• About WordPress
    • WordPress.org
    • Documentation
    • Support
    • Feedback
  • Notifications
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The BEarth Institute

Home of the First Online Waldorf Curriculum – Since 1994

Header Right

  • Members
    • Login
    • Quick Curriculum Access
    • Quick Lifetime Member Access
    • My Account
    • My Orders
  • FAQ
    • FAQs
    • Earthschooling Facts
  • Cart0
  • Home
    • Earthschooling
    • The Avicenna Institute
    • Photography
    • Waldorf Books
    • Newsletters
  • Waldorf Books
  • Shop
        • All Shop Categories
        • Schools Click Here
        • Waldorf Books
        • Photography
        • Curriculum By Grade
          • Preschool
          • Kindergarten
          • First Grade
          • Second Grade
          • Third Grade
          • Fourth Grade
          • Fifth Grade
          • Sixth Grade
          • Seventh Grade
          • Eighth Grade
          • Ninth Grade
          • Tenth Grade
          • Eleventh Grade
          • Twelfth Grade
          • High School
        • Curriculum by Category
          • All Categories
          • Curriculum Packages
            • Core Curriculum Bundles
            • Curriculum Packages
            • Living Lessons Curriculum
            • Family - Lifetime Package
            • Co-op/School Purchases
            • Photography Class
            • Kids Can Heal
            • Wildlife Education
          • Monthly Curriculum
            • Preschool
            • Kindergarten
            • First Grade
            • Second Grade
            • Third Grade
            • Fourth Grade
            • Fifth Grade
            • Sixth Grade
            • Seventh Grade
            • Eighth Grade
          • Lesson Blocks
            • Blocks By Subject
            • First Grade
            • Second Grade
            • Third Grade
            • Fourth Grade
            • Fifth Grade
            • Sixth Grade
            • Seventh Grade
            • Eighth Grade
        • Waldorf Parent/Teacher Tutorials
          • Complete Teacher Support Package
          • Eurythmy
          • Watercolor Tutorials
          • Chalk Tutorials
          • Block Crayon Instruction
          • Handwork & Art
          • Music Tutorials
          • Teaching the Main Lesson
          • Pedagogy
          • The Temperaments
          • Consulting
        • Naturopathic Courses
          • Naturopathic Series
          • Unani Tibb
          • Audit Classes
          • Naturopathic Co-ops
          • Naturopathic Payment Plans
          • Well-Being Consults
  • Members
        • Login
        • Quick Curriculum Access
        • Quick Lifetime Member Access
        • Earthschooling Members
        • Naturopathic Students
          • Student Connections
            • Student Forum
            • NEW Student Blog
            • Student Newsletters
            • Student Yahoogroup
        • Packages & Blocks
          • Individual Living Lessons
            • Second Grade Math Living Lessons
            • Fourth Grade Human & Animal
            • Fourth Grade Norse Mythology
            • Fourth Grade Math Block
            • Fifth Grade Living Lessons Math Block
            • Fifth Grade LL: Ancient India
            • Sixth Grade LL: Geometry
            • Seventh Grade LL: Math
          • French Classes
            • Autumn French Classes
          • Music Classes
            • Circle Time Pre-KG
            • Circle Time First Grade
            • Ukulele Classes
          • Eurythmy Classes
            • Eurythmy by Grade
          • Handwork & Art Classes
          • Math, Language & Form
          • Waldorf Foundations
  • About
    • Newsletters
    • About
    • Contact Us
    • Testimonials
    • Giving Back
    • Our Team
    • Earthschooling Facts
    • FAQs
    • Purchase & Privacy
  • Blog
    • Public Blog
    • WaldorfBooks.com Blog
    • Avicenna Institute Student Blog
  • Free
    • Newsletters
    • Free Curriculum Samples
    • Overview
    • #Earthschooling365
    • Temperaments
    • Articles
    • Waldorf 101
    • Reading Lists
  • Join
    • Newsletters
    • Schools
    • Affiliate Area
    • Members
    • Partners
    • Scholarships
    • Staff
  • Legal Resources & Services
  • Curriculum Member
  • Earthschooling Member Forum
  • Member Yahoogroup
  • Accreditation Page
You are here: Home / Holidays / Advent / A Winter Nature Story for Everyone

A Winter Nature Story for Everyone

December 10, 2014 by thebearthinstitute Leave a Comment

This is a wonderful secular seasonal story because it teaches the values of giving and kindness without talking about any particular holiday. Additonally, it can be told in countries where there are not fir trees because other kinds of trees are mentioned in the story as well and all children would be familiar with those trees. You can even change the story to include trees that are around your home!

One day, a long, long time ago, it was very cold; winter was coming. And all the birds flew away to the warm south, to wait for the spring. But one little bird had a broken wing and could not fly. He did not know what to do. He looked all round, to see if there was any place where he could keep warm. And he saw the trees of the great forest.

“Perhaps the trees will keep me warm through the winter,” he said.

So he went to the edge of the forest, hopping and fluttering with his broken wing. The first tree he came to was a slim silver birch.

“Beautiful birch-tree,” he said, “will you let me live in your warm branches until the springtime comes?”

“Dear me!” said the birch-tree, “what a thing to ask! I have to take care of my own leaves through the winter; that is enough for me. Go away.”

The little bird hopped and fluttered with his broken wing until he came to the next tree. It was a great, big oak-tree.

“O big oak-tree,” said the little bird, “will you let me live in your warm branches until the springtime comes?”

“Dear me,” said the oak-tree, “what a thing to ask! If you stay in my branches all winter you will be eating my acorns. Go away.”

So the little bird hopped and fluttered with his broken wing till he came to the willow-tree by the edge of the brook.

“O beautiful willow-tree,” said the little bird, “will you let me live in your warm branches until the springtime comes?”

“No, indeed,” said the willow-tree; “I never speak to strangers. Go away.”

The poor little bird did not know where to go; but he hopped and fluttered along with his broken wing. Presently the spruce-tree saw him, and said, “Where are you going, little bird?”

“I do not know,” said the bird; “the trees will not let me live with them, and my wing is broken so that I cannot fly.”

“You may live on one of my branches,” said the spruce; “here is the warmest one of all.”

“But may I stay all winter?”

“Yes,” said the spruce; “I shall like to have you.”

The pine-tree stood beside the spruce, and when he saw the little bird hopping and fluttering with his broken wing, he said, “My branches are not very warm, but I can keep the wind off because I am big and strong.”

So the little bird fluttered up into the warm branch of the spruce, and the pine-tree kept the wind off his house; then the juniper-tree saw what was going on, and said that she would give the little bird his dinner all the winter, from her branches. Juniper berries are very good for little birds.

The little bird was very comfortable in his warm nest sheltered from the wind, with juniper berries to eat.

The trees at the edge of the forest remarked upon it to each other:

“I wouldn’t take care of a strange bird,” said the birch.

“I wouldn’t risk my acorns,” said the oak.

“I would not speak to strangers,” said the willow. And the three trees stood up very tall and proud.

That night the North Wind came to the woods to play. He puffed at the leaves with his icy breath, and every leaf he touched fell to the ground. He wanted to touch every leaf in the forest, for he loved to see the trees bare.

“May I touch every leaf?” he said to his father, the Frost King.

“No,” said the Frost King, “the trees which were kind to the bird with the broken wing may keep their leaves.”

So North Wind had to leave them alone, and the spruce, the pine, and the juniper-tree kept their leaves through all the winter. And they have done so ever since.

From How to Tell Stories to Children, and Some Stories to Tell , by Sara Cone Bryant. Public Domain.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook

Filed Under: Advent, Christmas, December, February, Holidays, January, Santa, Solstice, Storytelling, Winter Tagged With: Holiday, Homeschooling, kindergarten, math, Parts, Preschool, Steiner, Waldorf, Waldorf 1st Grade Curriculum, Waldorf 2nd Grade Curriculum, Waldorf 3rd Grade, Waldorf 4th Grade, Waldorf Curriculum, Waldorf curriculum overview, Waldorf education books, Waldorf high school curriculum, Waldorf Homeschol Curriculum, Waldorf homeschool blog, Waldorf homeschool supplies, Waldorf Homeschooling, Waldorf Kindergarten Curriculum, Waldorf materials, Waldorf Preschool Curriculum, Whole, winter

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Primary Sidebar

Earthschooling

An Award Winning Curriculum...

Join Mailing List

The Waldorf Store

Golden Beetle Books Club

Waldorf Teacher Tutorials

Earthschooling Curriculum

Footer

Customer Service

  • Shipping
  • FAQs
  • Earthschooling Facts
  • Contact Us
  • Member Help
    • Ask for Help
    • Tech Support
  • Privacy & Purchase Policy

Earthschooling Forum

Earthschooling Facebook Forum
Yahoo Groups Forum
Earthschooling Members Blog

Avicenna Institute Students

Facebook Forum
Yahoo Groups Student Forum
Student Blog

Newsletters

Check your inbox or spam folder now to confirm your subscription.


Check your inbox or spam folder now to confirm your subscription.


Check your inbox now to confirm your subscription.

Copyright © 2023 · The BEarth Institute Inc, Since 1994· Privacy Policy