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Mice, morels & monkey business: Likely lessons from Aesop's Fables

Wormell, Christopher

Character building lessons are presented in a condensed version of Aesop's Fables. Bright illustrations and simple explanations of these famed lessons present self development messages that range from Be prepared to Be careful what you wish for.

Tags

acceptance, animals, ant, awareness, birds, boar, bull, camel, cat, conflict resolution, courage, crab, crane, critical thinking, crow, deception, decision making, deer, determination, dog, dolphin, eagle, fable, fly, fox, friendship, frog, grasshopper, identity, lion, monkey, mouse, nonverbal communication, peacock, peer resistance, reptiles, sheep, turtle, verbal communication, wolf

Oink

Geisert, Arthur

Baby pigs sneak away and get into mischief while their mother sleeps. Eventually they are rescued from their troubles.

Tags

animals, conflict resolution, deception, decision making, disobedience, family, nonverbal communication, parents, pig, rescue, safety, sleep

When agnes caws

Fleming, Candace

Agnes Peregrine has always loved birds and has recently found out that she has a true talent for bird calling. She goes to the Himalayan Mountains with her mother in search of the rarest bird of all. Little does she know that an evil colonel has followed them and wants this rare bird for his own collection!

Tags

accomplishment, africa, assertiveness, beauty, birds, boat, careers, collection, conflict, conservation, critical thinking, deception, decision making, duck, hummingbird, hunting, jungle, maps, mischief, mountains, pheasant, refusal skills, rescue, sounds, train, travel, verbal communication, wilderness, yak

Longbeard the wizard

Fleischman, Sid

A young king is bored so he decides to dress as a wizard and perform magic tricks for his village. A neighboring kingdom hears of this wizard and kidnaps him. The wizard has to outsmart the neighboring king to escape and get some treasure for himself.

Tags

acting, conflict resolution, critical thinking, deception, decision making, magic, poverty, royalty, verbal communication

Bearskin

Pyle, Howard

Bearskin, an infant son of a miller, is sent down the river by the king only to be found by a she-bear who raises him. As Bearskin gets older he goes out into the world to be with other people. He learns about a three-headed dragon who takes the princess. If anyone can kill the dragon, then they get to marry the princess. Will Bearskin be able to kill the dragon and win her heart?

Tags

adoption, adventures, affection, animals, art, baby, bear, bravery, castle, ceremony, challenges, clothing, companion, conflict, courage, deception, dragons, fable, fear, folktale, food, heroism, honesty, marriage, multicultural, nature, nutrition, picnic, royalty, violence

Jack, skinny bones, and the golden pancakes

Helldorfer, M.C.

An orphan boy befriends Skinny Bones, the dog of a hot-tempered old lady named Granny Trick. Together the boy and the dog must not only out smart Granny, but even the devil himself!

Stone soup

Ross, Tony

A wolf goes to a hen's house to eat her up. She tells him she will make him some Stone Soup first. While she makes the soup and he waits, she has him do her chores. Finally, he realizes that she tricks him and he leaves.

Tags

anger, animals, birds, chicken, critical thinking, deception, decision making, feelings, food, nutrition, verbal communication, wolf

Wings: A tale of two chickens

Marshall, James

Winnie the chicken seeks an adventure and jumps into a hot air balloon with a fox. Little does she know that the fox plans to eat her, but her friend, Harriet, saves her before it is too late.

Tags

adventures, animals, balloon, birds, chicken, conflict resolution, deception, food, fox, helping, nonverbal communication, transportation, travel

Sidney

Jeschke, Susan

Sidney the rooster fools foxes into believing that he is a fox too. He is delighted at his keen abilities.

Tags

animals, birds, critical thinking, deception, fox, self esteem

Anotole and the pied piper

Titus, Eve

Anotale, a mouse, has to be a hero and save the children of his village from a musician. The musician steals the children so he can use them in his symphony. The mice end up escaping because they trick one of the musicians.

Tags

animals, assertiveness, careers, conflict resolution, cooperation, deception, decision making, escape, goal setting, mouse, music, nonverbal communication, refusal skills, robbery, verbal communication

Happy Valentine's Day, Emma!

Stevenson, James

Emma is a kind-hearted witch, who makes valentines for the animals in the forest. Two mean witches play tricks on Emma but she gets sweet revenge and a surprise.

Tags

animals, caring, creativity, deception, forest, holidays, kindness, mythical, revenge, surprises, valentine's day, witches

Whose cat is that?

Kahl, Virginia

A white cat curiously roams one house after another and every house names the cat who visits. When a committee comes to town to make sure every household has a cat, the children change the cats to look different in order to fool the committee.

Tags

animals, cat, community, conflict resolution, confusion, deception, neighbors, pets

Chato's kitchen

Soto, Gary

Chato, the coolest low-riding cat in East L.A., feels very fortunate when he learns a family of mice accepts his invitation to dinner. Chato and his best friend, Novio Boy, prepare an extravagant meal excluding the main dish. When the two cats open the door and see a surprise guest, they realize that their plan is ruined.

The story of miss moppet

Potter, Beatrix

Miss Moppet's adventure chasing a mouse is disappointing. She must learn to stop teasing the mouse.

Tags

animals, cat, deception, escape, mouse

Chicken little (Pollita pequenita)

Kellogg, Steven

Chicken Little thinks that the sky is falling so she tells all her friends. They are all tricked by the fox, and he captures them. In the end, the fox is captured and put in prison.

Tags

animals, assertiveness, birds, chicken, conflict resolution, creativity, critical thinking, deception, decision making, fantasy, fear, fox, goal setting, goose, imagination, nonverbal communication, sky, turkey, verbal communication

McBroom and the great race

Fleischman, Sid

Farmer McBroom is a successful farmer who has an evil neighbor, Heck Jones, who has tried to steal his farm several times. McBroom is tricked into betting his farm against his neighbor's farm in a race. McBroom overcomes the trickery to win the race and keep his farm.

Tags

animals, assertiveness, chicken, critical thinking, deception, exercise, farm, goal setting, running, seasons, self esteem, spring, winter

The tiger who lost his stripes

Paul, Anthony

General MacTiger is the most magnificent animal in the forest, until he loses his stripes. His friend, the Python, stole them and now General MacTiger has to find a way to get them back.

Tags

animals, compromise, conflict resolution, deception, decision making, friendship, goal setting, reptiles, robbery, sharing, snake, tiger, verbal communication

When bluebell sang

Ernst, Lisa Campbell

Bluebell the cow is on her way to stardom because of her wonderful singing voice. Yet once she hits stardom, she becomes homesick. After tricking her nasty manager, Bluebell spends the rest of her days singing with the other cows.

Tags

animals, assertiveness, cow, critical thinking, deception, homesickness, peer resistance, stress management, success

Mouse soup

Lobel, Arnold

A mouse tricks a weasel into getting some ingredients he needs from other stories to make a delicious mouse soup.

Tags

animals, assertiveness, conflict resolution, creativity, critical thinking, deception, decision making, food, imagination, mouse, nutrition, problem solving, weasel

George and martha rise and shine

Marshall, James

A combination of five short stories about the adventures of two hippos, George and Martha.

Tags

adventures, animals, deception, fear, feelings, friendship, helping, hippopotamus, nonverbal communication, play, self esteem, sleep, verbal communication

Five little monkeys

Kepes, Juliet

Five mischievous monkeys are always playing tricks on the other animals in the jungle. After a trick is played on them, they change their ways and even manage to save their new friends from Terrible the Tiger.

Tags

animals, conflict resolution, deception, friendship, jungle, lion, mischief, monkey, stress management, tiger, verbal communication

Mary alice returns

Allen, Jeffrey

Mary Alice is a switchboard operator on whom everyone depends. She completes her job perfectly until one day, when Karen squirrel plays dangerous games with her.

Tags

animals, chicken, communication, deception, duck, misunderstanding, mystery, squirrel, teasing

The mean old mean hyena

Prelutsky, Jack

The hynea prides himself on being the meanest animal who plays dirty tricks on the zebra, ostrich, elephant, and lion. The other animals try to take revenge on him, but he fools them and gets away.

Tags

animals, conflict resolution, consequences, deception, elephant, humor, hyena, lion, mischief, ostrich, verbal communication, zebra

The trouble with horses

Seligmon, Dorothy Halle

The park where Alfred lives has horses for riding. One day, he goes to ride the horses and finds out he is afraid. He keeps this secret from his friends and makes up excuses for why he cannot go riding.

Tags

animals, deception, fear, feelings, friendship, horse, park, peer resistance, play, recreation, secrets

Fables

Lobel, Arnold

In these twenty different tales, a little line of advice is shared.

Tags

animals, baboon, bear, beetle, birds, chicken, crab, crow, crustaceans, deception, duck, excitement, fable, fox, frog, insects, lion, lobster, ostrich

Mouse count

Walsh, Ellen Stoll

Ten mice were playing in a field until a hungry snake comes by to collect them into a jar to eat. The mice outsmart the snake by tipping the jar and getting free.

Tags

animals, assertiveness, critical thinking, deception, escape, food, hunger, mouse, nutrition, play, problem solving, reptiles, snake

The three little pigs

Galdone, Paul

When three little pigs leave home to seek their fortune, each builds a house made of various materials. A mean wolf blows down the houses of the first and second pigs, then eats them for dinner. The wolf is outsmarted by the third pig who cooks the wolf for dinner.

Tags

animals, assertiveness, conflict resolution, critical thinking, death, deception, food, fortune, pig, refusal skills, shelter, verbal communication, wolf

Miss penny and mr. grubbs

Ernst, Lisa Campbell

Mr. Grubbs is tired of Miss Penny winning first prize for her vegetables. This year will be different though. This year, Mr. Grubbs plans on sabotoging Miss Penny's garden with hungry rabbits. So instead of winning first prize for her vegetables, she wins first prize for her rabbits.

Tags

animals, critical thinking, deception, garden, neighbors, rabbit, stress management

The wolf's chicken stew

Kasza, Keiko

Mr. Wolf loves to eat, so when he sees a chicken he decides to make chicken stew. He feeds the chicken for several weeks to fatten her up. When it is time to make the stew, his plan backfires and instead he makes dinner for the chicken.

Tags

animals, birds, chicken, deception, food, mischief, nutrition, wolf

Why a disguise?

Numeroff, Laura

A disguise can help you avoid doing things you don't like. Wear one to the dentist, when you have to take a bath, or when you get ready for school so no one will know it's you!

Tags

appearance, bully, challenges, deception, dentist, family, food, hygiene, identification, imagination, trick

The paper bag princess

Munsch, Robert

Prince Ronald and Princess Elizabeth's castle is burned down by a dragon, who then steals the prince. Elizabeth chases after the dragon to free her prince.

Tags

appearance, assertiveness, caring, conflict resolution, critical thinking, deception, determination, dragons, marriage, relationship, rescue, royalty, self confidence, verbal communication

Four dollars and fifty cents

Kimmel, Eric A.

Shorty Long owes widow MaCrae $450 The widow wants her money for Shorty but no one believes she will ever get that money back. The widow goes to Shorty's ranch but Shorty pretends to be dead so he doesn't have to pay her. The widow is suspicious and Shorty almost really dies just so he won't have to pay the widow her $450

Tags

argument, assertiveness, conflict resolution, cowboys, deception, determination, humor, persistence, pretend, ranch, sly

Three foolish tales

Tompert, Ann

Skunk and raccoon wanted Fox's purple umbrella. They tried to take it from her by theft and trickery, but in the end it was fox who out-tricked the both of them.

Tags

animals, assertiveness, conflict resolution, critical thinking, deception, decision making, fox, goal setting, peer resistance, raccoon, refusal skills, robbery, skunk, verbal communication

The adventures of obadiah

Turkle, Brinton

Obadiah tells many falsehoods about his adventures and no one believes him when he really has an adventure.

Tags

adventures, assertiveness, conflict resolution, deception, decision making, nonverbal communication, storytelling, verbal communication

"Not me!" said the monkey

West, Colin

A monkey is a trouble-maker because he keeps bothering the other animals in the jungle. He is constantly saying that he didn't do anything wrong, but he is found out in the end.

Tags

animals, assertiveness, conflict resolution, deception, jungle, mischief, monkey, nonverbal communication, peer resistance, refusal skills, verbal communication

A bargain for frances

Hoban, Russell

Frances saves money to buy a real china tea pot. Thelma swindles Frances out of her money and buys the tea pot. Frances then tricks Thelma out of the tea pot and they are friends again.

Tags

animals, assertiveness, awareness, conflict resolution, critical thinking, deception, friendship, goal setting, honesty, play, refusal skills, self esteem, verbal communication

Henry's baby

Hoffman, Mary

Henry wants to be a part of the in crowd at his school. They want to come over to Henry's house, but he is afraid for them to see he has a baby brother. However, all the guys think the baby is neat.

Tags

baby, conflict resolution, critical thinking, deception, family, feelings, friendship, happiness, multicultural, self esteem, siblings, stress management

Hershel and the hanukkah goblins

Kimmel, Eric A.

Hershel spends his Hanakkah holiday in the old town synagoue. his purpose is to ward off the terrible coblins that keep the villagers from celebrating Hanukkah. Hershel restores the holiday to the village by out-smarting the goblins.

Tags

assertiveness, beliefs, bravery, community, confidence, critical thinking, deception, goal setting, goblins, hanukkah, holidays, Jewish, multicultural, mythical, religion, spiritual, traditions

The red racer

Wood, Audrey

Being too embarrassed to ride her old bike, a little girl schemes to get a new bike. But her family works together to fix up her old bike without having to buy the new one.

Tags

bicycle, biking, bully, compromise, cooperation, deception, dreams, embarrassment, exercise, family, mischief, parents, peer resistance, running, surprises

The day the rooster didn't crow

Kruse, Max

Spiros is a farmer who depends on his crow to get every day started. One day, the rooster was depressed and wouldn't crow because the world was dark. Finally, Spiros tricks his rooster into crowing again.

Tags

birds, careers, chicken, deception, depression, farm, feelings, nonverbal communication, sun

The cut-ups (Los bromistas)

Marshall, James

Spud Jenkins and Joe Turner are a couple of boys who have wild imaginations, create chaos through their neighborhood, help a girl get some toys and start off on the wrong foot with the assistant principal.

Tags

car, chaos, curiosity, deception, imagination, misbehavior, mischief, neighbors, school, toys, transportation

The chanukkah tree

Kimmel, Eric A.

The citizens of Chelm are tricked by a salesman selling Christmas trees. All the citzens of Chelm are Jewish and celebrate Hanukkah. The salesman tells them that Hanukkah trees are the latest trend in America. They believe him, buy the tree, and find out they were tricked. The citizens make the best of it by continuing the Hanukkah tree for the birds to enjoy.

Tags

birds, celebration, closeness, community, deception, disappointment, goal setting, hanukkah, hard work, holidays, Jewish, multicultural, snow, teamwork, weather

Roses sing on new snow

Yee, Paul

Maylin cooks in a restaurant in Chinatown in the New World. One day the governor of South China comes to visit and invites all of the restaurants in Chinatown to bring their best dish to a special banquet.

Tags

chinese, deception, family, food, multicultural, nutrition, prejudice, taste

Forri the baker

Myers, Edward

An unpopular baker named Forri comes up with a plan to use bread to save the village of Ettai from its invading neighbors and becomes a hero.

Tags

careers, community, deception, food, helping, humor, nutrition, protection, teamwork, war

The perfect pancake

Kahl, Virginia

A Good Wife makes only one perfect pancake for each person in town until one day a beggar comes along and tricks her into cooking enough until everyone was satisfied.

Tags

community, deception, food, friendship, hunger, neighbors, numbers, nutrition, overeating, rhyme

Nobody stole the pie

Levitin, Sonia

In the town of Little Digby, there is a Lollyberry tree that grows delicious berries. Each year, they have a festival and eat a big lollyberry pie. Everyone takes a little piece throughout the day and think nothing of it. By the time of celebration, there is only one piece left for the mayor. Nobody admits to stealing the pie, but the mayor knows everybody stole the pie.

Tags

assertiveness, community, conflict resolution, deception, decision making, food, nutrition, party, peer resistance, robbery, verbal communication

The boy of the tree-year nap

Snyder, Dianne

The laziest boy in the village naps and daydreams instead of working. One day, a rich man and his daughter move into the town and the lazy boy begins to devise a plan to become rich without working. In the end, the boy is rich, but not the way he wanted.

Tags

careers, community, deception, laziness, responsibilities, sleep

Scornful simkin

Lorenz, Lee

A cheap miller steals wheat from people as they bring it to him. So two lads from Cambridge University set out to fool the miller.

Tags

careers, community, conflict resolution, critical thinking, deception, decision making, fear, feelings, food, goal setting, misbehavior, robbery, sly

The boy who hated valentine's day

Wittman, Sally

Ben hates Valentine's Day because he didn't get any Valentines at the party last year. He decides to forge Valentines from the students in his class to give some to himself, but he ends up giving them all to the new boy who didn't get any Valentines either.

Tags

caring, conflict resolution, critical thinking, deception, decision making, feelings, goal setting, holidays, nonverbal communication, party, peer resistance, sadness, school, self esteem, valentine's day, verbal communication

Possum-come-a-knockin'

Van Laan, Nancy

A rhyming story of a visitor coming to someone's home. The family members were each doing their own thing and stopped to answer the door but no one was there.

Tags

animals, conflict resolution, confusion, critical thinking, deception, decision making, family, nonverbal communication, opossum, rhyme, verbal communication

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