Ryers Readers - Giraffes Can’t Dance

Episode Date: August 31, 2022

Gerald loved to dance! But, does he have the moves to impress the other animals? An unlikely friend might just be the key to unlocking Gerald’s potential!

Let's do this! Thank you so much for tuning into today's story. Don't forget to hit that follow button, so you never miss out on all the Ryer's Readers' fun. Before we get into the story, do you want to know a fun fact? Did you know that giraffes are all unique? Just like snowflakes or your fingerprints,

no two giraffes have the same spots. Pretty cool, huh? Okay, story time. Today, we are going to read Giraffes Can't Dance by Giles Andrey. Gerald was a tall giraffe whose neck was long and slim, but his knees were awfully crooked and his legs were rather thin.

He was very good at standing still and munching shoots off trees. But when he tried to run around, he buckled at the knees. Now every year in Africa, they hold the jungle dance, where every single animal turns up to skip and prance. And this year, when the day arrived, poor Gerald felt so sad, because when it came to dancing, he was really very bad. The warthogs started waltzing.

and the rhinos rock and rolled. The lions danced a tango that was elegant and bold. The chimps all did a cha-cha with a very Latin feel, and eight baboons then teamed up for a splendid Scottish reel. Gerald swallowed bravely as he walked towards the floor, but the lions saw him coming, and they soon began to roar. Hey, look at clumsy Gerald.

The animals all sneered. Giraffes can't dance, you silly fool? Oh, Gerald, you're so weird. Gerald simply froze up. He was rooted to the spot. They're right, he thought. I'm useless. Oh, I feel like such a clot.

So he crept off the dance floor and he started walking home. He'd never felt so sad before, so sad and so alone. Then he found a little clearing, and he looked up at the sky and be so beautiful, he whispered with a sigh. Excuse me, coughed a cricket, who'd seen Gerald earlier on. But sometimes when you're different, you just need a different song. Listen to the swaying of the grass and listen to the trees. To me, the sweetest music is those branches in the breeze.

So imagine that the lovely moon is playing just for you. Everything makes music if you really want it to. With that, the cricket smiled and picked up his violin. Then Gerald felt his body do the most. amazing thing. His hooves had started shuffling, making circles on the ground. His neck was gently swaying, and his tail was swishing round. He threw his legs out sideways, and he swung them everywhere. Then he did a backward somersault and leapt up in the air. Gerald felt so wonderful, his mouth was open wide. I'm dancing. Yes, I'm dancing. I am dancing, Gerald cried.

Then, one by one, each animal who had been there at the dance arrived while Gerald bugied on and watched him quite entranced. They shouted, it's a miracle. We must be in a dream. Gerald's the best dancer that we have ever, ever seen. How did you learn to dance like that? Please, Gerald, tell us how. But Gerald simply twirled around and finished with a bow. Then he raised his head and looked up at the moon and stars above. We all can dance, he said, when we find music that we love.

The end. Don't forget to stick around to see if you can answer today's paying attention question. Before you go, do you think you can answer today's paying attention question? Gerald started to dance when the cricket played music. What type of instrument did the cricket play? If your answer was the violin, you did it! Great job! sure were paying attention. I hope you enjoyed that story. I wonder what we're going to read next.