30 Short Stories with Moral Lessons for Kids

ByEuroKids Hours
Teaching Important Lessons- 30 Short Stories with Moral Values for Children

When looking to impart vital moral lessons to your children, short stories are the best way to go. They have this really beautiful way of imparting invaluable lessons that make them all the more relatable and endearing.

We have all grown up listening to short stories, and it’s time our children heard them, too.

Here are some of the best moral stories for kids.

  1. The Hare and the Tortoise

    2. Thinking he would easily win, the hare took a nap. The tortoise won the race.
    Moral: Overconfidence can ruin you.

  1. The Dog and the Bone

    2. A dog that had a juicy bone in its mouth let go of the bone when he saw another dog with a bone he wanted. The bone fell into a river and sank.
    strong>Moral: Envy will make you lose what you already have.

  1. The Boy who cried Wolf

    2. A boy shepherd would constantly cry ‘Wofl!’, creating false alarms amongst villagers who ultimately didn’t land up when the wolf actually came.
    Moral: Nobody believes a liar, even when he speaks the truth.

  1. The Golden Touch

    2. A king called Midas asked the god Dionysus to grant his wish of turning into gold whatever he touched. He was happy until his daughter, hugging him, turned into gold too.
    Moral: Greed will always lead to your downfall.

  1. The Thirsty Crow

    2. Once a crow had a beak too long to reach water inside a pot. Seeing some stones, he placed them inside so the water level rose and he could drink.
    Moral: Where there’s a will, there’s a way.

  1. Lazy John

    2. John, too lazy to pluck apples from the tree, lay under the apple tree, waiting for a solitary apple to fall. It never did and John went hungry.
    Moral: Laziness will get you nowhere.

  1. The Fox and the Grapes

    2. Unlike John, the fox kept jumping in the air to get grapes, but gave up after a few tries. He called it a case of ‘sour grapes’.
    Moral: Nothing in life comes easy.

  1. The Rose and the Cactus

    2. The rose forever ridiculed the cactus on its looks, until a scorching summer when the rose wilted but the cactus remained standing strong.
    Moral: Never ridicule anyone on the basis of their looks.

  1. The Ant and the Grasshopper

    2. The ant worked hard all summer to store food for winter, while the grasshopper played. When winter came, the ant relaxed while the grasshopper starved.
    Moral: Always save something for a rainy day.

  1. The Ugly Duckling

    2. A duckling, shunned because of its looks by the other ducks, drifted sadly away until it realized it had grown up to be a beautiful swan.
    Moral: Never judge others on their appearance.

  1. The Milkmaid and her Pail

    2. Thinking of all the things she didn’t have, Molly dropped all the milk from her pails on the way to the market.
    Moral: Don’t count your chickens till they’re hatched.

  1. The Wise Old Owl

    2. A wise old owl silently observed people around him. Some became better; others, worse. The owl only got wiser.
    Moral: Speaking less and listening more makes you wiser.

  1. The Elephant and the Ants

    2. The mighty elephant constantly bullied the tiny ants who once had enough and bit the elephant inside his trunk, leaving him in excruciating pain.
    Moral: Treat others with kindness.

  1. The Three Little Pigs

    2. The three pigs made houses. Two lazy pigs made feeble houses, one of straw and the other, sticks. The hard-working pig made a house of brick and stone. The wolf that huffed and puffed broke down only the first two houses.
    Moral: Hard work always pays off.

  1. The Golden Egg

    2. A farmer cut open his goose that laid a golden egg a day, to get all eggs at once, but in vain.
    Moral: Think before you act

  1. Elephant and Friends

    2. A rabbit, monkey and frog refused to be friends with an elephant, but changed their minds after he saved them from a tiger.
    Moral: Friends come in all shapes and sizes.

  1. The Fox and the Stork

    2. The stork, invited to dinner by the fox, couldn’t drink soup from the shallow soup bowls. When the fox went over for dinner to the stork’s, he couldn’t drink from the long vases either.r/>Moral: Selfishness comes back.

  1. The Monkey and the Crocodile

    2. A crocodile, friends with a monkey, once told his friend while carrying him on his back to his house on the other side of the river, that his wife wanted to eat his heart. The smart monkey told the crocodile to return before climbing up a tree and telling him the friendship was over.
    Moral: Choose your friends wisely.

  1. A Glass of Milk

    2. Once a girl gave a glass of milk to a starving newspaper boy, and refused payment. Years later, when she was ailing and penniless, her bill was paid in full. It read: ‘Paid in full, with a glass of milk.’
    Moral: No good deed goes unrewarded.

  1. The Bear and Two Friends

    2. Once in a forest, a bear attacked two friends. One friend climbed up a tree without helping his friend, who lay motionless, playing dead until the bear left. When asked what the bear whispered to him, he said ‘Never trust a false friend’.
    Moral: A true friend will always stand by you.

  1. The foolish thief

    2. Birbal, suspecting a thief from among a merchant’s servants, gave them each a stick, telling them the thief’s stick would grow longer by three inches overnight. The next day, one servant’s stick was three inches shorter. The thief had trimmed it to compensate for any growth.
    Moral: The truth will always come out.

  1. The Stork and The Crab

    2. The stork convinced his fellow creatures to let him carry them to another pond, falsely telling them their pond was going to dry. When the crab’s turn came, upon seeing fish bones on the ground, he pierced the stork’s throat until it fell down.
    Moral: Too much greed will only cause you harm.

  1. The Miser and his Gold

    2. A miser was once robbed of his gold that he kept hidden under a stone in his garden and counted each night. When his neighbour asked him why he didn’t keep it inside so he could easily spend it, he replied he was never going to spend it anyways.
    Moral: Possessions are only as useful as what they are used for.

  1. The Puppy and The Well

    2. Despite his mother telling him not to go near a well, a puppy fell into it because he wanted to fight the dog inside, not knowing it was his own reflection.
    Moral: Always listen to your elders.

  1. The Blue Jackal

    2. A jackal who had fallen into a tub of blue paint fooled the animals in the Jungle into believing he was their chosen king, and had them serve him until one day he cried like a jackal in response to another jackal’s cry and was destroyed by the other animals.
    Moral: Never pretend to be something you’re not.

  1. The Mouse and the Lion

    2. A mouse begged a lion who had captured him, to be spared. One day, seeing the lion ensnared in a hunter’s net, the mouse called all his friends and they cut the net and freed the lion.
    Moral: A friend in need is a friend indeed.

  1. The hidden treasure

    2. A dying father told his sons there was treasure in a farmland. They dug it but to no avail. A stranger told them to plant some seeds, which they painstakingly did. That led to an abundance of crops. Selling them, they became rich.
    Moral: No pain, no gain.

  1. The Slave and the Lion

    2. A slave, mistreated by his master, escaped to the jungle where he helped a lion by removing a thorn from its paw. Later, when his master sent him to the lion’s den, not only did the lion spare him but he let him free other animals, too.
    Moral: Good deeds will always come back to you.

  1. The Old Man in the Village

    2. An old man in a village, forever unsmiling and complaining, suddenly turned cheerful. When asked his secret, he said he had been chasing happiness for eighty years until he gave it up, deciding to appreciate life instead.
    Moral: Seek fun, not happiness.

  1. The Wise Old Man

    2. A wise old man told some people a joke one day. They all laughed. He told them the same joke again and they laughed less. The final time, they didn’t laugh at all. He told them it is the same with worry.
    Moral: Worrying is a waste of time and energy.

At EuroKids we place the strongest emphasis on our children inculcating the best moral values, and use everything in our power, including fables like the ones outlined here, to ensure they grow up to be morally sound individuals.

Looking for a way to entertain your little ones? Now check out these Short Funny Stories for Kids that are sure to bring a smile to their faces!