1. Observing Elephants By David

2. I am going to China to see some wild elephants in their natural habitat. I could learn about them in their natural environment. And I could probably see them eating the tips of the banana tree. I could take pictures of them, even a group of them, to show how these giants are gentle giants. Choose option 1 Choose option 2

3. Option 1 But oh no! It all went wrong. I got too close to them! There were two of them. One went behind a tree and pushed it down. They knocked down the tree when I climbed up it to try to get to safety. So many things can go wrong when you are observing elephants in their natural habitat! What if they hid under trees and start charging at me?

4. What if they sucked me up? I might get my hand stuck in their mouth. Or maybe they would use their long muscle trunks to whack my head. Or they could probably use their knees or feet to crush my ankle. Maybe they might slice my stomach open and disconnect my intestines.

5. I would have to say a Chinese word. Luckily I had learnt it. I said a Chinese word for ‘Help! Help!’ Then someone came in and helped me. They carried me on a stretcher to one of the surgery places. I was in hospital in no time! They stitched my stomach and it didn’t matter anymore. Return to the beginning of the story

6. Option 2 I decided to stay away from the elephants and quietly watch them from where I was not too close. I stayed away from them and found a place where I could take good pictures. I watched what they were eating. I saw one that was probably pregnant. I saw how one of the wild elephants was helping its baby. It was stuck in a mud puddle.

7. I will probably put my pictures on animal planet so everyone learns about wild elephants. The people might learn how they keep cool from their long ears and how they never get killed from a lion because they have thick skin that no teeth can penetrate. Maybe I could see how long their tusks grow. Or show everyone how they eat bananas from the banana tree.

8. This is ….David McCarroll For Animal Planet Return to the beginning of the story