ACARA Years 3-6
— A five-year-old's fragmented memories of September 11th capture confusion through misheard words and the sudden absence of the towers.
— A boy who can speak to animals flees with his wolf-dog when a monster called an Alarcon hunts him for his powers, ultimately escaping when a condor saves them from...
— A shy girl befriends the barefoot new student who claims to be a princess, then betrays her under peer pressure, only to discover the true meaning of friendship after Irah...
— A twelve-year-old slips outside at night to lie in wet grass, listening to her watch tick and feeling the wind carry away time's demands.
— An 11-year-old recalls visiting her mother's cousin Marie on an Irish farm, witnessing her sudden illness, and learning of her death two weeks later on St. Patrick's Day.
— A lonely girl who plays harp privately joins a youth symphony at her mother's urging and meets a potential friend who offers to help her.
— A young bat falls from the sky during a storm, is rescued by a muskrat, steals her family pearl, then saves her from a hunter when guilt overwhelms him.
— A popular middle schooler rejects her childhood friend at lunch, then finds her grandmother's photo and realizes she's betrayed her values for social status.
— A storm builds through vivid color and sound imagery — yellow light, scarlet glow, pounding rain, thunder — then retreats into peace.
— A young snowboarder conquers his most feared slope on the last run of the season, jumping a mogul and experiencing freedom before tearfully saying goodbye until next year.