By Sophie
Illustrated by Emma


Emma was a little girl.





Emma's dad went to China.





Emma waited, waited, and waited.





Finally dad came back home.
Emma was happy, very happy to see him.





Dad brought back a little teapot and a couple of tiny little tea cups.





(I'm a little teapot, short and stout. Drink from me, and I'll whirl about.)


Dad gave Emma a little tea cup.
He put in the cup a tiny dried thing.

"That's a leaf, a tea leaf." He told Emma.

"How could it be?" Emma wondered,
"It doesn't look like a leaf at all!"


Dad poured in some boiled water in the little cup.

Emma waited and waited, watched and watched.





The dried little thing began to grow and grow,
get bigger and bigger.

At last, it opened its face.

"A leaf! A real leaf!" Emma shouted excitedly.

The water in the cup became light green, and there was a beautiful , green little leaf floating in the water.





Dad took a sip of the tea.
"Ni - ce!" He said.

Emma took a sip of the tea.
"Ni-ce!" she said.