Paul Holmes -
University
English Professor

Free Materials For ESL Teachers and Learners

Short Stories for Kids

Complete lesson plans, including stories, listening, classroom activities, quiz questions and more!

The Giant’s Garden

Try this story at a different level?

 

In a magical place, there was a big giant named Greg. He had a beautiful garden with tall, colorful flowers. Greg loved his garden very much and took care of it every day.

One day, Greg found a little kitten playing in his garden. He named the kitten Whiskers and decided to keep him. Whiskers was Greg’s new friend, and they had fun in the garden together.

But some naughty creatures called Goblins were jealous of the garden. They came at night and took all the seeds while Greg and Whiskers were sleeping. The next morning, Greg was sad to see his garden without seeds.

Whiskers chased the Goblins and made them fall into the mud. Greg and Whiskers then planted new seeds and their garden was beautiful again. They learned that even when things go wrong, with friends and love, everything can be okay. Whiskers kept being playful and made Greg happy.

🎧 Listen:

Slow

Normal

📖 Vocabulary:

1magicalLike something from a fairy tale, with special powers
2giantA very, very big person
3gardenA place outside with lots of plants and flowers
4kittenA baby cat
5naughtyNot behaving well, doing things they shouldn’t
6jealousWanting what someone else has because it’s nice
7seedsThe small things that you put in the ground to grow new plants
8chasedRan after someone or something to catch them
9plantedPut seeds in the ground so they can grow
10playfulLikes to have fun and play games

🤔 Comprehension Questions:

1. Who took all the seeds from Greg’s garden?
2. What did Whiskers do to the Goblins?
3. What did Greg do after the Goblins took the seeds?
4. How did Greg feel when he saw his garden without seeds?
5. What did Greg and Whiskers do to make their garden beautiful again?
6. How did Whiskers make Greg feel?
Go to answers ⇩

🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

In a magical place, there was a big giant (1)______ Greg. He had a (2)______ garden with tall, colorful flowers. Greg loved his garden very much and took care of it every day.

One day, Greg found a little kitten playing in his garden. He named the kitten Whiskers and decided to keep him. Whiskers was Greg’s new friend, and they had fun in the garden together.

But some naughty (3)______ (4)______ Goblins were jealous of the garden. They came at night and took all the seeds while Greg and Whiskers were sleeping. The next morning, Greg was sad to see his garden without seeds.

Whiskers chased the Goblins and (5)______ them (6)______ into the mud. Greg and Whiskers then planted new (7)______ and their garden was beautiful again. They learned that even when things go wrong, with friends and love, everything can be okay. Whiskers kept being (8)______ and made Greg happy.
Go to answers ⇩

💬 Discussion Questions:

Students can ask a partner these questions, or discuss them as a group.

1. What is a garden?
2. How would you feel if someone took all the seeds from your garden?
3. Do you like kittens? Why or why not?
4. What do you think the Goblins wanted with the seeds?
5. How would you feel if you had a friend like Whiskers?
6. Do you think it’s important to take care of plants and flowers? Why or why not?
7. What do you think Greg and Whiskers learned from their experience?
8. How do you think Greg felt when his garden was beautiful again?

📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. magical
2. giant
3. garden
4. kitten
5. naughty
6. jealous
7. seeds
8. chased
9. planted
10. playful

Meanings:
(A) Wanting what someone else has because it’s nice
(B) Put seeds in the ground so they can grow
(C) Like something from a fairy tale, with special powers
(D) A place outside with lots of plants and flowers
(E) A very, very big person
(F) A baby cat
(G) The small things that you put in the ground to grow new plants
(H) Ran after someone or something to catch them
(I) Not behaving well, doing things they shouldn’t
(J) Likes to have fun and play games
Go to answers ⇩

🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:

1. What is the name of the giant in the story?
(a) Whiskers
(b) Goblins
(c) Greg
(d) None of the above

2. What did Greg find in his garden?
(a) A puppy
(b) A kitten
(c) A bird
(d) A fish

3. What did Greg name the kitten?
(a) Greg
(b) Goblins
(c) None of the above
(d) Whiskers

4. Who took the seeds from Greg’s garden?
(a) Goblins
(b) Whiskers
(c) Greg
(d) None of the above

5. What did Whiskers do to the Goblins?
(a) Played with them
(b) Gave them seeds
(c) None of the above
(d) Made them fall into the mud

6. What did Greg and Whiskers do after the Goblins took the seeds?
(a) Planted new seeds
(b) Went to sleep
(c) Played in the garden
(d) None of the above

7. What did Greg learn from the experience?
(a) Goblins are good friends
(b) Whiskers is a bad kitten
(c) Even when things go wrong, with friends and love, everything can be okay
(d) None of the above

8. How did Whiskers make Greg feel?
(a) Sad
(b) Happy
(c) Angry
(d) None of the above

Go to answers ⇩

🕵️ True or False Questions:

1. Whiskers made Greg happy by being playful.
2. The kitten’s name was Whiskers and he became Greg’s new friend.
3. Whiskers chased the Goblins and made them slip into the mud.
4. Greg and Whiskers attempted to plant new seeds, but their garden remained unattractive.
5. There was a big giant named Greg who had a beautiful garden with pretty flowers.
6. The Goblins took all the seeds from the garden while Greg and Whiskers were sleeping.
7. Some mischievous creatures called Goblins were envious of Greg’s garden.
8. Greg found a stray kitten playing in his garden and decided to adopt him.
Go to answers ⇩

📝 Write a Summary:

Write a summary of this story in two sentences. Here are some hints:
Who are the main characters?
What happens in the story?

Answers

🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:

1. Who took all the seeds from Greg’s garden?
The Goblins took all the seeds from Greg’s garden.

2. What did Whiskers do to the Goblins?
Whiskers chased the Goblins and made them fall into the mud.

3. What did Greg do after the Goblins took the seeds?
After the Goblins took the seeds, Greg planted new seeds.

4. How did Greg feel when he saw his garden without seeds?
Greg felt sad when he saw his garden without seeds.

5. What did Greg and Whiskers do to make their garden beautiful again?
Greg and Whiskers planted new seeds to make their garden beautiful again.

6. How did Whiskers make Greg feel?
Whiskers made Greg happy.
Go back to questions ⇧

🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) named
(2) beautiful
(3) creatures
(4) called
(5) made
(6) fall
(7) seeds
(8) playful
Go back to questions ⇧

📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. magical
Answer: (C) Like something from a fairy tale, with special powers

2. giant
Answer: (E) A very, very big person

3. garden
Answer: (D) A place outside with lots of plants and flowers

4. kitten
Answer: (F) A baby cat

5. naughty
Answer: (I) Not behaving well, doing things they shouldn’t

6. jealous
Answer: (A) Wanting what someone else has because it’s nice

7. seeds
Answer: (G) The small things that you put in the ground to grow new plants

8. chased
Answer: (H) Ran after someone or something to catch them

9. planted
Answer: (B) Put seeds in the ground so they can grow

10. playful
Answer: (J) Likes to have fun and play games
Go back to questions ⇧

🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:

1. What is the name of the giant in the story?
Answer: (c) Greg

2. What did Greg find in his garden?
Answer: (b) A kitten

3. What did Greg name the kitten?
Answer: (d) Whiskers

4. Who took the seeds from Greg’s garden?
Answer: (a) Goblins

5. What did Whiskers do to the Goblins?
Answer: (d) Made them fall into the mud

6. What did Greg and Whiskers do after the Goblins took the seeds?
Answer: (a) Planted new seeds

7. What did Greg learn from the experience?
Answer: (c) Even when things go wrong, with friends and love, everything can be okay

8. How did Whiskers make Greg feel?
Answer: (b) Happy
Go back to questions ⇧

🕵️✅ True or False Answers:

1. Whiskers made Greg happy by being playful. (Answer: True)
2. The kitten’s name was Whiskers and he became Greg’s new friend. (Answer: True)
3. Whiskers chased the Goblins and made them slip into the mud. (Answer: False)
4. Greg and Whiskers attempted to plant new seeds, but their garden remained unattractive. (Answer: False)
5. There was a big giant named Greg who had a beautiful garden with pretty flowers. (Answer: True)
6. The Goblins took all the seeds from the garden while Greg and Whiskers were sleeping. (Answer: True)
7. Some mischievous creatures called Goblins were envious of Greg’s garden. (Answer: False)
8. Greg found a stray kitten playing in his garden and decided to adopt him. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧

📚 How about these other Level 1 stories?

The Busy Bee

Once upon a time, in a beautiful meadow filled with flowers, there lived a busy little bee named Buzz. Buzz

The Magical Mountain

Once upon a time, there was a magical mountain in the middle of a vast forest. The mountain was filled

In the magical land of Sprinkleville, a mischievous gnome named Minty Mischief plots to steal all the cupcakes from the famous cupcake castle, but a young girl named Ella is determined to stop him and save the town from chaos.

The Cupcake Castle Caper

In a yummy town called Sprinkleville, a little gnome named Minty made salty cupcakes by mistake. Ella, a brave girl with a good nose, found Minty and helped him make delicious cupcakes again.

A lonely turtle named Timothy embarks on an adventure to find friends and discovers a hidden cove.

The Lonely Turtle

Timothy the turtle was sad because he had no friends, but then he found a magical compass that led him to new turtle friends.

A princess falls in love with a humble peasant who brings her a plain potato.

The Princess and the Potato

Once upon a time, there was a princess named Penelope who loved potatoes more than anything. She said she would marry whoever gave her the best potato. Even though a fancy man brought a big potato, Penelope chose a boy named Peter with a small potato made with love. They got married and became happy together.

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