The Tortoise and the Hare is a classic tale, retold here in calm, simple words for children to enjoy with a grown-up. A slow tortoise keeps going, step by step, and wins a race against a fast hare who stops to sleep.
Before you start: Has some clapping at the end — you can clap softly or tap your knees instead.
Listen together Read aloud by Genevieve · 2 min 28 s
Read the story: The Tortoise and the Hare
This is Hare. Hare has long ears. Hare can run very fast.
This is Tortoise. Tortoise has a hard shell on his back. Tortoise walks very slowly.
Every morning, Hare ran past Tortoise. “You are so slow!” said Hare. Tortoise felt a little sad.
One day, Tortoise said, “Hare, let us have a race.” Hare laughed. “A race? With you? I will win!”
The animals came to watch. Owl was there. Fox was there. Little Mouse was there too.
Owl showed them the way. “Run along the path, past the big tree, to the red flag on the hill,” said Owl.
“Ready,” said Owl. “Steady. Go!”
Hare ran. Zoom, zoom, zoom. Hare was very fast. Soon Tortoise could not see him at all.
Tortoise walked. Step, step, step. Tortoise was slow. But Tortoise did not stop.
Little Mouse called out, “Keep going, Tortoise!” Tortoise nodded his head. “I will,” he said. “Slow and steady. One step, then the next step.”
Hare looked back. He could not see Tortoise. “I am far ahead,” said Hare. “I have lots of time. I will have a little rest.”
Hare lay down under the big tree. The grass was soft. The sun was warm. Hare felt sleepy. He closed his eyes. Soon he was fast asleep.
Tortoise kept walking. Step, step, step. His legs were tired. But he did not stop.
Tortoise came to the big tree. He saw Hare sleeping. Tortoise did not wake him. He kept walking. Step, step, step.
Tortoise walked up the hill. Step, step, step. The red flag was close now.
The sun moved across the sky. Hare woke up. He stretched. “Oh!” said Hare. “The race!”
Hare ran up the hill as fast as he could. Zoom, zoom, zoom.
But Tortoise was already at the red flag. Tortoise had won the race!
The animals clapped their hands and paws. Clap, clap, clap. Tortoise felt proud.
Hare was surprised. Then Hare felt sorry. “I should not have laughed at you,” said Hare. “You kept going, and you won.”
Tortoise smiled. “That is all right,” said Tortoise. “Shall we walk home together?”
So Hare and Tortoise walked home together. Slowly. Step, step, step. The end.
On this page
Picture cards to talk about
- Hare runs fast
- Tortoise walks slowly
- Hare sleeps under a tree
- Tortoise walks past Hare
- Tortoise reaches the red flag
- Hare and Tortoise walk home together
Talk about The Tortoise and the Hare together
- Who was fast? Who was slow?
- What did Hare do under the tree?
- How did Tortoise feel when he won?
- What can you do step by step?
Feelings in this story
Sad, Sleepy, Proud, Surprised, Sorry.
What the story teaches: If you keep going one step at a time, you can finish.
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.