1.

The Needle Tree

There were once two brothers who lived on the edge of a
forest. The elder brother was very mean to his younger
brother and ate up all the food and took all his good
clothes. One day, the elder brother went into the forest to
find some firewood to sell in the market. As he went
around chopping the branches of a tree after tree, he
came upon a magical tree. The tree said to him, ‘Oh kind
sir, please do not cut my branches. If you spare me, I will give you my golden apples’. The elder
brother agreed but was disappointed with the number apples the tree gave him. Greed overcame
him, and he threatened to cut the entire trunk if the tree didn’t give him more apples. The
magical tree instead showered upon the elder brother hundreds upon hundreds of tiny needles.
The elder brother lay on the ground crying in pain as the sun began to lower down the horizon.
The younger brother grew worried and went in search of his elder brother. He found him with
hundreds of needles on his skin. He rushed to his brother and removed each needle with
painstaking love. After he finished, the elder brother apologised for treating him badly and
promised to be better. The tree saw the change in the elder brother’s heart and gave them all the
golden apples they could ever need.
Moral Of The Story
It is important to be kind and gracious as it will always be rewarded.

2. Counting Wisely
Akbar once put a question to his court that left everyone puzzled. As
they all tried to figure out the answer, Birbal walked and asked what
the matter was. And so they told him the question.
‘How many crows are there in the city?’
Birbal immediately smiled, went up to Akbar and announced that the
answer to his questions was twenty-one thousand five hundred
and twenty-three. When asked how he knew the answer, Birbal
replied, ‘Ask your men to count the number of crows. If there are
more, then the crows’ relatives from outside the city are visiting them. If there are fewer, then the
crows are visiting their relatives outside the city.’ Pleased with the answer, Akbar presented
Birbal with a ruby and pearl chain.
Moral of The Story
Having an explanation for your answer is just as important as having an answer.
3. The Boy Who Cried Wolf
There was once a boy whose father one day told him that he is
old enough to look after the sheep. Every day he had to take the
sheep over the grass fields and watch them as they grazed to
become strong sheep with thick wool. The boy was unhappy
though. He wanted to run and play, not watch the boring sheep.
So, he decided to have some fun instead. He cried ‘Wolf! Wolf!’
until the entire village came running with stones to chase away
the wolf before it could eat any of the sheep. Once they saw that
there was no wolf, they left muttering under their breath about
how the boy was wasting their time and giving them a good fright while at it. The next day, the
boy again cried ‘Wolf! Wolf!’ and the villagers again rushed to chase the wolf away.
As the boy laughed at the fright he had caused, the villagers left, some angrier than the others.
The third day, as the boy went up a small hill, he suddenly saw a wolf attacking his sheep. He
cried as hard as he could, ‘Wolf! Wolf! WOLF!’, but the villagers thought he was trying to fool
them again and did not come to rescue the sheep. The little boy lost three sheep that day, all
because he cried wolf too many times.

Moral of The Story

Do not make stories up for attention, for no one will help you when you actually need it.

4. The Golden Touch

This is the story of a very greedy rich man who chanced upon
meeting a fairy. The fairy’s hair was caught in a few tree branches.
Realising he had an opportunity to make even more money, he asked
for a wish in return for helping the fairy. He said, ’All that I touch
should turn to gold’, and his wish was granted by the grateful fairy.
The greedy man rushed home to tell his wife and daughter about his
new boon, all the while touching stones and pebbles and converting
them into gold. Once he got home, his daughter rushed to greet him. As soon as he bent down to
scoop her up in his arms, she turned into a gold statue. He realized his folly and spent the rest of
his days searching for the fairy to take away his wish.

Moral of The Story

Greediness will always lead to a downfall.
5. The Milkmaid and Her Pail
Patty the milkmaid had just finished milking her cow and had
two full pails of fresh creamy milk. She put both pails on a
stick and set off to the market to sell her pails of milk. Along
the way she started to think of all the milk in her pails and all
the money she would get for them.
‘Once I get the money, I’ll buy a chicken’, she thought. ‘The
chicken will lay eggs and I will get more chickens. They’ll
all lay eggs and I can sell them for more money. Then I’ll
buy the house on the hill and be the envy of everyone in the
village. They’ll ask me to sell the chicken farm, but I’ll toss
my head like this and refuse’. So saying, Patty, the milkmaid tossed her head and dropped her
pails. The milk spilled onto the ground while Patty cried.

Moral of The Story

Do not count your chickens before they hatch.

6. When Adversity Knocks

This is a story explaining how adversity is met
differently by different people. Asha’s father placed an
egg, a potato, and some tea leaves in three separate
vessels with boiling water. He asked Asha to keep an
eye on the vessels for ten minutes. Once these ten
minutes were over , he asked Asha to peel the potato,
peel the egg and strain the tea leaves. Asha was left
puzzled.
Her father explained , ‘Each of these items was but in
the same circumstance of being in a pot of boiling
water. See how they’ve responded differently. The potato is now soft, the egg is now hard, and
the tea has changed the water itself. We are all like these items. When adversity calls we respond
in exactly the way they have. Now are you a potato, an egg or are you tea leaves?’

Moral Of The Story

We can choose how to respond to a difficult situation.
7. The Proud Rose
Once upon a time there was a rose who was very proud of
her beautiful looks. Her only disappointment was that she
grew next to an ugly cactus. Every day, the rose would
insult the cactus on his looks while the cactus stayed quiet.
All the other plants in the garden tried to make the rose see
sense, but she was too swayed by her own good looks.
One summer, the well present in the garden grew dry and
there was no water for the plants. The rose began to wilt. She
saw a sparrow dip her beak into the cactus for some water.
Though ashamed, she asked the cactus if she too could have
some water. The kind cactus readily agreed and they both got through the tough summer as
friends.

Moral of The Story

Never judge someone by the way they look.

8. The Tale of The Pencil

Raj was upset because he had done poorly in his English test.
His grandmother sat with him and gave him a pencil. A puzzled
Raj looked at his grandma and said he didn’t deserve a pencil
after his performance in the test. His grandma explained, ‘You
can learn a great many things from this pencil because it is just
like you. It experiences a painful sharpening, just the way you
have experienced the pain of not doing well on your test.
However, it will help you be a better student. Just as all the good that comes from the pencil is
from within itself, you will also find the strength to overcome this hurdle. And finally, just as this
pencil will make its mark on any surface, you too shall leave your mark on anything you choose
to’. Raj was immediately consoled and promised himself that he would do better.

Moral of The Story

We all have the strength to be who we wish to be.
9. The Crystal Ball
Nasir found a crystal ball behind a banyan tree in his
garden. When the tree old him it would grant him a
wish, he thought and thought but could not think of
anything he wanted. So he kept the crystal ball in his
bag and waited to decide on his wish. Days went by
without him making a wish but his best friend saw
him looking at the crystal ball. He stole it from Nasir
and showed it to everyone in the village. They all
asked for palaces and gold but could not ask for more
than one wish. In the end, everyone was angry
because no one could have everything. They became very unhappy and decided to ask Nasir for
help. Nasir wished that everything would become as it once was before the villagers had tried to
satisfy their greed. The palaces and gold vanished and the villagers grew happy and content once
again.

Moral of The Story

Money and wealth do not bring happiness.

10. Bundle of Sticks

Three neighbors were having trouble with their crops. All
three fields had crops that were wilting and infested with
pests. Each day they would try different ideas to help their
crops. The first one tried using a scarecrow, the second used
pesticides, and the third built a fence on his field, all to no
avail. One day, the village head came by and called all three
farmers. He gave them each a stick and asked them to break
the sticks. The farmers could break them easily. He then gave them a bundle of three sticks and
asked them to break it. This time, the farmers struggled to break the sticks. The village head said,
‘Together you are stronger than when you work alone’. The farmers pooled their resources and
got rid of the pests in their fields.

Moral of The Story

There is strength in unity.
11. A Glass of Milk
As Hari walked home after school one day, he suddenly felt
faint with hunger and knew his mother would not have any
food ready for him at home. He grew desperate and went
from house to house asking for food. Finally, a girl gave him
a tall glass of milk. When he tried to pay her she refused and
sent him on his way. Years later, the girl, now a grown
woman, fell very sick and could not find anyone who could
cure her. Finally, she went to a large hospital with the city’s
greatest doctor. The doctor spent months treating the woman
until she was finally cured. The woman was happy but was
also afraid she could not pay the bill. When the hospital
handed the bill to her, she opened it to read, ‘Paid in full, with a glass of milk’.

Moral of The Story

A good deed never goes unrewarded.

12. The Fox and The Grapes

A fox was once very hungry and went in search of some
food. He searched everywhere, but he couldn’t find
anything that he could eat. Finally, with his stomach
rumbling, he came upon a farmer’s wall. On top of the wall
were the biggest, juiciest grapes the fox had ever seen. The
rich purple color told the fox that they were ready to be
eaten. The fox jumped high in the air to catch the grapes in
his mouth, but he missed. He tried again and missed again.
He tried a few more times but missed each time. Finally, the
fox decided to go home all the while muttering, ‘I’m sure
the grapes were sour anyway’.

Moral of The Story

It’s easy to hate what you can’t have.
13. The Ant and The Grasshopper
There were two best friends – an ant and a grasshopper. The
grasshopper liked to relax the whole day and play his guitar.
The ant, however, would work hard all day. He would collect
food from all corners of the garden while the grasshopper
relaxed, or played his guitar, or slept. The grasshopper would tell
the ant to take a break every day, but the ant would refuse and
continue his work. Soon, winter came. The days and nights
became cold and very few creatures went out. The grasshopper
couldn’t find any food and was hungry all the time. However, the ant had enough food for him to last
through the winter without any worries at all.

Moral of The Story

Make hay while the sun shines.

14. The Wet Pants

Ajay was a small boy who loved his school and his
schoolmates. One day, as he sat at his desk, he suddenly
felt damp and realized he had wet his pants! Mortified, Ajay
did not know what to do or say as he knew everyone in class
would make fun of him for wetting his pants. He sat at his
desk praying for any kind of help. Diksha was carrying water
in a jug to water the class plants. As she approached Ajay’s
desk, she suddenly tripped and dumped the whole contents of
the jug onto his lap. Everyone rushed to help Ajay. The
teacher reprimanded Diksha and gave Ajay a spare set of
shorts. At the end of the day, Ajay met Diksha on the bus. He asked, ‘You did that on purpose didn’t
you?’ Diksha replied, ‘I’ve wet my pants before too.’

Moral of The Story

Help others in need.
15. The Bear and Two Friends
Two best friends were walking a lonely and dangerous path
through a jungle. As the sun began to set, they grew
afraid but held on to each other. Suddenly, they saw a bear
in their path. One of the boys ran to the nearest tree and
climbed it within a jiffy. The other boy did not know how to
climb trees by himself so he lay on the ground pretending to
be dead. The bear approached the boy on the ground and
sniffed around his head. Thinking that the boy was dead, the
bear went on its way. The boy on the tree climbed down and
asked his friend what had the bear whispered in his ear. He replied, ‘Do not trust friends who do not
care for you.’

Moral of The Story

A friend in need is a friend indeed.

Conclusion: These short stories with moral values will teach your children important lessons while
helping you spend quality time with them. The next time you want to entertain children, stories with
morals are always a good option.