Kyla Steinkraus - Cupcakes with Sally Ride

2018 Rourke Educational Media

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the publisher.

www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com

Edited by: Keli Sipperley

Cover and Interior layout by: Kathy Walsh

Cover and Interior Illustrations by: Katie Wood

Library of Congress PCN Data

Cupcakes with Sally Ride / Kyla Steinkraus

(Time Hop Sweets Shop)

ISBN 978-1-68342-333-1 (hard cover)(alk. paper)

ISBN 978-1-68342-429-1 (soft cover)

ISBN 978-1-73160-336-4 (e-Book)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017931180

Dear Parents and Teachers,

Fiona and Finley are just like any modern-day kids. They help out with the family business, face struggles and triumphs at school, travel through time with important historical figures

Well, maybe that parts not so ordinary. At the Time Hop Sweets Shop, anything can happen, at any point in time. The family bakery draws customers from all over the mapand all over the history books. And when Tick Tock the parrot squawks, Fiona and Finley know an adventure is about to begin!

These beginner chapter books are designed to introduce students to important people in U.S. history, turning their accomplishments into adventures that Fiona, Finley, and young readers get to experience right along with them.

Perfect as read-alouds, read-alongs, or independent readers, books in the Time Hop Sweets Shop series were written to delight, inform, and engage your child or students by making each historical figure memorable and relatable. Each book includes a biography, comprehension questions, websites for further reading, and more.

We look forward to our time travels together!

Happy Reading,
Rourke Educational Media

Mmmm! This is yummy! Fiona said. She stuck her finger in the frosting and licked it.

Her brother Finley pulled his cupcake away. No fair. Stop eating my cupcakes! I need them for the bake sale. Finleys nickname was Cupcake King. He baked the best cupcakes in the whole world.

Finley and Fionas mom and dad owned the Sweets Shop. It was a bakery with old-fashioned treats like molasses cookies, cider cake, and rhubarb tarts. After school, the kids helped make wonderful desserts.

Finley was a year older than Fiona, but Fiona was just as tall. She could do anything Finley could do. Almost. She couldnt make cupcakes as delicious as Finley could.

Its not fair, Fiona said with a sigh. I want to be the Cupcake Queen.

Too bad, Finley said. Im the king because Im the boy. Boys are the best at everything.

Thats not true! Fiona frowned at her brother. Take it back.

Nope, Finley said, grinning. He took a huge bite of his cupcake.

Just then, the bell over the side door jingled. Look at the time! their pet parrot, Tick Tock, squawked. He flapped his feathers.

A woman with curly brown hair walked in. She wore a blue spacesuit. I came for a cupcake! she said. I heard you have the best cupcakes in the whole world.

Not the whole world, Fiona muttered.

Whats wrong? the woman asked.

Fiona told her what Finley said. Boys arent the best just because theyre boys. Right?

Right! Women can do anything. In fact, Im about to be the first woman to visit outer space.

Fiona jumped off her stool. Wowza!

You must be Sally Ride, Finley said. We learned about you in school.

Sally grinned. Do you want to come see for yourself?

Yes! Fiona and Finley yelled together.

Mom popped her head around the corner. Have a great time! She waved.

The date is June 18, 1983, Sally Ride said. Were going to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Hold on tight!

The kids ran for the side door.

See you soon! Tick Tock squawked.

The Sweets Shop began to spin. It felt like being inside a washing machine!

Fiona loved it.

Finley hated it. His face turned green.

Wowza! Fiona gasped.

The world stopped spinning. They were sitting inside the space shuttle. And they wore blue spacesuits, just like Sally.

Buckle up, Sally said. This is the Challenger space shuttle. Its thirty stories tall. She introduced the kids to the rest of the crew. This is Norman, Robert, Frederick, and John.

The men waved and said hello.

Sally closed the visor on their helmets. Fiona and Finley breathed through the oxygen supply in their spacesuits. Ready for outer space? she asked.

Finleys heart pounded in his chest. Fiona could barely breathe. Ten seconds before liftoff, the countdown began. Ten, nine, eight, seven...

Three, two, one, Fiona said excitedly.

The rockets lit. A loud rumbling roar filled the shuttle. The sound was deafening! The shuttle launched into the air. It went faster and faster. Fiona and Finleys heads rattled inside their helmets. The engines and the rockets thundered in their ears. It was so loud, Finley had to turn down his hearing aid.

Finley swallowed. Was everything working properly? What if something went wrong? Finley thought.

Up, up, and up they went. They flew past the clouds.

I cant move! Fiona shouted.

Sally laughed. The force of 3 Gs, three times the force of the gravity we feel on Earth, is pushing us back against our seats. It will be over soon.

After two rumbling, roaring minutes, it suddenly became quiet and smooth. What happened? Finley asked.

The rocket boosters are empty. They broke away from the shuttle. Theyll glide back to Earth with parachutes.

But not us, Finley breathed. Were not going back to Earth.

Eight minutes after the shuttle launch, the engines cut off. The force was gone. Sallys book and pencils floated in midair. All gravity was gone, even the normal gravity from Earth!

Were in orbit now, Sally said. One hundred and sixty miles above the Earth.

Fiona and Finley unstrapped their seatbelts. They floated, too! Fiona drifted around the cabin, bumping into the walls. Finley sat on the ceiling. He laughed so hard, he had to hold his stomach.

Fiona looked out the windows and gasped. Earth was a huge, spinning ball beneath them. The oceans were a beautiful blue, the deserts bright orange. They could see mountains and canyons and whole oceans. A beautiful sunrise rose over the edge of the planet.