Three Billy Goats Gruff Retold and Illustrated by Paul Galdone

Key Concepts

Goal-setting

Cooperation

Problem-solving

Family Values

Math Concepts: o position words (on, under, over)o big, middle-size, little

Vocabulary Positional Words: up, down, over, under, in, on, across

Words from the Book:over trollgobble meadowbilly goat (male) nanny goat (female)kid (baby goat) bridgeclover valleygruff rushing riverugly meanwait creakedgroaned taletramping youngesttiniest decideddaisies buttedtrampled tossed

be off with you trip, trap! trip, trap!

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Related BooksThe Three Billy Goats Gruff by Ellen Appleby

Another version of the classic folktale about three clever billy-goats who outwit the nasty troll. Read various versions in your classroom guiding children to compare/contrast.

The Three Billy Goats Gruff/Just a Friendly Old Troll (Another Point of View) by Alvin Granowsky

In this retelling of the classic folktale, the troll gets to tell his side of the story. The troll is just being a friendly neighbor by inviting the Goats Gruff over for dinner, and it’s not his fault the Goats think he’s going to eat them.

Gregory, the Terrible Eater by Ted DewanChildren enjoy reading about the goat who is chided for eating healthy foods.

Goldilocks and the Three Bears by Byron Barton or Paul GaldoneThe number three is yet again a magic number in this tale; it is a number that has been considered powerful throughout history in different cultures and religions. In this familiar tale, the trio is a family of bears whose home is intruded on by Goldilocks. Educational concepts include: comparing sizes (big, middle, little) and following rules.

The Three Little Pigs by Luz Orihuela or Patricia SeibertAnother example of a classic tale of three family members faced with overcoming a predator, with a happy ending for all. Educational concepts include: good choices and comparing different types of homes.

Goats by Robin Nelson

The FLRC has this and other nonfiction titles about goats. Use these nonfiction books to enrich the children’s enjoyment of the story and add to their knowledge of the world around them.

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We heard the story:

The Three Billy Goats Gruff

Ask me about what sound the billy goats made when they crossed the bridge: (trip-trap, trip-trap, trip-trap). Guess who lived under the bridge!

Let’s quietly make the “Trip-Trap” sound like the littlest billy goat, then let’s make a loud “Trip-Trap” sound like the biggest billy goat.

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Nosotros oímos el cuento:

Los Tres Cabritos Gruff

Pregúntame que sonido hacían los tres cabritos cuando cruzaban el puente (trip-trap, trip-trap, trip-trap). Adivine quien vivía debajo del puente.

Vamos a hacer el sonido “Trip-Trap” tranquilamente como el del pequeño cabrito, entonces vamos a hacer el sonido fuerte como el del cabro más grande “Trip-Trap.”

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For the TeacherAbout the Book

About the Story

This well-known story, which traces its origins to a Scandinavian folktale, was collected and recorded by Peter Christen Asbjornsen and Jorgen Moe in 1845. Their recording, based on a Norwegian telling of the story, has become the most familiar version of the tale. The story has endured to teach generations about the value of setting goals, overcoming obstacles, and working as a team to reach a destination. The repeated lines, such as “trip, trap! trip, trap!” and “Who’s that coming over my bridge?” handed down in the oral tradition, pull audiences into the story and invite children to participate in it.

About the Author/ Illustrator

Paul Galdone has become famous for his traditional retellings of classic tales such as The Gingerbread Boy, The Billy Goats Gruff, The Three Little Pigs, The Three Bears, and The Little Red Hen. Galdone often follows the original tales closely, which sometimes leads to scarier illustrations. Born in Budapest, Galdone emigrated to the US at age 14, where he studied art in New York before serving in the US Army during WWII. He didn’t illustrate his first picture book until he was 40, but in the following 31 years he illustrated and/or wrote more than 300 books. Galdone’s illustrations are ideal for classroom story time, both easy to see from far away and detailed enough to invite closer inspection.

*Official Paul Galdone website: http://paulgaldone.com

For the TeacherReading the Book

Getting Started If you are emphasizing letter recognition in your class, pull out a letter B and a letter G from your Story Time Mystery Bag (or just hold them up) and tell the children: “These letters are a clue to two important words in the title of the book I am going to read today.” Have children say the letter you are showing them. Then hold up a copy of The Three Billy Goats Gruff (Big Book if available) and ask if they see the special letters (B and G) in the title of the book. For phonemic awareness, talk about the hard/Gg/sound (as in goat, gruff, grass). Read the title of the book, the names of the author and the illustrator, and begin! You can also pull out flannel board figures from the Story Time Mystery Bag to get the children interested in the content of the book.

Show the covers of folk tales that use three main characters (Three Billy Goats Gruff, Three Little Pigs, Three Bears). Then make the sound of the goats crossing the bridge by patting your knees and saying “trip, trap, trip, trap, trip, trap”. Get the children to join in repeating the sound, and ask them which kind of animal might make that sound when they walk. Ask, “Who has an idea about which story we are going to read about three animals?”

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As You Read Note: The following suggestions and questions are not necessarily meant to be used the first time you read a book, or to be used all at once. Often it’s best to read through a book once and then reread it on subsequent days, taking into account the children’s attention span and interest. Repeated readings and incorporating story-related activities into multiple classroom areas can turn a story into a far-reaching learning experience.

Read with expression and character voices, emphasizing sound effects (trip, trap! trip, trap!) and using a high pitched voice for the littlest billy goat and a gruff, scary voice for the troll.

Encourage children to repeat the parts they know. In the Ellen Appleby version of this book, refer to the different font sizes

(environmental print awareness). Each time the story comes to the trip, trap! trip, trap! onomatopoeia, remember to

pat your knees, using a soft pat and tiny voice for the little goat, a medium pat and regular voice for the middle goat, and then finally a heavy slap and deep voice for the big goat. Encourage children to join in.

Reinforce consistent size vocabulary by replacing the descriptive words in the story with big, middle, little to reinforce size concepts, something also useful to do with The Three Bears.

As you begin the story, point out the different sizes of the goats’ horns and beards. Before you reach the page with the troll, tell the children that on the next page,

something scary will be hiding under the bridge. When you show the page, ask them, “What kind of creature is this?” Kids will likely say it’s a monster. Explain that in the country this folk tale came from, there are stories about scary creatures called trolls, and this is one of them.

As the youngest goat starts to cross the bridge, point out the large, all-caps type as the troll roars out, “Who’s that trapping over my bridge?”

“What is the troll wearing around his waist?” At the end, turn back to the page showing the three billy goats at the beginning of

the book and contrast how they look with the final picture of the goats, where they are munching daisies contentedly. Ask the children to imitate the goats when they’re angry, then scared, and then how they look when they’re safe and happy at the end of the story.

Early versions of folk tales often start and end with a short verse. Remind children that the story began with “Once upon a time,” which most will recognize from fairy tales. Ask them how most stories finish (“the end”). In this book, “Snip, snap, snout/This tale’s told out” finishes the tale. Snap your fingers as you read the rhyme. (This lighthearted couplet helps end the story on a happy note despite the troll’s violent end and comes from the original oral version of the story).

Reinforce What’s Learned/Open-Ended

Make a poster with the important positional words for the story and refer to it during large and small group activities. Positional words: up, down, over, under, in, on, across.

Use flannel board figures to practice using positional words from the poster. For example: Show the troll under the bridge. Show the goats climbing up the hill.

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QuestionsAsk the children to respond to all or some of the open-ended questions below. As they share, write down the children’s responses on a large sheet of paper or a whiteboard (a mind map works well). Use one of the questions as your small group activity, prompting the children to draw a picture and write or dictate their responses.

Draw and write: What might be under the bridge you are trying to cross? What is on the other side? (picture prompt paper available from the FLRC)

Talk about how the goats helped each other and ask the children, “Who helps you with your problems?” (parent(s), grandparent, teacher, friend)

What do you think the goats will do now? What do you think happened to the troll after he was pushed into the river?

Songs and Finger-Plays

Three Billy Goats Gruff song from Greg & Steve’s Rockin’ Down the Road album.

In the Classroom

Nutrition Experience Three Billy Goat Veggie Dip (recipe card)

* Send home the bilingual recipe card when you read the book and/or make the recipe

Grow edible sprouts

Use the book Gregory the Terrible Eater by Ted Dewan and talk about what goats eat and what we eat.

Try goat cheese, goat milk, etc.

Library Area Check related book list for other stories

to have on your bookshelf. (Give the list to your librarian to reserve copies of these books in advance and check with the FLRC).

Reinforce the positional words: on, over, under, up, down

Flannel board figures and stick puppets for retelling the story (can be checked out from FLRC or use template in this curriculum to create your own).

Math and Manipulative Use block or flannel board figures to reinforce

positional words (in, on, over, under, across, up, down). Reinforce consistent size vocabulary by replacing the

descriptive words in the story with big, middle, little to reinforce size concepts.

Using realistic photo kits, create matching, sequencing, and bingo games.

Science Plant homemade grass Chia pets. Learn more about goats / sheep

and how they help us (how their hair and milk are used, etc.). Use a spider graph (where they live, what products we get from them, what they eat)

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Dramatic Play Reenact the story using

the Greg & Steve CD - Rockin' Down the Road.

Have children wear goat headbands as they reenact the story.

Art Area Have children glue popsicle sticks onto construction paper to form a

bridge. o Children can draw in features of the book. o Reinforce positional words.

Decorate headbands for children to wear in a reenactment of the story. o Have children choose which size billy goat they want to

represent (big, middle, or little size horns).

Block Area Build bridges, especially using large

hollow blocks, planks or Tinker Toys.

Include realistic farm animals such as goats in the block area.

Tape images of three different size goats (big, middle, little) to corresponding sized blocks to reinforce size concepts.

Put up a poster with the positional words for the story (up, down, over, under, in, on, across) and refer to it during large and small group activities.

Music and Movement Think about the story and how the goats wanted to cross

the bridge but there were a lot of obstacles in the way (river, troll). Talk about the word “obstacles.” Put a flower with each child’s name on one wall. Have the children stand along the opposite wall. Ask the children to pretend there is a between them and their flower. One-by-one, say the child’s name and ask, “What do you have to do to get to your flower?” (What is your challenge?) Have each child tell what they are doing and act it out as they get their flower. An adaptation for younger children would be to set up a teacher directed obstacle course using the boat for a bridge, etc.

Field Trip or Special Guest Visit a farm or a petting zoo. It may be possible to find someone willing to

bring a goat to the playground. Prep children to ask questions about how he takes care of his goats. Heartland Farm and Sanctuary has provided this service to Head Start in the past.

Small Group Activity Draw and write: What might be under the

bridge you are trying to cross? What is on the other side? (picture prompt paper available from the FLRC)

Using realistic photo kits, create matching, sequencing, and bingo games.

Learn more about goats. (See Fact Sheet – Goats from FLRC).

Create a mind map about goats:o What do they eat? Where do they

sleep?o Use real pictures to place in the

middle of the graph.

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Sensory Table Put grass and other weeds into the sensory table along

with water. Children can use plastic blocks to create a bridge.

Bus curriculum Remember to bring a copy of the book

with you on the bus.

Adaptations of ActivitiesAssessments Creative Curriculum Continuum

o (31) Demonstrates understanding of sequence; o (45) Identify simple book components such as title, author, character and settingo (35) Takes on pretend roleso (13) Uses thinking skills to resolve conflictso (32) Shows awareness of position in spaceo (36) Makes believe with objects

Social / Emotional Needs

Infant / Toddler

Use the Ellen Appleby version of the story with toddlers. Use sheep to retell the story, since sheep are more commonly represented in toys. Play a steady beat on a drum, chanting “trip, trap, trip, trap,” and put babies’ feet on

the drum to feel the vibration. Vary your beating from soft to medium to heavy to represent the footsteps of each goat in the story.

School-Age Retell the story from the troll’s point of view. Conduct a more elaborate dramatization of the skit, with children taking the roles of

director, narrator, etc. Use the Goal-Setting magic paper to write and

draw about personal goals. Share their goals in a group discussion. (FLRC)

Construct a Venn diagram that compares different versions of the story or differences between goats and sheep. If you’re talking about different versions of the story, discuss how folk tales have evolved over time and the original tales were much more gruesome. In less sanitized versions of this tale, including the older Galdone version, the troll roars, “I’ll poke your eyeballs out at your ears; I’ve got besides two curling-stones, and I’ll crush you to bits, body and bones.” Instead, it’s the goat who does those things to the troll. In later versions

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of the Galdone book (2001), the threat is softened into, “‘I’ve got two horns, and four hard hooves’...and the big Billy Goat Gruff butted him with his horns, and he trampled him with his hard hooves.”

Learn more about goats and how they help us (how their hair and milk are used, etc.). Use a spider graph (where they live, what products they make, what they eat) (FLRC).

Use book-related word search (FLRC). Draw and write: What might be under the bridge you are trying to cross? What is

on the other side?

Cultural Adaptations

Goats are an important part of many cultures. Using a globe or map, find places where families’ countries of origin and explore what kinds of goats live there and what products they provide (food, clothing, shelter, etc.).

Activities for Volunteers

Read the book using the tips in the “As You Read” and “Reinforce What’s Learned” portion of the teacher’s curriculum.

Have the child/children retell the story using flannel board pieces or stick puppets (available from the FLRC).

Draw and write: What might be under the bridge you are trying to cross? What is on the other side?

For the Parent-Child ActivityGroup Read Aloud

A dramatic reading of the story should include sound effects (trip-trap, trip-trap—use a drum if you have one) and voices imitating the troll and the little, middle and big billy goats. A wooden rocking boat can be turned over to make a great bridge to trip-trap over. Props are available from the FLRC.

An easy way to dramatize the story is to act it out along to the Three Billy Goats Gruff song from Greg and Steve’s Rockin’ Down the Road album.

Take-Home or Table-Based Activity Ideas

Use copy-ready templates (FLRC) to make stick puppets or a mini-book for retelling the story.

Put magnets on the back of flannel board figures and have families take them home to stick on a fridge along with magnetized positional words (up, down, over, under, in, on, across). Then the families can rearrange the figures and words as they retell the story and focus on practicing these positional words, which become very important for children’s math skills (flannel board templates available from the FLRC).

For Parenting EducationParenting Message

All families face obstacles. The billy goat brothers set a goal and achieve it through teamwork. Encourage parents to set personal/family goals and identify the obstacles to reaching them. Engage children to be part of the process of setting and achieving the goals.

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Draw and write your family / personal journey to reach your goals:

The left side = where you are right nowThe right side = where you want to beThe obstacles in life = the troll under the bridgeThe planks along the bridge = the steps to take to reach our goals

Home Visit Bring a copy of the book, the related Parent Book Letter and recipe card. Use the Goal-Setting Magic Paper (available from the FLRC).

o First, complete the wheel on the back side of the paper that helps assess a parent’s satisfaction in the listed areas.

o Next, use the bridge to visualize and draw or write about one’s current situation:

What would you like to change? (like the billy goats who had no grass to eat)

What are your obstacles and fears? (troll, river) What are the steps you need to take? (like the wooden planks on the

bridge) What is your future goal? (green grass on the other side)

o Finish by writing about your goals on the form. You may wish to bring materials for stick puppets or for making a zip lock bag

book (FLRC).

Parent Group Family values are as diverse as families themselves. Take time to sort through the tremendous amount of wisdom and experience you have to offer your family and identify those values which are most critical to you. Then, think about how you can model them for your children.

The troll in the book is drawn to appear especially gruesome. How do you feel about the illustrations? How do you think your child might react to him? Segue from this to a discussion about fears and the violence children encounter on television, in video games, etc.

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Has your family had to do “dangerous” or risky things to get to a better place in life? (When you ask this question, ask families to think about this, but only invite them to share if they’re entirely comfortable doing so)

Think about situations in which you played the role of each of the billy goats. What was a time when you had to go first? When did you come second? When were you the one to face something after everyone else had encountered it? Have you ever been the hostile obstacle for others to face, like the troll?

For Adult Education

ESL Subject: facing fears, size conceptsKey Parts of Language: prepositionsSummary: Three brother billy goats want to cross a bridge and outsmart the troll who lives underneath it and wants to eat them.Vocabulary:

on, under, over, troll, gobble, billy goat (male goat), meadow, bridge Onomatopoeia: trip trap, hiss, buzz. This is a good opportunity to go

through the kinds of sounds animals are said to make in different languages.

Grammar: Prepositions: Take plastic animals and a bridge and reposition them,

creating new sentences to describe the animal’s place or what they’re doing each time: “The goat is on the bridge,” “The bridge is over the water,” “The goat is under the bridge,” “The goat is going across the bridge,” etc.

Future Tense: Discuss life goals. Where do you want to be in one year? In five years? What do you want for your children? Discuss what steps need to be taken to achieve these goals and how to start taking those steps. This is a great activity for the New Year.

Discussion/Journal Questions: Use future tense discussion. What are current obstacles in your life? How can you surpass them? Who helps you accomplish your life goals?

GED Find examples of onomatopoeia (words for sounds, such as buzz, hiss, etc.) Talk about how these examples make the book fun for kids and add to the story.

Financial Literacy/Personal Development

Talk about setting a goal of saving a particular amount of money for something you want to buy. How can you do this? How much will you need to save each week? What might be difficulties you will encounter, and how will you handle them? Put together a plan or budget so you can realize this goal.

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Vocabulary fromThe Three Billy Goats Gruff

U I B Y G Z O Q C W T A O G WX N T N O B W V O D I F J E PS H D B B R I D G E D P I M NQ U G E Y N A A F J P W O S NP L H R R E X N K H F F N L KW H M M M D B R U A O B D T PX R Q O P U U I P V T I A R LT G V Z Q X O T J V Q C W O DS E C J J G F C C M N M K L IR L D Q K I D V I D M W J L YH B V K L K W I U C S E B C UE B Q V G C H A N Y A K A V NS O A D R Z A Y N D X M D N BI G E F Y F G B M R X H M O OI K A A S C M X K J G N G Z YFind the following words and circle them:

BRIDGE GOAT GOBBLEMEADOW OVER TROLL

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Solution U + + + + + + + + W T A O G + + N + + + + + + O + + + + + + + + D + B R I D G E + + + + + + + + E + + A + + + + + + + + + + + + R E + + + + + + + + + + + + + M + + + + + + + + T + + + + O + + + + + + + + + R + + + V + + + + + + + + + + O + + E + + + + + + + + + + + L + R L + + + + + + + + + + + L + + B + + + + + + + + + + + + + + B + + + + + + + + + + + + + + O + + + + + + + + + + + + + + G + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

(Over,Down,Direction) BRIDGE(5,3,E)GOAT(14,1,W)

GOBBLE(2,14,N)MEADOW(5,6,NE)OVER(4,7,SW)TROLL(14,6,S)UNDER(1,1,SE)

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ReferencesMotheread Inc., Copyright 2007

“Rockin’ Down The Road” CD by Greg & Steve

http://www.hubbardscupboard.org/the_three_bears.html by Michelle Hubbard

http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/billygoats/history.html

http://paulgaldone.com

http://www.cheapvegetablegardener.com/2009/07/growing-sprouts-in-mason-jar.html

Teachers and Staff of Dane County Parent Council, Inc.