Zoe and her lemonade stand

by Grace

A sunny day for success!

Grade 2: Transitional readers10 pages

Zoe learns about business by selling lemonade juice

Characters

Max

Zoe

Woman

Man

Neighbor

Style

Naive & Childlike

Story

Story Arc

“Let’s sell lemonade!” said MAX to her friend ZOE. ZOE nodded, excited to try something new. They set up a small table near the beach. But they quickly realized they had a problem: not enough lemons!

“Oh no!” cried MAX, “How can we make lemonade with just three lemons?” ZOE looked thoughtful. She tapped her chin. They needed to find more lemons, and fast!

MAX and ZOE walked down the sunny street. They looked at each house. Maybe someone would share a lemon or two. MAX wondered if anyone would even buy their lemonade.

Suddenly, ZOE stopped. She pointed to a big lemon tree in a neighbor’s yard. “Look, MAX!” ZOE whispered. “Maybe we can ask!”

MAX took a deep breath. ZOE knocked gently on the door. The NEIGHBOR smiled kindly at them. “Hello, girls!” the NEIGHBOR said in a warm voice.

ZOE explained their lemonade problem. The NEIGHBOR chuckled. She invited them into her yard. “Help yourselves, girls!” she said, pointing to the tree.

MAX and ZOE filled their basket with lemons. They thanked the NEIGHBOR for her kindness. Back at their stand, they squeezed the juicy lemons.

Soon, people stopped to buy lemonade. The WOMAN walking her dog bought two cups. Then, the MAN in the Hawaiian shirt bought one. “This is delicious!” he said.

MAX smiled. They sold cup after cup of lemonade. By the end of the day, their pitcher was empty. Their money jar was full.

“We did it, ZOE!” MAX exclaimed. ZOE nodded. “We can be good at anything if we try!” They packed up their stand, feeling proud of their hard work.

The end

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Words to know

thoughtful: Thinking carefully about something, like when ZOE was thinking about how to get more lemons.; ZOE looked thoughtful.
realized: To suddenly understand or know something, like when Max and Zoe knew they didn't have enough lemons.; But they quickly realized they had a problem: not enough lemons!
delicious: Something that tastes very good, like the lemonade the people bought.; “This is delicious!” he said.
exclaimed: To say something suddenly and with strong feeling, like when Max was excited they sold all the lemonade.; “We did it, ZOE!” MAX exclaimed.
proud: Feeling very happy about something you did well, like how Max and Zoe felt after selling lemonade.; They packed up their stand, feeling proud of their hard work.