Highlights presents Ana's Bicycle written by Juliette Looye. Ana is saving her money for a new bicycle. When her mother gets too sick to work, Ana decides she can wait for a new bike. Instead, she uses her savings to pay for her mom's medicine and to take the family on a picnic. In the end, Ana realizes her old bike just needs a few updates, and the family begins saving together for a family vacation.
In the 1800s, Louis Braille went blind as a child. He went to school, but he could not read any of the books. Braille came up with his own system of writing using dots. Years after Braille's death, many all over the world use his system.
Anita and her mother are preparing Grandmother's house for sale when Uncle Rico appears unexpectedly. He has not been in contact with the family for seven years. Soon Uncle Rico and Anita's mother begin arguing, and Anita retreats to the attic. She discovers Grandmother's clock, and it brings happy memories to the adults.
Jessie wants to wear her older sister Jackie's sweater. Jackie makes Jessie promise to take care of the sweater when she is allowed to wear it. But Jessie can't wait to wear the sweater and takes it without permission. Jessie then falls off her bike, hurting her elbow and tearing the sweater. Jackie is very disappointed that Jessie broke her promise, but Jackie forgives her.
Garrett Morgan was an African American born in 1877. Morgan became an inventor soon after he moved to Cleveland to fix and sell sewing machines. He invented a hair-straightening product, a gas mask, and a stoplight, among other things. Despite the prejudices of others, Morgan became a famous and successful inventor.
Cassie, a young girl from Bowling Green, Kentucky, shares her knowledge of caves. She describes how limestone caves are formed and talks about her favorite cave, Mammoth Cave. She explains the differences between stalactites and stalagmites and identifies the cave zones and the creatures who inhabit them.
Ruby Bridges attended an all-white school. Many people treated her badly because she was black. She worked hard, and many black students followed in her footsteps.
Annie, a young girl from Orleans, Massachusetts, shares her knowledge of Cape Cod. She answers perennial questions, such as: Where did the sand come from? Why is the ocean is salty? What makes the ocean water move back and forth?
Grace Murray Hopper, born in 1906, was always interested in how things worked. Her father told her she should go to college, where she got degrees in math and physics.
Hopper eventually helped program the first computer, the Mark I, in the early 1940s. She joined the Navy for more than forty years, working on computers and inventing many computer programs and languages still used today.
