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The Steadfast Tin Soldier: book club questions by chapter
Meeting 1 of 2
🦉 The Steadfast Tin Soldier · meeting 1 of 2
Read: Part One, “The Table of Toys”; Part Two, “The Gutter” (pages 1–13, about 7 minutes aloud).
Stop at the end of page 13, and don't read on: the next part is for next time.
- Why did the tin soldier have only one leg?
The story's answer: The tin ran short when he was made - Why did the soldier not call out when he fell into the street?
The story's answer: He thought a soldier should not cry for help - What did the two boys do with the soldier?
The story's answer: Put him in a paper boat on the gutter - 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 Gutter". 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
🦉 The Steadfast Tin Soldier · meeting 2 of 2
Read: Part Three, “The Fish”; Part Four, “Home Again” (pages 14–18, about 3 minutes aloud).
Stop at the end of page 18, the end of the story.
- What swallowed the soldier after the boat sank?
The story's answer: A big fish - What does this story show about the tin soldier?
The story's answer: Staying brave and true through hard times can carry you home - 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 "Home Again". 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/the-steadfast-tin-soldier. Every child in the club can read it on any device, with no account.