The Reed Kite
Owen wants to take the reed kite he made himself to the kite festival in Alaçatı. But every time he tries, his kite rises a few metres, spins round and round, and crashes to the ground. The festival is on Sunday. Together with Owen, you'll experiment and discover why this kite keeps spinning!
Free story — no account needed to read it.
8 Minutes
4 Endings
9-10
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About This Story
“The Reed Kite” is an interactive educational story for children aged 9-10, about 8 minutes long. The reader decides how it goes at 5 choice points, and there are 4 different endings. It is free to read on Kitapz, with no account needed.
- Age range
- 9-10 years
- Reading time
- about 8 minutes
- Genre
- Educational
- Format
- Interactive · 5 choice points · 4 endings
- Language
- English, Turkish
- Access
- Free, no account needed
- Characters
- Owen, Mrs. Bloom, Daisy, Leo, Granny Nell, The kids at the festival
- Values
- Perseverance, Curiosity, Family
- Collections
- Educational stories, Stories for ages 9-10
- Reading support
- dyslexia-friendly font, bionic reading, color-blindness filters
An Excerpt from the Story
Owen had wanted to fly his kite in the empty lot in front of the house. But Granny Nell pointed to the power line running along the edge of the lot and brought him to this wide meadow at the foot of the hill instead. Out here there were no wires and no roads.
Owen (thinking):
This time it's going to fly, you'll see.
He lifted the reed kite above his head and let the wind take it. The kite rose a few metres, then spun round and round and crashed into the grass. The same thing happened on the second try. On the third, there was a loud rrrip, and the paper on one of the wings tore.
Owen looked up. Higher up, in front of the windmills, a few kids' plastic kites were floating perfectly steady in the sky.
Granny Nell:
“Don't be sad, sweetheart. We'll patch it with glue this evening.”
Owen (thinking):
There are still three days until the festival. I'll patch it and try again tomorrow.
“The Reed Kite” · Ages 9-10 · kitapz.com
school For Parents and Teachers
In this story, children help Owen work out, step by step, why the reed kite he made himself spins and crashes every time he launches it. His sister and the shopkeeper offer advice, but each idea gets tested in the meadow. Readers' choices decide how Owen spends his limited pocket money and which hunch he follows.
What will children learn from this story?
- Practises finding the cause of a problem by changing just one thing at a time and watching closely what happens.
- Learns to look for clues by comparing something that doesn't work with a similar thing that works well.
- Learns why kites should be flown in open spaces, away from power lines and roads.
- Thinks about how to weigh up the options when pocket money only stretches to one of two things.
Curriculum links: Science, Art, Life skills
Fact Box
Where is the safest place to fly a kite?
In an open field or on a beach with nothing in the way. NASA's kite safety advice says never to fly near trees, houses, highways or overhead power lines, because if a kite touches the lines, the electricity can kill the person flying it.
Source: NASA Glenn Research Center
What should you do if a kite gets caught on a power line?
Leave it where it is, because of the risk of electric shock. Greece's power transmission operator IPTO advises not to try to free a tangled kite by pulling the string or with any object, even a wooden one, not to climb towers, and to call the authorities straight away.
Why is the wind stronger higher up?
Air close to the ground is slowed down by friction as it rubs against the land, trees and buildings, and the rougher the surface, the more it slows. Friction matters less the higher you go, so the wind usually blows faster with height.
Source: Penn State University
Why is Alaçatı famous for windsurfing?
The main wind in the area blows from the north, and the windy season runs from May to October. The sea in Alaçatı is very shallow and calm, which makes it an ideal place for beginners to learn, and major international windsurfing contests are held there.
Reading Comprehension Questions (5W1H)
The questions cover the opening that every reader sees, whatever they choose. Tap a question to see the answer.
-
Who? Who does Owen decide to ask about making his kite stronger?
Answer: Mrs. Bloom, who runs the stationery shop.
-
What? What happens to the kite on Owen's third try?
Answer: The paper on one of the wings tears with a loud rrrip.
-
Where? Where does Granny Nell take Owen to fly his kite?
Answer: To a wide meadow at the foot of the hill, where there are no wires and no roads.
-
When? When is the kite festival?
Answer: On Sunday morning; at the start of the story it is three days away.
-
Why? Why doesn't Granny Nell let Owen fly his kite in the empty lot in front of the house?
Answer: Because a power line runs along the edge of the lot.
-
How? How does Owen fix the torn paper?
Answer: He patches the tear with glue that evening and doesn't touch anything else on the kite.
Questions to Talk About After Reading
- At the stationery shop, Owen's money would pay for either a ready-made kite or thick paper and string. Which did you choose for him, and why?
- Daisy tells Owen to just buy a ready-made kite, but he won't give up on the one he made. Have you ever kept working to fix something you made yourself? How did it feel?
- When something doesn't work the way it should, what do you do to find out why? Who would you ask, and what would you look at?
- Owen hesitates for a moment before asking his sister for help. Have you ever found it hard to ask a brother, sister or friend for help? How did you ask in the end?
Word List
- meadow
- A wide, open field covered with grass and wild flowers.
- stationery
- Paper, pens, glue and other things for writing and making; a stationery shop sells them.
- spool
- A small tube that string or thread is wound around, so you can let it out and wind it back in.
- gust
- A sudden, short rush of strong wind.
- ledge
- A low, flat shelf of stone that you can sit on, like the one Granny Nell sits on by the windmills.
- satin
- A smooth, shiny cloth; Daisy's old hair ribbons are made of it.
Activity Idea
Fold a paper plane and throw it a few times to see how it flies. Then change just one thing at a time, such as adding a paper clip to the nose, bending the wing tips up or throwing it more gently, write down what happens after each change in a table, and talk about the results together.
Completion Rewards
What you'll earn when you finish this story: