Click on the download link below to get the PDF version of our take on the Three Billy Goats Gruff story.
Additional resources will follow the story, like teaching ideas, a vocab list, and YouTube resources.
We hope you enjoy our story.
The Three Billy Goats Gruff
Once upon a time, on a grassy hill lived three billy goats.
All three of them were named Gruff.
There was Small Gruff, Medium Gruff, and Big Gruff.
One day, the Billy Goats Gruff saw a big hill that had lots and lots of grass.
To get there, though, they needed to cross a small bridge.
But, under the bridge lived a troll.
The troll was big, smelly, and very mean.
The troll was also very hungry.
Because the bridge was small, the Billy Goats Gruff crossed one at a time.
The first goat to go was Small Gruff.
His hoofs went trip, trap, trip, trap on the bridge.
The troll heard the noise above him and jumped up onto the bridge.
“Who is tripping on my bridge?” yelled the troll.
“It’s just me, Small Gruff.”
“I will gobble you up!” yelled the troll.
“Please no, Mr. Troll, I am too small to eat,” said Small Gruff.
“Too small?” asked the troll.
“Yes, wait for my brother. He is much bigger than me,” said Small Gruff.
The troll thought and thought and thought.
Finally, he said, “Okay, you may go, but I will eat your brother!”
Small Gruff nodded and quickly ran across the bridge to safety.
The second billy goat to cross was Medium Gruff.
His hoofs went trip, trap, trip, trap on the bridge.
The troll heard the noise above him and jumped up onto the bridge.
“Who is tripping on my bridge?” yelled the troll.
“It’s just me, Medium Gruff.”
“I will gobble you up!” yelled the troll.
“Please no, Mr. Troll, I am too small to eat,” said Medium Gruff.
“Too small?” asked the troll.
“Yes, wait for my brother. He is much bigger than me,” said Medium Gruff.
The troll thought and thought and thought.
Finally, he said, “Okay, you may go, but I will eat your brother!”
Medium Gruff nodded and quickly ran across the bridge to safety.
The third and final goat to cross was Big Gruff.
His hoofs went trip, trap, trip, trap on the bridge.
The troll heard the noise above him and jumped up onto the bridge.
“Who is tripping on my bridge?” yelled the troll.
“It’s me, Big Gruff.”
“I will gobble you up!” yelled the troll.
“No, you will not!” said Big Gruff.
Lowering his head, Big Gruff showed the troll his big horns.
Quickly, Big Gruff charged and smashed into the troll.
The troll flew off the bridge and fell into the river.
Then, Big Billy Goat Gruff walked across the bridge.
On the other side, the three brothers began to enjoy the grass.
Soon, they all became fat and happy.
All three billy goats lived happily ever after.
About this Story
The story of the Three Billy Goats Gruff comes from Norway. It was written in the mid-1800s and has since become a well-known children’s story in English.
Our version of the story has been simplified to make it easier for children who are learning English. If you want to see a more traditional take on this story, here is a great version from americanliteraure.com
If you want to read more fairy tales and stories for children and English learners, then you can check out our collection. All of our stories have been made using simple English that is more commonly used today. They also have pictures and additional resources to help you get the most out of our stories.
The Learner’s Nook Fairy Tale Resources
Vocabulary List
These words are the ones we believe are important for your child to know, not just to understand the story, but to improve their English level.
| Once upon a time | A traditional opening to a fairy tale |
| Billy Goats | Male goats |
| Small | Little, not large |
| Medium | Average, not big or small |
| Big | Large, huge |
| To Cross | to go from one side to the other |
| Bridge | A structure that allows you to go over water or a gap |
| Troll | A mythical creature, usually mean |
| Trip, Trap | the sound of hooves on the bridge |
| Hoof/Hoofs | The feet of a goat or horse |
| Gobble | To eat |
| To Wait | To stay in place for an event to occur |
| Much | A lot |
| Safety | A state of being safe, out of danger |
| Horns | Sharp protrusions on some animals’ heads |
| To Enjoy | To like |
| Thought | Past tense of to think |
| Heard | Past tense of to hear |
| Smashed | to hit hard (past tense) |
| River | A moving body of water |
Teaching Ideas
These are just a couple of ideas you could use to get a little more out of this story. Stories can usually be a great backbone for a larger grammar or vocabulary lesson or series of lessons. Here are some ideas that we hope you can use.
Sizes
Teach children about vocabulary like small, medium, and big. You can also work on comparisons like bigger and smaller.
Ordinal Numbers
First, second, third, etc. Lots of children have trouble learning their ordinal numbers. The Three Billy Goats Gruff story can help you with reinforcing this vocabulary. We also have a post on ordinal numbers if you need more help with this.
The Past Tense
Everyone who is learning English probably needs to review their past tense conjugations. Stories like this can help you reinforce past tense verbs without resorting to boring flashcards or tedious worksheets.
YouTube Resources
More Questions?
We do our best to have all the resources that we think that you’ll need. If you have any questions or need anything else, please feel free to comment on this post so that we can help you out.