RIC-20935 Early years Fairytales - Billy goats

EARLY YEARS THEMES 

Fairytales 

The three billy goats Gruff 

A complete unit of lessons and activities

Early years themes—Fairytales 

Published by R.I.C. Publications ® 2011 

Copyright © R.I.C. Publications ® 2011 

RIC– 20935 

Titles in this series: 

Early years themes—Places 

Early years themes—People 

Early years themes—Animals 

Early years themes—Science 

Early years themes—Fantasy 

Early years themes—Fairytales 

Early years themes—Special days and celebrations 

Copyright Information 

Only the blackline masters contained within this 

publication may only be reproduced by the original 

purchaser for use with their class(es). The publisher 

prohibits the loaning or onselling of these blackline 

masters for purposes of reproduction. No other part 

of this publication may be reproduced in any form or 

by any means, electronic or mechanical, including 

photocopying or recording, or by any information 

storage and retrieval system, without written 

permission from the publisher. 

Accompanying resources available: 

Early years themes—Fairytales Posters (set of 5) 

Early years themes—Fairytales Stickers (set of 5) 

Early years themes Interactive CD (Places, People, 

Animals, Science) 

Early years themes Interactive CD (Fantasy, Fairytales, 

Special days and celebrations) 

Internet websites 

In some cases, websites or specific URLs may be recommended. While these are checked and rechecked at the time of publication, 

the publisher has no control over any subsequent changes which may be made to webpages. It is strongly recommended that the class 

teacher checks all URLs before allowing students to access them. 

View all pages online 

PO Box 332 Greenwood Western Australia 6924 

Website: www.ricpublications.com.au 

Email: mail@ricgroup.com.au

Teachers notes 

The format of this series of books 

This series of books is designed to cater for early childhood teachers who use learning centres and cross-curricular activities as 

a basis for planning activities to develop key concepts and skills. Teachers will easily be able to locate activity-based learning 

within this complete compilation of ideas. 

All of the five themes within each book follow the same format over 20 pages. Each theme consists of: 

1. A title or cover page with 

appropriate artwork which the 

teacher can utilise for themebased 

activities. 

2. A number of pages of cross-curricular learning activities to develop the 

theme. Those themes which relate closely to a specific learning area may 

have more activities in key learning areas such as science. All themes 

have activities which are predominantly ‘hands-on’. 

3. Background information with useful facts about the theme. 

4. A list of concepts to be developed provides suggested developmentallyappropriate 

learning outcomes to be achieved by completing the theme. 

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The format of this series of books 

5. A small number of resource/blackline pages which can be used 

to create games or oral language activities, as templates for art 

and craft activities or as worksheets for more capable children who 

are beginning to read and understand mathematical concepts. 

6. Recipes relating to the theme— 

simple cooking and non-cooking 

recipes, including those for 

manipulative play, such as ‘goop’. 

7. Display ideas for art and craft or 

specific learning centres. 

8. A list of literature resources to 

complement the theme, including 

songs, action rhymes and fiction 

and nonfiction books. 

9. A notes section to enable the teacher 

to record useful websites or resources 

relating to the theme, or other 

worthwhile activities or ideas etc. 

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An explanation of the icons 

A number of icons have been used throughout the cross-curricular activities sections to make it easier and quicker for teachers to 

locate appropriate learning activities. 

Fine motor activities—building with blocks, puzzles, sorting, sand and water play, sensory items 

such as ‘feely boxes’, playdough or clay work, threading, chalkboards, construction using recycled 

materials such as boxes 

Outdoor play—sand and/or water play (see also ‘fine motor activities’); gross motor activities such as 

climbing, balancing, bikes, scooters, jumping, throwing, obstacle course activities etc.; tracking activities 

using balloons and bubbles etc.; other messy art activities 

Dramatic play—home corner, dramatising stories, dressing up, puppets, shopping etc. 

Art and craft—free painting, directed and supervised painting, 

craft (assisted and independent) 

Computer—suggestions for simple games or activities 

(usually individual or pairs) or relevant internet activities 

Cooking—supervised activities, some of which use heat 

Games—indoor or outdoor games relating to literacy such as card 

games, memory games etc.; mathematics, singing games, any 

physical education games involving movement etc. 

Writing—tracing, copying, writing on, and with, different things—cards, different types of paper etc.; 

adding patterns or stripes etc.; tracking and following paths, dot-to-dot activities etc. 

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About the artwork 

All the artwork in this series of books is: 

• age-appropriate 

• teacher- and child-friendly 

• an additional resource to help develop the theme 

• suitable for enlarging for: 

~ colouring 

~ handwriting 

~ dot-to-dot sheets 

~ use as templates for art and craft activities 

~ visual texts to encourage oral language development. 

Some artworks are based on simple shapes to support learning in the mathematics 

area; others are more elaborate. It is anticipated that early childhood teachers will 

view an illustration based on shapes and be able to use this idea to develop concrete 

play activities using shapes or as a technology and design project. More elaborate 

artwork is used to demonstrate a teaching resource which needs to be made, a recipe, 

game or other activity. 

Examples of artwork relating to art and craft activities have wide, bold, easily visible 

cutting outlines to allow the children some variation in the cutting path they will use. 

About the resource sheets/blacklines 

Resource sheets/blacklines contain: 

• simple, age-appropriate artwork 

• prominent visual clues 

• little or no text 

• visual clues to support text pages 

• few instructions, so as not to confuse beginning readers 

• teacher instructions in the margins with a number of different 

suggestions for using the resource sheet/blackline 

• literacy and numeracy activities. 

These resource sheets/blacklines are included as valuable time-savers 

for teachers. 

It is anticipated that the teacher will enlarge any pages to A3 size and 

photocopy them onto more durable paper or card, to make them easier 

for learners of this age group to manipulate. 

The cross-curricular section of each theme includes a reference to 

resource sheets/blacklines relating to specific activities. 

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Curriculum links 

All the learning activities in this series of books support the key learning areas of the current curriculum documents. 

In particular, one or more activities also support each strand of the new English and Mathematics National Curriculum. The 

specific strands from the National Curriculum relating to each activity are denoted by the words in brackets in the English and 

Mathematics learning areas of the cross-curricular section. 

For example, in the ‘The three billy goats Gruff’ theme: 

English Talk about the use of capital letters for the beginning of special names such as ‘Gruff’. Create a goat from 

a large capital ‘G’. Use cardboard, paper, crayons and googly eyes. Alternatively, cover a lower-case ‘g’ 

with Easter grass. (Language) 

Mathematics 

Reference to both is shown below. 

Provide coloured pattern blocks or coloured paper shapes for the children to create goat shapes from. 

(Measurement and Geometry) 

Relevant curriculum reference 

NSW 

Qld 

SA 

Vic. 

WA 

National Curriculum: refer to pages 6 and 11 of Shape of the Australian Curriculum: English 

National Curriculum: refer to pages 6 and 7 of Shape of the Australian Curriculum: Mathematics 

National Curriculum: Science learning activities also support pages 6 and 7 of Shape of the Australian 

Curriculum: Science 

Belonging, being and becoming: The early years framework for Australia (2009) 

Refer to Early years curriculum guidelines page 55 (Table 9: A 

summary of the learning statements in the early learning areas) 

and pages 61–75. 

Refer to ‘Early years band: Age 3–Age 5’. South Australian 

Curriculum, Standards and Accountability at . 

Refer to Victorian essential learning standards Level 1 at 

. 

Refer to K-3 scope-and-sequence charts at . 

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Sample social skills checklist 

Date: 

Student name 

separates easily from 

parents 

interacts readily with 

adults 

interacts readily with 

peers 

shares with others and 

takes turns 

participates in group 

activities 

cooperates with others 

accepts responsibility 

for own behaviour 

respects the property 

of others 

respects the feelings of 

others 

listens without 

interrupting 

expresses feelings 

appropriately 

solves simple problems 

is developing an 

awareness of the wider 

community 

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Sample language skills checklist 

Date: 

Student name 

communicates needs clearly 

articulates most words correctly 

relates personal experiences 

contributes to discussions 

uses age-appropriate 

vocabulary 

articulates most initial sounds 

correctly 

asks appropriate questions 

speaks in complete sentences 

relates events in order of 

occurrence 

able to tell a story from pictures 

retells a familiar story without 

pictures or clues 

uses simple compound 

sentences 

responds appropriately to 

questions about himself/herself 

listens to a story for a given 

length of time 

follows simple two-step 

instructions 

knows his/her first and last 

names 

recognises rhyming words 

answers simple oral cloze 

questions 

labels emotions such as happy, 

sad, angry, scared … 

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Sample fine motor skills checklist 

Date: 

Student name 

completes simple puzzles 

builds a tower of eight or more 

small blocks 

dresses himself/herself (apart 

from buttons and shoelaces) 

manipulates playdough to 

create a specific object 

places small pegs in small 

holes 

threads small beads 

uses scissors to cut out simple 

shapes and pictures 

completes simple folding 

activities 

uses a knife, fork and spoon 

correctly 

holds a crayon or pencil 

correctly 

colours within lines 

writes or copies own name 

draws and copies simple 

pictures 

copies a sequence of letters or 

numbers adequately 

traces or recreates patterns 

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Sample fundamental movement skills checklist 

Date: 

Explicit teaching 

Exposure 

Student name 

balances on one 

foot (static balance) 

runs 

jumps vertically 

catches a ball or 

beanbag 

hops 

throws a ball or 

beanbag using an 

overarm movement 

gallops sideways 

skips 

leaps 

kicks a ball 

strikes a ball or 

object using a twohanded 

strike 

dodges a ball or 

object 

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Sample mathematics skills checklist 

Date: 

Number and algebra Measurement and geometry Statistics and probability 

Student name 

recognises numerals 1 to 

writes numerals 1 to 

rote counts to 

places numerals to 

in correct order 

understands one-to-one 

correspondence 

understands ‘more than’ and ‘less 

than’ 

able to do simple addition and 

subtraction using concrete materials 

shares collections 

creates or completes a pattern 

measures using everyday items 

makes comparison of size and 

length 

recognises basic shapes 

identifies attributes of objects and 

collections 

is aware of use of devices used 

for measuring (scales, tape etc.) 

shows awareness of 

(money, temperature, time) 

sorts or orders objects 

is aware of collections and 

presentations of data 

interprets data in a display 

makes predictions about chance 

events 

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Cross-curricular activities 

English 

• Read a version of ‘The three billy goats Gruff’. Refer 

to page 8. Encourage children who have their own 

copies of the story at home to bring them to show and 

display (or collect different versions from the library). 

Use these as a basis for a discussion about different 

texts of the fairytale, illustrations and authors. Ask the 

children to select their favourite and least favourite 

versions. (Literature) 

• Discuss and find other words which begin with the 

sound for the letter ‘b’ (billy) and ‘g’ (goat, Gruff). 

Find words that rhyme with ‘three’, ‘billy’, ‘goat’ and 

‘Gruff’, and clap and count the syllables in each word. 

(Language) 

• ‘Gruff’ is the family name of the three billy goats. Ask 

the children, or tell them if they do not know, what their 

family names are. Introduce the terms ‘given name’ 

and ‘surname’ (or ‘family name’). Children may like 

to give their full names, including their middle names. 

(Language) 

• Discuss the story of ‘The three billy goats Gruff’ with 

the children and encourage them to answer questions 

about it. Begin with literal questions that have only 

one correct answer, such as ‘Which goat crossed 

the bridge first?’ then ask more evaluative questions 

requiring the inferring of information, such as ‘Which 

goat do you think was the bravest? Why do you think 

that?’ (Literature, Literacy) 

• Introduce the words ‘billy goat’, ‘nanny goat’ and 

‘kid’ and display them with pictures. Talk about the 

words, their meanings and the ways in which they 

are related. Extend this to a general discussion about 

the names of the male, female and young of other 

animals. Use these words and appropriate pictures cut 

from magazines to make a wall chart called ‘Mother, 

father and baby animals’. (Literacy) 

• Find the names of, and draw pictures of, things 

which begin with ‘tr’ like ‘troll’—truck, treasure, trunk, 

tracksuit, tractor, traffic, train etc. Write the words on 

labels and provide opportunities for children to ‘trace’ 

them. 

• Introduce story sequence cards to the class and 

discuss what is happening in each. (Refer to pages 

9 and 10.) The children then work with a partner to 

sequence a set of cards in the correct order. Encourage 

the children to talk about what is happening in each 

picture and decide on a sequence. They can then take 

turns to retell the story by describing what is happening 

in each picture. (Literacy) 

• Talk about direct speech. Highlight the ‘speaking’ 

parts of a big book about ‘The three billy goats Gruff’. 

Have the children practise saying the ‘speaking’ parts. 

(Language) 

• Talk about what a goat looks like; e.g. ‘woolly, ‘cute’; 

sounds like; e.g. ‘maa’, ‘trip, trap’; and acts like; 

e.g. ‘friendly’, ‘cheeky’. If desired, compile a simply 

worded and/or pictorial Y–chart. Capable children can 

read the words from the chart. (Literacy) 

• Read and discuss other stories about goats such as 

Aesop’s fable ‘The fox and the goat’ and informational 

texts about goats. (Literature) 

• Children find and cut out pictures of different types and 

colours of goats and display them. They take turns to 

choose that which they like best. They can describe 

the goat to a partner, a small group or the class and 

explain why they chose this particular goat. (Literacy) 

• Provide laminated cards, each with one word or 

name related to the story for children to use in the 

writing corner. Provide pictures and encourage 

children to match them to the words they are writing. 

(Language) 

• Talk about the use of capital 

letters for the beginning of 

special names such as ‘Gruff’. 

Create a goat from a large 

cardboard copy of capital 

‘G’. Use cardboard, coloured 

paper, crayons and googly 

eyes. Alternatively, cover a 

lower-case ‘g’ with Easter 

grass. (Language) 

• Draw or create grass patterns on a large sheet of art 

paper using paint and brushes or printing utensils. 

When dry, use as a background for paper-folded goats 

or painted individual goats and a troll. (Literacy) 

2 Early years themes—Fairytales—The three billy goats Gruff www.ricpublications.com.au – R.I.C. Publications ®

The three billy goats Gruff – 1 

Mathematics 

• Look at different representations of the number three— 

the numeral, dots in arrays and the number word 

‘three’. Have each child paint a cardboard roll brown 

to be goat, then allow to dry. Give each child three 

spots/dots—two for eyes and one for the mouth to 

stick onto the roll to make a face. Give them three 

strips of coloured paper to ‘fringe’ cut to add layers of 

hair to the goat. If desired, cut rolls into different sizes 

for each child to make three different sized billy goats 

to order by size. (Number and Algebra, Measurement 

and Geometry) 

• Provide coloured pattern blocks 

or coloured paper shapes for the 

children to create goat shapes with. 


• Fold squares of coloured paper in 

half diagonally to make triangular 

bridges. Use coloured crayons to 

draw and cut out three goats and a 

troll to place on or near the bridge on 

a large sheet of paper. (Measurement 

and Geometry) 

• Provide opportunities for the children to compare 

sizes. While wearing their character headbands (refer 

to page 5), they tell each other, for example, ‘I am 

Little Billy Goat and I am smaller than Great Big Billy 

Goat’, or ‘I am Big Billy Goat and I am bigger than 

Little Billy Goat’. (Measurement and Geometry) 

• Use cut-out goat shapes to practise sequencing colour 

patterns (e.g. red, red, yellow, red, , ) or size 

patterns (e.g. big, small, small, big, , ). 

(Number and Algebra) 

• Play ‘Where are you?’ Set up planks of wood (or other 

suitable materials or pieces of equipment) outside 

to make a number of bridges of different sizes and 

heights. Children, wearing their character headbands 

(refer to page 5), move freely around the different 

bridges until they hear a signal to stop. Encourage 

them to use positional words when they respond to 

the question ‘Where are you?’. (Measurement and 

Geometry) 

• Trace the outlines of three different sized goats on 

the ground with chalk. In groups, the children work 

to cover a goat using blocks or to measure it. They 

could, for example, find the length of their goat’s 

horns, its beard or its front legs. Then all the groups 

could each measure a particular feature of their goats 

and compare the results; for example: the task could 

be to find out how long each goat’s front legs are 

and to work out which goat has the longest legs. 


• Draw three different sized hooves and photocopy them 

onto construction paper. Give three or four of the same 

size to the children to colour black before cutting out. 

The children with the same size of hooves form a group 

and find a spot to make a goat trail for the other groups 

to follow. They will need to work out how far apart to 

put their hoof prints and test it. When the trails have 

been made, the groups change places and follow one 

of the other trails. Encourage each group to work out 

which of the three goats in the story made each trail. 

When they have decided this, they can try and walk 

like one of the goats. Groups can then change places 

and try a different trail. (Templates can be laminated 

for durability.) (Measurement and Geometry) 

• Make a simple bridge by using blocks. Use finger 

puppets of goats and a troll (refer to page 12) 

to provide practise for understanding and using 

positional concepts such as ‘in’, ‘on’, ‘off’, ‘near’, 

‘under’, ‘over’, ‘by’, ‘across’, ‘behind’ and ‘in front’. 

Children can respond to questions such as: ‘Is the troll 

on the bridge?’ ‘Where is Little Billy Goat Gruff?’; and 

to directions such as: ‘Make Big Billy Goat Gruff walk 

across the bridge’. (Measurement and Geometry) 

• Place a small number of goat shapes in a container 

and have two children estimate how many. Count 

the shapes to find the closer estimate. (Number and 

Algebra) 

• Cut different sized and coloured goats in half and mix 

them up for the children to match. (Measurement and 

Geometry) 

• Play the board game on page 15. (Number and 

Algebra) 

R.I.C. Publications ® – www.ricpublications.com.au Early years themes—Fairytales—The three billy goats Gruff 3


Science 

• Set up a sensory tub for the children to use their 

senses to identify aspects of the story. Fill a plastic 

tub with soil, commercially-grown turf, Easter grass, 

dry grass, goat’s wool and plastic toy goats. 

• Draw a large picture of a goat and display it on a board. Add labels of body parts such as ears, mouth, nose, head, beard, 

legs, tail, horns and hooves. Give individual children cards with names to match to the labels. For more capable children, 

remove the labels to enable them to use initial letter cues to match the cards to the parts of the goat. 

• Remind the children that the three billy goats Gruff didn’t want to eat just any grass but wanted the greenest, freshest grass 

that they thought was growing on the other side of the bridge. Discuss the fact that goats are quite fussy eaters and they 

won’t, as some people believe, eat anything they find. Draw or cut out pictures, or make a list, of the food goats eat. 

• Grow grass seeds in a clear container so children can observe the seeds germinating and the roots and green shoots 

developing. Place paper towel around the inside of the container and put some seeds between the paper and the container. 

Fill the container with soil and water regularly to keep the paper towel moist. At the same time, some seeds could be planted 

in a soil-filled container and watered regularly. Having the seeds in the container will enable the children to understand what 

has been happening as the seeds germinate in the soil. 

• Pose the question ‘Would you like to have a goat as a pet?’ Ask the children to each give a reason for their answers. Tally 

the amount of ‘yes’ and ‘no’ responses. 

• Discuss similarities and differences between goats and 

cattle. Use the information to complete a ‘same and 

different’ graphic organiser. This could be done using 

simple pictorial representations and words. 

Same 

• Have horns 

Goats and cows 

Different 

• Are different sizes 

• Discuss animals that can swim and those that can’t, 

then explain that goats are good swimmers. Introduce 

the concept that some objects float in water but others 

don’t. Prepare a tub of water and a variety of objects to 

test. Sort the object into the two categories. Prepare a 

chart and record your findings in pictures and words. 

• Give milk 

• Have four legs 

• Have hooves 

• Goats have 

beards 

• Make different 

sounds 

• Make wool from 

goat fleece 

Society and environment 

• Bring in goat’s milk or cheese for the children to feel and taste. 

• If possible, visit a farm to view goats or arrange for a local farmer to 

bring a goat to visit the children. 

• Discuss the need to look after animals and some of the things farmers would 

have to do to care for their goats. 

• Explain that in many parts of the world there are wild goats that have to look after themselves. 

Children can suggest how they might do this and meet their basic needs of food, water and 

shelter, particularly in harsh environments such as in cold, rugged mountains or in hot, dry 

deserts. Look at pictures of wild goats in informational books. 

• Discuss reasons why people keep goats; for example: as pets; for their milk which can 

be drunk or made into butter, yoghurt and cheese; for their hair and skin; and for meat. 

Encourage children to talk about, and describe, any goat products they are familiar with. 



Visual arts 

• Adapt the finger puppets on page 12 to make 

headbands to identify the four characters from the 

story. Print the page on light card and have each child 

colour, then cut out one of the characters. Prepare 

60 cm x 5 cm strips of construction paper and staple 

a character in the middle of each so the puppet’s finger 

holes are obscured by the band. Staple a band to fit 

each child. The bands can be worn for some of the 

drama activities on page 7. 

• Use craft sticks to glue a bridge onto green card. Use 

markers to draw a troll underneath and the three billy 

goats Gruff. 

• Create a paper plate troll. 

Paint the paper plate 

a brownish-green 

colour with plain 

flour added to the 

paint to give texture. 

When dry, add 

stickers or circles 

of coloured paper for 

eyes; large teeth made 

by cutting pointed pieces, 

or a jagged strip, of white paper; ears from firm fabric 

or coloured paper; hair from pieces of wool, straw or 

fabric; and a beard from crunched up pieces of paper 

could be glued on. Other features could be drawn 

using markers. A brown paper bag could also be used 

in a similar way to create a simple troll hand puppet. 

• Visit for instructions for 

growing a ‘grass head’. 

• Create a goats’ paddock. Cut a strip about 3 cm wide 

from green crepe paper for each child to ‘fringe’ for 

grass. They do this by making cuts about halfway up 

the strip, 1 cm apart along the length of the paper. The 

grass can be glued onto a sheet of cardboard starting 

with a strip along the bottom first, then progressing 

upwards. Overlap the strips slightly so the fringed 

edges only show. The goats from page 13 can be 

placed in this green paddock and a bridge and troll 

could also be added. 

• Make a billy goat mask. Refer to page 16. Photocopy 

or trace the mask onto construction paper or light 

card. Colour, then cut out the mask, including the 

holes for the eyes. The mask can be attached to a 

long stick and held by hand, or have holes punched in 

the sides and string threaded through and tied around 

the child’s head. 

• Create a set of ‘nesting’ (babushka-style dolls) three 

billy goats Gruff by using different widths of cardboard 

rolls. Draw features on each using markers. Slip 

each doll inside the other and, if desired, mould a 

playdough troll to fit inside. 

• Assist the children to paint large outline drawings of 

the three goats and the troll. Add features using collage 

materials. Arrange and display the characters on the 

wall and encourage the children to refer to them as 

they retell the story. A label or a sentence about each 

character can be suggested by the children and added 

for them to practise reading. 

• Fold an A3 sheet of thin card in half, then open out flat. 

Place blobs of brown and green paint in the centre and 

fold shut again. Gently spread the paint outwards with 

fingertips. Open out to reveal a symmetrical troll face 

shape. When dry, cut out the face shape. (Teachers 

may need to draw a general outline for the children to 

follow.) Glue collage materials such as foam beads 

for teeth to create features for an ugly troll face. 



Health and physical education 

• Explain that goats, like cows, are sometimes kept 

for the milk they produce and for meat. Discuss the 

different products that can be made from goat’s milk 

and make a list. Consider how healthy for people 

each product is and why some could use goat’s milk 

products instead of cow’s milk. 

• Talk about what trolls might also like to eat other than 

goats. List and draw, or cut out pictures of types of 

food trolls might like to eat to make them healthier and 

‘nicer’ creatures. 

• Play ‘Who’s on my bridge?’. Using chalk, draw a 

bridge on the ground or mark it out using building 

blocks or rope. The children line up and walk over 

the bridge and back. Play music and when it stops 

the child(ren) standing on the bridge, or the last one 

to cross it, is out of the game. The last child left is the 

winner. 

• Set up an obstacle course representing a trail the 

goats have to follow to get to greener grass. Include 

a large climbing frame with a bridge, witch’s hats 

(representing grass) to weave in and out of, balancing 

boards (representing slippery rocks in the stream), 

tunnels to crawl though, a number of hoops to jump 

into, tyres to step into etc. 

• On a warm day, take the children to a sunny, grassy 

area to roll around in, walk barefoot in, and to feel the 

grass. 

• Talk to the children about how the different goats 

would move. Encourage them to take quick, short, 

light steps like Little Billy Goat as he went ‘trip, trap, 

trip, trap’ over the bridge. They could then take slower, 

longer, heavier steps like Big Billy Goat, and, finally, 

really slow, heavy, longer steps to move like Great Big 

Billy Goat Gruff. They could also try to work out how 

the troll might move. 

• Set up a plank of wood 

for the children to take 

turns walking along, 

trying not to overbalance 

and fall into the ‘river’. 

Increase the difficulty of 

the activity by making the 

plank longer, narrower or 

by asking the children to 

‘trip, trap’ along it like 

one of the three goats. 

• Play ‘Goat, goat, troll’ instead of ‘Duck, duck, goose’. 

Children sit in a circle and one (the troll) child walks 

around the outside of the circle, touching each child on 

one shoulder saying ‘Goat’, ‘goat’, ‘goat’ … When the 

child says ‘troll’ instead of ‘goat’, that child, the troll, 

must jump up and chase the child until he or she gets 

safely back to the spot where the troll had been sitting. 

The troll then walks around the circle, repeating the 

process of touching shoulders. But if the troll catches 

the first child before he or she has reached the spot, 

that child has to sit in the middle of the circle until the 

next person is caught by a troll. 

• Collect and heap a number of large cushions and/or 

pillows. Cover with a large piece of hessian to create 

a ‘soft’ bridge. Encourage the children to find different 

ways to move across the bridge—rolling, crawling, 

using large walking steps etc.—while barefoot or 

wearing socks only. 

• Play ‘bridges and trolls’. The children work with a 

partner to form a circle. One child is the bridge and 

stands with his or her legs apart, forming a bridge, and 

the other is the troll who sits behind the bridge (trying 

to look mean). The teacher calls out either ‘trolls’ or 

‘bridges’. If ‘bridges’ is called, all the children who are 

bridges must run around the outside of the circle and 

back to their spot and stand there as a bridge. If ‘trolls’ 

is called, all the trolls must crawl through their partner’s 

legs, run around the circle, crawl back through their 

partner’s legs and into their sitting position. The idea 

is to be the first back in position. The way children 

move around the circle can be changed. They could, 

for example, ‘trip, trap’ like a little billy goat or a great 

big billy goat. 



Drama 

• Children experiment using different voices for the three different-sized goats and the 

troll as they join in and say the repetitive parts of the story as it is read to them. 

• Dramatise each of the three goats crossing the bridge and his encounter with the 

troll. The ‘bridge’ can be made by using a plank of wood or a line of chairs for each 

‘goat’ to climb up and walk across. Remind the children that goats are very good 

climbers, so they will need to be careful not to fall off the bridge. 

• Form groups of four children, each with one of the four finger puppets from page 12. 

The children can perform a puppet play about the story. 

• Children take turns to mime different farm animals such as goats, cows, sheep, 

horses, ducks and chickens. The others have to work out which creatures they are 

representing by watching how they move and what they do. If guessing is difficult, 

the children can give audio clues of the sounds the animals make to assist. 

• Children can work in small groups with a storyteller. Together they can retell the story 

while wearing the character headbands adapted from the finger puppets. (See page 

5.) An additional storyteller headband can be made by attaching a picture of a book. 

After some practise, each group can perform its play for the class. 

• Give each child a card with 

a farm animal picture and/ 

or word on it. Their task is 

to find other children with the 

same card as theirs and to 

form a group without showing 

anyone their card or telling 

what picture or word is on it. 

They can only make the noise 

of their particular animal and 

listen for others making the 

same noise. The first complete 

group wins the game. 

• In the play corner, encourage the children to make a strong bridge using large wooden blocks. Provide two 

plastic or material tablecloths (one a bright green and the other brown or dull green) for the grass. Add 

plastic or soft goats and a plastic ‘troll doll’. 

Technology 

(and design) 

• Discuss bridge designs with the children. Encourage 

them to consider where they have seen bridges, how 

big they were and what materials were used in their 

construction. Talk about why they were built and what 

can go over or under them. 

• Provide small groups of children with a variety of 

different materials, including blocks, craft sticks, 

modelling clay, newspaper, adhesive tape and glue, 

and set them the task of designing and building a 

small bridge for their finger puppets to use. (Refer to 

page 12.) 

• Design a way of transporting goats from one farm to 

another. Consider, for example, the size of the vehicle, 

how to get them in and out of it, their comfort and 

safety, how it will move from one place to the other, 

and its speed. 

• Some goats live in very cold places and need thick, 

warm coats. Design a coat to keep a hairless goat 

warm. What material could you use, what shape 

would it be and how would you keep it on the goat? 

• Visit to complete an 

online jigsaw puzzle of the story. 

Music 

• Play claves (clapping sticks) at different tones and 

speeds to indicate the trip-trapping of the three different 

sized goats as they crossed the bridge. 

• Play marching music, then skipping music and 

running music for children to move to as they pretend 

to be goats marching across the bridge or slowly 

climbing a steep hill; skipping happily around in their 

new home; or running freely down the hills from one 

paddock to another. 

• Use voices and different instruments to produce troll 

sounds, such as growling in a fearsome way, snarling 

angrily, shouting loudly and squealing helplessly as 

he falls into the river. 

• Have the children practise walking, skipping, 

galloping, hopping etc. in big steps like Great Big Billy 

Goat Gruff, middle-sized steps like Big Billy Goat Gruff 

and small steps like Little Billy Goat Gruff. 

• Listen and clap to the song ‘The lonely goat herder’ 

from The sound of music. Play other yodelling music 

and encourage the children to try to yodel themselves. 

Learn the words and actions for ‘Once an Austrian went 

yodelling’. Refer to . 


Teacher background information 

‘The three billy goats Gruff’ is a traditional Norwegian fairytale based on the theme of ‘the grass on the other side of the fence is 

always greener’. A short retelling of the traditional fairytale has been provided. It can be read to the children and compared to 

other versions of the story. 

Once upon a time there were three goats and their surname was Gruff. There was Little Billy Goat Gruff, Big Billy Goat Gruff and 

Great Big Billy Goat Gruff. The three goats lived in the country, where there was lots of green grass and they were very happy. 

But one day Little Billy Goat Gruff said, ‘Look at all that green grass on the hill over there! It is much greener than our grass. I 

want to get fat so I’m going over there to eat some right now’. 

His brother, Big Billy Goat Gruff, said, ‘No, you mustn’t do that. You’ll have to cross the bridge and there’s a wicked troll living 

under there who will get you’. 

‘I’m not afraid of the troll’, said Little Billy Goat Gruff and off he went—trip, trap, trip, trap—across the bridge. 

‘Who’s that trip-trapping over my bridge?’ roared the wicked troll. 

‘It is I, Little Billy Goat Gruff’, replied the frightened goat. 

‘Well, I’m going to come up there right now and gobble you up’, roared the troll. 

‘No, don’t take me, I’m too little’, replied Little Billy Goat Gruff. ‘Wait for Big Billy Goat Gruff.’ 

‘Okay, off you go’, said the troll. And Little Billy Goat Gruff went trip-trapping across the bridge. 

When Big Billy Goat Gruff saw him eating the grass, he said, ‘Look at Little Billy Goat Gruff eating the green grass. I want to get 

fat, so I’m going over there too’. 

But Great Big Billy Goat Gruff said, ‘No, you mustn’t do that. The wicked troll will get you’. 

‘I’m not afraid of the troll’, said Big Billy Goat Gruff, and off he went—trip, trap, trip, trap—across the bridge. 


‘It is I, Big Billy Goat Gruff’, replied the frightened goat. 

‘Well, I’m going to come up there right now and gobble you up’, roared the troll. 

‘No, don’t take me’, replied Big Billy Goat Gruff. ‘Wait for Great Big Billy Goat Gruff. He’s much fatter than I am.’ 

‘Okay’, said the troll. And Big Billy Goat Gruff went trip-trapping across the bridge. 

When Great Big Billy Goat Gruff saw his brothers eating the grass he said, ‘I want to get fat, so I’m going over there too’. So 

Great Big Billy Goat Gruff went—trip, trap, trip, trap—across the bridge. 


‘It is I, Great Big Billy Goat Gruff’, replied the goat. 

‘Well, I’m going to come up there and gobble you up’, roared the troll. 

‘Well, just you come up and try’, replied Great Big Billy Goat Gruff. 

The troll climbed up onto the bridge and tried to grab Great Big Billy Goat Gruff. But Great Big Billy 

Goat Gruff was too strong. He used his horns to push the wicked troll off the bridge and into the 

water. That was the end of the wicked troll. 

Now the goats are fatter and happier. They can cross the bridge to eat the grass whenever they want 

to. 

• ‘The three billy goats Gruff’ is a fairytale. 

• Fairytales are not true stories. 

• Many fairytale characters are imaginary and can do 

things real people and animals can’t do. 

• Sometimes magic happens in fairytales. 

• There are good and bad characters in fairytales. 

• The bad characters are mean to the good ones, but the 

good ones almost always win in the end. 

Concepts to be developed 

• Fairytales happened in the past (‘Once upon a time …’) in 

different and interesting places. 

• Fairytales have been told and written by many different people 

so not all versions are the same. 

• The sequence of events in a fairytale is important. 

• This fairytale uses language for comparatives and superlatives; 

e.g. bigger, biggest, fatter, fattest. 


What happens next? – 1 

Instructions: Colour, cut out and laminate the series of eight pictures on pages 9 and 10. The children can sequence the pictures and use them to help in retelling parts, or all, of the story. 


What happens next? – 2 

Instructions: Colour, cut out and laminate the series of pictures on pages 9 and 10. The children can sequence the pictures and use them to help in retelling parts, or all, of the story. 


Cross the bridge 

Instructions: Enlarge to A3 size. The children draw a path through each maze to enable the goat to cross the bridge. 


Finger puppets 

Instructions: Print the page and glue it to (or photocopy it onto) light card. Allow to dry. Children can then colour and decorate with fabric and coloured paper before cutting out the puppets. Cut out the 

finger holes so the children can put their fingers through them to make their puppets walk. Refer to page 5 for instructions to adapt the finger puppets into headbands. 


Three billy goats 

Instructions: Enlarge to appropriate size. Colour and cut out the three goats and their legs. Fold the goats and the legs along the dotted lines. Cut slits where marked on the goats and their legs. Slide the 

legs into the slits so the goats can stand. 

Fold 

Fold 

Fold 


Which kid? How many kids? 

Colour the smallest kid green. How many kids? 

Colour the biggest kid red. How many kids? 

Colour the fattest kid pink. How many kids? 

Colour the thinnest kid green. How many kids? 

Instructions: The children read the first sentence to identify and colour the kid referred to. They then count all the kids and write that numeral in the box. 


Instructions: This game can be played by 2-4 players and enlarged, coloured and laminated. A six-sided dice is needed and a coloured counter for each player. The player with the highest dice rolled starts 

the game. Children move the number of spaces thrown. If they land on a troll, they move back two spaces. 

Billy goats Gruff game 

Go 

back! 

Go 

back! 

Go 

back! 

Go 

back! 


Make a goat mask 

Instructions: Photocopy onto cardboard. Colour or paint and cut out the mask. Add elastic, wool or string to tie around the head. Modify to create three different billy goat characters. Use for dramatic play 

and to retell the story. 


Ingredients 

• ¾ cup flour 

• 180 g margarine 

• 3 eggs 

• 1½ cups sugar 

• 1 tsp. vanilla 

• 4 squares unsweetened chocolate 

Ingredients 

• English muffin 

• tomato paste 

• cheese slice 

• a selection of sliced pieces of: ham, 

capsicum, olives, tomatoes, cherry 

tomatoes, pineapple, mild salami and 

grated carrot 

Recipes 

Billy goats’ mud pie 

Instructions 

• Melt chocolate and margarine slowly and allow to cool. Add remaining 

ingredients and stir. Pour into a 20-cm pie dish. Cook for 25 minutes at 165 °C. 

Serve warm with cream or ice-cream. 

Troll pizza 

makes two 

Instructions 

• Separate muffin halves. Spread 

with tomato paste. Cover with a 

cheese slice. Make troll’s face using 

selected ingredients. Place on oven 

tray. Heat in moderate oven for 

about 5 minutes. Allow to cool and 

enjoy. 

Goat food greens 

Ingredients 

Instructions 

• green vegetables; e.g. peas, beans, 

broccoli, cabbage, snow peas, 

cucumber, spinach, lettuce 

• serving bowls and spoons 

• plastic cups 

• Cut vegetables into small pieces and place into separate serving bowls. Select 

desired greens and place in a cup. Eat and enjoy. 

Chocolate donut bridge 

Ingredients 

• donut 

• chocolate icing 

• chocolate buttons 

Instructions 

• Cut ring donut into halves. Place side by side 

on a plate to form a wide bridge. Cover the top 

with chocolate icing to hold donuts together. 

Press chocolate buttons into icing with flat 

side up to make a brown or white stone 

bridge. Allow icing to harden and enjoy. 

Edible billy goats Gruff diorama 

Provide each child with: 

Instructions 

• 1 small paper plate 

• 1 knife 

• 1 spoonful of chunky peanut butter* (to represent dirt) 

• 1 spoonful of shredded coconut (coloured green for grass) 

• 1 large corn chip (for the bridge) 

• 3 marshmallows (for the goats) 

• 1 purple grape (troll) 

• ½ of a blue pressed fruit roll (for the water or stream) 

• Explain what the items represent then have the 

children position them correctly on the plate 

as they retell the story. Then they can eat each 

piece. 

* Be aware of children with allergies to nuts. 

Provide alternatives such as a piece of ham or 

vegemite . 


Three billy goats Gruff 

• On a plain black background and using simple colourful 

shapes, have the children assist in creating a scene from 

the story. Make the following components only: three white 

goats, a bridge, a troll and two different kinds of grass: 

one short and dull, and the other long and lush green. If 

desired, the bridge and grass can be fixed features and 

the goats and troll stick puppets (or backed with adhesive 

material) to enable the children to retell the story by moving 

the characters. 

Display ideas 

Goat paddock 

• Make a goat paddock by using green crepe paper. Goat 

shapes can be assembled and placed in the paddock. 

Bridges designed by one of the children can be chosen and 

placed in the goat paddock and left there for a given time. 

Change the bridge regularly so that all children have an 

opportunity to place their bridge creation in the display. 

Animal families 

• Prepare a wall chart divided into three sections headed: 

‘Mother’, ‘father’ and ‘babies’. Discuss goats and write the 

appropriate names for each at the top of each column. 

Discuss other farm animals and add these names to the 

chart. Children can find pictures in magazines to add to it. 

Find the best goat 

• The children find and cut out pictures of goats from 

magazines. These are glued onto a large sheet of paper 

with the heading ‘Find the best goat’. The children take 

turns to identify the goat they like best; it may not be one 

they found themselves. They then explain to the class why 

they like this particular goat the most. Create a simple 

pictograph about the results to display next to the goat 

mural. 

Bridges 

• After children have constructed bridges using a variety of 

different materials, they can be displayed so others can 

discuss their features, and strengths and weaknesses. Each 

should be clearly labelled with the designer’s name. 

Goat food 

• Label a shoebox: ‘Goat food’. After talking with the children 

about looking after goats and what they eat, encourage them 

to bring a small amount of food to school that is suitable 

for a goat. Place a plastic model or toy of a goat (or three 

goats) next to the shoebox so that the children can ‘feed’ the 

goat. Ensure the children wash their hands before and after 

use. Dispose of the food after a few days. 

Same and different 

• Display simple diagrams of a cow and a goat and 

encourage children to compare the two animals and to talk 

about any similarities and differences. Their ideas can be 

written on a graphic organiser under the headings ‘Same’ 

and ‘Different’ and placed near the diagrams. 

Which one? 

• Prepare a wall strip with 10 goats all looking in the same 

direction and with different colourings and markings. Write 

the ordinal number on each and use this chart to practise 

ordinal numbers; for example: ‘What colour is the third 

goat?’ ‘Which goat is this one?’ 

Match the words 

• Display a large picture of a goat with labels naming parts 

such the head, ears, nose and legs. Make a set of cards 

with double-sided tape on the back and the same words on 

the front. Individual children match the names and attach 

the cards to the chart. 

head 

eyes 

horns 

neck 

back tail 

nose 

mouth ears 

beard 

legs 

feet 


Literature resources – 1 

Stories 

• The three billy goats Gruff by Paul Galdone 

• Sheep, goat and the squeaking gate by Claire Saxby and Judith Rossell 

• There’s a goat in my coat by Rosemary Milne and Andrew McLean 

• Greedy goat by Colin and Jacqui Hawkins 

• Postman Pat and the hungry goat by Alison Ritchie 

• Goats don’t dance by Alicia Potter 

• Mrs Goat and her seven little kids by Tony Ross 

• The fox and the goat — Aesop’s fable 

• The two goats — Aesop’s fable 

Songs, action rhymes, fingerplays and poems 

What do you see? 

‘Little Billy, Little Billy, 

What do you see?’ 

‘I see Big Billy, 

Watching me.’ 

‘Big Billy, Big Billy, 


‘I see Great Big Billy, 

Following me.’ 

‘Great Big Billy, Great Big Billy, 


‘I see a troll, 

Waiting for me.’ 

‘Troll, Troll, 


‘I see two big horns, 

Pointing at me. 

Help! Help!’ Splash! 

Goats are munching 

(Tune: ‘Frère Jacques’) 

Goats are munching, 

Goats are munching, 

Green, green grass, 

Green, green grass. 

They can cross the bridge to play 

And eat more green grass every day. 

Three fat goats! 

Three fat goats! 

Six small goats 

Six small goats glad to be alive, 

One ran away and then there were five. 

Five small goats waiting near the door, 

One ran away and then there were four. 

Four small goats standing by a tree, 

One ran away and then there were three. 

Three small goats went rushing up to you, 

One ran away and then there were two. 

Two small goats playing in the sun, 

One ran away and then there was one. 

One small goat looking for some fun, 

He ran away and then there were none. 

The troll’s bridge 

(Tune: ‘London Bridge’) 

The troll’s bridge was hard to cross, hard to cross, 

hard to cross. 

The troll’s bridge was hard to cross 

Mean old troll! 

Great Big Billy pushed him off, pushed him off, 

pushed him off. 

Great Big Billy pushed him off 

Goodbye, troll! 

Now the goats can cross the bridge, cross the bridge, 

cross the bridge. 

Now the goats can cross the bridge 

And get fat! 


Literature resources – 2 

Songs, action rhymes, fingerplays and poems 

Trip, trip, trap 

(Tune: ‘Row, row, row your boat’) 

Trip, trap, trip, trap 

Across the bridge we go. 

This bridge is here for us to use 

‘Cos the troll has gone, you know! 

Heidi had a little goat 

Heidi had a little goat, 

Its fleece was black and white. 

All day it followed her around 

And slept with her at night. 

It even went to school with her; 

The teacher got a fright 

When it stood up on two legs 

It was a funny sight. 

Ten little billy goats 

(Tune: ‘Ten little Indians’) 

One little, two little, 

Three little billy goats 

Four little, five little, 

Six little billy goats 

Seven little, eight little, 

Nine little billy goats 

Ten little billy goats play. 

Notes 

Three billy goats 

Three billy goats were talking 

One fine day. 

They wanted to eat some green, green grass 

But a troll was in their way. 

Two of them got across the bridge. 

He let them past. 

He waited for the bigger goat 

Who was crossing over last. 

The troll jumped up onto the bridge 

To fight the billy goat. 

But that wicked troll drowned in the river 

Because he couldn’t float. 

Three fat goats 

(Tune: ‘Three blind mice’) 



See how they eat. 

See how they eat. 

They all wanted to cross a bridge one day, 

But a wicked troll was in their way. 

The biggest goat quickly sent him away. 

Now they’re three fatter goats.

RIC-20935 Early years Fairytales - Billy goats

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