Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“Spinning Wheel Illustrations”

After reading about Rump’s adventures in Rump: The (Fairly) True Tale of Rumpelstiltskin, students create their own illustrations of the protagonist based on details from Shurtliff’s novel.

You’ve just read about Rump’s ability to transform straw into gold in Rump: The (Fairly) True Tale of Rumpelstiltskin. Your goal for this activity is to create an illustration that shows how the protagonist transforms negative circumstances into positive outcomes in the novel.

• Draw Rump seated at the spinning wheel. Use details from the novel to inform your illustration of him. Leave space on both sides of the wheel.
• Off to one side of the spinning wheel, use words and images to depict five negative aspects of Rump’s life. These could include characters, events, and circumstances that make his life difficult.
• On the other side of the spinning wheel, use words and images to depict five positive outcomes Rump achieves by the end of the novel. These could be relationships he develops with other characters, good qualities he possesses, and lessons he learns.
• On the back of your illustration or on a separate piece of paper, write an explanation that uses evidence from the novel to explain how Rump’s ability to overcome his negative circumstances and achieve positive outcomes connects to one of the novel’s major themes, which are Fighting Fate, The Value of Friendship, and The Importance of Courage.
• When you have finished working on this activity, you will turn in:

o An illustration of Rump at the spinning wheel with five negative details and five positive details about his life.

o A thematic explanation of Rump’s ability to transform negatives into positives.

Teaching Suggestion: Students can complete this activity individually, with a partner, or in small groups. If time permits, consider allowing students to present and discuss their completed illustrations.

Differentiation Suggestion: Because drawing a detailed illustration may prove difficult for students with spatial cognition deficits or small motor challenges, it might be appropriate to allow them to use a computer to create or find images. Students with executive function and attentional issues may benefit from working in pairs or small groups to brainstorm the challenges that Rump faces and the positive outcomes of his quest. A graphic organizer with two columns may help students brainstorm negatives and positives and organize their ideas.

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Consider how Rump learns the value of friendship through his relationship with Red.

• Why is Red Rump’s closest friend, and what does she teach Rump about friendship? (topic sentence)
• Give details from the book that show how Red and Rump help one another and how Rump changes because of their friendship.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, connect your ideas about Red and Rump to the novel’s theme of The Value of Friendship.

2. Consider the significance of the apple tree to the theme of fate.

• What does the apple tree symbolize, and what does it reveal about Rump’s destiny? (topic sentence)
• Offer evidence from the story that shows how Rump’s view of the apple tree changes over the course of the novel.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, explain how the apple tree teaches Rump about Fighting Fate.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. Consider the importance of spinning wheels in Rump. How does the motif’s significance develop throughout the story? How does the motif of spinning wheels contribute to the novel’s characters, plot, and the theme of Fighting Fate? Make and defend a clear claim about the motif of spinning wheels in Rump. Support your ideas with evidence from throughout the text. Remember to cite page numbers for quoted evidence.

2. Consider the setting of Rump. In what ways is the Kingdom a beautiful, magical place? In what ways is the Kingdom frightening and dangerous? How do Rump’s travels throughout this setting change him? Make and defend a clear claim about the setting’s connection to the theme of The Importance of Courage. Support your ideas with details from the text. Remember to cite page numbers for quoted evidence.

Multiple Choice and Long Answer questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, unit exam, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. Which statement best explains why Red defends Rump from the miller’s sons?

A) Red hopes that Rump will share his magical gold with her.

B) Red’s grandmother told her that Rump has a great destiny.

C) Red’s mother taught her to be kind to everyone.

D) Red knows what it’s like to be judged because of her name.

2. Which of the following foreshadows Gran’s death?

A) Gran says that she is looking forward to spring.

B) Gran keeps secrets about Rump’s mother.

C) Gran gives her food rations to Rump.

D) Gran tells Rump not to worry about his destiny.

3. What does King Bartholomew’s gold armor represent?

A) The king’s insatiable greed

B) His determination to defend his people

C) His kind heart of gold

D) The prosperity everyone in his kingdom enjoys

4. What do the trolls teach Rump?

A) Not to believe every rumor he hears

B) Not to trust strangers

C) How to find stiltskins

D) How to nurture lofty ambitions

5. How does Rump’s attitude toward witches change?

A) At first, he thinks they are a myth, but then he realizes that magic is real.

B) At first, he believes they are kind, but then he understands that they cause misfortune.

C) At first, he wants to be a witch, but then he realizes he doesn’t want magic.

D) At first, he fears they are monsters, but then he comes to cherish them as friends and family.

6. While Rump is away from the Village, what does Red do as a token of their friendship?

A) Red tends to the seed they planted.

B) Red takes care of Rump’s donkey.

C) Red keeps Rump’s cottage tidy.

D) Red visits Gran’s grave.

7. Which example most clearly illustrates Rump’s cleverness?

A) He tells the Witch of the Woods he wants to help Opal.

B) He tells the miller’s sons that he hid treasure in the woods.

C) He tells Opal that he doesn’t want her baby.

D) He tells Hadel the truth about his name.

8. Why does Rump ask Opal to guess his name?

A) He believes that she can find the answer if she has faith in herself.

B) He wants to tease her by giving her an impossible task.

C) He wants to distract her from her sorrow.

D) He hopes the guessing game will entertain him while he’s spinning.

9. What does Bork the troll want to teach Rump by showing him the apple tree?

A) That even small things can grow big

B) That magic can be very dangerous

C) That nature is full of beauty

D) That curses can be broken

10. What does Rumpelstiltskin’s full name signify?

A) That he is a cunning trickster

B) That he is cursed but has the power to break the curse

C) That he is doomed to share his mother’s fate

D) That he is destined to become a great hero

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating text details to support your response.

1. How does Rump demonstrate courage throughout the novel?

2. Why does Rump give the Mountain a name in the epilogue?

Multiple Choice

1. D (Chapter 1)

2. C (Chapter 2)

3. A (Various chapters)

4. A (Various chapters)

5. D (Various chapters)

6. A (Chapter 32)

7. B (Various chapters)

8. C (Various chapters)

9. D (Chapter 30)

10. B (Various chapters)

Long Answer

1. Even though he is afraid of witches, Rump seeks advice from the Witch of the Woods so that he can help Opal. In addition, he undertakes the journey to the castle alone at night, slips past the guards, and climbs the crumbling tower. At the end of the novel, he bravely confronts the miller and rescues his friend Red. (Various chapters)

2. Rump feels so empowered by the knowledge of his true name and his destiny that he wants to share that magic with everything. He believes that animals and places deserve to have destinies, too. (Epilogue)