Make Lemonade

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“The Lemon Plant”

In this activity, students will plant and nurture seeds as the characters did, then reflect on the experience.

Plant seeds and care for them as they grow into plants. Prepare an artifact about the process and what you learn.  

• Gather seeds from something you eat or another plant you have at home.
• Find and repurpose a planter, such as a food container or another household item.
• Plant the seeds.
• Research what the type of seed needs to grow.
• Make sure they get the light and water they need.
• Document their growth. If they don’t grow, consider trying again, as the characters had to in the novel.
• Create an artifact about this process, such as a poster, video, essay, or poem.
• Reflect on the symbolism of the lemon seeds in the story; what message does the author convey through this symbolism, and how does your experience connect? Include your thoughts and rationale in your artifact.

Discuss your experience with your small group. Display your artifact and present your reflection to group members.

Wrap up the activity with a journal entry that describes how your process growing the plant compared to that of LaVaughn and Jolly.

Teaching Suggestion: The lemon seeds become a central symbol in the novel, a topic the characters return to again and again. They plant seeds from food they have, making the precious resource go even further. Asking students to use materials they find at home or in their neighborhood (e.g., seeds from plants or fruits, containers from food or other household items) emphasizes the heart of the project while also reducing cost. Instead of planting in the classroom, students might plant and grow the plants at home and bring photographs and journals to class. Not all seeds might grow; preparing students for that and having a way to make the project still meaningful will be important. You might plan for the discussion and journal to take place at a later time, providing students the chance to try to grow a second set of seeds. This project might be an opportunity to work with science classes or an environmental club in school.

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. The lemon seeds feature prominently in many scenes.

• Ultimately, what do the lemon seeds symbolize? (topic sentence)
• Select and discuss 3 scenes in the novel in which the seeds convey a message. How does this message change or develop over the course of the novel? In your discussion, incorporate examples and details to support your analysis.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, explain a lesson the reader might take from the novel regarding the seeds.

2. A piece of paper on a bulletin board leads LaVaughn to Jolly.

• How does LaVaughn’s motivation for babysitting shift over the course of the novel? (topic sentence)
• Analyze and discuss at least 3 points in the novel that demonstrate LaVaughn’s different motivations. As you craft your essay, include quotations and additional details to support your ideas.
• In your conclusion, summarize the clearest way in which babysitting has changed LaVaughn.

3. LaVaughn tells the story from her point of view.

• How does the first-person viewpoint most strongly affect the novel? (topic sentence)
• As you craft your response, include at least 3 points from a variety of locations in the novel that support your topic sentence. Use quotations and additional details to illustrate your points.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, evaluate the effectiveness of this narrative choice and include rationale.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by textual details, and a conclusion.

1. Reflect on the use of verse to compose this novel. How does verse help to develop meaning? What are some effects of the line length? How do the grammar and punctuation used in the verse format affect ideas that emerge in the story? In a 3- or 5-paragraph essay, analyze and discuss the use of verse in Make Lemonade and explain how the author’s style choices build one or more of these themes: The Challenges Faced by Teen Mothers, Coming of Age in the Inner City, or Redefining the Idea of Family.

2. The idea of different forms of family features prominently in this novel. How does LaVaughn view her mother before her father’s death and since? What does Jolly reveal about her family growing up? Where does LaVaughn fit into Jolly’s family and how does that shift in different moments? Write a 3- or 5-paragraph essay that discusses the clear messages about family in the story, especially with regard to the theme of Redefining the Idea of Family.

Multiple Choice and Long Answer Questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, exams, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. Which of the following characteristics best describe LaVaughn’s mother?

A) Unhappy, cruel, and selfish

B) Dreamy, distracted, and compassionate

C) Determined, strong, and judgmental

D) Wise, absent, and angry

2. What idea best represents the role of college in LaVaughn’s life?

A) College is a motivation and represents LaVaughn’s hope and opportunities.

B) College is LaVaughn’s mother’s dream, not hers, and they argue about it often.

C) College is something LaVaughn’s teachers and Jolly talk about that seems distant.

D) College is a source of bitterness because it led to the separation of LaVaughn’s parents.

3. Why does LaVaughn first begin babysitting for Jolly?

A) LaVaughn’s mother tells her she has to do so, and she thinks Jilly is adorable.

B) Jolly’s teacher asks LaVaughn to do so for one week, and she is bored anyway.

C) LaVaughn wants to earn money for a goal and connects right away with Jeremy.

D) Jolly offers to help LaVaughn with a job interview in exchange for babysitting.

4. What detail most accurately describes the age difference between Jolly and LaVaughn?

A) LaVaughn is 7 years older than Jolly.

B) LaVaughn is 4 years older than Jolly.

C) Jolly is 10 years older than LaVaughn.

D) Jolly is 3 years older than LaVaughn.

5. Why does Jolly refuse welfare?

A) Her Gram always told her not to take welfare.

B) Jolly is afraid it will lead to authorities taking away her children.

C) The welfare agency suggested Jolly return to school.

D) LaVaughn’s mother suggested it, and Jolly will not take advice from her.

6. How does Jolly act when she first attends Steam Class with LaVaughn?

A) Imposing and snobbish to hide her nervousness

B) Timid and fearful seeing so many people

C) Calm and focused to get the most out of the class

D) Thrilled and excited when she joins the discussion

7. What figurative language does the following quotation contain?

“I thought about how I was blaming Jolly

for having Jilly when she should know better,

and then here comes Jilly on her own steam

all the way across the floor

to land here like a boat nobody expected.” (Chapter 50)

A) Simile

B) Foreshadowing

C) Dramatic irony

D) Hyperbole

8. What inference can be drawn by LaVaughn’s reflection that Jilly and Jeremy are like “vitamins [she’d] been not having” (Chapter 48)?

A) LaVaughn dislikes being with Jeremy and Jilly but knows she must attend to their needs.

B) LaVaughn hopes to have two children of her own just like Jilly and Jeremy one day.

C) LaVaughn knows Jilly and Jeremy enjoy and appreciate being with her.

D) LaVaughn recognizes that spending time with Jeremy and Jilly is good for her.

9. After talking with the teacher about getting Jolly help, how does LaVaughn feel about getting paid for babysitting Jolly’s children?

A) Exhilarated

B) Conflicted

C) Courageous

D) Furious

10. Which scene best develops the theme of Redefining the Idea of Family?

A) Jeremy getting his vision tested and getting glasses

B) Jolly and LaVaughn dropping Jeremy and Jilly at day care

C) The neighbors coming outside when the ambulance arrives

D) Jolly rewriting a letter for an assignment

11. What plot scenario most represents The Challenges Faced by Teen Mothers?

A) LaVaughn’s mother buying stacks of notebook paper for LaVaughn

B) LaVaughn getting a job cleaning a church

C) Jolly missing school because Jeremy got sick

D) Jeremy deciding he is in charge of everyone on the bus

12. When Jilly starts choking, which statement best describes Jolly’s reaction?

A) Jolly panics and relies on LaVaughn to save Jilly.

B) Jolly focuses and uses skills she learned to save Jilly.

C) Jolly tries CPR but forgets the steps and cries.

D) Jolly calls 9-1-1 and waits for the ambulance.

13. Which of the following sequences is the accurate chronological order of events?

A) Jeremy gets glasses; Jilly is born; Jolly starts the Moms Up Program; LaVaughn’s father dies.

B) Jeremy gets glasses; LaVaughn’s father dies; Jilly is born; Jolly starts the Moms Up Program.

)C Jilly is born; Jolly starts the Moms Up Program; Jeremy gets glasses; LaVaughn’s father dies.

D) LaVaughn’s father dies; Jilly is born; Jolly starts the Moms Up Program; Jeremy gets glasses.

14. Which of the following ideas best describes how Jolly has changed by the end of the novel?

A) Jolly has embraced school and built a support system and hope.

B) Jolly has stopped trying to find a job and spends every day on the couch.

C) Jolly has become more focused on her children and less focused on cleaning all the time.

D) Jolly has become more reliant on LaVaughn and her mother and less hopeful.

15. Which summary statement best describes the relationship between Jolly and LaVaughn at the end of the novel?

A) LaVaughn has left the city but visits several times a year, and Jolly writes to her as part of a school assignment.

B) LaVaughn and Jolly spend most afternoons together with Jilly and Jeremy, occasionally talking.

C) Jolly and LaVaughn’s argument leads to their estrangement, which Jolly says she is fine with.

D) Jolly does not need LaVaughn anymore, so they rarely interact, but LaVaughn reflects about their time together.

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating textual details to support your response.

1. How does LaVaughn feel about the ways in which her relationship with Jolly has shifted in the final chapter?

2. What is the significance of the plant sprouting at the end of the novel