Mom lit three candles. "There, that's better," she said. Claire turned off her flashlight. The house was quiet except for the sound of the wind blowing through the trees outside. Why did Mom light candles?

The scout leader looked at the sky and muttered something under his breath. Then he looked at the map. "Let's get moving", he called to the group of tired boys. "The faster the better". Why was the scout leader in a hurry?

It was 8:30 p.m. on Thursday night, Emily stared at the large, empty poster board on her bed. Then she looked at the stack of books about Abraham Lincoln on her desk. Emily began to cry. Why do you think Emily was crying?

Micah hid behind the bushes. Soon a group of older boys walked by talking and laughing. Micah tried not to make any noise. He waited until he couldn't hear the boys anymore, then he picked up his books and walked home. Why was Micah hiding?

Mr. Jones stood on his front porch watching the boys run away. He walked slowly to the sidewalk and picked up the bat that was laying there. Then he looked at the broken window on his house and sighed. Why were the boys running away?

People kept coming over to visit Rachel's family. They brought food and gifts. Many of the visitors asked Rachel how she liked being a big sister. Why were so many people coming to visit Rachel's family?

Jenna went upstairs and peeked into a dark room. She listened for a moment, and then went back downstairs. She washed the dinner dishes and then she studied for an Algebra test until Mr. and Mrs. Olson got home. Why did Jenna go upstairs?

Maria woke up in the middle of the night. The room was so dark and the house was so quiet. Maria wished that she still shared her room with her big sister Laura, but Laura had moved into her own room a few days ago. Why did Maria wake up?

Kim turned off the lights and everyone found a place to hide. Nicky hid under the table where everyone had put their presents. He peeked out and saw the front door starting to open. Why was everyone hiding?

Ana and Sophie sat in their chairs staring straight ahead for nearly two hours. They did not talk or hardly even move, but they were not bored at all. Why were Ana and Sophie staring straight ahead?

When Ethan woke up, the room was bright with sunlight. He looked at the clock and leapt out of bed. He threw on his clothes, grabbed his backpack, and ran out the door without eating breakfast. Why was Ethan in such a hurry?

It was May 10th. Jason shut the door to his bedroom. Then he found the present he had hidden in the back of his closet. He wrapped it carefully in pink paper. "Only three days until Sunday", he thought. Why was Jason hiding a present?

Sasha handed the book to the librarian. The librarian opened the book and found crayon scribbles on almost every page. "I'm really sorry", said Sasha. "I should have kept the book in my room". Why did Sasha apologize?