The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein

Book Genre: Fiction

Publishing Information: Harper Collins, 1964 (49 pages)

Summary: A young boy finds wonderful companionship in a tree. He swings in it's branches, eats it's apples, gathers the leaves for his crown, climbs the trunk, and most of all, loves the tree. And, the tree is glad to share all of it's gifts with him because it loves the boy. The tree is always there for the boy giving all it can offer to make him happy. As the boy grows up, he doesn't have time to play in the tree or spend time in it's shade. He just comes to the tree to tell it how unhappy he is because he doesn't have something he thinks he needs. The tree gives and gives to the boy until it has nothing left but a stump. The boy returns in his old age and realizes that everything he thought he needed didn't make him happy and all his selfish ways just made him a tired old man. He was too busy trying to live his life, he didn't take the time to appreciate the simple things. The tree was just a stump, but even with nothing left to give, the tree offers itself as a place for the old man to sit and rest. He sits with the tree and he is happy and the tree is happy, too.

Reading Level: 2.6
Reading Interest: 4-94

Personal rating and reason: (*******Great, Great, Great) This book is one of the simplest classics, I believe, ever written. The story is an old one, where a loved one gives all they can give to the one they love and eventually they are forgotten, at least until the loved one needs more. The Giver out of unconditional love will give until there is nothing left for the other's happiness, until one day, the loved one returns to find all they ever needed or the one they could always depend on was under their nose or in their backyard all that time. It's a simple but beautiful rendition of unconditional love.

Possible uses of text in integrated units of study:

Reading: Young students will not get the deepest meanings of this book so besides discussing all the things the tree gave the boy, a discussion about people who take care of us, love us, and give to us, would hopefully be thought provoking for students, especially those who don't appreciate what others do for them. A word wall using all the gifts given to the boy would be good for future reading. Also, the teacher would read aloud the poem, I think that I shall never see a poem as lovely as a tree... and discuss it's meaning to the students

Math: If the tree gave the boy 10 apples and he sold them for 25 cents a piece how much money did he make? If he needed 5$ for a pair of shoes, how many more apples would he need to sell? There are endless math problems using the apples for many levels of students.

Language Arts: For first and second grade students, interactive writing could be used to write simple sentences about the book. The words are not very hard for students with a working knowledge of initial sounds and blends, C-V-C combinations, context and picture clues, and basic sight words.

Writing: Have the student write about the man's life after he took the gifts from the tree. What did he buy with the apples, what did his house look like, what was his family like, what kind of boat did he build? It would be interesting to ask the students to think from the boy's side of this story. Also, the students could write about a favorite gift they received and from whom did they receive it. What was a favorite gift they gave and how did they feel? Writing prompts for these stories would help the students get started on their stories.

Social Studies: Give a gift day. A day could be designated to make a craft to give to someone special in the student's life besides someone in their family. It could be the school crossing guard, a cafeteria worker, the mailman, any one who gives of themselves for the student, would be a good gift receiver. The student's would discuss how they felt when they gave the gift and how the receiver reacted.

Science: The students would begin a unit about the study of trees, their life cycle, how do they grow in the deep forest with little light, photosynthesis, counting the number of rings in the trunk for age, how we can protect the trees in the rain forests, and all the many facets of the living tree.

Art: Using construction paper, the students will make thank you notes, illustrated with bark, apple slices, and leaves brushed with paint and imprinted on the cards. In honor of the Giving Tree, they will make a collection of these cards to use to say thank you to those who give to them.

Possible problems or difficulties related to this book: None that I can see except it may make us all want to be tree or people huggers and that may not be a bad thing after all.