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Goldilocks and the Three Bears: a book club kit
Where it comes from. Robert Southey wrote this down in England in 1837. Later tellers gave the girl her golden hair.
In short (for the leader; it gives the ending away). Three bears make porridge and go for a walk while it cools. A girl named Goldilocks goes into their house, tries their porridge, chairs and beds, and chooses Little Bear's each time because it is just right. She breaks his chair and falls asleep. When the bears come home she wakes, leaps out and runs home.
The lesson, in one line. Don't go into a house that isn't yours.
Reading plan. Read it together at the meeting: about 2 minutes aloud, or ahead of time at home.
Questions to talk about
- What is the moral of Goldilocks and the Three Bears?
The story's answer: Don't go into a house that isn't yours. Goldilocks eats the bears' porridge and breaks a chair, and she has to run away. - Who wrote Goldilocks and the Three Bears?
The story's answer: Robert Southey wrote down the first printed version in England in 1837. He called it The Story of the Three Bears. - Why is the story called Goldilocks?
The story's answer: In Southey's first version the visitor was an old woman. Later retellers made her a girl and, in time, gave her golden hair and the name Goldilocks. - What is the Goldilocks zone?
The story's answer: It is a name scientists use for the area around a star where a planet is not too hot and not too cold for liquid water. It comes from the “just right” in this 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.
Did you know?
- Robert Southey wrote it down in England in 1837 as “The Story of the Three Bears”.
- In Southey's first version the visitor was an old woman, not a girl. Later tellers made her a girl called Goldilocks.
- The words “just right” are the most famous part of the story.
Activity: Draw the story as a map
On one big sheet, draw every place the story happens and the path between them. Mark the spot where things go wrong and the spot where they come right.
More to talk about
More facts for the leader
- Scientists use the phrase “Goldilocks zone” for a planet that is not too hot and not too cold for life.
Words to teach before you start
- porridge: hot oat cereal
- middle: in between
- asleep: sleeping
- broke: came apart
Questions leaders ask
How long does a Goldilocks and the Three Bears book club meeting take?
Reading it aloud takes about 2 minutes in all, so plan one meeting of 30 to 45 minutes, with time left for the questions. The reading plan on the sheet says where to stop.
What age is Goldilocks and the Three Bears for?
It is written at Peabody level 5, a grade 1 reading level, so most children at that level can read it alone. Younger children can listen to it read aloud.
Do the children need to read it before the meeting?
No. Each child can read it free on Peabody, before the meeting or together at it, and the questions work either way. The sheet's short version gives the ending away, so keep it for the leader.
How do I use the questions?
Start with the story's own questions, which have answers in the leader's notes, then move to the open ones and listen for reasons. There is no wrong answer to an open question. Stop when the group runs out of things to say.
Club kits for stories like this
- Henny Penny (level 5)
- The Enormous Turnip (level 5)
- The Gingerbread Man (level 5)
- The Three Little Pigs (level 5)
- The Little Red Hen (level 4)
- Little Red Riding Hood (level 7)
How this kit is made
The short version, the facts and the first questions with their answers are the story's own, written for its page in Peabody's library and checked against the sources named there. The open questions, the activity and the plan are Peabody's, written for this kind of story. No part of it is written by a computer model.
Running the meeting: the meeting plans (30, 45 and 60 minutes) and the sign-up sheet.