The Swing: a free Grade 2 story

The Swing1 / 3

Part One · Robert Louis Stevenson

How do you like to go up in a swing, Up in the air so blue? Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing Ever a child can do! Up in the air and over the wall, Till I can see so wide, Rivers and trees and cattle and all Over the countryside--

About The Swing

A free Grade 2 story from the Peabody library, Level 7. It has 3 short pages and about 98 words, so it reads in a few minutes.

Words this story teaches

cattle: cows
countryside: land outside towns
pleasantest: nicest

At reading level 7, Peabody's practice works on phonics (sounding words out), sight words, spelling; the level page says what is in each.

The short version

The Swing is a short poem about going up and down on a garden swing. It was written by Robert Louis Stevenson and printed in A Child's Garden of Verses in 1885.

Quick facts

Robert Louis Stevenson was a writer who lived from 1850 to 1894.
The poem is in A Child's Garden of Verses, a book of poems for children first printed in 1885.
The poem asks the reader a question in its first line, as if the child were talking to a friend.

Who wrote The Swing?

The Swing was written by Robert Louis Stevenson. It was printed in his book A Child's Garden of Verses in 1885.

To print it or save it as a PDF, tap the ⓘ button above the story, then “Print this story”.

More stories at Level 7

All the Level 7 stories, or the whole library.

For teachers: read it to the class, questions and key

📺 Read this to the class: one page at a time on the board, big arrows, and Peabody reads a page when you ask. Sound is off until you tap.
📚 More books at level 7 for a guided-reading group. This is Peabody's own level, not a Lexile or a guided-reading letter. Pick a group's books from their level, and one level up to stretch them.
🖨 Print the passage with its questions and answer key

Questions and answer key (5)

What does the child see from the top of the swing?
- A. The sea and ships
- B. Rivers, trees and cattle
- C. Only the garden
Show answer
B. Rivers, trees and cattle
How does the child feel about the swing?
- A. It is scary
- B. It is boring
- C. It is the pleasantest thing a child can do
Show answer
C. It is the pleasantest thing a child can do
In this poem, what does "countryside" mean?
- A. A kind of swing
- B. The land outside the town
- C. A rainy day
Show answer
B. The land outside the town
Which line is nearly the same in each verse?
- A. How do you like
- B. Down on the roof
- C. Up in the air
Show answer
C. Up in the air
Which word rhymes with "wide"?
- A. swing
- B. green
- C. side
Show answer
C. side

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