-​ M: Hello everyone

-​ S: hi guys
-​ M: im mili
-​ S: and i am simi and we will be your storytellers for today
-​ M: First off, how many of you like dance???
-​ M: Oh wow!! Thats so nice !! you know, we have been learning dance for 8 years isn’t
that so long???
-​ (should we name bharatnatyam)
-​ S: Our teacher is sitting over there (point) in the audience!! She’s the one who helped us
get to this moment where we are able to show the whoooooooleeee world the power of
dance
-​ M: “Simrun, what do you mean by the power of dance? How can dance have a power?
Does it make us strong? Does it give us muscles?”
-​ S: “No mili, the power of dance, is the fact that we can use it to show anything! Be it
trees, butterflies, everyone sitting here, or even today morning’s breakfast! - anyways,
the point is, we can use dance to tell stories”
-​ S: “How many of you like to listen to stories???”
-​ S: “Well, that’s a good thing, because today, we’re going to tell a story. This story is
about an animal… can all of you guess which animal?
-​ S: “Mili, can you show them what our animal looks like”
-​ S: “Yes, you see it has biiiig flappy ears”
-​ M - “Oh oh! And you know what else??? It has a loooong trunk”
-​ S: Can any of you guess what animal this is????
-​ M - That’s right!!!! It’s an elephant!!!!
-​ S: Okay, so today’s story is all about a little elephant who’s name is Earnest.
-​ S: Can all of you show me what an elephant looks like??? Mili, why don’t you show
them?
-​ S: Earnest is a elephant who lives in zoo with many many other animals!
-​ But.. there’s a problem
-​ M - what? What’s the problem?
-​ S: Earnest is very very bored ! And he dreams of seeing the city outside of the zoo!
-​ S: So, one day, he thinks of a plan to escape… and then… he gets the big idea. He’s
going to gather his friends, take the train, jump over the zoo wall and go for a day out at
the city!
-​ S: Earnest is a friendly elephant. Mili, can you tell everyone who his friends are?
-​ M - Sure! He has many many friends! He’s friends with the bunnies- everyone, show me
bunnies! He’s friends with the deer! He’s friends with the snakes, alsooooo with the
peacocks!
-​ S: Earnest lifts up his trunk and lets out a long trumpet. Everyone, can you make the
sound of a trumpet??? Earnest needs your help!!
-​ S: Wait! Shhhh…. Do you hear that? Is that the sound of the snakes sliiiithering through
the grass? Is that the sound of the rabbits hopping out of the bushes? And that… is that
the wailing of the peacocks? Yes! Look! They’re all here and ready to escape with
Earnest.
-​ S: Alright, everyone! Earnest is ready, and he says, ‘Come on, team! Let’s hope aboard
the train and get going!’ Can all of you line up behind me just like Earnest’s friends and
form a looong train? Don’t be shy—Earnest really needs your help! Let’s show him how
brave and strong we are!
-​ S: Now remember, we have to walk very, very quietly. Shhhhhh! The zookeepers are
taking a nap. We don’t want to wake them up, do we? So, let’s tiptoe like the bunnies.
Everyone, can you show me your bunny hops? But wait, quiet hops!
-​ S: Good job, bunnies! But wait! The path is super twisty now! Oh no, we have to slither
like snakes to get through. Mili, how do snakes slither?
-​ M: Like thissss! Everyone, ssss-slide this way… and now that way! Oh wow, you’re all
such sneaky snakes!
-​ S: Oh no! What’s that sound? (cups ear dramatically) It’s the zookeeper’s boots! Quick,
everyone, freeze like the deer when they spot danger!
-​ S: That was close. Great job, everyone. The zookeeper didn’t see us! But now it’s getting
too hot, and we need to spread our feathers like peacocks to shade us. Can everyone
show me your beautiful feathers? Wow, look at all these colorful peacocks!
-​ S: And finally look at all these puddles! We can’t go around it– it’s too big. We can’t jump
over it– it’s too wide. But Earnest is an elephant isn’t he? He can stomp through it!
Quick, everyone! March like elephants! Swing your trunks! Stomp-stomp-stomp!
-​ S: We made it! Whew! But oh no, the wall is soooooo tall. How will Earnest and his
friends climb over?
-​ M: Alright, here’s the plan! Earnest says, ‘Everyone hold on to the person in front of you!
Hold on tight and jump at the count of 3!
-​ S: 1…. 2….3! Jump! We made it! Over the wall and into the city! Great job, everyone!
Earnest couldn’t have done it without you! Give me a high five and run back to your
places in the circle. Take a seat, and lets continue.

-​ M: “Wow! Look at the city! There are so many lights, cars, and ice cream stands!”
-​ S: “Earnest is soooo excited! He’s running around, and his friends are exploring
everywhere. But before we go any further, Earnest says, ‘Let’s all gather in our secret
hideout to make a plan!’”
-​ M: “Quick, everyone! Run back to your circles! That’s your secret hideout! Earnest needs
all of us there to decide what to do next!”
-​ S: “Run like elephants, swing your trunks, stomp your feet, and back to your secret
hideouts we go! Ready? 1… 2… 3… RUN!”
-​ (Wait until everyone is back in their circles.)
-​ M: “Phew! We made it to our hideouts. Take a seat, everyone, and get ready, because
the next part of the adventure is going to be even more fun!”

-​ S: "Alright, everyone! Earnest is loving the city, but oh no! He’s starting to feel hungry.
What do you think elephants like to eat?"​
(Wait for some answers.)
-​ S: "That’s right! They love fruits and sweet treats. But guess what? There’s a special
kind of food Earnest wants. He heard about something magical called nectar. Do you
know where we can find nectar?"
-​ S: "Yes! From flowers! Earnest walks around till he finds a garden.
-​ M: Oh! There’s flowers everywhere– on the trees, on the creepers, and on the ground
too! There’s surely enough nectar for all of us!
-​ S: But here’s the catch—Earnest is too big to gather nectar himself. So he needs some
busy little bees to help him out!"​
"Everyone, stand up! Let’s make a big garden. I need four of you to be beautiful flowers.
Who wants to be a flower? Raise your hands!"
-​ S: "Great! Our flowers are ready. Now, everyone else, you’re the bees! Can you buzz for
me? Buzzzzzz!"​
M: "Good job, bees! Your job is to fly to the flowers, take a tiny drop of nectar, and fly it
back to Earnest. But remember, bees are very gentle and careful. Flowers, make sure
you hold on to your nectar tightly until the bees come to collect it!"
-​ S: "Alright, bees! Let’s flap our wings and buzz over to the flowers. Ready? Buzz buzz
buzz! And when you get to a flower, gently take the nectar. Flowers, hand it to the bees
very carefully."​
(Guide the kids through pretending to pass nectar from the flowers to the bees.)
-​ M: "Now, bees, you have to fly back to Earnest and give him the nectar. Let’s buzz back!
Buzzzzz!"​
(Encourage the bees to "fly" to a spot where Earnest is.)
-​ S: "Oh wow! Earnest is so happy! He’s trumpeting to say thank you! Can we all make a
trumpet sound for Earnest?"​
(Encourage the group to trumpet.)
-​ M: "But wait! Earnest is still a little hungry. Bees, let’s go gather some more nectar. Fly
back to the flowers!"​
(Repeat the process a few times.)
 -​ S: "You’ve all worked so hard, bees! And flowers, you’ve been amazing. Earnest says,
‘Thank you so much for all your help!’ Now he’s feeling full and ready for the rest of the
adventure. Everyone, give yourselves a big round of applause!"
-​ M: "Let’s take a seat in our hideouts again and get ready for the next part of our story.
Buzz back to your circles!"
-​ ​
​
​

S: "Phew! Earnest is feeling much better after all that nectar, but he’s still full of energy! So, he
decides to wander around the park a bit more. Come on, everyone, let’s walk with Earnest.
Swing your trunks and stomp your feet like elephants! Stomp, stomp, stomp!"

M: "Wait, look over there! Earnest sees a tree full of birds. Can you hear them singing? Shhh…
let’s all listen closely."​
(Encourage the group to mimic bird sounds softly.)

S: "Wow, the birds are making such beautiful music! Earnest is so happy listening to them.
But… oh no, what’s that? I feel a drop of water. Do you feel it too?"

M: "It’s starting to rain! But look, the peacocks are so excited. They’re opening their feathers and
beginning to dance. Can you all show me how peacocks dance? Spread your arms like feathers
and twirl around!"​
(Encourage everyone to spin and sway like dancing peacocks.)

S: "The rain is so refreshing! But wait… look over there! The sun is starting to peek out from
behind the clouds. And what’s that? A rainbow! Can you all point to the rainbow?"

M: "Earnest is so amazed by the rainbow! But suddenly… THUD! Something falls on his head!
What could it be?"​
S: "Earnest looks up, and what does he see? Monkeys! They’re climbing in the branches,
dancing and jumping around. Their dancing is making fruits fall down! Quick, everyone, pretend
to be monkeys and jump around!"​
(Encourage the group to jump and act like monkeys.)

M: "Earnest is so happy! He picks up the fruits and starts eating. Everyone, pretend to eat fruits
like Earnest. Yum, yum, yum!"

S: "Now all the animals are happy. The peacocks are dancing, the monkeys are swinging, and
Earnest is full and content. But oh, look! Earnest is starting to yawn. He’s getting very, very
tired."​
M: "It’s time for Earnest and his friends to go home. Let’s walk quietly back to the zoo, just like
we did before. Tiptoe like the bunnies, slither like the snakes, and freeze like the deer if you
hear anything!"

S: "We’re back at the zoo! Earnest looks at all his friends and says, ‘Thank you for the most
amazing day ever!’ Can everyone wave goodbye to Earnest and his friends?"​
M: "Great job, everyone! You were amazing helpers today. Give yourselves a big round of
applause!"

S: "And that’s the end of our story. Remember, just like Earnest, you can go on big adventures
and make every day magical. Thank you all for being a part of our story!"