Reading and Vocabulary

Read the selection and answer each question.

Hunting for a Letterbox

1          “Wake up,” yelled Uncle Jim. “We have a big day of letterboxing ahead of us!”

2          Suzy rubbed her eyes. “What’s letterboxing?” she asked.

3          “I’ll tell you and your sister about it at breakfast,” Uncle Jim said.

4          Suzy and her sister Kayla were staying with their aunt and uncle while their mom was away. They sleepily walked into the kitchen and sat at the table with Uncle Jim and Aunt Jessie. “So, what exactly is letterboxing?” asked Suzy.

5          “A letterbox is a small box hidden somewhere outside,” Aunt Jessie said. “The box holds a notebook, an ink pad, and a rubber stamp. Letterboxers—people like us— post hints about where they have hidden their boxes and hunt for boxes left by other letterboxers. When we find a box, we use our own stamp to mark the notebook in the box. Then we use the stamp from the box we found to mark our own notebook. Finally, we put the box back in its hiding place.”

6          “It sounds like a treasure hunt!” said Kayla.

7          “I’d rather shoot baskets,” Suzy said, grabbing her basketball.

8          “What do we do first?” Kayla asked, looking at Uncle Jim and Aunt Jessie.

9          “We have to make a special stamp just for you,” said Aunt Jessie.

10        Uncle Jim helped Kayla draw a little rose on a pink eraser and cut around the lines of the drawing. The eraser was now a stamp.

11        Aunt Jessie showed Kayla how to press the stamp onto an ink pad and then onto the page. When Kayla lifted the stamp, there was a perfect print of her rose.

12        “It works!” Kayla cried.

13        Uncle Jim smiled and handed Kayla a new notebook. “This will be your letterboxing notebook,” he said. “Ready to go, Suzy?”

14        “Can’t I please stay here?” Suzy begged, still holding her basketball.

15        “Sorry, but you’re coming with us,” laughed Uncle Jim.

16        Suzy sighed, but she put the ball down and got in the car.

17        At the park, they watched a video together on Uncle Jim’s phone. “Go to Pinetree Pass. Find a large cracked rock by the waterfall,” the woman in the video explained.

18        Uncle Jim pointed. “Pinetree Pass is at the top of the hill. We’ve got some climbing to do!”

19        When they finally reached the top, Suzy noted, “There’s the waterfall, but I don’t see the cracked rock.”

20        Everyone spread out and began searching. “I think I found it!” Kayla shouted, pointing to a rock split down the middle. Everyone came running. Aunt Jessie reached into the crack and pulled out a small box.

21        They all cheered as they opened the letterbox. Kayla, Uncle Jim, and Aunt Jessie marked the notebook with their stamps. Then they used the stamp in the box to mark their own notebooks.

22        “Can I put the letterbox back?” asked Suzy.

23        Aunt Jessie handed Suzy the box. Suzy carefully placed the box back where they had found it. She turned to Aunt Jessie and Uncle Jim. “When we get home, would you help me make my own stamp?” Suzy asked.

24        “That sounds like a plan,” said Uncle Jim. “We’ll even have time to go letterboxing again before you and Kayla leave.”

25        “I hope so. I already know what I want my stamp to look like,” said Suzy.

26        “A basketball?” asked Kayla.

27        “How did you know?” said Suzy.

28        “Just a lucky guess,” Kayla laughed.