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Redd

A MISS IS A RE-TRY

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01 Opening
Redd beat 1 of 5

Redd has bright red, messy hair that sticks up no matter how much he brushes it, and a blue cardigan with a little yellow badge. He holds a wooden letter block, turning it over and over. Redd is the SprintPal who misses things. And he doesn't mind one bit.

Today he is spelling "because." He writes it: b-e-c-o-s.

02 Redd
Redd beat 2 of 5

He checks the card. It's not right.

Across the table, a girl named Suki gasps. "Oh no, Redd! You got it wrong!"

Redd shrugs and smiles. "I didn't get it wrong. I got a re-try."

03 Redd
Redd beat 3 of 5

"A what?"

"A re-try," says Redd. "A miss isn't a fail. It just means I get to go again. Look." He studies the card slowly. "Oh! It's a-u-s-e at the end, not o-s. Sneaky." He writes it again: b-e-c-a-u-s-e.

This time it's right.

04 Redd
Redd beat 4 of 5

"See?" says Redd. "If I'd never missed, I'd never have noticed the sneaky part. Now I'll remember it."

Suki thinks about the times she got things wrong and felt her cheeks go hot. "But doesn't it feel bad?"

"A little, for one second," Redd admits. "Then I just say, 'Re-try!' and it turns into a puzzle instead. Puzzles are fun. And nobody here is counting the misses. There are no scores. There's only going again."

05 Closing
Redd beat 5 of 5

That's Redd's brave idea.

A miss is a re-try, never a fail - you can always go again.

A grown-up can play too! Pick something a bit tricky, like a cartwheel, a tongue-twister or a hard word. Each time either of you misses, shout "Re-try!" together and have another go. Notice how the shout changes the feeling.

By the end of his sprint, Redd has had four re-tries. Four! And each one taught him something. He puts his letter block down, feeling light and proud. Getting it right the first time is nice. But learning from a miss? That, Redd thinks, is even better.

Hear it as an audio drama

A short play starring Redd, from SprintPals. Different voices, same idea. Listen any time after you read.

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Read the drama script
  1. Narrator: From Spark and Anvil and Sprintpals — this is Redd, in chapter 1 of the Sprintpals cast.
  2. Narrator: This drama uses an AI-generated voice. Voiced via Gemini 2.5.
  3. Narrator: Redd had bright red hair that stuck up no matter what, and he was the SprintPal who missed things. And he didn't mind one bit.
  4. Child: Oh no, Redd! You spelled it wrong!
  5. Redd: I didn't get it wrong. I got a re-try.
  6. Child: A what?
  7. Redd: A re-try! A miss isn't a fail. It just means I get to go again. Let me look slowly... oh! The end is sneaky. I'll try it once more.
  8. Narrator: Redd wrote the word again, carefully. This time it was right.
  9. Redd: If I'd never missed, I'd never have noticed the sneaky part. Now I'll remember it.
  10. Child: When I get things wrong, my cheeks go hot.
  11. Redd: Mine too, for about one second. Then I say 'Re-try!' and it turns into a puzzle. Nobody here counts the misses. There are no scores. Only going again.
  12. Child: Re-try!
  13. Redd: That's it! Doesn't it feel lighter?
  14. Narrator: A miss is a re-try, never a fail. You can always go again. That's Redd's brave idea.
  15. Narrator: You've been listening to a Spark and Anvil chapter, written by the Spark and Anvil writing team for ages 9 to 14.
  16. Narrator: Apps stay free forever.
  17. Narrator: Curriculum aligned to Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards.
  18. Narrator: Released under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0 for educational reuse. Visit Spark and Anvil for the full transcript.
Reading together with a grown-up? A card for the grown-up

For the grown-up: ask one question, then wait. When they answer, add one word to what they said. Tap the button when they have said something — that is one turn each, a circle. Nothing is recorded or kept.

Let them finish it

Say “Redd says: a miss is a RE-TRY, never a fail …” and stop. Let them finish it.

Then say the whole line together: “Redd says: a miss is a RE-TRY, never a fail - you can always go again!”.

Now wait. Count slowly to five in your head. Their answer is worth the quiet.

Circles together: 0

The SprintPals ensemble

Redd is one of the friends in SprintPals. Each friend shows you one idea by how they act; meet them all and you have the whole subject.

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