Tulip Tales Worksheet
Grades 2-3 Reading & Grammar
Tulip Tales
A Proofreading Adventure through the Story of Thumbelina
Story Doctor's Mission:
Oh no! The beautiful story of Thumbelina is scrambled with exactly 25 numbered errors in capitalization and end punctuation. Read the story carefully. Find the error next to each badge, then circle the correct choice in your Editor's Journal on Page 2!
1once upon a time, a kind woman wished with all her heart for a tiny child2 She visited a wise old witch, who gave her a magical seed. The woman planted it, and a beautiful tulip bloomed3? When the petals opened, a lovely little girl sat inside. She was no bigger than a thumb, so she was named 4thumbelina.
Her bed was a smooth walnut shell5 6she slept on soft, blue flower leaves. During the day, she floated happily on a tulip leaf in a plate of water7 8one night, an ugly old toad crawled through a broken window pane. 9she took the sleeping girl away to the river to be a wife for her son.
The toad put Thumbelina on a big green water-lily leaf in the middle of the brook10 11when the poor girl woke up, she began to cry. The little fish swimming in the water felt sorry for her. They bit through the leaf's stem12 13the leaf floated far down the river, carrying her away to safety.
14all summer long, Thumbelina lived alone in the big forest. She made a tiny bed out of grass blades15 16she ate sweet honey from the flowers and drank the morning dew. But then, the cold, freezing winter arrived17?
She was very cold, so she found the cozy home of a kind field mouse18 Soon, their rich neighbor, 19mr. Mole, came to visit. He wore a black coat and did not like the warm sunshine20 "Will you marry him and live in the dark earth21," asked the mouse. Thumbelina felt very sad.
In a dark tunnel, she found a cold, hurt swallow22 23she cared for him and made a warm blanket of soft hay to cover him. By spring, the swallow was strong enough to fly24 "Come with me!" he chirped. "We will fly to warm lands!"
The bird flew with her to a land of bright sunshine. There, she met the King of the Flower Angels and became his 25queen? She finally found her true, happy home among the blossoms.
* READ CAREFULLY * TURN PAGE FOR EDITOR'S JOURNAL * PAGE 1 OF 2 *
Editor's Journal
Correct the 25 errors from the story of Thumbelina.
Total Score ______ / 25
Name:
Date:
Class:
Circle the correct multiple-choice option (A, B, or C) to fix each numbered error!
Capitalization Punctuation
My Correction Options
1
A once B Once C ONCE
2
A child B child. C child?
3
A bloomed. B bloomed? C bloomed,
4
A thumbelina B Thumbelina C ThumbElina
5
A shell. B shell C shell,
6
A she B She C SHE
7
A water. B water C water,
8
A one B One C ONE
9
A she B She C sHe
10
A brook. B brook C brook?
11
A when B When C WHEN
12
A stem. B stem C stem,
13
A the B The C THE
My Correction Options
14
A all B All C ALL
15
A blades. B blades C blades?
16
A she B She C sHe
17
A arrived. B arrived? C arrived,
18
A mouse. B mouse C mouse,
19
A mr. B Mr. C MR.
20
A sunshine. B sunshine C sunshine?
21
A earth? B earth, C earth.
22
A swallow. B swallow C swallow,
23
A she B She C ShE
24
A fly. B fly C fly?
25
A queen. B queen? C queen,
* WRITE NEATLY * DOUBLE CHECK YOUR WORK * PAGE 2 OF 2 *
Tulip Tales Answer Key
TEACHER ANSWER KEY
Tulip Tales Key
In-Line Corrections (Simplified 2nd-3rd Grade Reading Level)
Grading Guide:
Below is the complete simplified story with all 25 errors corrected. Capitalization changes are shown in orange/yellow and punctuation additions/corrections are shown in green.
1Once upon a time, a kind woman wished with all her heart for a tiny child2. She visited a wise old witch, who gave her a magical seed. The woman planted it, and a beautiful tulip bloomed3. / ! (replaced "?") When the petals opened, a lovely little girl sat inside. She was no bigger than a thumb, so she was named 4Thumbelina.
Her bed was a smooth walnut shell5. 6She slept on soft, blue flower leaves. During the day, she floated happily on a tulip leaf in a plate of water7. 8One night, an ugly old toad crawled through a broken window pane. 9She took the sleeping girl away to the river to be a wife for her son.
The toad put Thumbelina on a big green water-lily leaf in the middle of the brook10. 11When the poor girl woke up, she began to cry. The little fish swimming in the water felt sorry for her. They bit through the leaf's stem12. 13The leaf floated far down the river, carrying her away to safety.
14All summer long, Thumbelina lived alone in the big forest. She made a tiny bed out of grass blades15. 16She ate sweet honey from the flowers and drank the morning dew. But then, the cold, freezing winter arrived17. / ! (replaced "?")
She was very cold, so she found the cozy home of a kind field mouse18. Soon, their rich neighbor, 19Mr. Mole, came to visit. He wore a black coat and did not like the warm sunshine20. "Will you marry him and live in the dark earth21?(replaced ",")" asked the mouse. Thumbelina felt very sad.
In a dark tunnel, she found a cold, hurt swallow22. 23She cared for him and made a warm blanket of soft hay to cover him. By spring, the swallow was strong enough to fly24. "Come with me!" he chirped. "We will fly to warm lands!"
The bird flew with her to a land of bright sunshine. There, she met the King of the Flower Angels and became his 25queen. / queen! (replaced "?") She finally found her true, happy home among the blossoms.
* TEACHER USE ONLY * TURN FOR COMPLETED JOURNAL KEY * PAGE 1 OF 2 *
Editor's Journal Key
Quick-grading sheet with exact student response values.
Grading Guide 23-25 = A 20-22 = B
17-19 = C 14-16 = D
Scoring Rubric: Award 1 point for each correct multiple-choice option selected. Correct answers are highlighted in green.
Expected Answer Options
1
A once B Once C ONCE
2
A child B child. C child?
3
A bloomed. B bloomed? C bloomed,
