Definition:

Patience means having self-control, waiting and enduring when one would rather not.

In short:

Stay calm while you wait.

Summary:
This story takes place on a farm in Mexico. Ana lives in a  village that is far away from a city and there is no school nearby. One day, the children in her village are visited by a traveling librarian with two burros carrying books. The librarian reads to them and lets them select books to keep until his return. Ana finds it difficult to wait for the Biblioburro until she has a vivid, hopeful dream that inspires her to get to work writing her own story. Soon after, the librarian comes back. The village children gather and he reads to them the story that Ana wrote!  

Lesson Objectives: 

1. Students are less inclined to take for granted all the opportunities they have. When they learn that Ana can't even go to school, they realize how lucky they are.  Being patient is easier when you understand that other kids don’t have what you have. 

Guiding Questions: 

1. Why doesn’t Ana go to school? 
2. Describe the place where Ana lives.
3. Ana doesn’t have books so she makes up stories. What kinds of stories does she tell? 
4. One day Ana has a big surprise, what is it? 
5. What are the names of the burros? 
6. What does the traveling librarian do for the village children? 
7. Why do you think Ana likes books so much? 
8.  It’s so hard for Ana to be patient until the librarian returns. What does she do to pass the time until he comes back? 
9. What kinds of stories do you like the best? 
10. If you could write a story, what would you write about?