JUDGE JENNY: Hello! I didn't see you there. Come on in. My name is Judge Jenny.
Welcome to Judge Jenny's Folktale Court. This court is a special place where folk people can sort out their arguments.
Today in court, we have Goldilocks and the Three Bears.
Now, we're going to listen to each person's point of view and decide what is fair. Sometimes people can see the same thing that happened in a very different way.
Before we start, I want you all to remember that here in the folk courtroom we always tell the tru-hoo-th. Does everyone understand?
Now, the Three Bears here say that Goldilocks came into their house, ate their porridge and broke some furniture. Is that right?
THEY ALL SPEAK AT ONCE
JUDGE JENNY: Stop, stop! We aren't going to get very far if you all talk at once. Why don't you take it in turns to tell me your side of the story?
DADDY BEAR: Well…
MUMMY BEAR: We were out in the woods the other day.
BABY BEAR: It was a Tuesday.
MUMMY BEAR: When we got back, we found that someone had been into our house and eaten all of our porridges.
JUDGE JENNY: I see. And how do you know?
BABY BEAR: I knew because mine was all gone.
THEY GASP
JUDGE JENNY: Do you have any proof of this, Baby Bear?
BABY BEAR: Yes, I have this.
MUTTERING
JUDGE JENNY: So someone HAD been eating your porridge? And what do you have to say to this, Goldilocks?
GOLDILOCKS: I was lost in the woods and it was raining when I saw a little house. I ran to the house and found the door was wide open. I called out, but there was no answer.
JUDGE JENNY: The door was wide open?! Is this true, Three Bears, that you left the door open?
MUMMY BEAR: We always leave the door open to cool the porridge.
JUDGE JENNY: I see. Carry on, please.
GOLDILOCKS: Then I saw all the porridges on the side. I tasted a bit of them, but I didn't eat them all.
JUDGE JENNY: So you didn't eat all the porridges that were there?
GOLDILOCKS: No, I only ate all the baby bear's porridge because I was SO hungry and it was SO delicious!
MUMMY BEAR: I make it all myself. It's his favourite.
BABY BEAR: My very favourite.
GOLDILOCKS: And the rain was dripping in it from the window, so I thought no-one wanted it.
JUDGE JENNY: I see. A good point. So, Three Bears, what happened next?
DADDY BEAR: Well…
MUMMY BEAR: We saw that someone had been sitting in our chairs.
JUDGE JENNY: And how do you know that?
BABY BEAR: I knew because my chair was broken into a million pieces.
JUDGE JENNY: A million?!
MUMMY BEAR: Not quite a million. More like six. But Baby can't count yet.
JUDGE JENNY: What do you have to say to this, Miss Locks? Did you break Baby Bear's chair?
GOLDILOCKS: Yeah, but I didn't mean to. It was an accident. It was a rather old chair, and maybe I had eaten too much porridge.
JUDGE JENNY: Was Baby Bear's chair old, Mummy Bear?
MUMMY BEAR: Oh, yes. Daddy Bear had it when he was a baby bear.
JUDGE JENNY: I see. So can you tell me what happened then?
DADDY BEAR: Well…
MUMMY BEAR: We went upstairs and found that someone had been sleeping in our beds.
BABY BEAR: And SHE was still there in MY bed!
GASPING
JUDGE JENNY: Is it true, Miss Locks, that you fell asleep on Baby Bear's bed?
GOLDILOCKS: Only because I was SO tired. I didn't think anyone would mind. That was till I woke up to see three bears growling at me!
JUDGE JENNY: The three bears were growling at you?!
GOLDILOCKS: Growling and showing their teeth. I wanted to say sorry, but I was so scared. I ran out the house as fast as I could.
JUDGE JENNY: I see. Well, thank you, Goldilocks and the Three Bears. So, who is right? The same thing happened, but from very different points of view.
Are the Three Bears right to be cross with Goldilocks for going into their house if the door was wide open?
Was Goldilocks wrong to eat the porridge when she was SO hungry?
Should Goldilocks make a new chair for Baby Bear to say sorry? Or was the chair SO old it would have broken anyway?
Was it wrong for Goldilocks to fall asleep on Baby Bear's bed?
Or was it wrong for the bears to growl at her?
What do you-hoo think?
Watch the signed version of the clip.
JUDGE JENNY: Hello! I didn't see you there. Come on in. My name is Judge Jenny.
Welcome to Judge Jenny's Folktale Court. This court is a special place where folk people can sort out their arguments.
Today in court, we have Goldilocks and the Three Bears.
Now, we're going to listen to each person's point of view and decide what is fair. Sometimes people can see the same thing that happened in a very different way.
Before we start, I want you all to remember that here in the folk courtroom we always tell the tru-hoo-th. Does everyone understand?
Now, the Three Bears here say that Goldilocks came into their house, ate their porridge and broke some furniture. Is that right?
THEY ALL SPEAK AT ONCE
JUDGE JENNY: Stop, stop! We aren't going to get very far if you all talk at once. Why don't you take it in turns to tell me your side of the story?
DADDY BEAR: Well…
MUMMY BEAR: We were out in the woods the other day.
BABY BEAR: It was a Tuesday.
MUMMY BEAR: When we got back, we found that someone had been into our house and eaten all of our porridges.
JUDGE JENNY: I see. And how do you know?
BABY BEAR: I knew because mine was all gone.
THEY GASP
JUDGE JENNY: Do you have any proof of this, Baby Bear?
BABY BEAR: Yes, I have this.
MUTTERING
JUDGE JENNY: So someone HAD been eating your porridge? And what do you have to say to this, Goldilocks?
GOLDILOCKS: I was lost in the woods and it was raining when I saw a little house. I ran to the house and found the door was wide open. I called out, but there was no answer.
JUDGE JENNY: The door was wide open?! Is this true, Three Bears, that you left the door open?
MUMMY BEAR: We always leave the door open to cool the porridge.
JUDGE JENNY: I see. Carry on, please.
GOLDILOCKS: Then I saw all the porridges on the side. I tasted a bit of them, but I didn't eat them all.
JUDGE JENNY: So you didn't eat all the porridges that were there?
GOLDILOCKS: No, I only ate all the baby bear's porridge because I was SO hungry and it was SO delicious!
MUMMY BEAR: I make it all myself. It's his favourite.
BABY BEAR: My very favourite.
GOLDILOCKS: And the rain was dripping in it from the window, so I thought no-one wanted it.
JUDGE JENNY: I see. A good point. So, Three Bears, what happened next?
DADDY BEAR: Well…
MUMMY BEAR: We saw that someone had been sitting in our chairs.
JUDGE JENNY: And how do you know that?
BABY BEAR: I knew because my chair was broken into a million pieces.
JUDGE JENNY: A million?!
MUMMY BEAR: Not quite a million. More like six. But Baby can't count yet.
JUDGE JENNY: What do you have to say to this, Miss Locks? Did you break Baby Bear's chair?
GOLDILOCKS: Yeah, but I didn't mean to. It was an accident. It was a rather old chair, and maybe I had eaten too much porridge.
JUDGE JENNY: Was Baby Bear's chair old, Mummy Bear?
MUMMY BEAR: Oh, yes. Daddy Bear had it when he was a baby bear.
JUDGE JENNY: I see. So can you tell me what happened then?
DADDY BEAR: Well…
MUMMY BEAR: We went upstairs and found that someone had been sleeping in our beds.
BABY BEAR: And SHE was still there in MY bed!
GASPING
JUDGE JENNY: Is it true, Miss Locks, that you fell asleep on Baby Bear's bed?
GOLDILOCKS: Only because I was SO tired. I didn't think anyone would mind. That was till I woke up to see three bears growling at me!
JUDGE JENNY: The three bears were growling at you?!
GOLDILOCKS: Growling and showing their teeth. I wanted to say sorry, but I was so scared. I ran out the house as fast as I could.
JUDGE JENNY: I see. Well, thank you, Goldilocks and the Three Bears. So, who is right? The same thing happened, but from very different points of view.
Are the Three Bears right to be cross with Goldilocks for going into their house if the door was wide open?
Was Goldilocks wrong to eat the porridge when she was SO hungry?
Should Goldilocks make a new chair for Baby Bear to say sorry? Or was the chair SO old it would have broken anyway?
Was it wrong for Goldilocks to fall asleep on Baby Bear's bed?
Or was it wrong for the bears to growl at her?
What do you-hoo think?
In this mock courtroom trial, the three bears put across their point of view across with evidence to Judge Jenny to try to persuade her that they are right.
Goldilocks defends her actions with counterarguments and Judge Jenny sums up so that the audience can discuss and decide.
This clip comes from the BBC series, Ways of Talking: Persuading, Explaining, Instructing.
Teacher Notes
- This clip could be used to show the importance of listening as a fundamental part of communication.
- Pupils could partake in a kinesthetic activity in which they begin the session standing in the middle of the room.
- The teacher could place a picture of Goldilocks on one wall and one of the three bears on the opposite one. As the clip progresses, pupils would move in whichever direction they see fit, depending on whom they believe and who they think has the best argument.
- At the end, each pupil could be asked why they are standing where they are, to stimulate further discussion.
Curriculum Notes
This clip is relevant for teaching English at KS1 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and at first level in Scotland.
More video clips on debating:
Judge Jenny - Jack and the beanstalk. video
Jack and the giant each make their cases for Judge Jenny to decide who was in the right.
Uniform vs non-uniform. video
A debate about school uniform with cartoon characters.
