Fairy tales for children to read

10 Best Classic Fairy Tales For Your Kids

“If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.” ― Albert Einstein.

Fairy tales often take people to the sweet memory lane of their childhood. The memories of magic, dragons, and evilness getting defeated never fail to bring a smile to our faces. 

Reading or listening to classic tales can help parents bond better with their children and nurture their creativity.

So, if you are looking for the best bedtime stories for your children, this blog will surely help you. Let’s explore some of the fascinating and timeless fairy tales that can bring lots of colors and blooms to your kid’s childhood. 

Cinderella is one of the most popular fairy tales of all time. Its story remains an all-time classic and will remain the same for future generations as well.

Cinderella was a young woman who lived with her wicked stepmother and stepsisters. Thanks to her glass slipper, she found her Prince Charming and escaped her difficult life. 

Cinderella’s story has been adapted in many variations over history. Cinderella’s popular version “The Brother Grimm” was published in 1812. Recently, in 2021, Disney has released a new Cinderella movie with a modern outlook. 

Moral: This story tells kids how they should never stop dreaming despite all the hardships that life presents them with.

Related Reading: Top Reading Apps for Kids: How to Use Screens For Stories 

Beauty and the Beast is a fairy tale that celebrates real royalty. In the story, a spoiled prince turns into a beast and imprisons a beautiful young lady named Belle. It’s only when he learns to love Belle that he becomes the prince again. 

This fairy tale is assumed to be inspired by a real-life couple who lived in France in the 1500s. The man had a condition called hypertrichosis. This condition causes abnormal hair growth on the body. 

So, he was referred to as a wild man and was kept in a cage for a long time. In a surprising turn of events, he married a royal court servant’s daughter, and they had 7 children.

Moral: We should value internal characteristics such as kindness over other superficial or physical qualities. 

Rapunzel is a beautiful and motivational fairy tale. The story shows how a poor couple lost their daughter Rapunzel when they stole fruit from their neighbor’s garden. It also focuses on how the angelic voice of Rapunzel reunites her with her lover. 

Moral: This story gives two bold messages that one should never steal, and evilness never wins. 

Related Reading: Best Children’s Books to Stimulate Kids’ Imagination & Creativity

Snow White is a young princess and is defined by her inherent kindness and pure beauty. In the story, an evil queen spends all her life envying Snow White’s beauty. 

But, in the end, Snow White finds her happiness by marrying the prince. In contrast, the evil queen loses her peace and leads an unhappy life while chasing meaningless physical beauty. 

Moral: This story has an insightful moral — if you lust over physical beauty, you lose your peace in the way. The story also encourages kids to be kind and pure like Snow White. 

A rebellious Red sets off alone to meet her grandmother with instructions to never step off the forest path. But she disobeys the instructions and attracts the attention of the bad wolf. 

Now, what happens next depends on the version you are reading. In the Charles Perrault version, Red gets gobbled up by the wolf. However, across Europe, North America, and many other tellings, she was saved by her hood or a guy with an ax. 

Moral: This fairy tale intends to teach children to follow directions and express their courage at the time of need.  

Jack is a rule-breaker and loves to prank. Once, he traded a family cow for a couple of magic beans in the hope of climbing the beanstalk and reaching the giant’s castle to steal his magic possessions. 

This story will help you teach your naughty little pranksters that no matter how daring you are, one should never cross certain boundaries in life. 

Moral: The story shows that undying greed for more will take away what you already have in your life. 

Related Reading: Learning Styles That Make Learning Easy-Peasy For Kids

Sleeping Beauty is slightly similar to Snow White. The story revolves around a Sleeping Beauty who was cursed by a wicked fairy. Beauty spends all her childhood sleeping, but on her 16th birthday, her prince charming finds her and wakes her up after years of slumber. 

Like other fairy tales, different interpretations of Sleeping Beauty are also available. However, Disney’s Maleficent in the year 2014 achieved the most success. 

Moral: The story shows that growing up has its own hurdles but in the end, love conquers all.

If you want to raise a little animal helper, this is the perfect story for you. Puss is a bold trickster who masquerades as the servant of a nobleman. His tactics bring him fame, fortune, and a wife at a young age. 

The boots in this fairy tale symbolize wealth and wisdom. The story is set back in the 16th century when people used to be barefoot. So, having boots at that time was a significant sign of wealth. 

Moral: The story’s moral is simple — your wisdom can help you win wealth. 

This tale talks about the hunger of the heart and stomach. Hansel and Gretel are abandoned by their stepmother in the forest. Both children can’t resist eating a real gingerbread cottage out of hunger. But they get caught by a cannibal witch who lives there.  

In the end, they shove the witch into the fiery oven to escape. 

Moral: This story will teach your kids how fortunate they are to have food on their plates. It will help them be grateful in life and never have any egos! 

In this story, a frog helps a princess to find her golden ball in the pond and then invites her to live in the castle. It is then that the frog turns into a prince. The storyline of The Frog Prince is quite similar to Beauty and the Beast.

Moral: The story teaches that it’s important to value kindness and goodness over physical beauty. It also tries to convey the importance of keeping our promises.

Related Reading: Best Riddles for Kids of all Grades (With Answers)!

Are you wondering how centuries-old fairy tales can benefit your child in this digital age? Well, no matter how old fairy tales are, they can always make your kid’s childhood happy and memorable.  

Be it The Brothers Grimm or Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont, all the classic magic stories can benefit your child in a number of ways:

Storytelling plays a significant role in a child’s development. That is because 95% of the human brain develops by the age of six. Therefore, reading or listening to fairy tales can build imagination and literacy for your child. 

Your child can engage in fantasy land and learn to distinguish the fantasy world from the real world. They can learn to express their thoughts and ideas better. 

Some studies even indicate that storytelling helps to improve vocabulary and confidence among children. 

Through stories, children and even adults can learn how to handle certain problems. Cinderella’s story fits perfectly in this context. It tells how a young woman escapes her difficult life despite her wicked stepmother and stepsisters’ cruelties.  

Stories allow people to step into the character’s shoes and learn how they can easily conquer problems and presents children with an interactive method of learning. This is one of the reasons why SplashLearn creates visually appealing and character-based animated games. 

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Children connect better with the characters in the stories. This helps them learn from their favorite characters’ life stories. The stories can show children how to believe in goodness amidst problems and anxieties. 

For example, Beauty and the Beast portray how selfishness can turn a prince into a beast. It also shows how beauty and kindness can turn a beast into a prince again. 

Fairy tales can bring cultural flavors into your child’s life. Different versions of stories are available today that can help your children interact with different cultures.  

Fairy tales show that life isn’t perfect. Children discover that bad things happen to everyone. But if you are emotionally resilient, you can overcome all challenges. 

This helps children stay strong during hard times and always believe in the richness of life despite hardships. 

Exposing your child to the world of fantasy can stimulate their imagination. It might amaze you to see how children can give a spin to traditional stories and interpret them into something completely different. 

For instance, the University of Hawai’i conducted a study to evaluate the positive impact of fairy tales on children. In the study, researchers exposed children to different classic stories to understand their impact. 

Interestingly, after listening to Little Red Riding Hood, a seven-year-old boy draws the wolf to the size of an ant. He used his imagination to create a funny interpretation of the bad wolf and show his courage.  

So, when you introduce a story to your child, you are providing them with an opportunity to think and imagine different scenarios. 

Every fairy tale is attached to a moral lesson. Fairy tales often leave us with a strong message, whether it is being good or believing in love or friendship. 

You might have a hard time making your toddler understand where the difference between good and bad lies. But stories like “The Emperor’s New Clothes” can better show to your kids, the consequences of convincing yourself that something was true when it wasn’t.

Through classic fairy tales, parents can bond with their children in a great capacity. They can relive their childhood memories with their kids and build some new memories.

You can forget anything in your life, but you can never forget all the classic fairy tales that you have heard in your childhood. Have you ever thought, why? 

That is mainly because stories capture our interest in a much better way. And once we learn something with an interest, we tend to not forget that information. 

SplashLearn creates learning games to spike and capture kids’ interest. The engaging characters and visuals motivate the little ones to learn. Different mediums like games, worksheets and courses on Math and English can help them remember and retain concepts their entire life. 

Today, you can try SplashLearn with your kids to see how they actually interact with interesting learning mediums. 

Parents, sign up for free!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Which is the oldest fairy tale?

According to some researchers, The Smith And The Devil is the oldest fairy tale. It goes back by 6,000 years to the Bronze Age.

Do all fairy tales have morals?

Yes. Fairy tales are written with a motive to teach a lesson to children via interesting characters and a storyline

How do fairy tales affect child development? 

When children listen to fairy tales often, it affects their imagination and helps them to think about new things. The fairy tales affect the emotional, physical, and mental development of a child. 

Do fairy tales have the truth? 

Fairy tales have been passed down from many generations and cultures. However, today there’s no solid source from where these tales come from, but they have been inspired from somewhere. So, we can say that some fairy tales are adaptations of real-life events. 

Are fairy tales timeless?

Yes. The storyline might have changed in many tales with time, but the central idea has always been the same. 

What is the right time to read fairy tales to your child?

There’s no specific time to read stories to your kids. However, most parents prefer to read stories before bedtime. But you can read them to your child anytime as soon as they turn two.

Welcome to the online fairy tales page

Welcome to the fairy tales page! Below you will find a list of magical and captivating bedtime stories for kids written by some of the best known fairy tale authors.

People have been telling each other stories about talking animals, magic, witches and giants, kings and heroes since ancient times. A very significant literature genre, fairy tales are present in all cultures around the world. In comparison to myths and legends, the time and place of occurrence in fairy tales are unknown.

Good and evil in fairy tales is usually clearly separated, often in the form of good and evil characters. The main themes in these stories usually include a hero, a conflict between good and evil, natural and supernatural forces. At the end, the good is rewarded and evil punished.

Choose a bedtime story from the list

Cinderella

Little Red Riding Hood

Snow White

The Snow Queen

The Ugly Duckling

Puss in Boots

The Sleeping Beauty

Beauty and the Beast

The Little Mermaid

The Princess and the Pea

The Goose Girl

The red shoes

The Frog Prince

The Fairy

The naughty boy

Hansel and Grethel

The story of the youth. ..

Snow-White And Rose-Red

Blue Beard

The Valiant Little Tailor

Rumpelstiltskin

The emperor's new clothes

The Elves and the Shoemaker

Jack and the Beanstalk

Goldilocks and the Bears

The Juniper Tree

Little Thumb

Golden Goose

Authors & Books

Andrerw Lang

Andrew Lang (31 March 1844 - 20 July 1912) was a Scottish poet, novelist, and literary critic. Born in Selkirk, Lang was the oldest among eight siblings. After graduating, he began to publish his works, showing he was a gifted journalist, poet, and writer.
His books contain stories from around the world collected from various sources and translated mainly by his wife and other enthusiasts.

Go to Andrew Lang's fairy tales

The Blue Fairy Book

Notes: The first in a collection of twelve books gathered by Andrew Lang from various sources. Published in 1889, the Blue Fairy Book contains 37 bedtime stories to read online.

Author: Various
Editor: Andrew Lang
Published: 1889
Publisher: Langmans, Green, and Co., London; New York

1.The Bronze Ring

2.Prince Hyacinth and the Dear Little Princess

3.East of the Sun and West of the Moon

4.The Yellow Dwarf

5.Little Red Riding Hood

6.The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood

7.Cinderella, or the Little Glass Slipper

8.Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp

9.The Tale of a Youth Who Set Out to Learn what Fear Was

10.Rumpelstiltzkin

11.Beauty and the Beast

12.The Master-Maid

13.Why the Sea is Salt

14.The Master Cat; or, Puss in Boots

15.Felicia and the Pot of Pinks

16.The White Cat

17.The Water-Lily. The Gold-Spinners

18.The Terrible Head

19.The Story of Pretty Goldilocks

20.The History of Whittington

21. The Wonderful Sheep

22.Little Thumb

23.The Forty Thieves

24.Hansel and Grettel

25.Snow-White and Rose-Red

26.The Goose-Girl

27.Toads and Diamonds

28.Prince Darling

29.Blue Beard

30.Trusty John

31.The Brave Little Tailor

32.A Voyage to Lilliput

33.The Princess on the Glass Hill

34.The Story of Prince Ahmed and the Fairy Paribanou

35.The History of Jack the Giant-Killer

36.The Black Bull of Norroway

37.The Red Etin

Check out other books by the Andrew Lang below

The Green Fairy Book

Notes: The third book from Andrew Lang's collection was first published in 1892 and contains 42 stories.

Author: Various
Editor: Andrew Lang
Published: 1892
Publisher: Langmans, Green, and Co., London; New York

The Red Fairy Book

Notes: The second book from Andrew Lang's collection was first published in 1890 and contains 37 stories.

Author: Various
Editor: Andrew Lang
Published: 1890
Publisher: Langmans, Green, and Co., London; New York

The Brothers Grimm

The Brothers Grimm are probably the best known storytellers in the world. Many years have passed since the time Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm released their "Children's and household tales". The first edition and was very modest, both in appearance and capacity - there were only 83 stories, compared to the 200 we know today.

Go to Grimms' fairy tales

Notes: Translated by Edgar Taylor and Marian Edwardes. Contains 62 stories.

Author: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
Translator: Edgar Taylor and Marian Edwardes
Published: 1876
Publisher: R. Meek & Co., London

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1.Ashputtel

2.Briar Rose

3.Cat And Mouse In Partnership

4. Cat-Skin

5.Clever Elsie

6.Clever Gretel

7.Clever Hans

8.Doctor Knowall

9.Frederick And Catherine

10.Fundefogel

11.Hans In Luck

12.Hansel And Gretel

13.Iron Hans

14.Jorinda And Jorindel

15.King Grisly-Beard

16.Lily And The Lion

17.Little Red-Cap ( Little Red Riding Hood )

18.Mother Holle

19.Old Sultan

20.Rapunzel

21.Rumpelstiltskin

22.Snowdrop

23.Snow-White And Rose-Red

24.Sweetheart Roland

25.The Adventures Of Chanticleer And Partlet

26.The Blue Light

27.The Dog And The Sparrow

28.The Elves And The Shoemaker

29.The Fisherman And His Wife

30.The Four Clever Brothers

31.The Fox And The Cat

32.The Fox And The Horse

33.The Frog-Prince

34.The Golden Bird

35.The Golden Goose

36.The Goose-Girl

37.The Juniper-Tree

38.The King Of The Golden Mountain

39. The Little Peasant

40.The Miser In The Bush

41.The Mouse, The Bird, And The Sausage

42.The Old Man And His Grandson

43.The Pink

44.The Queen Bee

45.The Raven

46.The Robber Bridegroom

47.The Salad

48.The Seven Ravens

49.The Story Of The Youth Who Went Forth To Learn What Fear Was

50.The Straw, The Coal, And The Bean

51.The Three Languages

52.The Travelling Musicians

53.The Turnip

54.The Twelve Dancing Princesses

55.The Twelve Huntsmen

56.The Valiant Little Tailor

57.The Water Of Life

58.The Wedding Of Mrs Fox

59.The White Snake

60.The Willow-Wren And The Bear

61.The Wolf And The Seven Little Kids

62.Tom Thumb

Check out other books by the Brothers Grimm below

Notes: Translated by Margaret Hunt, this is the only book that contains the complete collection of the Brothers Grimms' Children's and Household Tales - 200 fairy tales and 10 legends.

Author: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
Published: 1884
Translator: Margaret Hunt
Publisher: George Bell and Sons, London

Download .PDF

Notes: This book contains 25 stories by the Brothers Grimm.

Author: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
Translator: Unknown
Published: 1922
Publisher: Cupples and Leon Company, New York

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Notes: This fairy tale collection contains 52 of the Grimms' tales.

This new Dover edition, first published in 1963, is an unabridged republication of the work first published by Macmillan and Company in 1886.

Author: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
Translator: Lucy Crane
Published: 1963 (1886)
Publisher: Dover Publications, New York (Macmillan & Co, London)

Download . TXT

Charles Perrault

Charles Perrault was a French writer who lived in the second half of XVII century. He was one of the first writers in European literature who turned his eyes to folklore. Born in 1628 in a clerical bourgeois family, Perrault received legal education and had high royal office. In the second half of XVII century there was a dispute amidst French writers about the advantage of modern writers compared to the writers of antiquity. Charles Perrault played an important role in...

Go to Perrault's fairy tales

Notes: The first edition of Perrault's famous collection of fairy stories.
Author: Charles Perrault
Translator: Charles Welsh
Published: 1901
Publisher: D.C. Heath & Co., Boston; New York; Chicago

1.Cinderella, Or The Little Glass Slipper

2.The Sleeping Beauty In The Woods

3. Little Thumb

4.The Master Cat, Or Puss In Boots

5.Riquet With The Tuft

6.Blue Beard

7.The Fairy

8.Little Red Riding-Hood

Hans Christian Andersen

Hans Christian Andersen, born April 2, 1805 in Odense, was a Danish writer and poet. In his early days, Andersen wanted to become an opera singer. In 1819 he went to Copenhagen to pursuit that dream. His voice, however, was too weak and he was accepted as a dance student at the Royal Theater.
In the style of the German romantics Andersen did a lot of travelling - to find himself in the world and the world in himself. In 1840-41, after visiting Germany, Italy, Malta and Greece, he came to Istambul and returned home through the Black Sea and the Danube.

Go to Andersen's fairy tales

Notes: "Andersen's fairy tales" contains 18 of H.C.Andersen's most notable fairy stories. This is not the original cover.

Author: Hans Christian Andersen
Translator: Unknown
Published: Unknown
Publisher: Unknown

1.The emperor's new clothes

2.The swineherd

3.The real princess

4.The shoes of fortune

5.The fir tree

6.The snow queen

7.The leap-frog

8.The Elderbush

9.The bell

10.The old house

11.The happy family

12.The story of a mother

13.The falce collar

14.The shadow

15.The little match girl

16.The dream of little Tuk

17.The naughty boy

18.The red shoes

Check out the complete collection of Hans Christian Anderesen fairy tales below

Notes: This is the first of two volumes of Andersen's fairy tales edited by J. H. Stickney.

Author: Hans Christian Andersen
Editor: J. H. Stickney
Published: 1914
Publisher: Ginn and Company - Boston; New York; Chicago; London

Notes: This is the second volume of Andersen's stories edited by J. H. Stickney.

Author: Hans Christian Andersen
Editor: J. H. Stickney
Published: 1915
Publisher: Ginn and Company - Boston; New York; Chicago; London

Fairy tales for children ✨ - read more than 1500 fairy tales online!

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The tale of an unusual cat, which was inherited by the younger brother from the miller's father. The young man was not very happy at first with his share of the inheritance, but the cunning and smart cat made him the richest man and the son-in-law of the king... One of the most prolific authors of animated films 1960-1980s. Read Mitten's fairy tale on Mishka's book website about a little girl who really wanted to have a puppy, but...

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Teremok is a short fairy tale for kids about a house that has sheltered many animals. However, the tower could not accommodate a huge bear and broke. “Teremok” read There is a teremok in the field. A mouse runs past. She saw the teremok, stopped and asked: —…

A story about one serious and independent boy, whose name was Uncle Fyodor and his friends: the cat Matroskin and the dog Sharik. Uncle Fyodor's mother did not like animals very much and did not want to start them. To live with a cat…

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ACTORS Cat; Two kittens; Cat Vasily; Rooks; Goat; Beavers; Goat; Pigs; Rooster; Ram; Chicken; Sheep; Pig; Narrator. Chorus Beam-bom! Tili-bom! Outside is a tall building. Carved shutters, Painted windows. And on the stairs there is a carpet - ...

A fairy tale about a hare named Proshka. He decided to build a house for himself and asked the squirrel to draw him a big and beautiful house. The squirrel drew a big tree with a hollow in it. The hare did not like such a house, because…

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Fairy tales for children - a real magical wealth for children from domestic and foreign authors, Russian folk tales and tales of the peoples of the world, illustrated and printed without abbreviations. Here you can easily pick up fairy tales according to age and preferences. Reading fairy tales is a great way to have fun with your family and help children develop their imagination and language skills. Fairy tales teach children to distinguish between good and bad, develop a sense of ethics and morality, teach emotional literacy, allow them to better understand their own feelings and the feelings of others, and finally help children develop the ability to analyze and solve problems. From early childhood, reading fairy tales forms a special bond between parents and children. At the moment when a parent reads a fairy tale, he gives the child his attention and time, which is very important for the child to develop a sense of security, confidence and affection for parents. As a result, children's fairy tales are not only fascinating stories, but also an important tool for the development and upbringing of children.

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  Frederick Brown

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  Dostoevsky F.M.

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  Poems about summer for children 3-4-5 years old

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• 1 - Little Red Riding Hood

  Charles Perrault

  A short story about a trusting girl and a cunning gray wolf. Disobeying her mother, the girl turns off the road and talks to a stranger - a gray wolf ... "Little Red Riding Hood" read Once upon a time there was a little girl. Her mother loved her without memory, and her grandmother…

• 2 - Kolobok

  Russian folk tale

  The tale about Kolobok is found in Russian and Ukrainian folklore, and also has analogues in fairy tales of many other peoples. Our site presents a version of a folk tale in the processing of A.N. Tolstoy. "Kolobok" read Once upon a time there was an old man with an old woman. Here ...

• 3 - Three little pigs

  Mikhalkov S.

  A fairy tale about three little pigs who built houses for themselves. One brother built a house out of straw, another out of twigs and twigs, and a third out of bricks. "Three Little Pigs" read Once upon a time there were three little pigs in the world. Three brothers. All…

• 4 - Turnip

  Russian folk tale

  The turnip is a famous fairy tale for the little ones with a lot of repetitions. The child quickly remembers the sequence of presentation and a simple plot. "Turnip" read Grandfather planted a turnip and says: - Grow a turnip, sweet, sweet! Grow big, big! A turnip has grown, sweet and big, big….

• 5 - Puss in Boots

  Charles Perrault

  The tale of an unusual cat that was inherited by a younger brother from a miller's father. The young man was not very happy at first with his share of the inheritance, but the cunning and smart cat made him the richest man and son-in-law of the king ... “The cat in ...

• 6 - The wolf and the seven kids

  Russian folk tale

  The fairy tale tells about an evil wolf who changed his voice , sneaked into the goat's house and ate the little goats. But the mother goat will be able to save her children and get rid of the wolf. "The Wolf and the Seven Kids" read Once upon a time there was a goat with kids ....

• 7 - The Tale of Tsar Saltan

  Pushkin A.S.

  The tale of Tsar Saltan, of his son, the glorious and mighty hero Prince Gvidon Saltanovich, and of the beautiful Swan Princess was created on the basis of the folk tale "Wonderful Sons". Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin enriched the folk work with new plot twists, ...

• 8 - The Wizard of the Emerald City

  Volkov A.M.

  "The Wizard of the Emerald City" - a fairy tale by Alexander Volkov written at 1939 based on the fairy tale by the American writer Frank Baum "The Wise Man of Oz" with some changes. In 1959, a new edition of the book was published, significantly revised ...

• 9 - The Snow Queen

  Hans Christian Andersen

  The Snow Queen is one of Hans Christian Andersen's most famous fairy tales about love, which can overcome any test and melt even an icy heart! "The Snow Queen" read Table of contents: The first story, which tells about the mirror . ..0003

• 10 - Bremen town musicians

  Entin Yu.S. and Livanov V.B.

  The story of the animals and the young Troubadour who went to the city of Bremen to become street musicians. In the city they stopped in front of the royal castle. The king and the princess came out onto the balcony of the palace, the townspeople came running to the square and it began…

  A fairy tale about a girl Zhenya, who was presented with a magic seven-flower flower. It had seven petals and could grant any seven wishes. Zhenya spent the first six wishes, but did not receive any pleasure and only made her last wish ...

• 12 - Three Bears

  Russian folk tale

  Three Bears - a fairy tale about a girl who got lost in the forest and ended up in the bears' house. There she behaved very rudely: without permission, she ate from every cup, sat on every chair, lay in every bed, ...

• 13 - Winnie the Pooh and all, all, all

  Winnie the Pooh does not obey the laws of the fairy tale genre. The tale is devoid of negative characters, the struggle between good and evil forces. The main characters of the tale are the toys of the boy Christopher, with whom funny situations happen in a magical ...

• 14 - Crocodile Gena and his friends

  Uspensky E.N.

  Tale about a lonely crocodile Gena. Coming home from work from the zoo, he was left alone and bored. Crocodile Gena decided to make friends with someone. He wrote an announcement that he was looking for friends, hung them around the city and…

• 15 - Geese-Swans

  Russian folk tale

  Geese-Swans — a fairy tale about how a boy was carried away by geese-swans and his sister went to look for him. The stove, apple tree and river helped the girl save her brother. Read the fairy tale in the processing of A.N. Tolstoy. "Geese-swans" read There lived a man and a woman. At…

• 16 - The Tale of the Fisherman and the Fish

  Pushkin A. S.

  The tale of a poor fisherman who caught a golden fish in his net. The old man took pity on the fish, released it into the sea. For this, the fish promised to fulfill his every desire. The old man did not ask for anything, but when he returned home, he told about…

• 17 - Hen Ryaba

  Russian folk tale

  Hen Ryaba is the first fairy tale-parable that mothers read to their babies. Children quickly grasp a simple plot and remember it by heart. Hen Ryaba read Once upon a time there was a grandfather and a woman. And they had a Ryaba Hen. The chicken laid an egg, yes ...

• 18 - The Frog Princess

  Russian folk tale

  The Frog Princess is a Russian folk tale where the main character, Ivan Tsarevich, married a frog by the will of fate. Ivan had no idea that his wife was Vasilisa the Wise, turned by Koshchei into a frog. Ivan hurried, burned the frog's skin and had to...

• 19 - Masha and the Bear

  Russian folk tale

  Masha and the Bear is a fairy tale about a girl who got lost in the forest and ended up in a bear's hut. The bear did not let Mashenka go home, however, the girl came up with a way to return to her grandparents. "Masha and ...

• 20 - The Fox and the Crane

  Russian folk tale

  The Fox and the Crane is a fairy tale about friendship between a cunning fox and a clever crane. The crane could not eat the semolina porridge, which the Fox smeared on a plate. He invited her to his place and treated her to a delicious okroshka, which he served…

• 21 - Thumbelina

  Hans Christian Andersen

  The fairy tale about Thumbelina is loved by children all over the world. A tiny girl born from a flower goes through many trials on the way to her happiness. Fate rewards Thumbelina for her kind heart. The swallow she rescued earlier endures...

• 22 - The Little Mermaid

  Hans Christian Andersen

  A touching tale of the Little Mermaid's intense love for the prince. The little mermaid is ready to give up everything that is dear to her for the sake of the human soul and the love of the prince ... The fairy tale formed the basis of the plots of many films, cartoons and musicals. Little Mermaid read In the open…

• 23 - Sleeping Beauty

  Charles Perrault

  A fairy tale about a beautiful princess who was cursed by an offended fairy at a celebration in honor of her birth. The old fairy predicted the girl's death from a spindle prick, but the good fairy was able to commute the sentence. The girl did not die, but fell asleep on ...

• 24 - Ax porridge

  Russian folk tale

  Ax porridge is a short fairy tale about a witty soldier. The greedy old woman did not want to feed the soldier, but he outwitted her and got porridge with butter ... Read porridge from an ax The old soldier went on a visit. Tired of…

• 25 - The Ugly Duckling

  Hans Christian Andersen

  A fairy tale about the miraculous transformation of an ugly duckling into a beautiful swan. The duckling was born unlike his brothers, the inhabitants of the poultry yard disliked him for his dissimilarity to the others. The duckling had to leave the house and go through many trials before he…

• 26 - Twelve months

  Samuil Marshak

  Do you know how many months there are in a year? - Twelve. And what are their names? — January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December. As soon as one month ends, another immediately begins. And…

• 27 - The Princess and the Pea

  Hans Christian Andersen

  A short story about how the prince wanted to marry a real princess. One day, a girl knocked on the gate, who was soaked to the skin, but assured that she was a real princess. She was allowed to sleep, and the old queen gave her a check……

• 28 - Sister Alyonushka and brother Ivanushka

  Russian folk tale

  Sister Alyonushka and brother Ivanushka is a fairy tale about how the younger brother disobeyed his sister, got drunk from a hoof and turned into a kid… Sister Alyonushka and brother Ivanushka read Once upon a time an old man and an old woman, they had…

• 29 - Bean seed

  Russian folk tale

  The cockerel and the bean seed is a Russian folk tale about a rooster who was always in a hurry when he pecked at the seeds. The hen warned him all the time and asked him to peck more slowly. One day he choked on a bean seed and fell down. But the chicken ...

• 30 - Fear's eyes are big

  Russian folk tale

  Fear's eyes are big - a short fairy tale about the fact that from fear you can see what was not really ... (from M.M. Serova's collection) Fear has big eyes read Once upon a time, there was an old grandmother, a laughing granddaughter, a chicken-klokhtushka and a little mouse. Every…

• 31 - Teremok

  Russian folk audio fairy tale

  Teremok is a short fairy tale for kids about a house that sheltered many animals. However, the tower could not accommodate a huge bear and broke.

• 32 - Sivka Burka

  Russian folk tale

  Sivka-Burka is a fairy tale about the adventures of Ivan the Fool and his gallant horse. Sivka Burka read The old man had three sons: two smart ones, and the third Ivanushka the Fool; day and night the fool is lying on the stove. The old man sowed wheat, and it grew ...

• 33 - Baba Yaga

  Russian folk tale

  A fairy tale about a girl who was able to get out of the clutches of Baba Yaga, thanks to the advice of her own aunt and kind cat … Read Baba Yaga Once upon a time there was a husband and wife, and they had a daughter. The wife fell ill and died. Grieved, grieved ...

• 34 - The tale of the priest and his worker Balda

  Pushkin A.S.

  The tale of the stingy priest and resourceful worker Balda. Somehow Balda was hired for the service for three clicks on the forehead of the priest. When the time of reckoning was approaching, the priest decided to give Balda an impossible task in order to get rid of him. But Balda…

• 35 - Little Humpbacked Horse

  Ershov P.

  There was an old man in a village who had three sons. They grew wheat and sold it in the market. But then someone got into the habit of trampling wheat in the field at night ... Table of contents: Part one. The fairy tale begins...

• 36 - Alice in Wonderland

  Carroll L.

  A captivating story about a girl Alice, who met a talking White Rabbit and got into amazing worlds where she met very unusual characters... Chapter 1. Down the rabbit hole Alice got bored of sitting with her sister idle on the shore…

• 37 - The Little Prince

  Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

  A fairy tale about how a pilot, who remained a child at heart, met the Little Prince in the desert, who arrived from another planet. Table of contents: Dedication Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter…

Bedtime stories for children. ⭐😴 Read online with pictures.

In this section we have collected interesting works from all over the world that are suitable for reading before bed. You can read bedtime stories online and completely free. These small instructive and kind stories will help children calm down after a stormy day and tune in to rest.
In bedtime stories you will not find cruelty and frightening characters. Only light plots and pleasant characters.
At the bottom of each fairy tale there is a hint for which age it is intended.

Children's fairy tales are that part of childhood that stays with us forever, even when childhood is gone. This is a magical world that is wide open in front of the baby, and acquaintance with it begins with a short and sweet bedtime story.

There is no strict age limit in reading fairy tales to a child. Reading for a child is primarily an opportunity for emotional intimacy with an adult. Even if not a word is clear yet, the familiar timbre of the voice, the measured rhythm soothe the baby and stimulate its development. That is why psychologists recommend reading bedtime stories even to babies. The main condition: the process should bring pleasure to both the adult and the baby.

A bedtime story read by a parent is a powerful stimulus for the child's development, the child's wide opportunities in the following areas: imagination; fantasy; creative thinking; speech skills; emotional development; the ability to find a way out of problem situations.

Unlike cartoons, a fairy tale does not present the child with ready-made images and the world invented by the artist, but invites him to think, think out and imagine what is not in the illustrations.

Simply put, we read to children at night and at the same time unleash their creativity. The next step is the first children's tests of themselves as an author and artist, but that will come later. And now such familiar and at the same time amazing short bedtime stories come to the aid of parents.

It often happens that every day a baby asks for the hundredth time to read a familiar fairy tale to him, not wanting to listen to any others.

It's not worth arguing and trying to read something new - a bedtime story exists just to lull and give pleasant dreams. So, it should be: short; calm; kind; without dynamic details in the plot, but with a happy ending.

The repeated repetition of the same situation (a familiar room, a favorite blanket and a soft toy, next to it is a mother reading a familiar fairy tale) turns for the baby into a kind of ritual that has a calming effect. It helps relieve the emotional stress that has accumulated over a long day.

The Short Bedtime Stories section presents famous works by Russian and foreign authors that have become favorites for children all over the world.

Magic little men created by Astrid Lindgren, Donald Bisset's kind tigers, Sergey Kozlov's inseparable Hedgehog and Bear cub - these and other characters are looking forward to meeting young readers.

Here you will also find folk tales and illustrated works by Vladimir Suteev.

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