Read, Count, Play – Every Child, Every Day!

Pendo, Our Cow

by

Illustrated by

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This is Ndalo.

  1. Identify together the kinds of animals you see and count each type.
  2. Which type of animal in this picture is there the most of?
  3. Count together the buttons on Ndalo’s shirt.
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Ndalo likes to read books.

  1. Count together the books in front of Ndalo on the table.
  2. You can see on his face how much he likes to read!
  3. Do you like hearing stories from books?
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This is Pendo.

  1. There are many little details in this picture. Count the animals that you can find.
  2. How many trees and power poles do you see?
  3. Point at and count the people moving around that you can just barely see.
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Pendo likes to eat carrots.

  1. Can you tell by looking at Pendo that Pendo likes carrots?
  2. Do you like eating carrots? What is your favorite vegetable?
  3. Pendo is eating two carrots, and Ndalo is holding three more carrots. What is three more than two?
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Ndalo grazes Pendo after school.

  1. Count all the different animals in the yard, or just count your favorites.
  2. Which type of animal is there the most of and which has the least?
  3. What food are Pendo and the goats eating? Do you suppose you would like eating grass?
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He gives fresh water to Pendo.

  1. Ndalo is very good about taking care of Pendo. Do you have any animals that you care for?
  2. Point at the many colors – Pendo is brown, Ndalo’s shirt is blue, the pail is yellow, the grass is green, and the underside of the water basin is pink.
  3. Pendo looks very big next to Ndalo. How many times bigger than Ndalo do you think Pendo is?
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Father gives grain to Pendo.

  1. The cat is watching Pendo eat the grain.. Do you think the cat wants some of the grain?
  2. What do you think the cat is waiting for?
  3. Pendo provides the family with a lot of milk. What does the cat provide the family?
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He milks Pendo every day.

  1. The cat is still waiting. Perhaps the cat is hoping for some splashed milk?
  2. Why are Pendo’s back two legs tied to a post? Do you think she likes being milked?
  3. A rectangle is a four-sided shape like this page. Point at a few of the many rectangles in this picture.
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Pendo gives a lot of milk.

  1. Count together the number of milk containers.
  2. The window behind them is split into parts called panes. How many panes are there?
  3. Liquid containers are often round, but sometimes milk comes in milk cartons in the shape of boxes.
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Father sells Pendo’s milk.

  1. His father’s shirt has some interesting patterns. Point at and describe the stripes and black diamonds.
  2. Describe this woman’s colorful dress.
  3. What is the picture on the paper on the wall? The sign says "Milk here."
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Ndalo drinks fresh milk every day.

  1. How can you tell Ndalo has been drinking milk?
  2. When you drink something, do you end up with the liquid around your mouth?
  3. There are many rectangles here. Count the doors and windows that you can see. Are there more or less doors than windows?
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He says, “Thank you Pendo!”

  1. Ndalo’s family feeds and takes care of Pendo, and Pendo gives them milk. Does that seem like a fair trade?
  2. Talk about some of the places your food comes from.
  3. Are you thankful for where your food comes from?

You are free to download, copy, translate or adapt this story and use the illustrations as long as you attribute in the following way:

Pendo, our cow
Author — Ruth Odondi
Adaptation — Ruth Odondi
Illustration — Rob Owen
Language — English
LeLevel — First words
© African Storybook Initiative and Molteno Institute, 2014
Creative Commons: Attribution 4.0
Source www.africanstorybook.org

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