The Janet Stevens version is right for kindergarten, but first graders enjoys this tougher version of the tale. Vocabulary and prediction. Withhold ending, and the kids make their own. Read several different color poems while the children close their eyes, listening for imagery. Discuss characters, retell the sequence of events, ask opinions about the prince and princess.
First graders can write and illustrate favorite part of the story.
I laminated drawings for the story that I found at a teacher's supply store, and used them in a variety of activities - having children figure the correct sequence, then retell the story. A wordless retelling of the Goldilocks story, reversed with a baby bear in Goldilock's place. Make sure the students know the Goldilocks story. Then show the Deep in the Forest pictures, silently first, then give each child a chance to tell a frame of the story. Withhold ending the last page, and have children draw and write their own ending.