Let Me Help!Electronic book published by ipicturebooks.com24 W. 25th St. New York, NY 10011 www.ipicturebooks.comAll rights reserved. Copyright 1999 by The Millbrook Press, Inc.Real Kids Readers and the Real Kids Readers logo are trademarks of The Millbrook Press, Inc.No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. To the greatest godchildren in the world Brain Baumann, Tara Pasqualone, and Elizabeth Pollice thanks for all those proud moments L. V. T.For Myles D. H.Special thanks to Lands End, Dodgeville, WI, for providing Taras clothing and to Mattituck Florist and Garden shop, Mattituck, NY, for providing gardening supplies.e-ISBN 1-58824-472-5 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication DataTidd, Louise.Let me help! / Louise Vitellaro Tidd ; photographs by Dorothy Handelman.p. cm. (Real kids readers. Level 2)Summary: Tara tries to help her father with his chores but only succeeds in making more work for him.ISBN 0-7613-2067-9 (lib. bdg.). ISBN 0-7613-2092-X (pbk.)1. Helpfulness Fiction. 2. Fathers and daughters Fiction. I. Handelman, Dorothy, ill. II. Title. III. Series. PZ7.T4345Le 1999 Edc21Let Me Help!By Louise Vitellaro TiddPhotographs by Dorothy HandelmanDad has a lot to do today. He makes a list of his jobs.4Tara wants to help. “What will you do first?” she asks.“I will put all these books away,” says Dad. “Thats not hard,” says Tara. “Let me help.” “Be careful,” says Dad. “Dont rush.”67Too late! Tara bumps into the books. “Oh, no!” she says. “Sorry, Dad.” “Thats okay,” says Dad. “We can clean this up together.” They pick up the books and put them away.9Now Dad has to plant seeds. Tara wants to help. She lifts the bag of dirt. “Be careful,” says Dad. “That bag is heavy.”The bag falls to the floor. “Oh, no!” says Tara. “What a mess!” She feels bad. But Dad says, “No harm done. We can clean this up together.” They sweep up all the dirt. Then they plant the seeds in the pots and water them.1213“Now Ill put away the clothes,” says Dad. “I know where they go,” says Tara. “Let me help.”14“Wait, Tara,” says Dad. “That basket is too big for you.” But Tara wants to help. She tries to carry all the clothes.16The basket tips and falls. “Oh, no!” says Tara. “The clothes fell on the pots. Now they are dirty!”18“Oh, well,” says Dad. “We can clean this up together.” They wash and dry the clothes. Then they put them away.19“Time to paint the wall,” says Dad. He gets out the things he needs. “Wow!” says Tara. “I love to paint. Let me help.” “Wait, Tara!” says Dad. “I dont think you can reach the paint.” Tara tries anyway_and the paint spills. Splash!20Tara starts to cry. “Now look what I did!” she sobs.“I really want to help. But all I do is make messes.” “Dont feel bad,” says Dad. “We can clean this up together.” He gives Tara a hug. “Im glad you want to help,” he says. “You just have to slow down and be more careful.”23Tara and Dad clean up the mess. He paints the wall. Then they go to the store. Tara helps get the food they need. She doesnt rush. She doesnt try to pick up things that are too heavy, or too big, or out of reach.2425When they get home, Tara opens the door for Dad. He brings in two bags of food. “Wait, Dad,” says Tara. “Those bags look heavy.” “Its okay,” says Dad. “I can carry them.”2627The bags slip from Dads hands. Crash! They hit the floor.28“Oh, no!” he says. “What a mess! Maybe I should slow down and be more careful too.”Tara gives Dad a hug. “Its okay. Dont feel bad,” she says. “We can clean this up together.”30Phonic Guidelines Use the following guidelines to help your child read the words in Let Me Help!Short Vowels When two consonants surround a vowel, the sound of the vowel is usually short. This means you pronounce a as in apple, e as in egg, i as in igloo, o as in octopus, and u as in umbrella. Short-vowel words in this story include: bad, bag, big, but, can, Dad, did, get, has, his, hit, hug, jobs, let, lot, not, sobs, tips.Short-Vowel words with Consonant Blends When two or more different consonants are side by side, they usually blend to make a combined sound. In this story, short-vowel words with consonant blends include: brings, bumps, glad, hands, help, just, lifts, list, plant, slip, spills.Double Consonants When two identical consonants appear side by side, one of them is silent. In this story, double consonants appear in the short-vowel words kiss and tell, and in the all-family words all, falls, wall.R-Controlled Vowels When a vowel is followed by the letter r, its sound is changed by the r. In this story, words with r-controlled vowels include: are, dirt, first, for, hard, harm, more, starts.Long Vowel and Silent E If a word has a vowel and ends with an e, usually the vowel is long and the e is silent. Long vowels are pronounced the same