Module I: The Giving Tree: Written and illustrated by Shel Silverstein

     
Book Summary: 


     A tree falls in love with a boy. He takes everything from the tree, which the tree gives lovingly. He take its fruit, to eat; its limbs, to build a house; and its trunk, to build a boat to leave. In the end, the boy returns, old, and he meets the tree, which is by now, only a stump. But still, the tree loves the boy and is happy when the boy sits down and spends a bit of time. Unconditional, beautiful love is what the tree has for the boy, up to the end.

APA Reference: 

Silverstein, S. (1992). The Giving Tree. New York: HarperCollins

My impressions: 

I really like this book. To me, the tree is a symbol of pure, selfless love. Some might compare this to a biological mother, but I am reminded of Mother Earth rather than human mothers. To me, we are all mothers to all children. Sort of like the village must raise the child rather than leave all of the responsibility to the parents. We can all work together. A tree is from the Earth, the greatest source of life and giving. And the tree gives love to the boy, until there is no more to give. That is true love. However, if we, like the boy, to take the analogy further, choose to take from the Earth without giving back, we might end up with a stump at the end, as well. I was disappointed in the boy's behavior, but he is a lot like us. We need to learn from the lesson and make a change. 

Professional Review: 


      "This popular classic of modern children's literature was first published in 1963 and has been embraced both by children and adults. It has just been released with a CD narration of the story by Shel Silverstein. This parable teaches lessons on love and acceptance, is simply told. It is illustrated with black and white line drawings and a straightforward text describing how a little boy comes to visit the "giving tree" every day. The tree gives the boy everything from its apples to a place to swing and slide. As the boy grows up, he demands more and more from the tree until finally the tree seems to have nothing left to give. At the end, the boy is an old man and returns to the tree and finds that the tree provides him with one more thing. The CD operates well, but the recording is not perfectly clear as Mr. Silverstein is close to the microphone at times. But children will love hearing his tender and soulful voice and the melodious harmonica background music. The recording is close to six minutes long and fits into a pocket inside the back cover. The book's theme of love and the cycle of life will resonate with adults and will provide many discussion points when shared with children. Highly Recommended. Rating: **** /4. Preschool-grade 3. 1992 (orig. 1964), HarperCollins, 64pp. (includes CD), cloth, $26.99. Ages 4 to 8."


Douglas, L. (2004). Review: The Giving Tree [Book review of the book The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein]. CM Magazine, X(21). Retrieved from http://libproxy.library.unt.edu:2378/cgi-bin/member/search/f?./temp/~VLjXzY:17

Library Uses:

I think a fun idea for this book would be to have each child to be able to plant a tree in the library garden of the library in the school or the public library. Alternatively, the children could take the small pots home with them to tend to in their own garden.


Reading this book on Earth Day is also a nice idea, as trees are integral as a symbol of the giving nature of Mother Earth. 


Ideally, too, the book could be read outside under a big tree, sitting on the grass, with the children gathered around the tree. Afterwards, the children could learn more about trees and how they contribute to the well-being of all of us here on the Earth, with its ability to clean the air, and provide shelter to people and our four-legged and winged friends.