The Sticky Situation
The Sticky Situation
Barnaby Buttercup wasn't trying to invent the world's stickiest chewing gum. Not at all. Barnaby was trying to make broccoli taste like bubblegum. You see, Barnaby loathed broccoli. It was green, it was lumpy, and it smelled vaguely of old socks. So, he decided to concoct a solution.
His laboratory (aka his bedroom) was already a magnificent mess. Beakers (old jam jars), bubbling concoctions (fizzy lemonade and dish soap), and strange powders (flour and paprika) covered every surface.
"Right," Barnaby muttered, consulting his recipe book (a scribbled mess on a napkin). "Step one: add the essence of bubblegum. Step two: neutralize the broccoli-ness."
The 'essence of bubblegum' was a bottle of super-concentrated flavoring he’d swiped from his mum’s baking cupboard. The 'broccoli-ness neutralizer' was a pinch of everything he could find – salt, pepper, chili powder, and a suspicious-looking green powder he found under his bed. He mixed it all in an old cement mixer, and then added the broccoli.
He chewed cautiously. At first, it tasted… oddly minty. Then, the stickiness hit. It wasn't just sticky; it was super-duper, ultra-sticky. Barnaby tried to open his mouth, but his jaws were sealed shut. He tugged, he pulled, he even tried a complicated series of yodeling moves he’d learned from a documentary about Swiss cheesemakers. Nothing worked.
- Concoction:
- A strange mixture.
- Ordeal:
- A difficult or painful experience.
- Essence:
- A concentrated flavoring.
- Lubricant:
- A slippery substance to reduce friction.
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Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 1What was Barnaby trying to invent?
- 2Describe Barnaby's 'laboratory'.
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About this fiction passage for 4th Grade
“The Sticky Situation” is a fiction reading passage about Invention, written for 4th Grade. It takes about 2 minutes to read (355 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.