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.

Ravina Sewani

Once there was a village named Singapuram. There lived a carpenter named Kasi. He had a younger son who was five years old. His name was Vasu. Kasi’s father Ramu was too old and he also stayed with them in their house. Kasi began to think that his father is of no use to him since he became too old and was unable to do any work. Kasi always spoke angrily to his father. Ramu was old man and he remained silently whenever Kasi spoke in anger.One day, Kasi gave food in a clay plate for his father to eat. Being too old, Ramu was not able to hold the clay plate properly. He dropped it and the clay plate broke off. Kasi became very angry and scolded his father. Vasu observed his father’s behaviour towards his grandfather.The next day , Kasi gave a new clay plate to his father. He went to work. When he came back, he was angry to see the new clay plate broken into pieces. He scolded his father badly and warned him, “Hey old man, if you break the next clay plate, there will be no food for you and you will have to leave the house”. Vasu was listening to his father’s words silently.Next day, in the evening, when Kasi came back to home after his work, he saw his son Vasu doing some work with his carpentry tools. He was surprised to see this and happily went near him, and asked Vasu “ What are you doing my son?” Vasu replied “Dad, I am making a wooden plate for you. When you grow old, I will give you this wooden plate so that you will not break it and I do not have to send you out of the house”Kasi realized his mistake on hearing his son’s words. He felt sorry for hurting his aged father. He apologised to his father for his mistakes and his angry words. Kasi, Vasu and his grandfather used to eat dinner together that day onward. Moral:Respect your elders. Do not let your parents down; they are the ones to bring you up.

This is a story of father, grandfather and son.Moral(s) of the story: respect

A son walks the path of respect

Shina Utavani

It was raining heavily, and the glass was splattered with the huge drops of water. Robbie said to his mom, “I want to go outside and play, Mum.” His mom did not know how to answer Robbie’s question so, she said, “When is it going to stop raining?” Due to heavy rain, Robbie was not able to go outside and play. Her mother replied, “I am sure it will stop any time now, Robbie. Why don’t you come and help me make some cookies?”Robbie was tired of making cookies. He did not want to play with his toys anymore. He was bored watching television. He wanted to go outside and play. Robbie said to his mum that he did not want to make cookies and ran into the living room. He threw himself on the couch and sighed, “I just want to go outside.” His mum, seeing him sad said she had an idea. She said, “Robbie, why do not you go upstairs and put your rubber boots on and your raincoat and rain hat too.Robbiegot up and asked, “Has it stopped raining?” Her mum replied, “No, but there is no reason you cannot go outside and play in the rain. Would you like to do that?” Robbie replied, “Yes, Mum. I want to go outside and play, even in the rain.” He ran to his bedroom and put on his red rubber boots. They fit snugly over his tennis shoes and would keep the water out when he splashed in the puddles. He wore his raincoat. It was red just like his hat. “I am ready, Mum,” he said.Her mum said to him to wait and she opened the closet and picked up a bright yellow umbrella. She gave the umbrella to him and opened the front door for him. The rain was pouring down. Puddles were all over the grass, streets, and sidewalks. Robbie went outside and opened the umbrella and stood in the rain. The water fell all around him, bouncing off the umbrella. He enjoyed splashing in the deep puddles. Water flew everywhere.Robbie’s mum stood at the window and watched her son having fun. She remembered her childhood days when she was a little girl. She loved to splash in the puddles when she was a little girl. She dressed in her yellow raincoat and rubber boots and opened the front door and went outside. Robbie was shocked to see her mother. His mother asked him, “Can I splash in the puddles with you?” He was very excited and happy to see his mother. He replied immediately, “Yes, Mum. Come and play with me.”They both enjoyed the rain and played for a long time. They jumped in the puddles and splashed on each other. They had the best time together. Robbie was glad that it rained so that he got a chance to play with his mum in the rain.

This is a story of mother, rain and son.Moral(s) of the story: happiness

Fun in the rain

Once upon a time, an old man lived with his three sons in a village. The three sons were hard workers. Still, they quarreled all the time. The old man tried a lot to unite them but he failed. Though the villagers appreciated their hard work and efforts, they made fun of them on their fights.Months passed by and the old man fell sick. He told his sons to stay united, but they didn’t listen to him. So, he decided to teach them a practical lesson so that they would forget their differences and stay united.The old man called his sons. He told them, “I will give you a bundle of sticks. Separate each stick and you will have to break each stick into two. The one who breaks the sticks quickly will be rewarded more.”The sons agreed. The old man gave a bundle of 10 sticks to each of them and asked them to break each stick into pieces. They broke the sticks into pieces in minutes. And again they started to quarrel among themselves as to who came first.The old man said, “Dear sons, the game is not over. Now I will give another bundle of sticks to each of you. You will have to break the sticks as a bundle, not as separate sticks.” The sons agreed and tried to break the bundle of sticks. Though they tried their best, they could not break the bundle. They failed to complete the task. The three sons reported their failure to their father.Breaking bundle of sticks, the old man replied, “Dear sons, See! You could easily break the single sticks into pieces, but you were not able to break the bundle! So, if you stay united, nobody can do any harm to you. If you quarrel every time with your brothers, anyone can easily defeat you. I request you to stay united.”The three sons understood the power of unity and promised their father that whatever be the situation, they would all stay together. Moral:Unity is Strength!

This is a story of father and son.Moral(s) of the story: family value, trust and unity

Three sons and a Bundle of sticks

There was a boy who was&nbsp;very fond of cashew nuts. So his mother always gave him a few nuts to eat. The boy always asked her for more nuts. Every time the mother would say, "No, my dear, not so many at a time. If you eat too many at a time, you will get pain in your stomach."The stern voice of his mother made the boy quiet. But he never felt that what she said was right. One day the boy was alone in the house. His mother had gone out for some work. The boy managed to get at the jar of cashew nuts. There was no one to stop him from eating the cashews on that day. So he ate as many cashew nuts as he could.The next day the boy fell sick. He suffered from severe pain in his stomach. He felt sorry for not obeying his mother. Moral:Your elders are your well-wishers. Obey them.

This is a classic story from Vikas books.This is a story of a cashew nut, mother and son.Moral(s) of the story: obedience

The Boy and The Cashew Nuts

Yesha Desai

It is Tim’s father’s birthday today and little Tim wants to surprise him with a gift. He knows that his father loves chocolate cake so Tim decides to bake his father a chocolate cake.&nbsp; He tells his mother about his idea and his mother agrees to help him.&nbsp; First they search the recipe for the cake. It looks a little tough but Tim figures that he can still give it a try. He goes with his grandfather to purchase the ingredients. They buy milk, eggs, flour and chocolate. When he returns home, Tim is very excited and so he runs to the kitchen with the ingredients.&nbsp; His mother says, “Slow down or else you will end up dropping everything.” He is embarrassed and smiles a little but then quickly gets to work. He dries the utensils that his mother washed and cleans them.&nbsp; Then he carefully listens as his mother instructs him.&nbsp; He measures and pours the flour, milk, sugar, eggs, and chocolate.Then when all the ingredients are mixed and the cake is put in the oven, Tim dances around the house, excitedly looking at the clock and waiting for his father to come home.&nbsp; When he does, Tim excitedly rushes to the kitchen to grab the cake that is now made. In his hurry, he forgot that the vessel was still hot and flinched at the touch. Tim dropped the cake. His mother immediately moved to help him and everyone fussed around to secure Tim. He felt very bad for not being able to do something good but his father looked at him and smiled. He said, “Thank you, son. Making this must have taken a lot of hard work. I am proud of you!” Tim shook his head and said, “But I dropped it and ruined it in the end.” His father laughed and said, “That is alright. It is not the gift, but the thought and emotions put into one that counts.”

This is a story of father, mother, grandmother, son and cake.

Tim and his cake

It has been years since Ajay’s parents revisited their childhood home. This is the first time they are taking five year old Ajay to see a chikoo farm.Ajay is very excited. He cannot stop talking about it on the entire ride. They reach the farm and park their car. Ajay is instantly surrounded by the smell of chikoos.There is a farmhouse where they freshen up first. He tells his parents to hurry. There are chikoo trees everywhere in the farm. The canopy is so thick that light barely reaches the ground.There are some fallen chikoo and men collecting the good chikoo. The chikoo will be packed and sent to the market. Ajay’s father plucks a chikoo from the tree and gives it to Ajay after removing the seed.Ajay tastes the sweet fruit for the first time and he loves it. He spends the entire day on the farm with his parents and has a lot of fun.

This is a story of chikoo, father and son.

Ajay and the chikoo farm

Tam was a very jolly and good child. He was good at everything but he had only one problem. He never did anything in time or order. He had no routine and would often always be on his toes.Like every morning, today he woke up late, skipped morning exercises and prayers and hurried to school while eating breakfast on the way.Because he missed the bus, he had to run to school which was very far away.When he reached there, he was wound up and tired.He was shocked to see the gates to be close and asked the peon what was wrong.The peon told him that the school was closed due to a strike.He ran back home, disappointed. When he got home he was hungry and tired. He asked his father, “Did you go to work and come back because of the strike?”His father shook his head, “I did not go. The news about the strike was in the paper.”Tam felt betrayed, “You knew about the strike and did not tell me?”His father replied, “How could I? You left in such a hurry.”That was how Tam realised to do his things on time and have a proper routine. Moral:Having a routine helps you be organised and makes your work more effective.

This is a story of father, school and son.Moral(s) of the story: routine importance

 Importance of routine

King Vikram was given the duty of bringing Betal to a tantric. Betal traditionally means ‘evil spirit’. Each time Vikram tried to capture Betal, it told him a story that ended with a riddle. If Vikram could not answer the question correctly, Betal agreed to remain in captivity. But, if the king knew the answer and still kept quiet, his head would burst into a thousand pieces. And if King Vikram spoke, Betal would escape and return to his tree.King Vikramaditya reached the peepul tree and placed Betal on his shoulder once again. As they walked, Betal began to tell another story.“One afternoon, a man came into the court of King Roopsen, asking to be employed as the King’s bodyguard. He introduced himself as Birbal and promised to protect the King. After watching a display of his skills, the King readily agreed to give him the job.As Birbal was walking through the forest one day, he heard a strange and frightening scream. It was a demon who had descended from the mountains and was storming towards the King’s palace. Birbal drew his sword and jumped in the demon’s way.“I am here to banish the King and send him into the forest, away from luxuries and comfort. If he does not leave, I will curse his whole kingdom!” said the demon.Birbal was shocked at this news and asked, “Is there anything I can do to save both the King and Kingdom?”The demon roared, “You must find a suitable substitute for the King! One who is of a pure heart!”Birbal asked for a day to find a substitute and went home. When he told his family the truth, his son offered himself as a substitute for the King.The next morning, King Roopsen received word of the demon and arrived to the forest to try and stop Birbal and his son.“What can I give you, O demon, to stop you from taking this young man! Surely there is something I can offer you!”, said the King.“Give me half your kingdom and I will spare both you and this young boy”, bellowed the demon.The King agreed to hand over half of his kingdom to the demon and Birbal’s son was safe.“So tell me, wise King,” began Betal. “Who made a larger sacrifice? Birbal’s young son or the King?”King Vikramaditya laughed and said, “It is a King’s duty to protect his subjects, but Birbal’s son was ready to give up his life for a man he did not know, and that, is the highest sacrifice.”“You are right! But since you have opened your mouth, I must fly away.” With these words, Betal flew away, leaving King Vikramaditya to chase him with his sword. Moral:Only a pure heart can selflessly sacrifice self.

This is a story of demon, Jataka tales, king and son.Moral(s) of the story:sacrifice

The Brave Son

Long ago, a youth named Brahmadatta lived in a village. One day, Brahmadatta had to go to the city for some important work. His mother was anxious about her son going alone, so she called him and said, “My dear son, I would advise you not to travel alone. You must take a companion with you so that he can help you if required.”Brahmadatta replied, “Mother, I am a grown man. I can take good care of myself. Besides, I do not have any companion to take with me.”“Not to worry! I will arrange a good companion for you,” said Brahmadatta’s mother. She then fetched a crab from the nearby pond and put it into Brahmadatta’s travelling bag. As Brahmadatta did not want to hurt his mother’s sentiments, he kept the crab in a camphor box and set out on his journey.The journey was long and Brahmadatta got very tired by evening. So, he decided to take some rest under a big banyan tree and soon he went to sleep. In the hollow of that banyan tree, there lived a snake. Seeing Brahmadatta fast asleep, the snake came down and hid himself in Brahmadatta’s travelling bag.The smell of camphor seemed very nice to the snake and thus, he slithered his way into the camphor box. As soon as he entered the camphor box, the crab sitting inside caught hold of the snake’s neck and killed it.When Brahmadatta woke up, he was astonished to find a dead snake lying beside him. In his heart, he thanked his mother for giving him the sage advice of taking a companion with him. Moral:You should listen to your parents’ advice as they mean the best for you at heart.

This is a classic story from panchtantra.This is a story of crab, mother, snake and son.Moral(s) of the story: family value

son 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.

A son walks the path of respect

Fun in the rain

Three sons and a Bundle of sticks

The Boy and The Cashew Nuts

Tim and his cake

Ajay and the chikoo farm

Importance of routine

The Brave Son

Brahmadatta, crab and the snake

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