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Rumpelstiltskin: book club questions by chapter
Meeting 1 of 2
🦉 Rumpelstiltskin · meeting 1 of 2
Read: Part One, “Straw into Gold”; Part Two, “The Promise” (pages 1–9, about 5 minutes aloud).
Stop at the end of page 9, and don't read on: the next part is for next time.
- Why did the King lock the girl in a room full of straw?
The story's answer: Her father boasted that she could spin straw into gold - What did the girl give the little man on the first night?
The story's answer: Her necklace - Who have we met so far, and what does each of them want?
Listen for: Make a list together on the board; keep it for next time and add to it. - The part we just read is called "The Promise". Why do you think it has that name?
Listen for: Any answer that points to a moment in the part is a good one; ask for the page. - Stop here. What do you think will happen next? Write or draw one guess to check next time.
Listen for: Keep the guesses in an envelope. Don't say whether a guess is right: the next part will.
Meeting 2 of 2
🦉 Rumpelstiltskin · meeting 2 of 2
Read: Part Three, “The Name” (pages 10–16, about 4 minutes aloud).
Stop at the end of page 16, the end of the story.
- How did the Queen find out the little man's name?
The story's answer: Her messenger heard him singing it by a fire - What did Rumpelstiltskin do when the Queen guessed his name?
The story's answer: He stamped his foot through the floor and stormed off - What lesson did the miller learn?
The story's answer: A silly boast can cause a lot of trouble - Look back at last time's guesses. Which came true, and what surprised you?
Listen for: Read the guesses out. Nobody was wrong: a guess that missed often shows what the author wanted us to expect. - The part we just read is called "The Name". Why do you think it has that name?
Listen for: Any answer that points to a moment in the part is a good one; ask for the page. - Now that you know the ending, was it the ending you expected?
Listen for: Ask what in the earlier parts pointed to it, or pointed the other way.
About the whole story
- Who in the story was kind, and who was not? How do you know?
Listen for: Ask for the moment in the story that shows it. - Which part would you change, and how would the story end then?
Listen for: There is no wrong ending; ask what else would have to change.
How these questions are made
The questions with an answer are the story's own, from its page in the library, each at the first stop whose pages answer it and where everyone it names has already come in. The rest are Peabody's, and name nothing but the parts already read. Nothing here is written by a computer model. The story's club kit has the short version for the leader (it gives the ending away), three facts and an activity.
Read it free: peabody.kids/library/rumpelstiltskin. Every child in the club can read it on any device, with no account.