Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree by Robert Barry, (purchase a copy on Amazon or find at your local library) is quite possibly my all-time favorite Christmas book to read to my pre-k kiddos. It’s chock-full of flowery, descriptive vocabulary words (glistening! splendid! magnificent! mincemeat!) and jaunty rhyming prose. It’s long, for sure, but so worth it as the illustrations are super cute, and there are many comprehension activities you can do to extend the learning.

Fair warning, though, you may have to explain some high-brow terms like “parlor” and “butler,” to your kiddos, but Mr. W’s bougie environs notwithstanding, this book rules.

Anyway…back to our story. Mr. Willowby has a giant tree trucked in, but oops, he failed to pre-measure and lo and behold, that big boy is scraping his 19-ft parlor ceiling.

So, like a man who knows he better act fast or he’s going to find himself in a tux atop a Little Giant ladder scraping off pine sap and applying a coat of touch-up paint, Baxter the Butler lops off the top of the tree. The ceiling is no longer in jeopardy, the tree looks lovely, and Mr. W goes on his merry way.

But that’s just where the story and the fun begins. This little lopped-off tree top makes its way through assorted residents of Mr. Willowby’s town — human and animal alike. First Baxter takes it to sweet Miss Adelaide, the aforementioned upstairs maid, but it proves to be too big, so she lops off the top and tosses it out. Gardener Timm ambles by the trashcan, picks up the discarded treetop and takes it home to Mrs. Timm, where, yes, they find it’s just a wee bit too big. The top is chopped off and tossed out, and that’s when the animals get involved. Gradually the tree top works its way to the home of the tiny mice who live in Mr. Willowby’s parlor (how is it Baxter hasn’t found them yet?), and it ends with everyone getting to enjoy a bit of Mr. W’s tree.

The treetop wends its way through six families after it leaves Mr. Willowby, so the book does get a little long. But it’s a heart-warming story, and it does encourage sharing, even though no one in the story is aware they are actually sharing (except Baxter, of course. That must be why he let those mice stay, he’s a softie at heart.)

We love this story for older 3s, 4s & 5s!

The subtle theme of reducing, reusing and recycling also gets a nod here — ahead of its time since the story was originally written in the mid-20th century. And finally, the animals demonstrate sheer joy at being together in the holiday season, as they celebrate finding the bits of the tree. That’s the best part of the story in my opinion, because it truly captures the holiday spirit of being with the ones you love.

So much to love about this wonderful story!

We’ve put together a packet of learning extension activities you can download below. And the downloadable version of the lesson plan is there as well. Enjoy!

(Below please find a list of reading comprehension questions and vocabulary words. This list is not exhaustive, and it may spark additional questions from your kiddos. As always, we recommend that you scaffold based on your age group and the wigglies of your kiddos.)

*Downloadable/printable copy of the book lesson plan below*

Reading Comprehension Questions

Before reading: Show the cover. What do you think this story is about? Can you figure out what is going on in the picture? What do you think this character (point to Mr. Willowby) is thinking? Why do you think he’s making this face? What is a “character” in a story? How about a “main character?”

After reading title: Point out Mr. Willowby. What do you think is going on with his Christmas tree?

While reading: I usually say “Uh oh, what happened when they put up their tree?” as each of characters find their tree is too big for their space. I also ask “What should they do?” each time, so the children can interact, and they get the hang of it as each character’s tree gets lopped off and put out for another. There are also a number of complex words that may need to be defined to your students depending on their ages (some suggested ones are listed below).

After reading: How would you have fixed Mr. Willowby’s Christmas tree? Would you chop off the top too? What’s another way to make the tree smaller? If you chop off the bottom or trunk instead, would others be able to share in the tree as well? What’s a way you like to share at the holidays? How about the rest of the year? Did you notice that the characters were reducing, reusing and recycling? How were they doing that? Since a tree was cut down in the beginning, what would be a good way to ensure there are more trees in the future? What are other ways we can reduce, reuse and recycle at Christmas? How about the rest of the year?

Vocabulary Words

• glistening
• dashed
• magnificent
• splendid
• parlor
• terrible
• butler
• glee
• trim/trimming (as in “decorate”)
• delighted
• snipped
• snug
• padding (as in “walking”)
• drowsily
• hunk (as in a large piece, not the “attractive person” kind)
• tinsel
• spied
• scampered
• mincemeat
• den
• merrymaking
• nook
• mistletoe
• grand

Enrichment Activities:

We have created a whole package of reading and math activities to go with this wonderful story. Our Companion/Extension Activities pack includes beginning/middle/end, count & color, cutting & ordering, and patterning activities to name a few. It’s free to download below.