The little red hen found some wheat seeds. She asked a duck and a goose to help plant them, but they wanted to play. She planted the seeds and watered them. When the wheat grew tall, she asked for help again. Her friends were still busy. The hen gathered the wheat, made flour, and baked a loaf. Its smell brought the duck and goose to her door. “I did the work alone,” the hen said. They apologized and offered to help with the next loaf. Together they cleaned the table and shared the fresh bread.
A First Stories tale
The Little Red Hen
Slide left for a simpler telling and right for more detail. Your choice carries to the next story.
Open this version in the audiobook shelfA little red hen found a grain of wheat. “Will you help me plant it?” she asked. Her friends were busy playing. The hen planted it herself. She cared for it and made bread from the ripe wheat. The warm smell brought her friends over. “Next time, let's work together,” she said. They agreed, and everyone shared a slice.
The little red hen found some wheat seeds. She asked a duck and a goose to help plant them, but they wanted to play. She planted the seeds and watered them. When the wheat grew tall, she asked for help again. Her friends were still busy. The hen gathered the wheat, made flour, and baked a loaf. Its smell brought the duck and goose to her door. “I did the work alone,” the hen said. They apologized and offered to help with the next loaf. Together they cleaned the table and shared the fresh bread.
One morning the little red hen found wheat seeds beside the farm gate. She had an idea: if she planted them, she could bake bread. She asked the duck and the goose to help turn the soil. They were busy splashing in the pond, so she planted the seeds herself.
Each day she watered the small green shoots. When the wheat turned golden, she asked her friends to help gather it. They promised to come later, but later never arrived. The hen carried the wheat to the mill and brought home flour. She mixed dough, waited for it to rise, and baked a loaf.
The warm smell reached the pond. The duck and goose hurried over, ready to eat. The hen explained how much work had gone into the bread. Her friends looked embarrassed. They apologized and offered to wash the bowls and sweep the floor. The hen accepted their help and gave them each a slice. They agreed to plant the next batch of wheat together, so everyone could be proud of the loaf.
The little red hen found a handful of wheat seeds in the farmyard. She pictured a loaf of bread cooling on her windowsill and invited the duck and goose to help plant them. The duck was eager to visit the pond. The goose wanted to rest in the shade. Neither came to the garden, so the hen prepared the soil alone.
She watered the shoots through spring and watched the stalks grow tall. At harvest time she asked for help again. The duck said he would come after one more swim; the goose said he would come after one more nap. By sunset the hen had gathered the wheat herself. She took it to be ground into flour, then kneaded dough until it was smooth.
When the loaf came out of the oven, its smell traveled across the yard. Her friends appeared at once. They were surprised when the hen did not immediately set the table for them. She told them about the planting, watering, cutting, carrying, and baking they had missed. The duck and goose admitted that they had left her with all the work.
The hen could have eaten the loaf alone. Instead, she asked them to help finish the job. They washed the mixing bowl, swept the kitchen, and brought out plates. Then they shared the bread. The next morning all three planted a new row of seeds. The hen was happier to have helpers than to be right about doing everything alone.
When the little red hen discovered a few wheat seeds by the gate, she saw more than scattered grain. She imagined a garden bed, then flour, then a loaf that would fill the farmhouse with the smell of warm bread. She asked the duck and the goose to help prepare the soil. They liked the idea of bread but not the digging, and both promised to join her another time.
The hen planted the seeds. She watered them through a dry spell and pulled weeds away from the young stalks. By late summer the wheat had turned gold. She invited her friends to harvest it. The duck had a game in the pond; the goose was comfortable under a tree. Again, they said they would help later. The hen gathered the wheat and carried it to the mill herself.
Back at the farmhouse, she kneaded the flour into dough and waited as it rose. Baking took patience, but at last a fragrant loaf rested on the table. The duck and goose followed the scent indoors. They were ready to share the result until the hen asked them to name one part of the work they had done. Neither could.
At first they felt cross, then ashamed. The duck apologized for treating her time as less important than his own. The goose offered to wash the mixing bowl and set out plates. The hen thanked them. She did not want to keep a list of mistakes forever; she wanted friends who could work beside her. After the kitchen was tidy, she cut the loaf into three pieces.
The following week the duck and goose arrived before she asked. Together they planted another row of wheat. The bread they would bake later seemed likely to taste even better, because this time they would all know what had gone into it.
Inspired by Stories To Tell To Children by Sara Cone Bryant. This text is a new adaptation.