The Boy Who Cried Wolf is a classic tale, retold here in calm, simple words for children to enjoy with a grown-up. A shepherd boy tells a trick about a wolf twice, so when a real wolf comes nobody believes him, and he learns why telling the truth matters.
Before you start: Has shouting (‘Wolf! Wolf!’) — you can say it in a normal voice. The wolf runs away and every sheep is found safe.
Listen together Read aloud by Amy · 2 min 52 s
Read the story: The Boy Who Cried Wolf
Once there was a boy. His job was to look after the sheep. Every day he took them up the hill to eat the grass.
The people in the village said, “If a wolf comes, shout ‘Wolf!’ and we will come to help.”
The boy sat on the hill. The sheep ate grass. Munch, munch. The boy watched them all day. He felt bored.
“I know,” thought the boy. “I will play a trick.”
He stood up and shouted, “Wolf! Wolf! A wolf is chasing the sheep!”
The people in the village heard him. They dropped what they were doing. They ran all the way up the hill.
But there was no wolf. The sheep were eating the grass. The boy was laughing. “It was a trick!” he said.
The people felt cross. “Please do not tell us things that are not true,” they said. And they walked back down the hill.
The next day, the boy felt bored again. He shouted, “Wolf! Wolf! A wolf is chasing the sheep!”
The people ran up the hill again. But there was no wolf. The boy was laughing again.
The people felt very cross. “You told us something that was not true again,” they said. “Next time, we will not believe you.”
The next day, the boy sat on the hill. The sheep ate the grass. Then the boy saw something grey in the trees. It was a real wolf!
The boy felt scared. “Wolf! Wolf!” he shouted. “A real wolf! Please help!”
The people in the village heard him. But they said, “It is just another trick.” Nobody came.
The wolf ran at the sheep. The sheep ran away in all directions. Baa, baa! The boy waved his stick, and the wolf ran back into the woods.
But the sheep were gone. They were scattered all over the hills. The boy sat down and cried. He felt sad. He felt sorry.
At night, the boy did not come home. An old man from the village went to look for him. He found the boy on the hill.
“There really was a wolf,” said the boy. “I told the truth this time. But nobody believed me because I played tricks before. I am sorry.”
The old man put his arm around the boy. “Thank you for telling the truth,” he said. “Tomorrow, we will find the sheep together.”
The next morning, the boy and the people from the village looked everywhere. One by one, they found every sheep. They were all safe.
From that day on, the boy always told the truth. And the people always believed him. The end.
On this page
Picture cards to talk about
- Boy watches the sheep on the hill
- Boy shouts ‘Wolf!’ as a trick
- People run up the hill
- A real wolf comes
- The boy feels sad and sorry
- Everyone finds the sheep
Talk about The Boy Who Cried Wolf together
- Why did the people feel cross?
- Why did nobody come the last time?
- How did the boy feel when the sheep ran away?
- Why is it important to tell the truth?
Feelings in this story
Bored, Cross, Scared, Sad, Sorry.
What the story teaches: Always tell the truth, so people will believe you when you really need help.
This version is our own gentle retelling of a public-domain tale. You can read about the history of the original story on Wikipedia.
Find more calm stories on our Stories page, or play together in the Playground.