Fairytale stories in english

Once Upon a Time: 8 Easy English Fairy Tales for Learners

By Camille Turner Last updated: August 16, 2022

Once upon a time, there was a dedicated English learner looking for a fun way to practice his language skills.

“But how will I improve my English?” he asked.

The answer came to him through this blog post: English fairy tales!

Easy English fairy tales can be a great way to improve your language skills while entertaining yourself at the same time.

Contents

• How Can Easy English Fairy Tales Help You Learn the Language?
• 8 Magical English Fairy Tales for Beginner-Level Learners
• • “The Princess and the Pea”
  • “Little Red Riding Hood”
  • “The Frog Prince”
  • “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves”
  • “The Tale of Peter Rabbit”
  • “The Cat Who Could Eat So Much”
  • “The Boy Who Cried Wolf”
  • “The Beetle Who Went on His Travels”
• Where Can You Find Easy English Fairy Tales Online?

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

How Can Easy English Fairy Tales Help You Learn the Language?

Not only are fairy tales entertaining and fun to read, but there are many factors that make them a great choice for English learners.

For starters, they’re short, so you can usually read them in one sitting. Shorter works are also easier to start out with so that you don’t feel overwhelmed by too much English at one time.

Additionally, learners are probably already familiar with fairy tales since they’re translated into many different languages and taught all over the world to children. Already knowing what the story is about will help you follow along in English.

Since fairy tales are typically meant for children, they tend to use lower-level English vocabulary and sentence structure, meaning that they’re the appropriate level for beginner English learners.

Fairy tales also often include easy dialogue or repetition to tell the story, which means that, in addition to improving your English reading skill, you’re able to easily learn English through these stories.

8 Magical English Fairy Tales for Beginner-Level Learners

“The Princess and the Pea”

“The Princess and the Pea” is a classic story written by Hans Christian Andersen. It tells the tale of a queen who devises (creates) a clever way to test whether or not a girl who claims to be a princess really is a true princess.

The story itself uses a lot of verbs in the simple past tense (the most basic form of the past tense in English) such as was, wanted, traveled and thought. This can provide great practice for English learners.

Words to know beforehand (before reading the story):

• Plight — a dangerous or difficult situation
• Scarcely — almost not at all
• Defect — an imperfection or problem
• Genuine — sincere
• Dreadful — awful

“Little Red Riding Hood”

The story of “Little Red Riding Hood” is another famous fairy tale that was written by Charles Perrault. It tells the story of a little girl who wanders (walks in a relaxed way) into the woods and is tricked by a wolf who impersonates (pretends to be) her grandmother.

This story has especially easy verbs that’ll help you expand your list of English action vocabulary and follow along with the story better.

Words to know beforehand:

• Dawdle — to go slowly
• Shadow — a dark shape or area
• Hood — a head covering, usually attached to a coat or cape
• Gobbled — ate quickly
• Cottage — a small country house

“The Frog Prince”

“The Frog Prince” is a fun fairy tale written by the famous Brothers Grimm. In the original story, a princess drops her golden ball down a spring (a place where water comes up from the ground). In order to get it back, she must befriend a frog.

The story is full of useful adjectives that provide great English practice and offer an opportunity to add some basic vocabulary to your knowledge.

Words to know beforehand:

• Jewels — precious stones
• Unwilling — not wanting to do something
• Cruel — mean; causing suffering on purpose
• Misfortunes — bad situations or bad luck
• Merriment — fun; happiness

“Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves”

This fairy tale comes from a larger collection of stories entitled “1001 Arabian Nights.” The story follows Ali Baba as he has to outsmart a group of robbers.

English learners can benefit from paying attention to the common transition words and phrases used throughout the story. Transition words and phrases provide a way to get from one part of a story to the next. Some examples from this fairy tale include one day, then, at last and before. These are great phrases to incorporate (include; add) into your everyday English.

Words to know beforehand:

• Merchant — someone whose job usually involves trading
• Conceal — hide
• Heap — a large pile
• Envy — jealousy
• Prosperity — being wealthy or successful

“The Tale of Peter Rabbit”

One of the many beautiful little stories by Beatrix Potter, this tale shows what happens when a young rabbit named Peter gets into trouble for stealing food from Mr. McGregor’s garden.

There are plenty of wonderful vocabulary words related to nature and food in this story for English learners to discover.

Words to know beforehand:

• Mischief — misbehavior
• Loaf — a quantity of bread or another baked good
• Rake — a gardening tool used to collect leaves
• Wriggled — squirmed; moved around wildly
• Puzzled — confused

“The Cat Who Could Eat So Much”

“The Cat Who Could Eat So Much” is a great little tale by writers Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Engebretsen Moe. The story is about a cat who meets a host of (several different) characters as he eats everything he can find.

The story uses a lot of repetition, which makes it slightly easier for English learners to read, and it includes a lot of animal names and vocabulary to learn.

Words to know beforehand:

• Mush — a type of soft, wet food
• Stable — the structure in a barn where a horse lives
• Seized — grabbed
• Hardly — not very much at all
• Orchard — a large field of fruit trees

“The Boy Who Cried Wolf”

This classic tale by famous Greek fable writer Aesop tells the story of a boy who continues to lie about seeing a wolf. One day, when he actually does see a wolf, no one believes his screams.

This fairy tale contains some simple verbs like lived, ran, hitting and know. Pay close attention to them and see how many new English verbs you can learn while reading this story.

Words to know beforehand:

• Spanking — getting slapped on one’s bottom (usually as a form of punishment for kids)
• Sturdy — built strongly
• Whimpering — making small noises out of fear or pain
• Tricks — practical jokes
• Shepherding — taking care of a flock (group) of sheep

“The Beetle Who Went on His Travels”

This fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen follows the story of a conceited (proud or vain) beetle who believes that he should get golden shoes like the Emperor’s horse.

There are many instances of the English comparative and superlative (when you compare two or more things) throughout this story that can help learners get an idea of how to form these important structures. Some examples from the story include more valuable, as good as and better. 

Words to know beforehand:

• Shod — to put shoes on a horse
• Yonder — over there
• Delicate — fragile
• Fatigued — tired
• Grander — more impressive, beautiful or rich

Where Can You Find Easy English Fairy Tales Online?

This list only has a few English fairy tales, but there are so many more out there. That means many more stories to learn from!

You can find a large variety of easy English fairy tales online. Here are a few resources:

• Storynory: Storynory is a fabulous site that uses both written texts and audio recordings to provide tons of fairy tales and other stories. The site divides fairy tales by author or theme, so they’re easy to sort through.
• Stories to Grow by: This is another site that pairs audio recordings with written texts. Their classic fairy tales are easy to understand and sometimes accompanied by beautiful illustrations.
• Fairy Tales Of The World: Fairy Tales Of The World is one of my favorite places to find easy English fairy tales online because it has an enormous list of stories to choose from, and each one is very short and easy to follow.
• Storyberries: Another great option, Storyberries features a blend of popular and lesser-known fairy tales. You’re sure to discover a new story you’ve never heard of before if you look through the many options here.
• Hellokids: Hellokids is another wonderful site with tons of fairy tales divided by author. The stories are presented in the format of a small book with pages you turn as you go.
• FluentU: A language learning program, FluentU teaches English using a library of short English videos, which includes fairy tales and other beginner-level content. Each clip has interactive subtitles so that you can look up words as you watch.

With these eight magical fairy tales to get you started and a variety of places to find other stories online, you’re ready to live happily ever after with your English studies!

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

Camille Turner

Camille is a writer, editor, and English teacher who has lived and worked all over the world in places like Italy, France, and Colombia. She continues to travel while managing a writing company and restaurant and is currently working on learning her fourth language.

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Popular Fairy Tales for Kids in English

Change Language:

Welcome to the world of fairy tales. Here you will find the best selection of fairy tales list, that will enchant the young minds with positivity of the most popular fairy tales. These fables and fairy tale characters have been collected from different cultures, and you will always find something new for the kids,including the ubiquitous king, prince and princess fairy tales. So, just scroll down and enjoy these English fairy tales. Happy Reading!

Most Popular Fable and Fairy Tales

Fables

Princes Rose and the Golden Bird

Sleeping Beauty

Thumbelina

Cinderella

Rapunzel

The Ugly Duckling

New Fairytales

• Irish Fairytales
• The Valiant Little Tailor
• Fundevogel
• The Frog Prince
• The Dog And The Sparrow
• The Fisherman and His Wife
• Briar Rose
• Hans in Luck

• Hansel and Gretel
• The Goose-Girl
• Cat And Mouse In Partnership
• The Twelve Dancing Princesses
• The Willow-Wren And The Bear
• The Straw, The Coal, and The Bean
• The Golden Bird
• Jorinda and Jorindel

• The Finest Liar In The World

• Old Sultan

• A Tale Of The Tontlawald

• The Travelling Musicians

Fairy Tales List

• Little Red Riding Hood
• Sweet Porridge
• Donkey Skin
• Jack and his golden snuff-box
• Blue Beard
• The Twelve Brothers

• The Golden Crab
• How the beggar boy turned in to Count Piro
• The magic swan
• The Magic Mirror
• Puss In Boots
• The Golden Goose

• Celtic Fairy Tales
• Jack And The Bean-stalk
• The Frost King
• Eva's Visit to Fairyland
• The Enchanted Stag
• The White Cat

• Ripple the Water Spirit
• The Fairy Flower
• The Little Bud
• Lily Bell And Thistledown
• Jack The Giant Killer
• Monkey and the Dolphin

• Stories Main
• Moral Stories
• Indian Mythological Stories
• Short Stories
• Horror Stories
• Classic Stories
• Arabian Tales
• Greek Mythology
• Animal Stories
• General Stories
• Panchatantra Stories
• Legendary Heroes
• Bedtime Stories
• Folk Tales
• Bible Stories

Short stories with morals in English for children

We offer you to get acquainted with three short stories in English that are useful for both adults and children to read. These stories are very instructive, at the end of each of them a moral is stated. For those who still find it difficult to translate even such simple texts, a translation is presented. Most likely, you have already heard similar fairy tales in Russian, so it will be easier for you to understand their meaning.

Contents

The Ant and the Grasshopper

In a field one summer's day a Grasshopper was hopping about, chirping and singing to its heart's content. An Ant passed by, bearing along with great effort an ear of corn he was taking to the nest.

"Why not come and chat with me," said the Grasshopper, "instead of toiling and moiling away?" "I am helping to lay up food for the winter," said the Ant, "and recommend you to do the same." "Why bother about winter?" said the Grasshopper; "We have got plenty of food at the present."

But the Ant went on its way and continued its toil. When the winter came the Grasshopper found itself dying of hunger, while it saw the ants distributing, every day, corn and grain from the stores they had collected in the summer.
Then the Grasshopper knew..

MORAL : Work today and you can reap the benefits tomorrow.

Ant and a grasshopper

On a sunny day, a grasshopper jumped, chirped and sang to his heart's content on the field. An ant passed by, dragging a corncob with great effort to his home.

"Why don't you come up to me and have a chat," said the grasshopper, "instead of straining like that?" “I help to stock up for the winter,” said the ant, “I advise you to do the same.” “Why worry about winter? - said the grasshopper, - We have a lot of food at the moment.

But the ant did his job and continued his hard work. When winter came, the grasshopper literally starved to see how the ants distribute corn and grain every day from their stores, which they collected in the summer.
Then the grasshopper understood...

Moral : Work today and you can reap the benefits tomorrow.

The Lion and the Mouse

Once when a Lion was asleep, a little Mouse began running up and down upon him. This soon wakened the Lion, who placed his huge paw upon him and opened his big jaws to swallow him.

Pardon, O King! cried the little Mouse, “Forgive me this time. I shall never repeat it and I shall never forget your kindness. And who knows, but I may be able to do you a good turn one of these days?”

The Lion was so tickled at the idea of ​​the Mouse being able to help him, that he lifted up his paw and let him go.

Sometime later a few hunters captured the King and tied him to a tree while they went in search of a wagon to carry him on.

Just then the little Mouse happened to pass by, and seeing the sad plight in which the Lion was, ran up to him and soon gnawed away the ropes that bound the King of the Beasts. "Was I not right?" said the little Mouse, very happy to help the Lion.

MORAL : Little friends may prove great friends.

Lion and mouse

Once, when the lion fell asleep, a little mouse started running over him. Soon he woke the lion, who caught him with his huge paw and opened his jaw to swallow him.

“Excuse me, O king! sobbed the little mouse, “Forgive me this time. This will never happen again and I will never forget your kindness. And who knows, maybe one day I can also do something good for you.”

The lion was so amused at the idea that the little mouse could help him in some way that he raised his paw and let him go.

A few days later, the hunters caught the king and tied him to a tree while looking for a wagon to place him in.

Just then it happened that a little mouse ran past, he saw the predicament in which the lion was, ran up to him and quickly gnawed through the ropes that tied the king of beasts. "Wasn't I right?" - said the mouse, joyful because he helped the lion.

Moral : Little friends can be great friends.

The Goose that laid the Golden Eggs

Once upon a time, a man and his wife had the good fortune to have a goose which laid a golden egg every day. Lucky though they were, they soon began to think they were not getting rich fast enough.

They imagined that if the bird must be able to lay golden eggs, its insides must be made of gold. And they thought that if they could get all that precious metal at once, they would get mighty rich very soon. So the man and his wife decided to kill the bird.

However, upon cutting the goose open, they were shocked to find that its innards were like that of any other goose!

MORAL : Think before you act.

The Goose that Laid Golden Eggs

One day a man and his wife were lucky enough to have a goose that laid a golden egg every day. Despite such great luck, they soon began to think that this way they would not get rich fast enough.

They imagined that if a bird could lay golden eggs, then its insides must also be made of gold. And they thought that if they could get all this precious metal at once, then very soon they would become extremely rich. So the man and his wife decided to kill the bird.

However, when they cut open the goose, they discovered with great shock that its insides were the same as any other goose.

Moral : Think before you act.

If you liked these stories, you can read another interesting tale about the Sultan in English. Don't forget to offer similar stories to your children who are learning English. They will love this unobtrusive way of learning a new language.

And here is a 45-minute collection of fairy tales with subtitles.

Read also:

Stories in English for children and short stories to read

Toddlers enjoy learning about the world around them, absorbing everything that happens in it. Take advantage of this sincere curiosity and add English to your baby's environment by reading stories in English for children with him. Short English fairy tales will give the child the opportunity to get acquainted with the sound of the language, learn new words and phrases, learn to read and understand English. In today's material you will find easy and interesting children's stories in English with a translation of the text into Russian, as well as useful recommendations for conducting such classes.

Contents

• Learning English with fairy tales and stories
• Fairy tales and stories in English for children
  • The Goose that laid the Golden Eggs
  • The crocodile (Crocodile)
  The The boy cry “Wolf!” (The boy who shouted "Wolves!")

Learning English from fairy tales and stories

Before involving your child in reading in English, you need to carefully plan your lesson and select suitable materials.

Children who are just starting to get acquainted with a foreign language are advised to take adapted literature in English for children. These fairy tales are reworked and simplified to a minimum: the text is written in short sentences, with frequently repeated words and bright auxiliary pictures.

Do not forget that a fairy tale for children in English must have a translation. Both you and your baby will feel more confident knowing that you can always check the correct meaning of the words.

To attract fidgets to read or listen to fairy tales, use game methods and your unlimited imagination. The main thing is to constantly interact with the child and not let him get bored. View beautiful pictures with your baby and play "questions and answers" ( who / what is it?), read the characters' lines in different voices, memorize new vocabulary together and try to build small dialogues.

It is not necessary to study children's stories and stories in English only in text format. Combine all possible methods of learning a language: listen to audio versions of fairy tales recorded by native speakers, or get distracted by watching colorful and dynamic videos with the text of a fairy tale.

Having mastered all the above tips, let's move on to putting them into practice. The following are short stories in English with a parallel Russian translation.

Fairy tales and stories in English for children

The Goose that laid the Golden Eggs

One day husband and wife was lucky to buy goose. This was no ordinary goose. This goose laid golden eggs every day.

Luck smiled at them! But soon the husband and wife began to think that in this way they would not become prosperous rich for a long time.

They imagined that since a bird lays golden eggs, then, for sure, it is all golden inside. And they decided that you can immediately get all the precious metal and get rich instantly.

So the husband and wife decided to kill the bird. However, when butchering the goose, they were greatly surprised: from the inside, it was exactly the same as all birds like it!

The crocodile

There was once a baby crocodile. He had a beautiful shiny tail. All the other crocodiles were jealous of him.

Once upon a time there was a little crocodile in the world. He had a very beautiful and shiny ponytail. The other crocodiles were terribly jealous of his beauty.

Once a baby crocodile counted all his shiny scales, and there were a thousand of them. There were more of them than he had thought before.

He counted other crocodiles. There were 20 in total. He decided that he had too many scales, and perhaps he could share 40 scales from his tummy.

Even three weeks later there weren't any.

The crocodile made a wish before going to bed so that 40 scales would fall on the pillow. But this did not happen. They did not fall out even after three weeks.

And then one fine day the crocodile wizard gave the kid one wish. He again wished for 40 scales to be on his pillow.

The crocodile woke up, and lo and behold! There were 40 shiny scales on the pillow. He distributed them to 20 crocodiles: each 2 scales. Since then, everyone has become friends with a kind baby crocodile.

The boy who cried “Wolf!” (The boy who shouted "Wolves!")

Once upon a time there lived a little boy. He lived in the village and watched the sheep. But he was not a very good boy because he often lied.

He had a joke that he often played with people. The boy ran downstairs and shouted very loudly: Wolf! Wolf! Someone help me ! The wolf is here!

The neighbors ran very fast to him because they wanted to save his life. But when they came the boy laughed at them. He was playing the same trick again and again.

Neighbors quickly ran to him because they wanted to save the boy's life. But when they came, the tomboy laughed at them. He did this trick over and over again.

The boy slept under a tree. Suddenly he heard strange sound. The boy woke up and saw a large gray animal. It was a wolf.

Now the boy is really worried.

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