The Fete Day Friend
A school fete story about a new girl and a kind boy, with eight questions on feelings, clues and what might happen next.
Read the passage
The school fete was the biggest day of the year. By ten o’clock the oval was crowded with stalls, balloons and the smell of sizzling sausages. Lachlan stood behind the lamington stall in a bright green apron, counting trays of chocolate and coconut squares.
At the edge of the oval, a girl with a long plait stood by herself. It was Aroha, who had started at the school only last week. She held a paper cup in both hands and watched the other children laugh and run. She did not walk over to anyone.
Lachlan noticed. He remembered his own first day at the school, when he had spent the whole of lunch pretending to read a book he already knew by heart. “Hey!” he called. “Aroha! Can you count change? I’m hopeless at it.”
Aroha’s head jerked up. For a moment she looked around, as if he might be talking to somebody else. Then she crossed the oval slowly and stopped at the edge of the stall. “I’m good at maths,” she said quietly.
“Perfect,” said Lachlan, and he handed her the cash tin. Soon a line of customers stretched all the way to the sausage sizzle. Aroha counted coins quickly and carefully, and every time she gave the right change, her shoulders loosened a little more.
By lunchtime, the trays were empty. Aroha was laughing at one of Lachlan’s terrible jokes when a girl from her class called, “Aroha! Come and do the egg-and-spoon race!” She looked at Lachlan. “Go on,” he grinned. “I’ll manage the till.” As she ran off, she called back over her shoulder, “Save me the last lamington!”
Answer the questions
- What was Lachlan selling at the fete? (1 mark)
- How do you think Aroha was feeling at the start? What details in the story make you think so? (2 marks)
- Why do you think Lachlan asked Aroha to help with the change? (2 marks)
- What does the word “hopeless” mean in “I’m hopeless at it”? (1 mark)
- Was Lachlan really hopeless at counting change? Explain your answer. (2 marks)
- The story says that “her shoulders loosened a little more.” What does this show about how Aroha felt? (2 marks)
- What do you think will happen between Aroha and Lachlan after the fete? Use a clue from the story to explain your idea. (2 marks)
- Choose the statement that best sums up the story. Write its letter. (1 mark)A. A small act of kindness can help someone feel they belong.B. Lamingtons are the most popular food at the school fete, so every stall sells them.C. Egg-and-spoon races are the best part of the day, and everybody should enter one.D. Counting change is much harder than playing games, so students should avoid it.
Answer key for parents and teachers
1. Lamingtons (chocolate and coconut squares). (1 mark)
Finding information. A detail to find in the first paragraph before the harder questions begin.
2. Lonely, shy or left out. Evidence, for example: she stood by herself; she watched the other children; she did not walk over to anyone. (2 marks)
Inference. The story never says how Aroha felt. The child works it out from her actions.
3. He had noticed she was alone and remembered how it felt on his own first day, so he wanted to include her. (2 marks)
Inference. Working out a character’s reason, using a clue from earlier in the story.
4. Very bad at something. (1 mark)
Word meaning. Understanding a word from the way it is used.
5. Probably not. He used it as an excuse to give Aroha a reason to join in, because he had noticed she was alone. (2 marks)
Inference. People do not always say what they mean. The child sees through what Lachlan says to why he says it.
6. She was becoming more relaxed and comfortable. (2 marks)
Language choices. A body-language detail that shows a feeling without naming it.
7. Any sensible prediction backed by a clue, for example: they will become friends, because she laughed at his jokes and asked him to save her the last lamington. (2 marks)
Giving a view with evidence. Predicting what happens next and justifying it with a clue.
8. A (1 mark)
Summarising. A theme covers the whole story, not just one detail.
What this practises
Finding information, Inference, Word meaning, Language choices, Giving a view with evidence, Summarising. This sheet links to Comprehension Strategies (AC9E4LY05). Schools and states deliver the Australian Curriculum (version 9) in different ways, so check what your child's school uses. Marks and answers are a guide: accept any sensible answer that is backed up by the text.
Now try the writing task
Write about a time someone helped you feel welcome, or a time you helped someone else.
Aim for eight to twelve sentences. Read it back aloud together and fix anything that does not sound right.
Want feedback on your child's own writing?
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More Year 4 worksheets
Free to print and copy for your own family or classroom. Please do not sell or republish. The passage and questions were written for LiteracyLab AI.