The Pollution Solution
Illustration of two children near a polluted lake.
Written by Pat Kennedy, Susan Hatfield,
and Beth Neiser from Centerville Elementary School in Barnstable, MA
Illustrated by Darcy Schwartz
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Dedicated to all the Centerville children who care about the Earth.
 
 
 
 
 

Special thanks to the Massachusetts Department of Education whose funding supported teachers and parents in the development of this story. © CAST, 2005


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Illustration of Charlene at her mailbox.
“Mom, Mom!  I just got a letter from Zack!”  He says he’s coming next week!” exclaimed Charlene.  “You haven’t seen your cousin since last summer,” said her Mom.  “Please, read me the letter.”
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Illustration of a letter.
Charlene sat down in her mom’s lap to read the letter.
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June 30

Dear Charlene,

     Guess What?  I’m coming to your house next week to visit. I’ll be there on the 4th of July.  I can’t wait to swim again in Crystal Lake like we did last summer!  I’m bringing my mask and snorkel to look for treasures on the bottom of the clear lake.  See you next week!

Love,
Zack

P.S. I wonder how many frogs we’ll see this year!
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Illustration of Charlene thinking.
Charlene’s mother said with a smile, “You two were in that lake from sunup till sundown last summer! The only time you came out of the lake was for lunch and a tasty popsicle.”
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Illustration of the July page in a calendar.
Charlene was so excited about Zack’s visit, she could hardly wait.  As each day passed, she marked it on the calendar. Tomorrow was the big day!
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Illustration of a letter.
Meanwhile, down at the shores of Crystal Lake, Nader Frog was reading a letter from his cousin Lilly.
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June 30

Dear Nader,

Guess What? I’m coming to the lake next week to visit. I’ll be there on the 4th of July. I can’t wait to swim again like we did last summer. I’m bringing my mask and snorkel so we can search for treasures at the bottom of the clear lake. See you next week!

Love,
Lilly


P.S. I wonder how many kids we’ll see this year!
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Illustration of Nader thinking.
Nader remembered how much fun they had last summer. He couldn’t wait to see Lilly.
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Illustration of the July page of a calendar.
As each day passed he marked it on the calendar. Tomorrow was the big day!
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Illustration of Charlene greeting Zack.
Charlene sprang out of bed excited about the big day.  It was July 4th!  She gobbled up her bagel as fast as she could and then she heard a door slam outside. She knew it must be Zack! Her heart was beating fast when she jumped up from the table and ran out the door to greet Zack.
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Illustration of Charlene and Zack walking together.
Charlene and Zack begged their parents, “Can we please go down to the lake now?”  Their parents replied, “Yes, but no swimming until we get down there.”
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Illustration of a polluted lake.
Meanwhile, Nader Frog heard a noise and he gobbled up his last fly knowing that Lilly had arrived. Nader leaped from his lily pad to the edge of the lake in one single bound!
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Illustration of Nader and Lilly at a polluted lake.
Lilly looked around the lake and croaked, “Nader, what happened to your crystal clear lake?”  With a tear in his eye, Nader told Lilly how people have been enjoying the lake, but not cleaning up after themselves.  “They use the lake as their trash can and now no one can swim in it anymore.  Even my beautiful lily pads have begun to die.”
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Illustration of Charlene and Zack crying.

When Charlene and Zack arrived at the lake they couldn’t believe what they saw. Crystal Lake was so dirty.

Zack and Charlene looked at each other with tears in their eyes and cried at the same time, “What happened  to our beautiful clear lake?”
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Illustration of Charlene and Zack looking at trash on the ground.
Zack and Charlene looked around at all the garbage and then they saw the empty trash can.
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Illustration of Charlene and Zack smiling.
“I’ve got an idea,” said Charlene.  "Let’s get some friends and clean this mess up.”  Nader and Lilly smiled as they listened to  Zack and Charlene. 
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Illustration of people cleaning up the trash.
The whole neighborhood joined together to clean up Crystal Lake. It was a huge success!  Crystal Lake was once again crystal clear.
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The End!
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