Edmund’s Pond Picture

Edmund takes his sketchbook to the pond with his class. He wants to draw the duck beside the reeds.

Crispin stands next to him on the dry path. “Look at its green head,” he says quietly.

Edmund draws a round body and a small head. Before he can draw the feet, the duck swims away.

“My picture is not finished,” says Edmund. His teacher asks him to look carefully at the water.

The duck is paddling, but its feet are hidden below the surface. Edmund can draw the ripples around it instead.

He adds curved lines behind the duck in his sketchbook. Crispin draws the tall reeds beside the pond.

The teacher puts their pictures side by side on a bench. Together, the drawings show the duck and its home.

Edmund smiles at his finished picture. “I could not see every part, but I could still draw what I saw.”