Do you remember the stories that you read as a child? Moral stories can needn’t be serious, but they can be funny at the same time help your child learn something. We have compiled a list of 07 short moral stories that are inspirational, from India, and from around the world. <h3>1. The Boy Who Cried, Wolf</h3><img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/the_boy_who_cried%2C_wolf.webp_image_1638188646554.webp" width="359">There was a young boy whose father, a farmer, had asked him to take their herd of sheep grazing every day.One day, the boy was extremely bored as he watched over the sheep and so he cried: “Wolf! Wolf!”On hearing his cries, the villagers rushed to help him chase the wolf away and save the sheep.When they saw the grinning boy and realised he had cried wolf for his amusement, they scolded him and told him to not cry wolf!The next day, the boy cried out that the wolf was there. The villagers came, scolded him again, and left.Later that same day, a wolf came and terrorized the sheep.The boy cried, “Wolf! Wolf! Please help me.”But, the villagers assumed that he was pulling a silly prank again and did not come to his rescue. The sheep ran away and the boy cried.Moral of the story: Don’t lie or engage in foolish pranks, for no one will believe a liar even when he is telling the truth! <h3>2. The Golden Touch Of Midas</h3><img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/the_golden_touch_of_midas.jpg_image_1638188804006.jpg" width="365">A long time ago, there lived a king in Greece named Midas.He was extremely wealthy and had all the gold he could ever need. He also had a daughter whom he loved very much.One day, Midas saw a Satyr (an angel) who was stuck and was in trouble. Midas helped the Satyr and asked for his wish to be granted in return.The Satyr agreed and Midas wished for everything he touched to be turned to gold. His wish was granted.Extremely excited, Midas went home to his wife and daughter touching pebbles, rocks, and plants on the way, which turned into gold.As his daughter hugged him, she turned into a golden statue.Having learnt his lesson, Midas begged the Satyr to reverse the spell who granted that everything would go back to their original state.Moral of the story: Stay content and grateful for what you have. Greed will not get you anywhere. <h3>3. The Foolish Thief</h3><img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/the_foolish_thief.jpg_image_1638188856227.jpg" width="362">Once, a wealthy merchant came to King Akbar’s court to seek help from Birbal. He suspected that one of his servants had robbed him.On hearing this, Birbal thought of a clever plan and summoned the merchant’s servants.He gave each servant a stick of the same length. He told them that the thief’s stick would grow two inches by the next day.The next day, Birbal summoned the servants again. He noticed that a servant’s stick was two inches shorter than the others.He knew who the thief was.The foolish thief had cut the stick shorter by two inches as he thought it would grow two inches. Thus, proving his guilt.Moral of the story: Truth and justice will always prevail. <h3>4. Two Frogs With The Same Problem</h3><img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/two_frogs_with_the_same_problem.png_image_1638188962564.png" width="346">Once, a group of frogs was roaming around the forest in search of water. Suddenly, two frogs in the group accidentally fell into a deep pit.The other frogs worried about their friends in the pit.Seeing how deep the pit was, they told the two frogs that there was no way they could escape the deep pit and that there was no point in trying.They continued to constantly discourage them as the two frogs tried to jump out of the pit. But keep falling back.Soon, one of the two frogs started to believe the other frogs — that they’ll never be able to escape the pit and eventually died after giving up.The other frog keeps trying and eventually jumps so high that he escapes the pit. The other frogs were shocked at this and wondered how he did it.The difference was that the second frog was deaf and couldn’t hear the discouragement of the group. He simply thought they were cheering him on!Moral of the story: People’s opinion of you will affect you, only if you believe it to be so. It’s better to believe in yourself. <h3>5. The Milkmaid and Her Pail</h3><img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/the_milkmaid_and_her_pail.jpg_image_1638189037353.jpg" width="348">There was once a milkmaid named Patty.She milked her cow and carried the two pails of milk she fetched on a stick and set out to sell the milk at the market.As she was walking to the market, she began to daydream about what she would do with the money she fo for the milk.She thought of buying a hen and selling its eggs and she planned on becoming wealthy.She dreamt of buying a cake, a basket of strawberries, a fancy dress, and even a new house with the money she would make selling the eggs and the milk!In her excitement, she forgot about the pails she was carrying and began to skip.Suddenly, she realised that the milk was spilling down and when she checked her pails, they were empty.Moral of the story: Don’t count your chickens before they hatch! It is important to focus on the process of achieving success and not just success alone. <h3>6. The Elephant Circus</h3><img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/elepahnt_circus.jpg_image_1638189224771.jpg" width="361">Once upon a time in a circus, five elephants performed circus tricks. They were kept tied up with weak rope that they could’ve easily escaped, but did not.One day, a man visiting the circus asked the ringmaster: “Why haven’t these elephants broken the rope and run away?”The ringmaster replied: “From when they were young, the elephants were made to believe that they were not strong enough to break the ropes and escape.”It was because of this belief that they did not even try to break the ropes now.Moral of the story: Don’t give in to the limitations of society. Believe that you can achieve everything you want to!<h3> </h3>7. The Elephants And The Mice<img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/1_xvfat_v8xumqnkx7-3jcka.png_image_1638189285226.png" width="350">In an earthquake-hit village abandoned by humans, a colony of mice lived. Near the village was a lake, which was used by a herd of elephants.The elephants would have to cross the village to go to the lake. Thus, one day, as they walked through, they trampled a lot of mice.The leader of the mice met with the elephants and requested them to take a different route to the lake. He promised them that their favour would be returned in the time of their need.The elephants laughed. How could such small mice help these large elephants in any way? But then, they agreed to take a different route.Not so long after, the mice heard that hunters had caught the herd of elephants and were tied in nets.Immediately, they rush to rescue the elephants. They gnawed through the nets and ropes with their sharp teeth.The leader of the elephants repeatedly thanked the mice for their help!Moral of the story: A friend in need is a friend indeed. Make sure you help your friends out whenever they need it. They should always be able to count on you. That’s all folks!We hope children like these short yet interesting stories with morals that we have read growing up!There are more and more stories with morals on <a href="https://www.beeparenting.com/s/moral-stories" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Bee Stories</a>.

Short stories with moral values will teach your children some important lessons which they will remember always.

07 Must Read Short Moral Stories For Children

Short stories with moral values will teach your children some important lessons which they will remember always.

Yesha Desai

Harry is a very sweet toddler who loves sweet foods a lot. He is often caught grabbing chocolates from the fridge, stealing candies from the jars within his reach or convincing his elder brother and grandparents to allow him one more sweet.He really does have a sweet tooth. One day he gets a massive pain in his teeth and his tummy. His mother gets him medicines for his tummy before they go to the dentist.The dentist checks his teeth and explains to Harry why he should not eat too many sweets.The dentist says, “Harry. You need to keep your teeth healthy. Here take Ms. Toothbrush with you.”“Ms. Toothbrush?” Harry asks.“Yes, Ms. Toothbrush. You have to brush your teeth with it after every meal. This will help remove germs from your teeth and keep them healthy. Ms. Toothbrush will protect your teeth.”Ms. Toothbrush was a new toothbrush with zig-zagged edges. She was blue in colour which was Harry’s favourite colour. She promised to help Harry to keep his teeth clean.From that day on, Harry brushed his teeth with Ms. Toothbrush after every meal and kept his teeth healthy.

This is a story of tooth and toothbrush.Moral(s) of the story: health and hygiene

Ms. Toothbrush

Ravina Sewani

Reggie Mouse loved cheese. He ate cheese for breakfast, cheese for lunch, and cheese for dinner. He never ate anything else.Reggie’s mom, Rita Mouse, always told him, “Reggie, it is fine to eat cheese, but you should also eat healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, cereal, breads, chicken, and fish, too.”Reggie Mouse would smile and say, “No way, Mom, I will only eat cheese and nothing else.”One day as Reggie Mouse got dressed, all the buttons on his shirt went, “Pop, Pop, Pop.” “Oh, no, my shirt has “SHRUNK!” cried Reggie Mouse. And as Reggie Mouse put on a pair of his pants, “Rip, Rip, Rip,” went the pants. “Oh, no, my pants have “SHRUNK!” too, cried Reggie Mouse.Reggie Mouse then ran to his closet and tried on all of his clothes. “Pop, Pop, Pop” went all the buttons on all of his shirts. “Rip, Rip, Rip,” went all of his pants. Reggie Mouse cried and cried and said, “Oh, no, all of my clothes have ‘SHRUNK! What can I do?”Rita Mouse heard her son crying and quickly walked into his bedroom and asked, “Reggie, why are you crying and why are all your clothes on the floor?”“Oh, Mom, it’s awful, my clothes have all “SHRUNK,” cried Reggie Mouse in his saddest voice.“Hmmmm, all your clothes have ‘SHRUNK’? I think I know what we can do to ‘Un-Shrink’ them,” she said.“Reggie, if you want to ‘Un-Shrink’ your clothes you must stop eating cheese and begin eating healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, cereal, breads, fish, and chicken."That night Reggie Mouse ate chicken, carrots, spinach, and grapes for dinner. And in a very short time by eating healthy foods, Reggie’s clothes “UN-SHRUNK!”Moral: A healthy diet and routine exercise is very important.

This is a story of carrot, cheese, chicken, fish, grapes,Moral(s) of the story; health hygiene

Reggie mouse’s Shrinking Clothes

Many, many years ago everyone was strong and healthy. They ate a very varied diet, and especially loved fruits, vegetables, and fishes. Everyone took daily exercise, and they enjoyed themselves playing and leaping about. The Earth was the healthiest place you could imagine.All that made the dark witches furious. They only ever wanted to do harm and make problems for people. One day, they cast a spell and turned into tiny ants. They entered human bodies like virus and destroyed their health. They started with a little boy and soon changed his likes and dislikes.Soon, the boy had a funny feeling in his mouth and tongue and he no longer wanted to eat vegetables, fruits, or fishes. All he wanted to do was eat ice cream, pizza, burgers, and candy. Then he felt a nibbling feeling all over his body and he no longer enjoyed playing and running about with his friends. He now just wanted to stay in the house, sitting or sleeping. His life got boring, he started feeling ill, and had no desire to do anything.The witches then targeted other people and caused the most contagious disease-disease of wasting life.After a long time, Doctor Fitton-Helthie discovered that the little witches were causing all this disease. No tablet or syrup could cure this. He found out the best cure was to make a strong effort to live a healthy, joyful, and happy life. When a person became healthy, the little witches would leave that body through a sneeze.From then on, everyone slowly started eating fruits, vegetables, and fishes, and started some exercise. Whoever came to see Doctor Fitton-Helthie to take his, ended up totally well, being cured of the waste-of-life disease. Moral:A healthy mind and a healthy body is the key to a life full of joy.

This is a story of burger, doctor, ice cream, pizza and witch.Moral(s) of the story: health hygiene

Swarm of "health-destroying" Ants

When little Maya walked into the kitchen behind her mother she whined, “I am very hungry! What should I eat?” She looked around the kitchen. There were just so many options.The roti that her mother had just made said, “Eat me! I have the right amount of carbohydrates that you need and even the fibre. Your mother just made your favourite sabzi today. Come on eat us.”The sabzi agreed. The dry fruits from the can said, “You love pistachio so much and even cashews. Eat us.”The raisin from the same can said, “Yes. And the apricot, almond and me have such high amounts of vitamins which you need to stay in good health. You should eat dry fruits.”The pizza that her father had brought for lunch said, “Eh! Enough about this health talk. You don’t always need to eat healthy food Maya. You can give yourself a break and eat something you like. You know that you love pizza.”The bread from the fridge said, “Yes, but pizza is so unhealthy. You can take me and make a sandwich, that is tastier and healthier alternative. Or you can make a burger if you like.”The instant noodles packet and the fruits from the table said similar arguments for why she should eat them but Maya was so confused as everything seemed very appealing.She looked at her mother and she smiled down at her daughter, “There are so many options Maya. But you have to find a balance. You can’t always eat unhealthy food and you can’t always avoid the food you like either. The key to a healthy life is a balanced diet.” Moral:Balanced food intake is very important to maintain a healthy body.

This is a story of apricot, burger, noodles, pizza, raisin, roti, sandwich and walnut.Moral(s) of the story: health and hygiene

The importance of different types of food

Once there lived a boy whose parents owned a huge, beautiful castle. The castle was full of old paintings of kings, queens, prince, and princesses. One day, the boy was roaming around in the castle and noticed something strange about one of the paintings. Normally, the painting showed an old king eating his lunch with his followers. But the boy saw that the king was missing from the painting.The boy thought that if the king does not come back, the king’s spoon in the painting would fall and create a mess on the floor. So the boy searched the whole castle for the king for hours and at last found him enjoying a bubble bath in the biggest bathtub in the building. The boy was in shock at seeing this.The King explained it to him, “I have spent years and years in this castle but no one bothers to clean the dust off of him even once. I got so dirty and fed up and so left for the bath.” After hearing this, the boy told the king that if he did not return to the painting, the floor might get dirty and there would be even more dirt than it already was.The King agreed to return on one condition that his painting should be cleaned regularly. From that onwards, the boy took it on himself to clean all the paintings of the castle. Moral:Cleanliness is next to Godliness. This story teaches us that if we don’t keep our things and surroundings clean, no one would like to spend time with us.

This is a story of king.Moral(s) of the story: health hygiene

The Missing King

Once again, Tanya had neglected the green vegetables in her plate. Her mother asked her again and again to eat them but she did not listen. Instead, she only ate what she wanted and ran away after dinner. Her father asked her to slow down or she may hurt herself but she did not listen.Tanya did not care enough for her body so her body decided to teach her a lesson.Tanya’s hand said, “I am your hand. I help you hold onto things. You have opposable thumbs which give you a better grip. Without me, you won’t be able to do your daily tasks so easily.”Her feet said, “I help you stand, your toes give you grip to the ground so that you can move around easily.”Her eyes said, “I help you see the world. Without me you would not be able to see anything around you.” Her ears said, “I help you listen to sounds and your brain identifies those sounds.”Her nose said, “ You use me so often to smell your food. I help you tell if it is edible or not.” Her mouth followed by saying, “I help you speak and express your thoughts. You can laugh or ask for health using me. You also eat your food through me.”Her heart also explained its task and said, “I pump blood in your body Tanya. Without me you would not have blood.” Lastly her brain said, “I help you understand things and make decisions. Every part of your body has different tasks that it has to fulfill so that you can live your life the way you want to. We help you so much but we are also very fragile. We need you to protect us and take care of us so that we can keep doing our duties. Can you do that Tanya?”Hearing all these, Tanya thought to herself, “If my body can do so much for me, I can at least be responsible about what I eat and take care of all the body parts and organs.”She smiled at her body and since that day she ate healthily and exercised to keep her organs in good shape. Moral:Staying healthy not only gives us a long life but also a happy life.

This is a story of brain, fingers, heart, thumb and toes.Moral(s) of the story: health and hygiene

Tanya’s body

Emperor Akbar was passionate about hunting. One day, Akbar was on his hunting trip, when he heard two owls hooting in a shrill voice on the trees.Akbar asked Birbal, “Birbal, look at those two owls! They are creating such a ruckus. Can you tell me what they are quarreling about?”Birbal said, “Huzoor, I can tell you but I fear that you may not be happy to know.Akbar said, “Tell me Birbal, I really want to know what these birds are discussing.”Birbal said, “They are arguing over the dowry amount. The first owl is the groom’s father and the second one is the bride’s father. The groom’s father is adamant on taking 40 jungles in dowry, with no animals at all.The bride’s father is saying that he can arrange only 20 jungles at the moment.”In the meantime one owl hooted once more very loudly. Akbar asked Birbal, “I see! Tell me now what is he saying?”Birbal said, “He is the bride’s father. He is requesting the groom’s father to give him just six months more, and then he would certainly give him 40 jungles without animals.”Akbar said, “Really Birbal? How does he propose to do that?”Birbal said in a grim tone, “Jahanpanah, the bride’s father says that he has come to know from reliable sources that if Emperor Akbar’s hunting sprees continue at this pace, soon all the jungles would be devoid of animals and then he would easily be able to fulfill the demand of the groom’s father.”Emperor Akbar understood the harmful consequences of his hobby on the environment and quit hunting from that day onwards.This is how Birbal addressed Akbar’s conscience and made him realize his folly. Moral:We must understand the environmental consequences of our actions and try to make the Earth a better place.

This is a classic story from Akbar Birbal.Moral(s) of the story: health, hygiene and responsibility

health hygiene stories

Kids moral stories help in improving their imagination & relate to real-world life. Here are age-specific bedtime stories for children by renowned storytellers.

Ms. Toothbrush

Reggie mouse’s Shrinking Clothes

Swarm of "health-destroying" Ants

The importance of different types of food

The Missing King

Tanya’s body

Hunting and dowry

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