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The Elephant's Child: a book club kit
Where it comes from. Rudyard Kipling first printed this in 1900. In 1902 it went into his book Just So Stories, which began as bedtime stories for his own little girl.
In short (for the leader; it gives the ending away). Long ago the elephant had only a small nose. The Elephant's Child is full of questions and gets told to hush. He goes to the Limpopo River to find out what the crocodile eats for dinner, and the crocodile stretches his nose into a long trunk. He finds it very handy.
The lesson, in one line. Being curious leads to new things.
Reading plan. Read it together at the meeting: about 5 minutes aloud, or ahead of time at home.
Questions to talk about
- What is the moral of The Elephant's Child?
The story's answer: Being curious leads to new things. The Elephant's Child gets into trouble for his questions, and they also give him the most useful nose in the world. - Who wrote The Elephant's Child?
The story's answer: Rudyard Kipling first printed it in 1900. In 1902 it went into his book Just So Stories, which began as bedtime stories for his daughter. - How did the elephant get its trunk, according to the story?
The story's answer: A crocodile grabbed the Elephant's Child by the nose and pulled until it stretched into a long trunk. He turned out to be able to use it like a hand. - Is The Elephant's Child a true story?
The story's answer: No. It is a made-up “just so” story about how things came to be. Elephants really have trunks, but not because of a crocodile. - Which character changed the most from the beginning to the end?
Listen for: Ask what changed them. - Which scene would you put on the poster if this were a film?
Listen for: A way to find the scene that mattered most to each reader.
Did you know?
- Rudyard Kipling first printed it in 1900, and in 1902 it went into his book Just So Stories.
- He first told the stories at bedtime to his young daughter, who wanted them told the same way every time.
- The story explains how the elephant got its trunk.
Activity: Cast the film
Choose who would play each character, draw the poster with your scene on it, and give the film a one-line tagline.
More to talk about
More facts for the leader
- The Limpopo River is a real river in southern Africa.
Words to teach before you start
- trunk: elephant's nose
- greasy: slick and oily
- rinds: fruit peels
- python: a huge snake
- swatted: hit quickly
- handy: very useful
Questions leaders ask
How long does a The Elephant's Child book club meeting take?
Reading it aloud takes about 5 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 The Elephant's Child for?
It is written at Peabody level 8, a grade 3 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
- How the Camel Got His Hump (level 8)
- The Little Blue Engine (level 7)
- The Tale of Peter Rabbit (level 7)
- Peter Pan (level 10)
- The Case of the Missing Mangoes (level 10)
- The Wizard of Oz (level 10)
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.