TV on a Rolling Cart

The Skeleckian Hiccups

From The Electric Company (2009) · 2009

The Skeleckian Hiccups
28 min2nd3rdReading & Writing (ELA)
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Summary

Jessica and Danny compete in a chess tournament. Unfortunately, Jessica comes down with a case of the Skeleckian Hiccups. This ailment makes her speak her private thoughts out loud, which makes her unable to stop announcing her chess moves. She has a choice: lose the tournament, or eat two disgusting leaves daily for a week. Special Guest Appearance by: June Angela Villain: Danny Words: Reveal, remedy, diagnosis, herbal, private Like every Electric Company adventure, the story hangs on reading, decoding, and vocabulary under pressure.

Viewer safety

All ages
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Teaching resources

Discussion questions

Discussion

Every Electric Company episode builds its story around wordballs — words the team reads, decodes, and uses under pressure. Watch for the vocabulary the episode leans on and how the characters puzzle words out.

  1. Which words did the Electric Company have to read or decode to solve the problem?
  2. How did a character figure out a word they didn't know at first?
  3. Where could you use one of this episode's words this week?

Quick work-a-long

Vocabulary: decode, wordball, clue, solve.

Try it: Keep a wordball list while you watch — every word the show spotlights goes on the board, and each student picks one to use in a sentence afterward.