Chapters

Maya reads about dinosaurs each day. She reads facts and sees big art of them. Today she reads about a dino team by the sea. A green dino ate leaves. Her name was Bean. She had a long neck and a long tail. A gray dino ate meat. His name was Coal. He could roar and leap! Rain fell on the sea. Bean and Coal ran to a cave to stay dry. "Wait!" said Bean. "A snail is in the rain!" Coal made a road with a leaf. The snail sailed to the cave. Safe! The rain went away. The sun came up. Bean ate leaves. Coal took a nap in the heat. Maya read the last page. She can see the dino team in her mind: Bean, Coal, and the snail on the leaf. Maya will read more facts each day. Dinosaurs are the best!

Maya and Dad take a trail to the museum. The sign reads: MEET THE DINOSAURS! A big beast stands in the hall. Its teeth are as long as Maya's arm. Its tail is like a road. "That is a meat eater," Dad says. Maya reads the sign. She says each word slow. Ea says /ee/. Ai says /ay/. Oa says /oh/. She sees a dino with a beak. She sees a dino with a green coat of scales. She sees eggs in a nest of leaves. A man in a lab coat waits by the last case. "Want to hold a real claw?" he asks. Maya nods. The claw feels cold. It feels heavy. Her cheeks glow. At home, Maya paints a dino on a sheet. She gives it a long tail and a wide beak. "I will be a dino hunter," she says. "I will dig and read and learn."