The story begins and ends in the village school, but there is an important difference in the setting at the conclusion of the story: a wheel rests on the school for storks to nest in, and two waterlogged storks have been rescued to tenant the straw atop the wheel. DeJong explains how the children, their parents, and the old people of the village manage this feat, emphasizing what happens to a community when its members take joy in working together to achieve a common goal. Focusing on the children's points of view as well as their initiative, DeJong is primarily interested in the role that children can play as a force for action in the world, even this small world of the village.

On the Friday afternoon in spring that Lina reads her composition about storks, the students get immediate assistance from their teacher...