What’s Going On?
It’s the biggest mystery anyone can remember and a whole lot of people are talking.
Dozens of stories swirl concerning the condition of Shady Pines Story Town’s only school. People say the school will not be able to open to students in time for the Fall semester.
Phones in The Shady Pines Gazette office ring constantly. Editor Zulah Talmadge and
Scoop the Cub Reporter try to answer the questions they keep getting asked. But even they aren’t sure.
“I don’t know Wanda,” says Zulah. “We’re still trying to get an update about the school. Everyone we talk to says something different.”
“No, Mr. Callahan,” says Scoop. “As of now, even Mayor Fibbs hasn’t heard.”
The first day of the new school year is fast approaching. Soon, big yellow buses will start rolling. Kids and their parents have been buying new clothes, backpacks and supplies.
Young children are ready and excited about their first day back to school.
But will the school be ready for them?
Repairs to Shady Pines Elementary have been underway for months. It’s an old building so there are a lot of things that had to be fixed.
The heating system was upgraded, classroom walls were painted, a few water pipes needed to be repaired and some student desks were replaced.
Rumors Galore
On Main Street at Maggie’s Diner customers chat over lunch sandwiches. Owner Maggie Magillicutty overhears one woman talking to her friend. “You know Lucy, right? She lives down the street from me. Well, she says the man who owns the company doing repairs on the school left town with a bag of money!”
Maggie nearly drops the pot of coffee she’s carrying.
Something Has To Be Done
Meanwhile at City Hall , Mayor Beauregard P. Fibbs is getting all sorts of calls.
“Why, no, Mrs. Olivetti, the school is not closed for good. No, your son will not be bused to the school in nearby River City. Where did you hear that? You saw it on social media?”
Mayor Fibbs is frustrated. “EEE-Gads. Enough of this!” The mayor calls over to The Gazette and asks Zulah Talmadge if she and Scoop can get over to his office.
“Zulah, Scoop, thanks for coming.”
The editor and her reporter with his shock of red hair watch as the mayor paces back and forth behind his big wooden desk.
“Is this about the elementary school?” asks Zulah.
Mayor Fibbs throws up his hands in frustration. ‘”YES!!!”
Scoop blinks twice. “What do you want us to do? No one’s giving us a straight story.”
“I want you to go and interview Jim Carpenter. He owns the construction company. Jim just called to let me know he’s back in town. His crew is finishing up today and school will open on time.”
Zulah and Scoop look at one another. Zulah clears her throat. “So all these stories around town are false?”
False Facts Travel Fast
The mayor shakes his head. “Well, I’ll be. What we have here is that little ‘ole game of telephone.”
Scoop asks. “What’s that?”
Zulah answers. “It’s when one person tells a story. The next person repeats it to someone else. Each time the story is repeated the facts are a little off. Before you know it, the story at the end isn’t anywhere close to what it was at the beginning.”
Mayor Fibbs explains. “It used to be an innocent game that kids played at a party. (Click This Link to Play Your own Game of Telephone)
Now Scoop gets it. “So, this is a real example of folks spreading false information. That’s not a nice thing to do. And it’s not kind. People are really upset!”
“Make sure you put that in your story Scoop,” says Mayor Fibbs. “Repeating false information over and over doesn’t make a story true.”
Zulah and Scoop grab their things and get ready to hustle out of the mayor’s office. “We’ll have this in tomorrow morning’s edition,” says Zulah.
“And I’ll post something on The Gazette’s social media page today, ” says Scoop. “That way everyone will be on the lookout for the real – true – story.”
And that’s how the mystery surrounding Shady Pines Elementary was solved.
It also became a good lesson for everyone in our small Southern town to be careful about what we say. We don’t always know how the stories we tell or post on social media can affect someone else.
See ya next time!
Excellent message.
Great lesson!
Thank you Carol!
Grace and generosity. Kindness and caring. It’s so obvious and yet so necessary to remind ourselves of how much we all need this in our lives. T
Lori thank you for your comment. I really appreciate it!
Thanks Mary Jane for more positive reminders in our new Kindness and Caring life. It’s working!!
Thank you Robin. I’m so glad!
Important message. Well done
A simple child’s game of telephone becomes something else entirely when we spread falsehood on social media and the internet. Very clever way to introduce this topic
A refreshing look at why it’s so very important to fact check. Some of the most outlandish statements have been made and upon checking more closely we find very little if any truth to them.
Well done Mary Jane!
Thank you Stephanie. Very good point. Thank you for your comment!
What a timely and important message! This article offers a valuable reminder that both young children and their parents can learn a lot from the simple game of telephone, something many of us remember from our elementary school days. It’s a perfect analogy for today’s world, where too many people accept what they read or see on social media without verifying the facts. This piece beautifully underscores the importance of critical thinking and fact-checking in our information-saturated age. Well done!
Barbara thank you so much for such a thoughtful comment. Glad it resonated with you!
As always, a great lesson! The correlation to today’s social media is something we all need be aware of & mindful of when we post. The game of telephone and social media posts both show how information can become distorted as it spreads. In both cases, the original message often changes, leading to misunderstandings and misinformation.
Thank you Teresa for pointing that out. Very helpful.
These Shady Pines stories are really thought provoking. Very nice
I like the way there is an important message within the story.
This is the BEST YET!
It address all of us…you and old
Be kind with your words and
you you repeat them to. Yipee
for Kindness and Caring of
Shady Pined
Thank you Jane. So glad you liked it!
I loved following along on the mystery ride. Good ending.
I’d nearly forgotten about playing the game of telephone. This shows how closely it relates to online misinformation. What a good post
This was a back to school story I didn’t expect but thoroughly enjoyed
Good story. Good message
Shady Pines mystery! I like it. And a helpful reminder at any age. Thank you.
Thank you Elaine for your comment!
Used to use the telephone game in my conflict resolution trainings all the time! I never could have foreseen where social media would take it. Thanks for the reminder.
Great comment Sandi. Thank you
A great example of the power of the tongue and now the fingers – a reminder that we all need to stop and think before speaking or posting – well done as always
So true Joanne. Thank you!
Showing how the telephone game that we played as kids has become something far more impactful with the rise of social media was really good. Well done
This is a suspenseful story. I kept trying to figure out where it was headed, but the twist of plot took me by surprise. Fun post and great message!
Glad you enjoyed t Sheri!
Another timely reminder from Shady Pines about events happening now. The Kindness and Caring campaign is making me think
I really liked how this was put together. Made me wonder about some of the things I’ve posted on social media
Wow. I did not know where this was heading. What a message!