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The Rabbit's Carrots: A Sharing Addition Story

Once upon a time there was a rabbit. And every morning he would pick 10 carrots from his garden. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.

He would eat one carrot for breakfast, one carrot for lunch, and one carrot for dinner. The rest he put in his cupboard.

The next morning, Rabbit woke up and picked his carrots from his garden. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. All this picking made him extra hungry. So he had one carrot for breakfast, one carrot for snack, one carrot for lunch, and one carrot for dinner. How many carrots did he add to his cupboard? Five. How many does he have in his cupboard now? Twelve.

The next morning, Rabbit woke up and picked his carrots from his garden. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. He eats one for breakfast. There is a knock on his door. It is Turtle.

"I am so hungry today. I can't find any food. Do you have some you can spare?" Turtle asks Rabbit.

Rabbit thinks about it. Rabbit needs four more carrots for his food that day. And he has nine. So he gives one to Turtle for a snack and eats one himself.

Rabbit and Turtle play all morning until lunch time. Rabbit eats a carrot for lunch. He gives one to Turtle for his lunch before saying good-bye. How do you think Turtle felt about Rabbit sharing his carrots? How did Rabbit feel?

At snack time, there is a knock on his door. It is pony.

"I am so hungry today. I can't find any food. Do you have some you can spare?" Pony asks Rabbit.

Rabbit thinks about it. Rabbit needs two more carrot for his food that day. How many carrots does Rabbit have left for the day (not in his cupboard)? He has five. So he gives one to Pony for a snack and eats one himself.

Rabbit and Pony play all afternoon until dinner time. Rabbit eats a carrot for dinner. He gives one to Pony for his dinner before saying good night.  Rabbit puts the last carrot in the cupboard. How do you think Pony felt about Rabbit sharing his carrots? How did Rabbit feel?

Now how many carrots are in the cupboard? Thirteen. The next morning, Rabbit woke up and picked his carrots from his garden. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. Now he has 23 carrots all together.

Rabbit thinks, "I don't want to share today. I want to eat more carrots!" So he eats three carrots for lunch. When someone knocks on the door he doesn't answer it. He eats three more carrots for snack. And three more carrots for lunch. And three more carrots for snack. And three more carrots for dinner. The last 8 carrots go into the cupboard. How do you think Rabbit feels? Do you think he feels better today or yesterday?

The next morning, Rabbit woke up and picked his carrots from his garden. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. Now he has 18 carrots all together. What should he do with his carrots today?

Rabbit decides that after yesterday he can skip snacks today. So he only needs three carrots for his food today. He eats one for breakfast. He puts two in his cupboard: one for lunch and one for dinner. Then he puts 15 into a basket and goes outside.

He knocks on Turtle's door. He gives Turtle a carrot. He knocks on Pony's door. He gives Turtle a carrot. Rabbit finds 13 other friends to give a carrot to. He eats his carrot for lunch. He eats his carrot for dinner.

How do you think Rabbit feels now? How do his friends feel? Rabbit woke up and picked his carrots from his garden. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. What should he do with his carrots today?

Let the story open up the lines of communication and imagination. Let the kids decide what they would do or should do. No judgment. If they decide to have Rabbit keep them all for himself go into natural consequences of that (he might get sick, he would be sad, his friends would be hungry).


I made up this story for my own children Marh 16, 2019. One child didn't want to share some water with a sibling. I had just read this article about the Inuits teaching their children proper behavior through stories. And so I began my story, making it up as I went along, asking for their input often on what should happen in the story or how the characters felt. Halfway through the child did share his water without my saying anything. I know this won't cure my kids of selfishness and make them always choose to share. But I hope that they can learn lessons from stories and apply them to their lives.

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