You can read or download various versions of the story through resources like the Full Story Text PDF or the Teacher's Activity Guide provided by the SAG-AFTRA Foundation.
Once there was a tree... and she loved a little boy. In Shel Silverstein's classic story, , their relationship unfolds through the stages of the boy's life, highlighting a theme of selfless giving. The Story of the Giving Tree The Giving Tree (image pdf)
: Every day, the boy would visit the tree to play. He gathered her leaves to make crowns, climbed her trunk, swung from her branches, and ate her apples. When he was tired, he slept in her shade. The tree was happy. You can read or download various versions of
: Finally, the boy returned as a very old man. The tree apologized, saying she had nothing left—no apples, no branches, and no trunk. But the old man said he only needed a quiet place to sit and rest. The tree, now just an old stump, straightened herself up and offered him a seat. The boy sat down, and the tree was happy. In Shel Silverstein's classic story, , their relationship