The Soup Stall

Erin and Caleb are helping at the school lunch stall. Their class has made vegetable soup with Ms Lane. Erin puts paper cups on the table, and Caleb sets out the bread. They are ready for their first visitors.

Ms Lane serves a cup of soup to a visitor. The soup is thick, with pieces of carrot and potato. The visitor tries to drink it, then looks for a spoon. Erin checks the table. There are no spoons beside the cups.

“I thought we could drink it,” Erin says quietly. Ms Lane puts the serving lid back on. “This soup needs more than a cup,” she says. Caleb finds a box of bowls on the shelf behind the stall.

They ask Ms Lane before changing the table. Erin sets out bowls and spoons, while Caleb moves the cups to the water jug. Ms Lane serves the hot soup. The visitor smiles when Erin brings over a clean spoon.

Soon there is a short queue. Erin hands out spoons, but the bread is at the far end of the table. People keep reaching across each other. Caleb notices an empty space beside the bowls. “Could the bread go here?” he asks.

They move the basket before the next group arrives. Now visitors can collect a bowl, a spoon and some bread in order. Erin watches the line move. A small change has made the whole stall easier to use.

Near the end of lunch, Caleb finds that only three rolls are left. He tells Ms Lane before anyone else joins the queue. She adds a clear note to the menu. Visitors can choose soup on its own if they wish.

When they clear away, Erin puts the unused cups beside the water jug. They were useful after all, just not for thick soup. Caleb writes bowls, spoons and bread on their next lunch plan. Erin adds, “In that order!”