A CHOICE-FILLED ADVENTURE STORY
THE PURPLE PLANET WONDERLAND— Hunt for the Space Gem
Written by Students of MR. WILLSON’S 5TH GRADE CLASS at MITCHELL ELEMENTARY
FIRST EDITION PRINTED AND BOUND AT 826MICHIGAN
Copyright © 2021 by 826michigan and Blotch Books. All rights reserved by 826michigan, the many whims of Drs. T & G Blotch, and the authors. The views expressed in this book are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of 826michigan. We believe in the power of youth voice and are thrilled that you picked up this book. No part of this book may be reproduced without express written permission from the publisher, except for small excerpts for the purposes of review or scholarly study. By purchasing this book, you are helping 826michigan continue to offer free student programs. For more information, please visit: 826michigan.org
You accidentally teleport to space to a medieval village surrounded by a purple jungle! The village has a medieval Target store that sells dragons as pets. In the jungle, there is a huge dragon tree bridge. The medieval people want you to find a valuable gem to help stop the dragon war. You have to explore the purple jungle, but watch out for the toxic gas!
If you decide to find the valuable gem, turn to page 2. If you decide to stay in the purple jungle, turn to page 3.
1
You decide to go find the valuable gem. The gem is fiery looking and is pink, purple, and green. Before you go, a villager gives you a map. You notice a secret message on the map. It says to eat the gem. On your way into the purple jungle, you notice it is guarded by tigers! There’s one tiger that is two hundred feet tall and one hundred feet wide. You find a blue gem and eat it. You get water and ice powers that you use to freeze the tiger. The jungle smells toxic so you have to wear a mask. You hear crunching leaves and the sounds of birds. When you first step into the jungle, you can either go to the cave or you can go and look through the dark part of the jungle where it is really, really dangerous.
If you decide to go into the cave, turn to page 4. If you decide to explore the dark part of the jungle, turn to page 5.
2
You decide to stay in the purple jungle and go back to the village. At the medieval Target, you buy the supplies to make a face mask. You need a mask so you don’t breathe in the toxic dragon gas. At the Target, you also want to get some food. You buy purple jungle food and a drink from Starbucks. The jungle food is purple meat and purple fruit. From Starbucks, you choose a purple cake pop and a rainbow Frappuccino. After eating, you change into clothes that match the medieval villagers so you can blend in with them. The villagers wear purple camo dragon clothes, so you have to match them. Do you want to stay and explore the village, or try to get home?
If you decide to explore the village, turn to page 6. If you decide to try to get home, turn to page 7.
3
You choose to go into the cave. The cave is really hot and dark, but you see a very soft blue light. Medium-sized model planes are scattered around and are hanging down from the cave. The blue light illuminates little fireflies that give off light, but it isn’t very bright. They’re small and look like the fireflies from Princess and the Frog. You hear talking and when you go look at what it is, you find that people are guarding the gem. The guards live in the red side of the jungle and instead of purple camo, they wear red camo. The crystal is in the wall. The entire wall is the color of the gem, a fiery purple-pink-green. There are little cracks the same color of the gem with light coming out. You have to search for the gem in the wall! The guards are making a half-circle around the gem. They’re making jokes and taking a lunch break. They aren’t taking the job seriously. You can politely ask for the gem or attack the guards.
If you decide to politely ask for the gem, write your own ending. If you decide to attack, write your own ending.
4
(start again at page 1)
You decide to go into the dark part of the jungle. There are huge, red spiders. You are clueless. The spiders may be evil. You start sprinting away. There’s an evil enchantress who has a staff. She can summon the spiders. You decide to compromise with the evil enchantress so she never comes back. She wants a baby dragon from Target.
If you decide to get her the baby dragon, write your own ending. If you decide to not get her the baby dragon,
write your own ending. 5
(start again at page 1)
You walk down the road and see different shops. The road is cobblestone and old. The stones in the road are starting to crumble. You see a ton of dragons and a pet store with a couple of very rare animals. You also see a colorful bakery and a farmer’s market that sells purple vegetables. The bakery smells really good, like vanilla and chocolate and a lot of sweet things. There is farmland with livestock and plants in the distance too. There is also a candy shop with candies made from things you can only find on this planet, but there are things from Earth too. The Earth candies are really expensive because they have to be flown in from a different planet. You meet a lot of very friendly people. Years ago, they came from Earth and decided to live in this village. On the road, you find a map of the village. Usually, the map shows all of the shops and where to find them. But this map shows some suspicious rocks too. The shops are just outlines, but the rocks are very detailed. This makes you even more curious about them. Do you stay and continue exploring the village or go to explore the suspicious rocks?
If you decide to stay in the village, write your own ending. If you decide to explore the suspicious rocks,
write your own ending. 6
(start again at page 1)
You talk to the villagers about teleportation. The medieval villagers give you many different options to get back home like, such as flying on a donkey or walking into a big tree. You teleport into a floating ocean in the middle of space and do not make it home. You fall through the ocean and see fish, turtles and seaweed, but they are all frozen because they are in space. At the bottom of the floating ocean, you see a dragon covered in glowing moss that says she will take you home.
If you explore the floating ocean more, write your own ending. If you decide to go with the dragon, write your own ending.
7
(start again at page 1)
inspires school-aged students to write with skill and confidence in collaboration with adult volunteers in their communities. Our writing and tutoring programs uphold a culture of creativity and imagination and support students in establishing strong habits of mind. Through publication and community engagement, we provide students with an authentic and enthusiastic audience for their writing. Our programs provide an energizing creative outlet for students and meaningful volunteer opportunities for community members. We believe that with one-onone attention from caring adults, students improve their academic performance, develop a sense of belonging, and discover the unique value of their voices. We also believe that the more fun a student has, and the more directly we speak to a student’s interests, the more we can help students find the fun in learning. That’s why our programs are more than just extra homework. All of our programs are challenging and enjoyable, and ultimately strengthen each student’s power to express ideas effectively, creatively, confidently, and in their individual voice. ONLINE LEARNING LAB In the spring of 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we quickly transitioned all of our programs online. Our priority is to ensure the safety of our community, while continuing to offer engaging, high-quality opportunities to students. Each of our main programs—Schoolwork Support, Workshops, Field Trips, and In-school Projects—has been reimagined for the virtual space as part of our new Online Learning Lab. For the 2020–21 school year, our programs will remain virtual. When is it safe to return to our in-person programs, we plan to continue to offer virtual program opportunities as well! SCHOOLWORK SUPPORT The program formerly-known as tutoring has been given an updated name, but the same great foundations remain. We organize trained volunteer tutors to work with students one-on-one with their homework after school. Schoolwork Support is available for all subjects, for students ages 8–18. Generally, we offer this program at three locations: at our Liberty Street Lab in Ann Arbor, at the Michigan Avenue Branch of the Ypsilanti District Library, and at our Winder Street Lab in Detroit’s Eastern Market, though in-person programs are on pause this year. We have added a Virtual Schoolwork Support program. Students are paired with two tutors to work on assignments for school and writing projects of their choosing.
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WRITING IS
A way to figure things out by ourselves
We create a safe place to be ourselves and try new things We support the ways that writers work (like thinking, sketching, talking)
A way to help us connect to our world
We study the writing we want to do so we can try it We learn how to change our writing for genre, audience, and purpose
A way to help us learn who we are and who we will become
We work with a group of writers who help and support each other
A way for us to use our power to make changes and build a better world
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826 National was inspired to take a stand on issues of inclusion and diversity in light of the many events that spotlighted social and racial injustices throughout the country. We as educators, volunteers, and caring adults need to be aware of the wide range of issues our students face on a day-to-day basis. We need to support these young people as they navigate through and try to make sense of the world and their own identities. We need the support and the feedback from our community to ensure 826 is living up to these standards. Through our inclusion statement, our internal diversity and inclusion group, cultural competency resources provided to staff and volunteers, and partnerships with other organizations, we are always working towards being a more inclusive and supportive organization. We at 826 have the privilege of working with the next generation of scholars, teachers, doctors, artists, lawyers, and writers. It's our job to make sure they are able to take their own stands. As an organization committed to encouraging youth in their creative expression, personal growth, and academic success, 826 National and its chapters recognize the importance of diversity at all levels and in all aspects of our work. In order to build and maintain the safe, supportive 826 environment in which great leaps in learning happen, we commit ourselves to inclusion: we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, ethnicity, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, nationality, marital status, English fluency, parental status, military service, or disability. The 826 National network is committed to encouraging youth to express themselves and to use the written word to effectively do so. We encourage our students to write, take chances, make decisions, and finish what they start. And 826 strives to do this in an environment free from discrimination and exclusion.
by Gerald Richards, CEO
826michigan inspires school-aged students to write with skill and confidence in collaboration with adult volunteers in their communities.
Find out more at 826michigan.org!