The Dog’s Gardener

A dog delights in a summer day spent in the garden with his owner, an avid gardener.

When a dog named Dutch hears the gardener going down the stairs each morning, he anticipates her every move. But most of all, he waits for the beautiful words, “Okay, Dutch. Let’s go outside.”

It’s a bright summer day. Dutch stands back from the dark, dusty toolshed, but the rest of the day is blissful — rolling in the dewy grass, waiting for a scratch behind his ears, napping on the gardener’s boots at midday and playing in the hose.

An amusing story about taking pleasure in the things we love, especially in the company of a good friend, written by Patricia Storms, with gorgeous illustrations by Nathalie Dion.

Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.4
Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.6
Identify who is telling the story at various points in a text.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.5
Describe the overall structure of a story, including describing how the beginning introduces the story and the ending concludes the action.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.6
Acknowledge differences in the points of view of characters, including by speaking in a different voice for each character when reading dialogue aloud.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.9
Compare and contrast the adventures and experiences of characters in stories.