Stanley looked up at the stars
twinkling down on his flat body as he
surfed atop the crowd. He twisted his
head and caught Arthur's eye.
"Best trip ever!" screamed Arthur.
Stanley couldn't agree more.]]
An Almost
Perfect Day
The next morning, Bongo and Sheila
took the boys surfing. The breaking
waves slapped into Stanley's flat legs as
they waded into the ocean. "Have either
of you ever surfed before?" asked Sheila.
Arthur and Stanley both shook their
heads.]]
"Stan here could be a surfboard all
by himself!" Bongo said, laughing.
"Hey, that's a good idea," said Arthur
seriously. "Maybe I could surf on
Stanley."
"I think I'd sink with you on my
back," Stanley said apologetically.
Sheila looked Stanley up and down 
and then looked at the very end of her
surfboard. "He doesn't have to stand
on your back. He can balance on the
bottoms of your feet!"
She threw her belly on her surfboard
and started paddling.
"Bongo, put the boys on your board.
Let's go catch some big ones! "]]
Here it comes! " said Arthur. "Ready?"
Stanley floated on the surface. He
twisted his head around to find a wall
of water rising behind them like a
skyscraper.
The giant wave thrust them forward
like a shot, with Arthur balancing on
the bottoms of Stanley's feet. Stanley
felt Arthur make a tiny movement,
and Stanley's body swung alongside
the wave. Arthur twitched again, and
Stanley's body swung around the other
way.
They were surfing!
Before Stanley's eyes, the wave
curled around them. Stanley could
see blue sky at the end of the tunnel]]
of water, and Arthur leaned forward.
Stanley raced on, the tunnel getting
smaller and smaller, until they burst
through a curtain of white foam into
calmer water.
"Awesome!" Arthur and Stanley
shouted together. Arthur leaped off.
"Good on ya!" cried Bongo.
"Ace! " screamed Sheila.
On the shore, Stanley could see Ms.
Perth and Mr. Wallaby pumping their
arms in the air.
That afternoon, they went snorkeling
on Mr. Wallaby's yacht .
Stanley adjusted his face mask and
snorkel and wiggled each of his feet to]]
make sure his flippers were on tight. He
gave Bongo the thumbs-up and jumped
off the back of . the yacht, following
Arthur into the water.
"There's nothing like the Great
Barrier Reef," Mr. Wallaby had told
them. "It's an underwater kingdom of
coral-alive, every bit of it. You've been
to the Great Wall of China, Stanley.
Some people think that's visible from
space, but they're wrong. The reef is the
only structure made by living things
that's grand enough for that."
A giant green sea turtle swam before
Stanley 's eyes. A school of clownfish,
with their neon orange and white
stripes, darted below.]]
Stanley pumped his flippers lightly
and burst forward through the water.
Suddenly, he realized that with his flat
shape and his flippers, he could move
very quickly. He looked around for
Arthur and spotted him in the distance.
It took only a few quick pumps of
Stanley's flippers to get to him.
Stanley held out his hand to Arthur
and gestured for him to take it.
With a kick of his flippers, Stanley
pulled Arthur along behind him, just
as Arthur had done for him so many 
times before. Together, they darted
smoothly, effortlessly, just below the
surface of the water. Bright coral in a
thousand different colors lit the way.]]
Suddenly, Arthur squeezed Stanley's
hand and gestured to their left. There
was a pair of dolphins swimming right
next to them!
Stanley reached over with his free
hand and pinched his brother.
Arthur glared as if to say, what did
you do that for?
Stanley raised his eyebrows, and
Arthur's sudden smile made it clear
he understood. Stanley was doing the
same thing Arthur had done to him
when they'd discovered Mr. Wallaby in
their living room.
We're not dreaming , they both
thought.]]

Subjective Criteria

Illustrations: Little support

Dialog: Multiple speakers

Dialog: Broken dialogue

Dialog: Unlabeled Speaker

Vocabulary: More decoding/definition issues

Language: Few descriptive words

Sentences: Multiple phrases

Text structure: Blend of written/oral

Chapters

Headings

Features

Character traits

Simple problem/solution

Topic

Travel/Traveling

Adventures

Australia/ns

Low Frequency Words

accent	adjusted	adventurers	adversary	aisle
alongside	ambled	amusement	announced	apologetically
awakened	barrier	billabong	blurted	bongo
boomerang	brimmed	bustling	butler	byes
calmer	chef	chested	clipboard	comb
commercials	congratulations	copilots	coral	curled
curtain	d'ya	delicious	destinies	disadvantages
effortlessly	engines	escalators	everest	excitedly
familiar	fascinating	flown	g'day	gestured
giggling	glared	gloved	graced	gritted
gulped	handiwork	hawaii	hoisted	hoping
icicles	instance	intoned	introduce	kanga
kingdom	language	lightly	magnate	mexican
microphone	mount	movement	mysteriously	neon
official	opposite	pacific	paddling	pouch
prawn	prawns	private	producing	rambling
reef	resist	rhymed	rhyming	roughly
saluted	sauntered	savannah	scoffed	seriously
sheila	shrugged	signify	sipping	skyscraper
smoothly	snorkel	snorkeling	solemnly	staircase
stomach's	structure	studied	surf	surfboard
surfed	surfing	swallow	swallowed	swapping
tarmac	thawed	threat	thrust	torches
trekked	trudged	twitched	underwater	unshaven
vegemite	visible	wallaby	wallaby's	wallets
whimpered	whipped	wrinkle	wrinkled	yacht
younger