"The Giving Tree"

The children's story by Shel Silverstein suggests that giving is a good thing. But if you analyze the words more closely, you will see that there is an unpleasant imbalance of power between the two characters.

Here are all the word lists to support the reading of Grade 12 Unit 2's texts from SpringBoard's Common Core ELA series: Pygmalion and the Statue, Pygmalion, Talkin' 'bout a Revolution, Cinderella, the Legend, Why Women Always Take Advantage of Men, The Giving Tree, A Rose for Emily, The Story of an Hour, The Chaser
15 words 178 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. gather
    collect
    Once, there was a tree…
    And she loved a little boy.
    And every day the boy would come
    And he would gather her leaves
  2. crown
    an ornamental jeweled headdress signifying sovereignty
    And make them into crowns and play king of the forest
  3. climb
    go up or advance
    He would climb up her trunk
    And swing from her branches
    And eat apples
    And they would play hide-and-go-seek
  4. shade
    covering that protects something from direct sunlight
    And when he was tired, he would sleep in her shade.
  5. alone
    without anybody else or anything else
    And the tree was often alone.
  6. swing
    hang freely
    Then, one day, the boy came to the tree and the tree said: ”Come, Boy, come and climb up my trunk and swing from my branches and eat apples and play in my shade and be happy!”
  7. sell
    exchange or deliver for money or its equivalent
    Take my apples, Boy, and sell them in the city.
  8. joy
    the emotion of great happiness
    And then one day the boy came back, and the tree shook with joy
  9. build
    make by combining materials and parts
    “But you may cut off my branches and build a house. Then you will be happy."
  10. hardly
    almost not
    And when he came back, the tree was so happy she could hardly speak.
  11. trunk
    the main stem of a tree
    ”Cut down my trunk and make a boat,” said the tree.
  12. sorry
    feeling or expressing regret
    ”I am sorry, Boy,” said the tree, “but I have nothing left to give you.
  13. sigh
    breathe out deeply and heavily
    ”I am sorry,” sighed the tree. “I wish that I could give you something… but I have nothing left.
  14. stump
    the base part that remains after a tree has been felled
    I am just an old stump. I am sorry...
  15. straighten
    get up from a sitting or slouching position
    ”Well,” said the tree, straightening herself up as much as she could, “well, an old stump is good for sitting and resting.
Created on Fri Mar 06 10:16:50 EST 2015 (updated Fri Mar 06 12:20:52 EST 2015)

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