Violet’s Lemonade
Reading together
Reading age 8–9 describes the audience for this adult-led Shared Reading book, not an independent reading-level assessment. This is a read-aloud story for Year 4 children aged 8–9, 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: millilitres, litre, batch, capacity, manageable. Invite a prediction about what might happen.
During reading
Use Talk Together for a prompt on each page. Talk about this book’s numeracy focus: Combine 750 mL and 250 mL as 1 L, scale the recipe to three batches and check that 2,250 mL plus 750 mL is 3 L. Ask children how they know and invite another way to check. Compare what the characters expected with what they noticed. Invite children to join in with repeated words or gestures.
After reading
Retell the story in order. Explain the problem, the method the characters tried and the evidence that their solution worked. Use a measuring jug with an adult to compare 750 mL and 250 mL with 1 L. Draw three batches and total the water and mixture separately. Check the combined 3,000 mL as 3 L. Describe what the characters noticed and how their ideas changed. Invite different experiences and respect a child’s choice not to share.
Maths reference for the adult
Use these exact values to model and check the story with objects or drawings.
| Step | Calculation |
|---|---|
| One batch | 750 mL + 250 mL = 1,000 mL = 1 L |
| Water for three batches | 3 × 750 mL = 2,250 mL |
| Mixture for three batches | 3 × 250 mL = 750 mL |
| Check the whole volume | 2,250 mL + 750 mL = 3,000 mL = 3 L |
Explore and play
- Numeracy idea
- Combine 750 mL and 250 mL as 1 L, scale the recipe to three batches and check that 2,250 mL plus 750 mL is 3 L.
- Notice together
- Use the story’s exact quantities and calculations. Talk about why the characters chose a method and how they checked. The narrative illustrations show the setting and action; model quantities with objects or drawings.
- Try together
- Use a measuring jug with an adult to compare 750 mL and 250 mL with 1 L. Draw three batches and total the water and mixture separately. Check the combined 3,000 mL as 3 L.
- Adult support
- Read aloud at the children’s pace. Offer objects, drawings, gestures and thinking time. Accept different ways of explaining and checking an answer.
Activities with an adult
The eleven separate question cards include recall, word meaning, observation, “why”, inference and evidence 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 that suit the child’s interest. Offer pictures, drawings, gestures or spoken answers, and model word building when useful. Activities are optional.
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