31 Inspirational Moral Stories for Children

The young minds of children are easy to mould with good thoughts, good deeds and good lessons. Stories play a huge part in this, which is why moms need to know a great deal about them!
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Storytelling is a wonderful way to get your child interested in the world of books. Through this, you build a bond with your little one and it will be something he looks forward to every day - as well as forming a fond memory to look back on, years later! In today's world, where children have access to information from all over the place, it is essential that they get the right information, and the right lessons from the stories they hear as well!
Watch: The Benefits of Storytelling
Key Takeaways:
Swati Sodhi from 'Spin a Yarn' Storytelling talks about how storytelling helps in the development of the brain.
Kids get undivided attention from the parents or storytellers, listen to their voices, and understand how to differentiate between various emotions.
It helps to stimulate their imagination and curiosity, and expand their vocabulary.
Get the kids involved in the story by asking them what will happen. Make them explore the story with their own imagination; it helps with their logical reasoning and analytical skills.
Morals can't be preached and taught; they have to be imbibed. Listening to moral stories from quite an early age can make a difference in their thought process.
Here are 31 inspiring short stories with morals that you can tell your little one as a bedtime tale. He will sleep happy and wake up with a fervour to imbibe the lessons in real life. Children learn really fast, and lessons acquired at this age will stay with him always!
31 Moral Stories You Must Share With Your Child
Puppies for Sale:
One day, a farmer decided to sell the puppies that his pet dog had given birth to. He put out posters informing people about the sale to make some quick bucks. One fine morning, a little boy came up to him and asked, “Can I buy one puppy?”
The farmer replied, “I’m not sure you can afford to.” The boy pulled out a few cents from his pocket and handed it to the farmer, “Can I just look at them?” he asked. The farmer let him watch the puppies. The boy looked at the little puppies with delight. He suddenly noticed a smaller puppy in a corner, who limped and struggled to keep up with the other active puppies. “I want that one.” The little boy said.
The farmer laughed loudly and replied, “Anyone can have him for free, no one will take him as he will never be able to run and play like the others.” On hearing this, the boy lifted his trousers revealing a steel brace on both his legs attached to a specially made shoe. “You see, he doesn’t need someone to play with, he just needs someone who understands.” replied the boy.
The Rich Dad and His Son:
One day, a rich dad decided to teach his son how poor people lived. He took him down to a village to spend a day with a poor family. At the end of the day, he asked his son, “Did you see how poor people can be? What did you learn from this?” the son replied, “It’s simple dad. We have one dog; they have four. We have one pool; they have an entire river. We buy our food; they grow it on the field around them. Thanks for showing me how poor we are.”
The Rabbit and the Tortoise:
One day, a rabbit and a tortoise decided to compete in a race. The overconfident rabbit, sure that he will win, teased the slow-moving tortoise. The race started and the rabbit ran quickly towards the finish line at the end of the jungle. The tortoise also moved slowly towards the finish line. In the middle of the race, the rabbit decided to take a nap. After a few hours, the rabbit woke up with a start. He realized he had overslept. He ran at full speed towards the finish line only to find the tortoise already there. The humble tortoise had crossed the sleeping rabbit hours ago. The rabbit ashamed of his vanity learned a valuable lesson that day.
Five Fingers:
One day, all the five fingers of the hand were having a fight. They were trying to decide which one of them is most important. The middle finger said, “I am the longest, so I am most important.” The index finger said, “I am used to point, so it's me.” They looked at the thumb which is the smallest of them all. The thumb replied, “Fight all you want, but if I go away, you all become useless.”
The Boy with the Strongest Faith:
One day in a dry village, all the villagers decided to gather at a local farm and pray for the rains. All of them gathered at the farm to pray but among everybody, only one boy came with an umbrella. That’s faith.
The Frog and the Ox:
A little frog saw an ox one day and told his dad, “Dad, I saw a huge ox, the biggest you have ever seen.” Trying to impress his son, the daddy frog puffed himself and said, “Like this?” The son replied, “No, he was huge.” The daddy frog puffed himself more. This continued till the daddy frog burst, trying to match the size of the ox. The moral of the story is – never compare yourself to someone. Everyone has different capabilities.
The Onion Thief:
A boy was caught stealing onions from a shop and was taken to a judge. The judge gave him three choices: eat all the onions in one go, be beaten, or pay a fine. The boy, without thinking, started eating the onions his eyes soon began to burn. He later understood that one should always think before doing anything on impulse.
The Goose with Golden Eggs:
A farmer bought a goose one day. The next morning it laid a golden egg. Amazed and delighted at this, he told his wife to come and look at the goose that can now make them rich. The goose laid one golden egg each morning and the farmer sold it for a lot of money.
One day, driven by greed, the farmer decided to cut the goose to extract all the golden eggs instead of waiting for one every day. He got a sharp knife and sliced the belly of the goose. The goose instantly died. He looked inside the belly and found no golden eggs. His greed and impatience cost him a goose that could have made him very rich.
The Rose and the Lily:
A garden was full of rose plants. One day, a lily plant blossomed there as well. The lily was jealous of the rose for its beauty. But the rose replied that the lily was, in fact, a luckier plant whose flowers don't fade even if they have been cut. Beauty is only short-lived and should never be envied.
The Cane Baskets:
Two friends wanted to earn money. They went to a rich merchant who gave them a cane basket and asked them to draw water from the well. While one friend thought it foolish and didn't work at all, the other found some gold coins in the well. The merchant rewarded him and also gave him a job while the friend returned home empty-handed. Hard work always pays!
The Shepherd and the Dacoit:
A poor man was grazing his cattle when a man came to him on horseback. He was a famous dacoit who promised to give him riches and clothes. The shepherd replied that he may be poor but he at least had peace of mind which the dacoit didn't have. The dacoit was ashamed and surrendered to the police.
The Garden:
A woman had a garden and also taught her daughter how to tend to it. One day, she found some eggs of insects on the leaves and asked her daughter to destroy them with insecticides. But the daughter ignored her advice. The insects soon damaged the whole garden. Neglect of duty can be more expensive than you know!
The Peacock Crow:
A crow felt like becoming a peacock and pasted some peacock feathers on his tail. But the peacocks only made fun of him. His own family also made fun of him and some of them were angry too. Never follow others blindly. You are what you are.
The Thirsty Crow:
On a hot summer day, a crow reached a pot that had water at the bottom. The crow tried had to reach it, but in vain. Suddenly, he had an idea, he went about gathering pebbles and began dropping it one by one into the pot. Slowly in no time, the pebbles helped him to reach the water and he drank it. This teaches us to apply our wit and intelligence to achieve what we want in life.
The Donkey and Two Men:
A traveller hired a man's donkey on a journey. The sun was too strong. The traveller decided to rest in the shade of the donkey. But the donkey's owner wanted to sit in its shadow as well. When the donkey saw them fighting, he ran off and was soon out of sight! Never throw tantrums over little things.
The Lazy Boy:
A lazy boy would never do his tasks on time. One day, he won the first prize in a drawing competition and was asked to collect the prize the same day. He went the next day instead. But the prize was a ticket to the circus show of the previous day! Laziness and lack of discipline are bound to harm you.
Horse-riding from a Book:
A man read a book about horse-riding. He then climbed a real horse and tried to ride, but was flung over and hurt. When his friend asked where he learned horse-riding, the man foolishly replied: “from a book”. You must never try what you haven't properly learned – it can be dangerous!
The Farmer and the Snake:
A farmer once saw a snake in his field on a cold winter morning. It was nearly dead because of the cold. The farmer, despite knowing how dangerous the snake could be, took pity on the creature and put it close to his chest to make it feel warm. But on regaining its health, the snake bit the man and slithered off! The moral of the story is - Some people refuse to change their nature. Stay aware of cunning people who are only thinking of their own benefits.
Grapes Are Sour:
A hungry fox went searching for food and found a tree with beautiful ripe grapes hanging in bunches. He jumped as high as possible but they were beyond his reach. He then told himself that the grapes must be sour and he was better off not eating them.
The Horseshoe:
One day, a villager on his horse saw that one of the horseshoes had loosened. But he kept riding. The horseshoe came off but still, he didn't stop. Suddenly, dacoits surrounded him and stole all his wealth. The horse couldn't run away with him because his horseshoe had fallen off. What a price to pay for negligence!
The Tasty Dinner:
One day, a little girl complained about the taste of the food her mother has cooked. Her mom said she would make it tastier at dinnertime. In the afternoon, both of them went to the garden and worked hard. At dinner, when her mom served the same dish again, the little girl loved it. Hunger and hard work are the sweetest sauce!
The Cap-seller and the Monkeys:
A cap-seller was going through a forest, carrying a basket of red caps on his head. He lay down under a tree to take rest. But there were monkeys on the tree. When the cap-seller woke up, he saw the monkeys wearing his caps! The cap seller knew that monkeys are copy-cats. He threw his own cap on the ground. The monkeys also did the same. He collected them and went about his way and got a good price for the caps in the market. Intelligence helps you in difficult situations.
The Hidden Treasure:
A farmer had five lazy sons and he was worried about their future. On his death-bed, he called them and told them there was a treasure hidden in the fields. The sons dug up every inch of the fields but found no hidden treasure. When it rained after a few days, someone advised them to sow seeds. They soon got a good crop and became rich. Hard work was its own reward!
The Wolf and the Shepherd Boy:
A shepherd boy took his sheep for grazing every day. One day he decided to play a prank on the villagers: "Help! Help! A wolf is coming". The villagers rushed to his help but found no wolf and were very angry. The next day, a wolf actually came. The boy shouted for help but no one turned up because they thought he was joking. The wolf injured him badly. Once a liar, always a liar - that's how people will see you!
The Olive Tree and the Fig Tree:
The two trees stood near each other in autumn. The fig tree had lost all his leaves but the olive tree was still good-looking and green. The olive tree made fun of his neighbour, who simply said it was destiny. There came a snowfall. Snow settled on the leaves of the olive tree, crushing it. But the snow fell to the ground through the bare branches of the fig tree. The fig survived the snowstorm. Indeed, pride has a fall.
The Fox and the Crane:
A fox and a crane were friends. The fox invited the crane to dinner. But he wanted to show off his cunning mind, and so he served soup in flat dishes. While he could lap it up, the crane has a long beak and couldn't drink it. Some days later, the crane invited the fox for dinner. He served soup in a jug with a narrow neck. The fox had to go hungry and learnt a vital lesson – tit for tat!
The Lion and the Mouse:
A lion was sleeping in a jungle but was woken up by a mouse. The lion became angry and the mouse pleaded for his life. He promised to help the lion whenever he needed help. One day, the lion was stuck in a net. The little heard him roar for help and cut the net with his sharp teeth. If you do an act of kindness for others, your good deed will come back to you many times over.
The Oak Tree:
A huge oak tree stood on the riverbank. It was very strong but had a thick stem. Around him grew some plants with thin but flexible stems. One day, strong winds blew and broke the oak tree from the middle, throwing him across the river. But the other plants were unharmed. They had survived because they had agreed to bend and yield to the strong wind, unlike the oak tree which stood adamantly. Better bent than broken!
The Bell and the Cow:
A shepherd had tied a bell to each of his so he could know where they were grazing. One day, a man liked one of the bells and asked the shepherd if he would sell it. The greedy shepherd agreed but lost track of his cow. The man stole the cow too. Greed is dangerous.
The Donkey and the Horse:
A man would load his donkey every day to go to the city and sell things. One day, the donkey started feeling dizzy and asked a horse to take some of his load. But the horse said that load-carrying was not his duty. When the donkey fell down due to extreme tiredness, the man put the load on the horse's back. If you refuse to help others, no one will help you.
Real Wealth:
A poor man was so happy that the king asked him the reason for his happiness. The man said that he had the wealth of nature. The sun gave him warmth and light, the sky pampered him with winds and the valley gave him peace of mind. The king realized that real wealth is not money but peace of mind.
If your kids are really young and are not of reading age yet, reading stories out to them or showing them stories in the form of cartoons in a fun way to interest them. YouTube has so many different kid-friendly channels that depict your favourite childhood stories in the form of cartoons - it's a treat for you, as parents, and for your kids!
Which is your child's favourite story? Tell us in the comments section below!
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