Smaller Songs at Bedtime
My nephew's four. He likes the one about the bear who can't find his hat. Same words every night, same order. He'd notice if I changed a line.
I've been thinking about what we read kids at bedtime. The form does a specific job. Repetition, soft landings, goodnight. It says the world holds together enough to close your eyes in. But the Western snowpack hit its lowest numbers in recorded history this spring, and Nebraska grassland burned faster than anyone could drive away from it. These are three bedtime stories set in the world we actually have. The kid hears a frog singing and an owl in a burrow and a bird who flew a long way. The adult reading aloud will know what they're about.
Smaller Songs at Bedtime
My nephew's four. He likes the one about the bear who can't find his hat. Same words every night, same order. He'd notice if I changed a line.
I've been thinking about what we read kids at bedtime. The form does a specific job. Repetition, soft landings, goodnight. It says the world holds together enough to close your eyes in. But the Western snowpack hit its lowest numbers in recorded history this spring, and Nebraska grassland burned faster than anyone could drive away from it. These are three bedtime stories set in the world we actually have. The kid hears a frog singing and an owl in a burrow and a bird who flew a long way. The adult reading aloud will know what they're about.
Permission Slip — Lake Powell
Closed-toe shoes with non-slip soles. Sunscreen applied before boarding. A life jacket fitted by the arm-raise test: arms overhead, the vest must not ride above the chin. A permission slip dated June 5, 2026, for a sixth-grade boat trip on Lake Powell.
Lake Powell has dropped roughly 100 feet below where the Bureau of Reclamation projected it would be. The reservoir may fall below minimum power pool elevation by December. The permission slip asks for a parent's signature, a swimming-ability checkbox, and an emergency contact number.
Permission Slip — Lake Powell
Closed-toe shoes with non-slip soles. Sunscreen applied before boarding. A life jacket fitted by the arm-raise test: arms overhead, the vest must not ride above the chin. A permission slip dated June 5, 2026, for a sixth-grade boat trip on Lake Powell.
Lake Powell has dropped roughly 100 feet below where the Bureau of Reclamation projected it would be. The reservoir may fall below minimum power pool elevation by December. The permission slip asks for a parent's signature, a swimming-ability checkbox, and an emergency contact number.
The Corrections
Your textbook said: "Winter precipitation falls as snow. In spring, snowmelt fills rivers and reservoirs." Western U.S. snowpack on April 1, 2026: 65% below normal. Lowest on record.
Your textbook said: "Drought occurs when a region receives less precipitation than normal." Washington State received 104% of normal precipitation this winter. On April 8, the governor declared statewide emergency drought.
Your textbook said: "Snowpack stores water for the dry summer months." Colorado's South Platte Basin: 4% of normal snowpack. The Arkansas River may run dry by July.