Sixth Grade
Worksheets
Surviving April Fools' Day
Christopher Columbus is arriving in Washington, D.C., to visit the president and tour the capitol. A scientist discovered a way to turn rocks into gold and will give the secret to children so they can supplement their allowances. April fools! How can we survive this ridiculous day?
April Fools' Day is not a formal holiday. Yet it is celebrated in many countries around the world on April 1. People can play practical jokes on each other. They can say funny things. They can even send someone on a fool's errand. A fool's errand is a "fruitless mission." It is often impossible. The person usually ends up feeling silly!
Some April Fools' Day pranks have caught many people by surprise. In 1957, a BBC news show announced that the awful spaghetti weevil had been "eliminated." This was because of the mild winter. Farmers were having a terrific spaghetti crop! The show had a clip of Swiss peasants harvesting strands of spaghetti from trees. Since lots of folks love pasta, they wondered about this news. They called the BBC and asked whether they could grow their own spaghetti tree.
