1 Minute Stories for Kids

Biscuit the dog had a favourite bone. It was brown, a little chewed, and smelled just right. One morning he woke up and the bone was gone. He looked under his cushion. No bone. He looked behind the water bowl. No bone. He looked in the garden, behind the bush, and beside the gate. No bone anywhere. Biscuit sat down with a huff. Then he felt something poking his side. He twisted around and looked. There was his bone. He'd been sitting on it the whole time. He picked it up, did two happy circles, and settled back down for a lovely chew. Sometimes the thing you're looking for is right where you are.

High in the sky, one fluffy cloud looked down at all the people below. "I want to be a hat," the cloud decided. It floated down, down, down until it settled softly on the head of a little girl named Bea. Bea giggled. Her head felt cool and cottony. "You're a funny hat," she told the cloud. They walked through the park together. People pointed and smiled. A duck waddled up to look. Then the sun came out warm and bright, and the cloud slowly floated back up to the sky. "Bye!" Bea called. "Bye!" said the cloud in a voice like a soft breeze. Bea smiled all the way home. She'd always liked clouds. Now she liked them even more.

Bruno the bear had a bright red coat with ten buttons. Every morning before breakfast, he did up all ten buttons. But Bruno always lost count. "One, two, three..." He'd scratch his ear. "Was that three or four?" He'd start again. "One, two..." He'd yawn. "Oh dear." He'd start again. One morning, his little sister Dot sat down in front of him. "I'll count," she said. "You just do the buttons." "One," Dot said. Bruno did button one. "Two." Button two. All the way to ten without a single mistake. "Thank you, Dot!" Bruno gave her a big hug. "That's what sisters are for," said Dot. "Now let's have breakfast. I'm starving."

Gerald the snail was late for the garden party. He moved as fast as he could, which wasn't very fast at all. But then he saw a dewdrop sparkling on a leaf. He had to stop and look. Then he spotted a tiny rainbow in a puddle. He had to stop and look at that too. Then there was a stripy caterpillar, a red mushroom, and a spider spinning the most perfect web he'd ever seen. By the time Gerald arrived, he was the last one there. "You're late!" said the butterfly. "I know," said Gerald happily. "But I saw so many wonderful things on the way." The other guests looked at him. Then they decided Gerald had the right idea after all.

Nora couldn't sleep. Her room was quiet and mostly dark, with only her small nightlight glowing in the corner. It was shaped like a star. "Hello," Nora said to the light. The light glowed softly. "I'm going to call you Pip," Nora decided. "Pip the star." Pip glowed a little warmer, or maybe that was just Nora's imagination. "Good night, Pip," Nora said. She pulled her blanket up to her chin. The room felt cosy now. Pip was there, glowing steady and quiet, watching over everything. Nora closed her eyes. She was asleep before she counted to ten.

One morning, Sam could not find his red sock. "I have one red sock, but where is its twin?" he said. "I looked in my drawer. I looked under my bed. I looked in the toy box." "Let us think," said Mom. "Where do socks like to hide?" "The laundry basket!" said Sam. They looked. No red sock. "Maybe it is in the washing machine," said Mom. They looked. The machine was empty. "Maybe the dog took it," said Sam. They looked in the dog's bed. The dog opened one eye. No red sock. Sam sat down, sad. "I will never find it," he said. "I will have one cold foot all day." "Look again, slowly," said Mom. "Sometimes things are right in front of us." Sam looked around his room one more time. Then he looked at his feet. And there it was. The red sock was on his foot, already. "It was on my foot the whole time!" said Sam. "I was wearing it!" Mom laughed. Sam laughed too. "The lost sock was never lost," said Sam. "I just forgot to look down." "And now your feet will both be warm," said Mom. "One red sock on each foot, where they belong." Sam jumped up and wiggled his toes. "Two warm feet," he said. "And I learned something today. Before I say something is lost, I will look at myself first." Mom smiled. "That is a good lesson for socks, and for lots of other things too." From that day on, Sam always checked his own feet first. It saved him a whole lot of looking.

Bella was a little girl with a big smile. Every morning, she said good morning to everyone she met. "Good morning, bird," she said to the bird on the fence. The bird chirped back. "Good morning, tree," she said to the big oak. The leaves waved in the wind. "Good morning, Mr. Lee," she said to the neighbor. Mr. Lee was watering his flowers. He smiled. "Good morning, Bella. You are the sunniest part of my day." Bella walked to the corner. She said good morning to the crossing guard. She said good morning to the shop lady. She said good morning to the sleepy cat on the steps. Every person she greeted smiled back. Some stood a little taller. Some walked a little lighter. Bella did not know it, but her small hello was like a warm light. One day, Mr. Lee said, "Bella, your good morning made my whole day better. A kind hello is a gift that costs nothing." Bella thought about that. "Then I will give it away every day," she said. "To birds and trees and people and cats." And she did. Every morning, her small, warm words went out into the world. And the world, bit by bit, smiled back. At the end of the day, Bella's mother asked, "Why do you greet everyone, Bella?" "Because it makes them smile," said Bella. "And when they smile, I feel happy too. A good morning is like giving the world a little hug." Her mother hugged her tight. "Then keep giving hugs, my sunshine," she said. "The world needs your good mornings."

High in the nest, a little bird named Pip looked down at the ground. It was a long, long way down. Pip's mother and father flew from branch to branch. Pip's brothers and sisters had already left the nest. Only Pip stayed, scared. "Come on, Pip," said Mama Bird. "It is time to fly." "I am too scared," said Pip. "What if I fall?" "Then you will get back up," said Mama Bird. "But first, you must try one small hop." Pip looked at the edge of the nest. One small hop. That was all. He took a deep breath. He hopped to the edge. The nest wobbled, but he did not fall. "Good," said Mama Bird. "Now one more hop, to that branch." Pip looked at the branch. It was not far. He flapped his little wings. He jumped. For one scary moment, he was in the air. Then his feet found the branch. He had done it. "I did not fall!" said Pip. "I hopped!" "You did," said Mama Bird. "One hop at a time is how every bird learns." Pip hopped to another branch, then another. Each hop felt a little less scary. Each hop made him a little braver. "Tomorrow," said Pip, "I will try a real flap. But today, I am proud of my hops." "And I am proud of you," said Mama Bird. "Brave grows one small hop at a time." That night, Pip sat on his branch and looked at the nest across the way. It did not look so far now. "Tomorrow I will fly to it," he said. "And if I fall, I will just hop back up."