Freya’s Family Soup

Reading together

Reading age 5–6 describes the audience for this adult-led Shared Reading book, not an independent reading-level assessment. This is a read-aloud story for ages 5–6, not an independent reading-level text. Read at the child’s pace. Children can listen, point, gesture, sign or join in with familiar words. Joining in is optional.

Before reading

Look at the title and cover. Introduce the characters and setting. Explore these five words with pictures, actions and familiar examples: recipe, notebook, ingredients, vegetables, photo. Invite a prediction about what might happen.

During reading

Use Talk Together for a prompt on each page. Talk about what people do and how they feel. Connect familiar places and experiences. Invite children to join in with repeated words or gestures.

After reading

Use the pictures to retell the story from first to last. Explain what Freya found out. Children can talk, point, sign, draw or use a communication device. Invite a connection with a familiar experience without requiring private information. Name the people and places, and talk about what happened. Invite different experiences and respect a child’s choice not to share.

People, places and belonging

Social Science idea

Recipes and other family practices can be passed on, adapted and recorded across generations.

Notice together

Look at people, places, evidence and choices. Ask which picture or words helped you think that.

Try together

Invite children to draw a familiar food or an invented dish. Sharing family traditions is optional. Adults handle knives, hot food and cooking; check food needs before any tasting.

Different experiences

Families and communities do things in different ways. Invite different ideas and allow children to pass on personal questions.

Activities with an adult

The eleven separate question cards include recall, word meaning, observation, simple “why” questions and discussion. Read the questions and choices aloud and offer picture support. Explore five vocabulary words, build them from movable letters and order three story pictures. Model a vocabulary word for the child to copy; letter recognition and independent decoding are not required. Mouse dragging, finger dragging, tap controls and keyboard controls are available. Use the light green and red feedback as a chance to look at the story again.

Choose a few activities at a time, according to the child’s interest. Use the adult-led exploration described above, or drawings and gestures, according to the child’s interest. Activities are optional; use only a few at a time.