A Busy Station

Story: Maya and the Bear

This story is inspired by the film Paddington (2014). Maya waits at Paddington Station with a blue suitcase and a hot paper cup. The station smells of coffee and rain. Trains hiss, and the big clock ticks above her head. Maya looks at her ticket. “This ticket says platform three,” she says. Then she sees a small red hat under a bench.

Maya walks closer because the hat is near her shoe. A bear in a brown coat looks up. He holds two paper maps. “Are these maps for London?” he asks. His voice is polite, and orange marmalade shines on his paw. Maya smiles and says, “Yes. These maps are free. But that map in your paw is upside down.”

The bear points across the station. “Is that platform three?” Maya looks. Far away, people carry black bags near a train. “No,” she says. “That is platform five. Those bags are going to Bristol.” The bear touches his hat. A loud whistle cuts through the air, and Maya’s train doors begin to close.

Maya looks at the train, then at the bear’s wet paws and open maps. She lifts her suitcase and says, “Come with me. This way.” They run past the coffee smell and the shiny floor. At platform three, the bear gives her a sandwich in silver paper. “This is for you,” he says. Maya sits by the window, holding the warm sandwich as the train moves.

Key Words in Context

Grammar: This, That, These, and Those

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