This Comic Strip Is Famous All Over the World. Charlie Brown, His Dog Snoopy, and Other Characters Are in It

Have you ever seen the comic strip Peanuts? This comic strip is famous all over the world. Charlie Brown, his dog Snoopy, and other characters are in it. A man named Charles M. Schulz created them all. Charles was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1922. Even as a little boy, Charles loved to draw. Every Sunday, he read the comic strips in the Sunday newspaper with his dad. When he went to kindergarten, Charles’s teacher saw that he was very good at drawing. His teacher told him that someday he would be an artist. His teacher was right! When Charles grew up, he began drawing comics as a job. In 1950, Charles created a new comic strip called Peanuts. Peanuts was not printed in just one newspaper. It was printed in seven newspapers! It was in the papers every Sunday. People loved Peanuts and all the characters in it. Charles based many of the characters on real people that he knew. He based Charlie Brown—the main character—on himself. In real life, Charles was shy and didn’t always say much. His character Charlie Brown was quiet, too. He even based Charlie Brown’s dog, Snoopy, on a real dog. Snoopy was just like the dog that Charles had when he was growing up. That funny little dog made people laugh. His character Snoopy made people laugh, too. More and more people liked Peanuts. The comic strip became more and more popular. After a while, Peanuts was printed in more than 2,600 newspapers all over the world. It was in the papers for fi fty years. Charles stopped making new Peanuts strips in 2000. But old Peanuts strips are still in many papers every Sunday. Charlie Brown, the nice, kind boy in Charles’s comic strips, is a part of history forever. COMPREHENSION What did you learn about Charles M. Schulz? What words tell you what Charlie Brown and Snoopy are like?

38 39 Enrico dropped his pencil on the table. He looked upset. There were scribbles all over his drawing paper. Enrico’s sister, Serafi na, came over to see what he was doing. “What are you drawing on that paper?” asked Serafi na. Enrico frowned. “I am trying to draw our house. It’s my homework for school. But no matter how I start, I end up with a mess. I don’t know how to draw.” Serafi na gave Enrico a new sheet of drawing paper. “I’ll help you draw our house. Do you know how to draw shapes?” Serafi na asked. “Yes, but shapes are not a house,” said Enrico. Serafi na smiled. She said, “We’ll see about that. First, draw a big square near the bottom of the paper. That is the house itself.” Enrico drew a big square. “Now draw a triangle over the top of the square. That is the roof,” said Serafi na. Enrico drew a triangle above the square. “Next, draw a tall rectangle between the roof and the bottom of the square. That is the door,” said Serafi na. “Then you can add small rectangles for the windows.” Enrico drew a tall rectangle in the middle of the square. He drew small rectangles, too. “Now draw a long, straight line under the square. That is the street,” said Serafi na. Enrico drew a long, straight line below the square. “This looks like our house,” said Enrico. He was happy. “There’s one more thing. What do we have on all sides of our house, Enrico?” asked Serafi na. Enrico said, “Flowers! And I know how to draw them! I’ll use circles and lines!” He added fl owers around the house on the drawing paper. “See? You do know how to draw,” said Serafi na. “Thanks to you, I know how to draw,” Enrico said as he hugged his sister. COMPREHENSION How does Enrico learn to draw? What words help him know where to draw each shape?

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