The Lion and the Mouse

Name: The Lion and the Mouse
Author: Jerry Pinkney

A story that explores cooperation and opens a conversation with your child.

★★★★★ Loved by families

Read the Guiding Questions Find this book →

♥ This book teaches: Cooperation. choosing the group over the self.

Before, During & After Reading

Guiding Questions for Parents.

Definition of Cooperation for 4 - 7 year olds: Cooperation happens when two or more people help each other to make something good happen. It can also apply to animals or parts of a whole that need each other and work together. An example of this is the human body – all the parts work together to make you healthy. In a nutshell: Together we can do more. Summary: A lion traps a mother mouse in his paw. She promises that she will do him a favor if he lets her go. He mocks her, thinking that she could never help him, but he lets her go. A year later, the lion is trapped in a hunter’s net. The mouse rescues the lion by chewing on the rope, making a hole big enough for him to escape. The lion is grateful to the mouse for saving its life. Lesson Objectives:

Students discuss how they experience cooperation at school and at home, with an emphasis on what they give and what they receive in return.
Students discuss the question: is it better to receive than to give or vice versa?

Guiding Questions:

Why do you think the lion let the mouse go?
Why did the lion make fun of the mouse when she said she would do anything to help him if he let her go?
What would have happened to the lion at the end of this story if the lion ate the mouse?
Why did the lion mock the mouse when she rushed to help him get out of the net?
What did the mouse do to save the lion?
Why did the mouse risk her life to save the lion?
Can you think of what you do to help your parents?
Do you like to receive more than you like to give, or is it the other way around - do you like to give more than receive? Can you explain your answer?
Can you name some ways you can cooperate and help others at school?
How do you feel when you are able to help someone?

🌿 Virtue Connection: Cooperation means choosing to contribute to something larger than yourself.

About the Story.

This guide is part of the Values & Virtues library, a free collection of 400+ book guides and activities organized around 12 core virtues for children from pre-K to 6th grade. Each guide includes Guiding Questions designed to open a real conversation with your child in 10 minutes or less.