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Kate Shelley And The Midnight Express

Language: English

This is a true story of 15-year-old Kate who bravely rushed out into a storm to save two men, as well as prevent hundreds of other lives from being lost. LeVar explores Amtrak’s Coast Starlight train and sees how trains are maintained at the train yard before boarding the Coast Starlight to travel along the California coastline. Viewers tour the engineer’s cab, find out what an engineer does, and watch film clips of early trains.

  

Here are activities to do after watching this episode:

Travel Plans

Does your family ever take a vacation? Are you ever able to drive someplace, or take a train, or a bus, or maybe an airplane?

Pretend that you are going on a family vacation. Ask an adult to help you with an atlas and see if you can find five different places you would like to visit if you could choose. See how far they are away from where you live now.

Just for fun, make your own traveling suitcase.

You will need:

  • an empty box (a shoe box, empty soda-can box or small carton will do)
  • pictures from coloring books or magazines
  • scissors
  • glue or tape
  • yarn
  1. Use tape or glue to cover your box with “fun pictures” of things you like or pictures related to travel, cut from magazines or coloring books.
  2. Punch holes in the top of the box and thread yarn through it for handles.
  3. . Now fill your suitcase with anything you want to take on your imaginary trip.
  

Yummy Railroad Signs

Talk with your children about special signs they see that tell them a railroad crossing is nearby. Then have them help make this tasty snack

You will need:

  • table knife
  • roll of refrigerator sugar cookie dough
  • wooden sticks
  • cookie sheets
  • egg yolk + ¼ teaspoon of water
  • red food coloring
  • new paintbrush
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Cut the cookie dough into ¼-inch slices. Place a wooden stick on a cookie sheet, place a dough slice on top and press to about 3 inches in diameter.
  2. Repeat with the remaining cookie slices and sticks.
  3. In a small bowl, mix egg yolk and water. Add about 3 drops of red food coloring.
  4. Have your child use the paintbrush to paint a big X in the center of each cookie with the letter R on each side, as seen on a railroad crossing sign.

Bake cookies for 7 to 10 minutes or until golden. Remove from sheets and cool on a rack.

Check out some of these books on your
next trip to the library:

  • The Train To Lulu’s by Elizabeth Fitzgerald Howard
  • The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper
  • The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg

READING RAINBOW has a resource library that includes teacher guide materials as well as reading programs for use in the public libraries. You can download these resources from GPN at:
www.gpnresources.com

If you would like more information about READING RAINBOW or if you would like to learn more about other educational products please visit the GPN web site.

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