A stranger's story Lesson 446 of the everyday course of Mova's primary school: 35 sentences, each with its syntax tree and pragmatics. The lessons are written for Mova, and their agreed trees are part of Mova corpus 0.4 (CC BY-SA 4.0). How Mova does on its tests: the lesson at school .
1 But her family had a password — a secret word only family and trusted friends know. 2 «What's our password?» The woman didn't know it and walked off fast. 3 Mia ran straight to her teacher, who rang Mia's mum (fine, at work) and the police. 5 Tricksters use stories that pull at a kind child's heart. 6 A man in a car in Ohio asked Noah, «Hey buddy, can you help me find my lost puppy? 7 He's just round the corner.» Noah said «Ask a grown-up» and ran home, and his dad called the police. 9 A stranger at the beach in Durban offered Zara sweets «for a photo»; she said «No thanks» and went to her mum, who told the lifeguards. 10 Gifts from strangers for photos or favours are a red flag — a warning sign. 11 Some stories use something true to seem safe. 12 A man near the shops in Toronto said to Grace, «Your dad's my best friend, he told me to give you a ride home.» He knew her dad's name — he'd read it on the tag of her school bag. 13 Grace said no and walked into the shop; the shopkeeper rang her dad, who'd never heard of him. 14 In Dublin a woman told Oisin she was a «talent scout» and he could be on telly: «Just give me your address and your mam's number — don't tell her, it's a surprise.» Oisin told his mam straight away. 15 «Grand job, love,» she said. 16 A grown-up who wants a secret from your parents is a big danger sign. 17 Doors, packages and busy places have their own rules. 19 At a bus stop in Glasgow a man said «Here, wee man, a fiver if you carry this bag to that car» — «wee» means small in Scotland. 21 If someone won't carry a bag themselves, there's a reason. 23 Mum was inside, by the shoes. 24 Kindness is good — the trick is to bring in a grown-up. 25 A woman crying at a station told Ruby she'd lost her purse; Ruby gave her lunch money, and the next week the woman was there with the same story. 26 Her dad said «You were kind. 27 Next time, find a station worker to help her.» And in Sydney a lady asked Kai to help find her dog. 28 Kai said «I'll get my mum to help you.» «Sure, thanks, love.» Mum helped, and the dog was under a bench. 29 Real people are happy to wait for your grown-up; tricksters get annoyed and leave. 30 A family password is a secret word that only family and trusted adults know; a stranger who can't say it should not be trusted. 31 Never go anywhere with someone you don't know, however urgent or scary their story. 32 Adults who need help should ask other adults; a grown-up asking a child to find a puppy is a warning sign. 33 Strangers offering sweets, money or gifts in return for photos or favours are a red flag. 35 An adult who asks you to keep a secret from your parents is a serious danger sign; always tell. 36 When you are home alone, don't open the door to strangers; real workers come back when an adult is home. 37 Never carry packages or bags for strangers. 38 If you are lost, stay inside the place, at a counter or desk where people work, and don't leave with anyone. 39 People with sad stories can be sent to someone whose job it is to help, like a station worker or a police officer. 40 «I'll get my mum» is the perfect answer: it helps if the story is true and protects you if it isn't. 41 If something like this happens, tell a trusted adult straight away, even if you said no. ← previous The older kid's «trade»next → The fake friend online↑ back to Everyday This page in Markdown → https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/446-a-strangers-story/