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Story Clues

Read the story. Spot the clues. Be a detail detective!

Detective's name:  
3 stories  ·  12 activities  ·  1 certificate
A reading & attention activity book
FOR THE GROWN-UP

How to use this book

🎯 What this is building

Each story is short and simple on purpose — the goal isn't decoding difficulty, it's attention to detail. Once your child can read (or listen to) the story comfortably, the activities ask them to hold onto small specific facts: colours, numbers, names. This is the same skill used in following instructions, proofreading work, and picking up on details in conversation.

  1. Read one story together — aloud, or independently if your child prefers. Either is fine.
  2. Do the four activities that follow it before looking back at the story, if possible. Getting one "wrong" and checking back is a good outcome too — it's not a test.
  3. Use the story itself as the answer key for the Quiz and Word Detective pages. The Picture Check and Story Order answers are also listed on the answers page near the back.
  4. One story (about 10 minutes) is plenty for one sitting. There's no need to do all three at once.
  5. Celebrate noticing, not just getting things right — "ooh, good spot!" goes a long way.
STORY ONE
🐱

Milo the Ginger Cat

Milo was a ginger cat with soft, fluffy fur. He wore a blue collar with a small silver bell.

One sunny afternoon, Milo played in the garden. He found a red ball under the apple tree. He chased it across the grass, and it rolled under a big green bush.

Three sparrows flew up out of the bush, chirping loudly. Milo stopped and watched them fly away.

Then he heard his mum calling. "Milo! Tea time!" she shouted from the kitchen door. Milo ran inside. For tea, his mum gave him a bowl of fish. Milo licked the bowl clean, then curled up for a nap.

STORY ONE · ACTIVITY 1

Detail Quiz

Tick the box next to the correct answer.

1. Was Milo's fur ginger or black?
Ginger
Black
2. Was his collar blue or red?
Blue
Red
3. Was the ball red or yellow?
Red
Yellow
4. Did the ball roll under a bush or into a pond?
Under a bush
Into a pond
5. Were there two sparrows or three sparrows?
Two
Three
6. Did mum give Milo fish or milk for tea?
Fish
Milk
STORY ONE · ACTIVITY 2

Picture Check

Only one picture matches the story exactly. Which one — A or B?

A
🐈‍⬛
🟥
🔴
🐦 ×3
B
🐈
🟦
🔴
🐦 ×3
My answer:
STORY ONE · ACTIVITY 3

Word Detective

Draw a line from each word to the picture it matches.

ginger cat
collar
bush
sparrow
fish
A🎗️
B🐦
C🐟
D🐱
E🌳
STORY ONE · ACTIVITY 4

Story Order

These four things happened in the story, but they're mixed up. Cut them out (or just look), then write the letters in the right order below.

A
🍽️
Mum called Milo in for tea
B
🔴
Milo found a red ball
C
🐦
Three sparrows flew away
D
🌳
The ball rolled under a bush
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
STORY TWO
🌂

Ruby and the Rainy Day

It was raining outside, so Ruby put on her purple raincoat and her yellow wellies. She held her dad's hand and they walked to the park.

The rain stopped, and a bright rainbow appeared in the sky. Down by the pond, Ruby spotted two ducks swimming in a circle. One duck had a shiny green head. The other duck was brown all over.

Ruby's dad bought her a warm hot chocolate from a small stall. It had two pink marshmallows on top!

When they got home, Ruby dried off and drew a picture of the rainbow and the ducks.

STORY TWO · ACTIVITY 1

Detail Quiz

Tick the box next to the correct answer.

1. Was Ruby's raincoat purple or orange?
Purple
Orange
2. Were her wellies yellow or red?
Yellow
Red
3. Did Ruby see one duck or two ducks?
One
Two
4. Was one duck's head green or blue?
Green
Blue
5. Were there one or two marshmallows on her hot chocolate?
One
Two
6. Did Ruby draw a rainbow or a sun?
A rainbow
A sun
STORY TWO · ACTIVITY 2

Picture Check

Only one picture matches the story exactly. Which one — A or B?

A
🟠
🟡
🔵
⚪ ×2
B
🟣
🟡
🟢
⚪ ×2
My answer:
STORY TWO · ACTIVITY 3

Word Detective

Draw a line from each word to the picture it matches.

raincoat
wellies
rainbow
duck
marshmallow
A🦆
B🌈
C🥾
D🧥
E
STORY TWO · ACTIVITY 4

Story Order

These four things happened in the story, but they're mixed up. Cut them out (or just look), then write the letters in the right order below.

A
🍫
Dad bought her a hot chocolate
B
🧥
Ruby put on her raincoat and wellies
C
🦆
She saw two ducks by the pond
D
🌈
The rainbow appeared
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
STORY THREE
🎂

Sam's Birthday Party

Today was Sam's birthday! He wore a bright orange party hat and blew out five candles on his chocolate cake. His friends sang "Happy Birthday" loudly.

Sam opened his presents one by one. His best friend gave him a red toy car. Next, he opened a box with a furry brown teddy bear inside.

For lunch, everyone ate pizza and jelly. Sam's favourite jelly flavour was strawberry.

After lunch, they played games in the garden until the sun went down.

STORY THREE · ACTIVITY 1

Detail Quiz

Tick the box next to the correct answer.

1. Was Sam's party hat orange or blue?
Orange
Blue
2. Did his cake have five candles or six candles?
Five
Six
3. Was his cake chocolate or vanilla?
Chocolate
Vanilla
4. Was the toy car red or green?
Red
Green
5. Was the teddy bear brown or white?
Brown
White
6. Was the jelly flavour strawberry or lemon?
Strawberry
Lemon
STORY THREE · ACTIVITY 2

Picture Check

Only one picture matches the story exactly. Which one — A or B?

A
🔵
🕯️ ×6
🔴
🧸
B
🟠
🕯️ ×5
🔴
🧸
My answer:
STORY THREE · ACTIVITY 3

Word Detective

Draw a line from each word to the picture it matches.

party hat
candle
toy car
teddy bear
jelly
A🧸
B🍮
C🎉
D🕯️
E🚗
STORY THREE · ACTIVITY 4

Story Order

These four things happened in the story, but they're mixed up. Cut them out (or just look), then write the letters in the right order below.

A
🍕
Everyone ate pizza and jelly
B
🕯️
Sam blew out the candles
C
🧸
He opened a teddy bear
D
🚗
He opened a red toy car
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
FOR THE GROWN-UP

Answers

Story 1 — Milo the Ginger Cat

Story 2 — Ruby and the Rainy Day

Story 3 — Sam's Birthday Party

🏅

Certificate of Detection

This certifies that

 

has read three stories, spotted the clues, and officially earned the title of

Story Detective