Ollie and the Pitch for Everyone
The big kids always use the pitch. So Ollie and friends make a team of their own.
Every Saturday, the big players took over Buttercup Meadow. The little ones could only watch from the fence. ‘You’re too small to play,’ the big players said. Ollie didn’t like that.
‘Let’s make our own team,’ said Ollie. ‘We can play on the corner of the grass!’ Sia the squirrel squeaked with excitement. ‘We’ll be called the Little Kickers!’
They used two wellie boots as goalposts. They drew a line in the dirt with a stick. They didn’t have a referee or a score board, but they had a ball and lots of smiles.
More and more little players came to join the Little Kickers. Soon there were so many that they didn’t fit on the corner. They spilled onto the big pitch.
‘Hey!’ grumbled Rocco the bear. ‘That’s our pitch!’ The big players marched over with their arms folded. Everyone went silent. The ball rolled slowly to a stop.
Ollie stepped forward. ‘The pitch is big enough for everybody,’ he said. ‘What if we take turns? You play in the morning, and we play after lunch.’ Rocco frowned. Then he smiled.
So that’s what they did. The big players played in the morning. The Little Kickers played in the afternoon. On Sundays, they all played together, and it was the best game of the week.
The little lesson
If there’s no space for you, you can make one, and share it too.
Let’s talk about it
- What is fair when two groups want to use the same place?
- How did the little kickers solve their problem?
Finish stories to collect Ollie as a sticker in your Sticker Book.
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