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TEACHER RESOURCES
A Rainbow Story: How the Sky's Housekeeper Wore Her Scarves (adapted by Joanne Cleary and Lisa Troy, 2003, from the book by Patricia Hooper) Narrator: In a house at the back of the wind lived an old woman who kept seven colorful scarves tucked in a box. On Monday she wore the RED one when she went to polish the sun.
Sun: (standing on box) Thank you for polishing me. I feel much brighter.(beaming brightly and proudly)
Narrator: On Tuesdays she wore the orange one when she went to dust off the moon.
Moon: That tickles! (giggling)
Narrator: On Wednesdays she wore the yellow one when she went to straighten the stars.
Stars: (standing with arms spread) Thank you Old Woman!
Narrator: On Thursdays she wore the green one when she went to wind up the comets.
Comets: Thank you! Whee-e-e-e-e! (Comets whiz around the sun and back to their places)
Narrator: On Fridays she wore the blue one when she went to sweep off the Milky Way.
Milky Way: (standing with arms around each other) (turning around slowly in place) Thank you old woman for sweeping us. I'm dizzy.
Narrator: On Saturdays she wore the indigo one when she went with her bucket of soap suds to scrub the planets.
Planets: (giggling) That's funny. Thank you Old Woman. It makes me so clean.
Narrator: And on Sundays she wore the violet one when she sat with her sewing basket and mended clouds.
Clouds: Good Morning old woman. How are you today?
Clouds: Fine, thank you.
Narrator: She had lived longer than even the sun could
remember, and had always worn one of her scarves when she
did her work. One morning, as the old woman was sorting the
wind's laundry the rain knocked at her window and said:
Rain: (knocks at the window) Come out old woman!
Old Woman: What is it you want? (pressing her ear to the glass.)
Rain: I want things to be different. (Moaning) The sun is so cheerful, just seeing him makes me happy. But whenever he sees me coming, he disappears.
Old Woman: That's how the sun is. He loves his own brightness and hates to see anything dreary. But, why have you come to me?
Rain: I've seen you wearing your scarves. I love all your colors! I always feel much better if I can see you. But, i've seen you only on sunny days, when I have to stay in my bedroom. Since your scarves are so much like sunlight, I want you to come out when I do to cheer me up.
Old Woman: That's not such a good idea. Let me talk to the sun first. Come back after he's polished and maybe I'll have an answer.
Narrator: The old woman had an idea of her own. She thought that if she could get the sun to shine when it rained, she wouldn't have to get all wet and be out in the dark. So that afternoon the old woman put on her red scarf and went to polish the sun. The sun was very happy to have her visit.
Old Woman: I have a favor to ask. I want you to shine when it rains.
Sun: (angrily and loud) What a terrible thought! I should have said "Anything but that!"(sun makes a wailing sound)
Narrator: He wailed so loudly that everything in the sky was afraid. (everyone on stage places hands on ears)
All: Stop!
Old Woman: Never mind! I shall have to try to cheer up the rain myself.
Narrator: She went home. Soon she noticed the rain coming.
Old Woman: Oh dear! What shall I do? He wants me to walk through the sky when the sun is hiding. But suppose I should get lost? I won't have enough light to see my way back home.
Narrator: Because she knew her decision would disappoint him, she closed her curtain and crept under the table. And the Rain began to shout:
Rain: Old Woman, Old Woman, what did the sun say?
Old Woman: (whispers to the side) I hope he can't see me here.
Narrator: The rain tapped for days at her kitchen roof. She would not come out. She completely forgot about doing her jobs. Suddenly she heard a voice calling her. It sounded like the moon.
Moon: Old Woman, I am all dusty!
Stars: Old Woman, We are all so crooked!
Comets: Old Woman, We can't chase each other.
Milky Way: Old Woman, We're all covered with cobwebs.
Planets: Old Woman, Come scrub us. We are so dirty.
Clouds: Old Woman, We're ripped. We need some sewing.
Sun: Old Woman, Come back! I need polishing!
Narrator: When the old woman heard him, she crept out of hiding and peeked through a hole in her curtain and looked at the sky.
Old Woman: Oh, dear, what have I done? All week I've neglected my jobs, and now I must do them all in spite of the weather.
Narrator: Because she had so much to do in a single day she quickly put on all her scarves at once.
Sun: Hurry!
Narrator: Although it was still raining he shone as much as he could so the old woman could find him. To avoid getting lost in the rain, the old woman tied one end of each of her scarves to the fence post, making the way back. Then she climbed into the heavens. (gives each of her scarves to the characters to hold acting as a fence) As she went, she dusted and straightened and wound and swept and scrubbed and mended. When she had polished the sun she sat down on the horizon.
Old Woman: It's time to find my way back. Thank goodness I tied the ends of my scarves to the fence post.
Narrator: The rain called out to the old woman.
Rain: (Shouting) Old Woman, look at the sky!
All: (Shouting) Old Woman, look at the sky!
Narrator: When the old woman looked up, she cried out with pleasure.
Old Woman: Oh my! How beautiful! (Children throw scarves in the air)
All: It's Beautiful! Thank-you!
Narrator: There were the rain falling in the east and the sun shining in the west and there were her scarves, shimmering in an arc at the sky's center. The sun shouted excitedly.
Sun: Rain, the sky never looked better! If you had not come the old woman would never have tied all of her scarves to the fence post. And if I had not shone, they would never have seemed so bright. Rain, we should meet again whenever the old woman asks!
Rain: We should!
All: They should! Narrator: And on certain days, when the sun is shining and the rain is falling you can see the old woman's scarves (throwing scarves in turn) Sun: Red
Moon: Orange
Stars: Yellow
Comets: Green
Milky Way: Blue
Planets: Indigo
Narrator: And
Clouds: Violet
Narrator: Stretching in an arc from one end of the sky to the other.
ALL: The Rain comes down, The sun breaks through, A beautiful rainbow, For me and you!
(All bow)
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