Lemonade for Sale (Level 3: Bar Graphs) (MathStart) by Stuart J. Murphy, Tricia Tusa (Illustrator)

From the Publisher

Four kids and their sidekick, Petey the parrot, run a sometimes thriving lemonade stand whose patrons include all kinds of wacky neighbors—even a juggler. They create a bar graph to track the rise and fall of their lemonade sales. Illustrator Tricia Tusa has imbued the story with her delightful sense of humor and has made understanding bar graphs a breeze.

Children's Literature

The young members of the Elm Street Kids' Club are depressed. Their clubhouse is falling apart and their piggy banks are almost empty. What to do? Matthew suggests a lemonade stand. Everyone pitches in to help. Sheri makes a bar graph so that the club can track how their sales can bring them closer to their financial goal. How the club resolves a threatening setback provides a surprising twist to the story. Lemonade for Sale is another installment in the "MathStart" program, designed to teach math concepts in an appealing storybook format. Tusa's quirky watercolor and ink illustrations inspire smiles and chuckles. Activity suggestions directed at both children and adults extend the range of the story beyond a simple reading.

School Library Journal

Gr 1-3Four children decide to sell lemonade to make money to fix their clubhouse. For three days, they keep a bar graph to track their sales. It shows a steady increase and then a noticeable drop. After finding out that the competition is a new kid juggling down the street, they ask him to perform beside the stand and sales increase "over the top." The humorous and colorful illustrations will appeal to young children, but they may not be ready for the concept of bar graphs. Older children interested in learning about them are likely to find the book too young in appearance and story line. A two-page appendix is included "For Adults and Kids" who need additional ideas for using this book. The math lesson is heavy-handed, and the target audience questionable. However, this one has the advantage of competently done, amusing illustrations.Nancy A. Gifford, Schenectady County Public Library, NY

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