Simple Stories in Spanish: Dave la chica

Season 10, episode 17

One of my favorite activities is to create stories with my students. Today’s was created by my Spanish 1 college class. You can see a comic of our class story below.

Dave is a fun-loving, active young woman. She does a different activity every day of the week. Her activities take her all over the world.

This story is in the third person and the present tense with a little bit of past and conditional tenses. Please suspend all logic as the point of the story was to talk about the calendar, weather, and activities, and it is not logical. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “verano” (summer),“invierno” (winter), “tiempo” (weather) “charcos” (puddles),“camión” (truck), and “baloncesto” (basketball).

Dave la chica

Hay una chica que se llama Dave. Dave es alta, rubia y muy bonita. “Dave” no es un nombre típico de una chica, pero Dave no es una chica típica. Le gusta bailar, pero también le gustan los camiones monstruo. Canta muy bien y también juega al waterpolo. Dave la chica tiene una vida extraordinaria, llena de actividades divertidas.

Dave tiene una vida activa y ocupada, y hace una actividad diferente cada día. El lunes no hace buen tiempo. Está lloviendo y hay mucho barro en las calles de tierra donde vive. Muchas personas ven el mal tiempo y deciden quedarse en casa para leer un libro, pero Dave la chica mira la lluvia y el barro y se emociona.

Va al garaje y sale en su camiĂłn monstruo. A Dave le encanta manejar su camiĂłn monstruo. Es especialmente divertido manejar su camiĂłn monstruo bajo la lluvia, en el barro y en los charcos.

El martes, Dave la chica va a Sídney, Australia. Es el verano en Colorado, pero es el invierno en Sídney porque está en el hemisferio sur. Como es invierno, hace frío en Sídney y Dave lleva un abrigo grande.

Dave está en Sídney para cantar. Dave canta muy bien y es una invitada especial en la Ópera de Sídney. Se prepara haciendo un calentamiento vocal para preparar su voz. Luego ensaya con la orquesta. Por la noche, canta ocho canciones. Cuando termina, la audiencia se pone de pie y aplaude y grita: «¡Brava!» y «¡Magnífica!».

El próximo día es el miércoles. El miércoles, Dave no vuelve a casa, viaja de Australia a Europa. En Europa visita París, Francia. Visita París para bailar en un ballet. Dave gira, salta y mueve sus piernas con elegancia. Hace pirouettes y jetés.

Después de bailar en el ballet, Dave la chica tiene mucha hambre. Camina por las calles de París en busca de una panadería. El pan francés es delicioso y Dave quiere comerlo. Encuentra una panadería y compra un baguette. Come todo el baguette mientras camina junto al río Sena en el buen tiempo de Paris.

Después de manejar un camión monstruo el lunes, cantar en la Ópera de Sídney el martes y bailar un ballet en París el miércoles, otras personas descansarían, pero no Dave la chica. Ella todavía necesita hacer ejercicio y jugar deportes.

El jueves, Dave juega al baloncesto con los Denver Nuggets. Dave no participa en los partidos oficiales porque es un equipo masculino y Dave es una chica. Pero Dave entrena con los Nuggets porque ella es una atleta excepcional. Durante el entrenamiento de baloncesto, Dave pasa la pelota a sus compañeros y corre de un lado a otro de la cancha. Cuando recibe la pelota, la dribla, corre a la cesta, salta muy alto y hace un mate. Los jugadores profesionales de los Nuggets están muy impresionados por los movimientos y habilidades de Dave.

Hace mucho calor en el gimnasio. Dave suda mucho y se limpia la cara con una toalla. Agarra su botella y toma mucha agua porque no quiere deshidratarse en el calor.

El viernes, Dave quiere esquiar. No puede esquiar en Colorado en el verano. Necesita ir al hemisferio sur donde es el invierno. La nieve de Chile es ideal para esquiar y Chile está en el hemisferio sur, entonces Dave la chica viaja a Santiago, Chile. Desde Santiago, maneja un coche normal (qué aburrido) a un centro de esquí en los Andes.

Está nevando en las montañas y Dave está feliz. Le gusta mucho la nieve, y la nieve fresca es perfecta para esquiar. Dave baja la montaña en sus esquíes y sube la montaña en la telesilla hasta el anochecer.

DespuĂ©s de manejar un camiĂłn monstruo el lunes, cantar en la Ă“pera de SĂ­dney el martes, bailar en ParĂ­s el miĂ©rcoles, jugar al baloncesto con los Nuggets el jueves y esquiar en Chile el viernes, una persona normal descansarĂ­a el sábado, ¡pero no Dave la chica! El sábado, Dave no descansa. El sábado, Dave va al estado de Massachusetts y visita la ciudad de Boston. 

Boston es famosa por tirar té en el mar y su rica historia. Boston también es famoso por un evento deportivo: su maratón. El sábado, Dave corre en el Maratón de Boston. Todo su entrenamiento durante la semana ayuda a Dave y ella es la primera mujer en cruzar la línea de meta. Dave se sube al podio y recibe un trofeo por ganar el primer lugar en la categoría femenina en el Maratón de Boston.

Dave la chica tiene una semana llena de actividades diferentes, pero el domingo hace la misma actividad todas las semanas: va a la iglesia. Dave va a la iglesia todos los domingos, pero no necesariamente asiste a la misma iglesia. Este domingo, Dave va a una iglesia en Jamaica. 

Hace mucho viento en Jamaica y Dave aprende que hace mucho viento porque hay un huracán. Durante un huracán, una persona típica se refugiaría en su casa, pero Dave no es una chica típica. Ella va al mar con unos amigos y juegan al waterpolo. Lanzan la pelota a la red y nadan entre las enormes olas.

Al fin del domingo, Dave está cansada. Piensa en todas las actividades divertidas que hizo durante la semana:

  • El lunes manejĂł su camiĂłn monstruo por charcos y barro. 
  • El martes volĂł a SĂ­dney y cantĂł en la Ă“pera. 
  • El miĂ©rcoles visitĂł Francia y bailĂł en un ballet en Paris. 
  • El jueves jugĂł al baloncesto con el equipo profesional los Denver Nuggets.
  • El viernes viajĂł a Chile y esquiĂł en los Andes.
  • El sábado corriĂł en el MaratĂłn de Boston y ganĂł primer lugar.
  • El domingo fue a la iglesia y jugĂł al waterpolo en Jamaica.

Dave la chica no tiene un nombre tĂ­pico de chica porque no es una chica tĂ­pica. Es una chica activa y extraordinaria.

Después de su increíble semana, Dave sube a su camión monstruo y va a casa. La casa de Dave tampoco es típica: vive en una cueva secreta en las Montañas Rocosas de Colorado.

Cuando llega a casa, Dave come y duerme, porque mañana es lunes y Dave tiene otra semana increíble por adelante.

El fin.

You can also watch a video of me telling this story on YouTube!

¡Muchas gracias por escuchar! Thank you for listening, and a HUGE thank you for your support. I really enjoy creating and sharing simple, comprehensible stories in Spanish. If you would like to help me in that endeavor, consider buying me a taco!

You can download a printer-friendly PDF of this story. Looking for the English translation? I have a PDF for that too! Read a paragraph in Spanish and then read the English translation to see what you understood.

The Power of Stories in Language Learning

Stories are a dynamic way to provide input and elicit output from students within a controlled context. Storytelling is not only a powerful way to increase a student’s verbal capacity, it is also a compelling connection to culture. This session aims to provide participants with engaging story activities and templates that can be immediately implemented in daily lessons to make stories more accessible for students while reducing the stress and workload of teachers.

This page contains the slides and handouts from my presentation at CCFLT 2025 in Loveland, CO.

A recording of the session is available on YouTube.

Simple Stories in English: An Accident in the Mountains

Season 1, episode 36

Julio loves winter because winter means skiing. He makes sure to wear all the right clothing: hat, scarf, gloves, and – most importantly – his helmet. When his helmet falls off the ski lift, he thinks he will be fine if he just goes slow. Unfortunately, though, accidents happen.

This simple story is told mostly in the present tense, but introduces the past tense in a retell. Important vocabulary includes ski lift, helmet, head, wounds, stitches, and cut. 

An Accident in the Mountains

There is a boy. The boy is called Julio. Julio lives in the state of Montana in the United States. In Montana, it is cold in the month of December. It is cold and there is a lot of snow. Julio likes snow because Julio likes to ski. Julio skis in the mountains of Montana. Skiing is very fun. 

When Julio skis, he is always prepared. He wears a jacket. He wears gloves on his hands and he wears a scarf on his neck. The most important is a helmet. Julio wears a helmet to protect his head and he wears goggles to protect his eyes. Protection is important in skiing because ski accidents are common.

Julio has accidents sometimes when he skis. Sometimes he falls because it is difficult to balance well on the skis. Sometimes he crashes into other people on the mountain because he doesn’t pay attention to his direction. Sometimes he falls because there is ice on the snow.

One day Julio decides to ski. When he arrives at the mountain, he puts on his jacket. He puts his gloves on his hands and the scarf on his neck. He puts on a helmet to protect his head and googles to protect his eyes. He puts on his boots and skis. Julio is ready for an excellent day on the mountain.

Julio goes up the mountain on the chairlift. It is excellent. Julio simply sits on the chairlift and watches the people going down the mountain on their skis. Then, Julio gets off the chairlift and skis.

Julio skis for hours. He likes skiing a lot because it is very fun. But there is a problem. Julio has a problem with his helmet. Julio sits on the chairlift and he takes off his helmet. He checks the helmet, but he doesn’t see a problem. Suddenly, the helmet falls out of his hands! The helmet falls from the chairlift into the snow on the mountain.

When Julio gets off the chairlift, he doesn’t have his helmet. His helmet is lost in the snow of the mountain. Julio believes that it is not a big problem and he decides to ski without his helmet. Julio doesn’t go quickly and he is careful. He doesn’t want to have an accident without his helmet. 

Julio takes a simple route because he doesn’t want to have an accident without his helmet. But there is a problem. There is a group of small children on the simple route and there isn’t space for Julio. Julio goes faster than the small children. Julio doesn’t want to crash into the children, but there isn’t much space. Julio moves so he doesn’t crash into a child, but his ski crashes into a plant and Julio crashes into a tree!

Julio sees the color red in the snow. It is blood – it is Julio’s blood! Julio is injured. Julio has a headache. He touches his head and touches blood. There is a cut on his head and it is bleeding a lot. Julio needs medical attention. Julio shouts, “Help!”

Some people hear Julio. One of them is a person works on the mountain. She calls the medic on her radio. The medic comes and checks Julio’s head. The cut on his head is very bad. It needs medical attention. The medic checks the rest of Julio. There are no other injuries – just the cut on his head.

The medic goes to the hospital with Julio. Julio talks to the doctor and describes the accident. Julio explains that he had a problem with his helmet and he took off the helmet on the chairlift. But the helmet fell from the chairlift. He decided to ski without the helmet. He was very careful and took a simple route. But there were a lot of kids on the route. The kids didn’t go fast. Julio didn’t want to crash into a kid. He moved, but he crashed into a tree. He didn’t have his helmet and hurt his head. He saw blood on the snow and shouted for help.

The doctor listens attentively to Julio and checks his head. The cut is very bad and Julio needs stitches. First, the medic gives him a shot. The shot affects the nerves in his head. The shot is necessary because stitches are not fun. After the shot, Julio doesn’t have any sensation in the area of the cut and the doctor can put in the stitches. Julio needs eight stitches.

The doctor checks the rest of Julio. Julio’s only problem is the cut on his head. He doesn’t have other injuries. He doesn’t have injuries on his hands because he was wearing his gloves. He doesn’t have injuries on his arms because he was wearing his jacket. He only has an injury on his head because he wasn’t wearing his helmet.

The doctor explains that Julio is going to have a big headache. He explains that the stitches are necessary because the cut is big. The stitches are not permanent and Julio needs to return to the hospital in five days. In five days the doctor is going to check the stitches and if the cut is better, he is going to take out the stitches.

The doctor also explains that Julio needs to wear his helmet when he skis because accidents are common. Julio understands. He doesn’t want to have more hospital visits or stitches.

After five days, Julio returns to the hospital. The doctor checks his head and decides that he doesn’t need the stitches for more time. The doctor takes out the stitches. There is a mark on Julio’s head. The doctor explains that the mark from the cut will probably be on his head the rest of his life.

“It is a scar, like Harry Potter!” The doctor exclaims.

Julio is not happy. He doesn’t want a scar like Harry Potter. But, the scar is not completely bad. It is a reminder to Julio of the importance of wearing a helmet. Now Julio wears a helmet all the time. He doesn’t want any more accidents.

The End.

You can also watch a video of this story on YouTube!

I really enjoy creating and sharing simple, comprehensible stories. I work hard to provide tools and supports for those who want to learn. Please, consider buying me a taco to support my work!

You can download a printer-friendly PDF of this story.

Simple Stories in Spanish: Ramona la mona capuchina

Season 10, episode 16

Today celebrates 5 years of Simple Stories in Spanish! In honor of its 5th anniversary, I have decided to retell one of my favorite stories from season 1. This story was inspired by the capuchin monkeys that I saw all over Manuel Antonio National Park in Costa Rica.

Who doesn’t enjoy a day at the beach? Ramona certainly does. She goes to the beach every day and watches all the tourists. But Ramona isn’t just anybody, she is a capuchin monkey and is very famous for her thieving ways.

This story is in the third person and the present tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “playa” (beach), “arena” (sand), “comida” (food), and “mono” (monkey).

Ramona la mona capuchina

El país de Costa Rica tiene muchas playas. Las playas de Costa Rica son especialmente bonitas. El agua del océano es azul y la arena es blanca. Hay muchos animales en las playas de Costa Rica: hay iguanas, coatíes, perezosos, guacamayos y monos, ¡muchos monos! Hay monos araña, monos aulladores y monos capuchinos. Muchos turistas visitan las playas de Costa Rica y observan a los monos.

Hay una mona que se llama Ramona. Ramona es una mona capuchina. Los monos capuchinos son famosos por su inteligencia. Los monos capuchinos también viven muchos años. Hay muchos monos capuchinos en toda Costa Rica. Son sociables y viven en grupos grandes.

Ramona vive con un grupo de monos capuchinos en el Parque Nacional Manuel Antonio, en la costa del Pacífico de Costa Rica. A Ramona le gusta el lugar donde vive y le gusta su grupo. Pero también le gusta estar sola a veces.

Por la mañana, Ramona va a la playa y observa a los turistas. Los turistas toman fotos con sus teléfonos y unas cámaras profesionales. Toman fotos de las palmeras, de las olas del océano y de los animales. ¡Los turistas también le toman fotos a Ramona!

A Ramona le gustan las fotos. Ella cree que es muy popular y famosa. Ramona mira las cámaras de los turistas y sonrĂ­e para ellos. A Ramona le gustan los turistas. Le gusta observarlos. 

Además de tomar fotos, los turistas caminan por la orilla del agua, saltan por encima de las olas, salpican en el agua y nadan. No importa si el agua está fría. Los turistas siempre juegan en el agua.

Los turistas también juegan en la arena. Escriben palabras en la arena como “Pua vida” y “Costa Rica” y luego toman fotos. Se quitan los zapatos y caminan descalzos sobre la arena. Mueven la arena de la playa con los dedos de los pies. Algunos turistas hacen castillos de arena. Construyen torres de arena blanca y hacen fosos alrededor del castillo con ríos de agua.

Los turistas más locos simplemente ponen una toalla en la playa. Se sientan o se acuestan en la toalla. ¡Algunos incluso duermen! ¿Por qué duermen en la playa? ¿Por qué no duermen en casa?

A Ramona le gustan los turistas, especialmente los turistas locos que duermen en la playa. A Ramona le gustan los turistas porque ella es una ladrona. Ramona roba de los turistas. Pero Ramona no es una ladrona cualquiera. No roba dinero, cámaras ni teléfonos. Ramona roba comida.

Muchos turistas llevan comida a la playa y hacen un picnic. Tienen sándwiches, galletas, manzanas, naranjas y más. Siempre hay mucha comida y Ramona siempre tiene hambre. A veces, Ramona se acerca a un turista y el turista le ofrece comida. En esos momentos, Ramona es un poco tímida, pero acepta la comida y luego corre a las palmeras para comer. Otras veces, los turistas le gritan, pero a Ramona no le importa. Ella roba la comida cuando nadie está mirando.

Robar comida a veces es fácil y otras veces es difícil. Ramona necesita tener cuidado. Hay otros grupos de monos capuchinos en la playa y ellos también quieren robar la comida de los turistas. Por eso, Ramona tiene que agarrar la comida rápidamente y correr a las palmeras. Si no tiene cuidado, otros capuchinos le roban la comida.

A veces es difĂ­cil robar la comida porque los turistas están atentos y vigilantes. A veces guardan la comida en sus mochilas y la vigilan bien. Cuando los turistas están atentos, Ramona necesita ser más inteligente y pide la ayuda de su amigo Oleg. Oleg es un mono capuchino pequeño. Algunos turistas piensan que es un bebĂ©, pero no es un bebĂ©; tiene treinta años. 

Ramona y Oleg hacen un buen equipo. Oleg distrae a los turistas. Ellos lo miran y piensan que es un mono pequeño y bonito. Sacan sus cámaras y toman muchas fotos. Sacan sus teléfonos y graban videos para Instagram. Oleg es la distracción perfecta. Mientras los turistas miran a Oleg, ¡Ramona roba las mochilas! Lleva las mochilas a las palmeras, donde su grupo las abre y come toda la comida.

A veces cuando roba comida, Ramona es muy tímida. Se acerca lentamente a un turista y lo observa en secreto por mucho tiempo. Luego, cuando el turista no está mirando, toma la comida.

En otros momentos, Ramona es muy atrevida. ¡Una vez, robó un sándwich directamente de la mano de un turista!

De todos modos, si decides ir a la playa en Costa Rica, es importante estar atento a tu comida. Pero si ves un mono capuchino pequeño, saca tu cámara y toma una foto, porque probablemente es el famoso Oleg. Y si ves a una mona capuchina robando tu mochila mientras tomas la foto de Oleg, seguramente es Ramona, la ladrona más famosa de la playa.

El fin.

You can also watch a video of me telling this story on YouTube!

¡Muchas gracias por escuchar! Thank you for listening, and a HUGE thank you for your support. I really enjoy creating and sharing simple, comprehensible stories in Spanish. If you would like to help me in that endeavor, consider buying me a taco!

You can download a printer-friendly PDF of this story. Looking for the English translation? I have a PDF for that too! Read a paragraph in Spanish and then read the English translation to see what you understood

Simple Stories in Spanish:

Season 10, episode 15

Juan lives a boring life in a boring house, driving a boring car to a boring job. When he turns 40, he decides that it is time to do something exciting, so he turns to the world of extreme sports.

This story is in the third person and the present tense with a sprinkling of past and future. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “aburrida” (boring),“deportes” (sports), “paracaidismo” (skydiving), “espeleología” (spelunking), and “buceo” (scuba diving).

Una vida aburrida

Hay un hombre que se llama Juan. Juan vive en una casa aburrida. Es una casa tĂ­pica con paredes blancas y aburridas. Todos los dĂ­as Juan se levanta y va al trabajo en su coche aburrido. Juan tiene un trabajo aburrido: es contador. Se sienta en una oficina aburrida y cuenta el dinero de otras personas. Todo el dĂ­a mira la computadora y cuenta el dinero. Juan no tiene una vida interesante; tiene una vida aburrida.

Un día Juan celebra su cumpleaños. Es un cumpleaños importante: Juan cumple 40 (cuarenta) años. Las personas de la oficina le compran un pastel grande y le cantan.

Mientras comen el pastel, muchas personas le preguntan a Juan cómo va a celebrar su cumpleaños, porque cumplir 40 años es algo grande. Juan planeaba ir a casa y mirar una película, pero ahora su plan parece aburrido.

Juan piensa en su vida. Todo lo que hace es aburrido. Su casa es aburrida, su rutina es aburrida, su trabajo es aburrido…¡su vida es aburrida!

Juan quiere cambiar. Ya no quiere una vida aburrida, quiere una vida interesante. Por eso, Juan decide que para celebrar su cumpleaños va a hacer unas actividades extremas. Busca «deportes extremos» en la red y encuentra un lugar de paracaidismo cerca de su casa. El paracaidismo es muy extremo. En el paracaidismo, una persona salta de un aviĂłn con un paracaĂ­das en su espalda. 

Juan decide que el paracaidismo es exactamente lo que necesita para tener una vida más interesante. Programa una cita para hacer el paracaidismo.

El día de su cita, Juan está muy nervioso. Hacer paracaidismo es muy extremo para él. Mira una presentación y sube al avión. No hará el paracaidismo solo, estará atado a un paracaidista profesional, pero todavía está muy nervioso.

Llega el momento. El paracaidista profesional se conecta con Juan y saltan del avión. Juan grita. Están muy altos en el aire y Juan tiene miedo. Caen rápidamente hacia la tierra, y Juan siente mucho miedo. Después de un minuto, el paracaidista jala una cuerda y el paracaídas se abre. Juan y el paracaidista profesional descienden por cuatro minutos más. Cuando llegan a la tierra, Juan vomita. Los otros paracaidistas tienen sonrisas enormes y están llenos de adrenalina, pero Juan no está contento. No le gusta el paracaidismo.

Quizás el paracaidismo es demasiado extremo para Juan, pero eso no significa que no pueda hacer otro deporte extremo. Vuelve a su computadora y busca el término «deportes extremos». Ve otra opción cerca de su casa. Es el puenting, o bungee. En el puenting, hay una cuerda elástica que conecta a una persona con una estructura. Luego, la persona salta de un punto alto, como un puente. Sube y baja con la cuerda elástica. Juan decide que el puenting es demasiado parecido al paracaidismo, y como tuvo mucho miedo haciendo paracaidismo, decide que no es para él. Sigue buscando deportes extremos.

Hay un deporte que parece más seguro que saltar desde un punto alto. Es el automovilismo. En el automovilismo, estás en un carro que va muy rápido en una pista. Los profesionales participan en carreras con muchos carros, pero personas como Juan pueden pagar para conducir en una pista privada.

Juan decide que el automovilismo es exactamente lo que necesita para tener una vida más interesante. Programa una cita para hacer el automovilismo.

El día de su cita, Juan toma una clase sobre coches rápidos. Después de la clase, se pone un casco y sube a un carro con un automovilista profesional. El automovilista conduce muy rápido. Juan grita. Van a gran velocidad y Juan siente mucho miedo. Corren rápido por las vueltas de la pista y Juan tiene miedo.

Cuando el carro se detiene, Juan baja y vomita. El automovilista tiene una gran sonrisa y está lleno de adrenalina, pero Juan no está contento. No le gusta el automovilismo. 

Quizás el automovilismo es demasiado extremo para Juan, pero eso no significa que no pueda intentar otro deporte extremo. Vuelve a su computadora y busca «deportes extremos». Hay una actividad en las montañas no muy lejos de su casa. Es la espeleología, o exploración de cuevas. En la espeleología, exploras secciones pequeñas de cuevas. Es muy oscuro, así que necesitas tener una lámpara conectada a un casco para poder ver y proteger la cabeza.

Juan decide que la espeleología es perfecta para él, como no estará en las alturas. Programa una cita para hacer la espeleología.

El día de su cita, Juan mira un video educativo sobre la espeleología. Se pone un casco, una lámpara y un arnés. Con el arnés, puede subir y bajar en la cueva sin perderse.

Juan entra en la cueva con dos profesionales. Sigue a los espeleĂłlogos por una cueva grande. Luego gatean por un tĂşnel y entran una cueva pequeña. Juan sube y baja. Está muy oscuro y está en espacios muy pequeños. Siente claustrofobia. A Juan no le gusta la sensaciĂłn de claustrofobia. DespuĂ©s de una hora en la oscuridad de las cuevas, por fin ve la luz del sol. 

Cuando sale de la cueva, Juan respira profundamente. Los espeleólogos tienen grandes sonrisas y están llenos de adrenalina, pero Juan no está contento. No le gusta la espeleología.

Quizás la espeleologĂ­a es demasiado extrema para Juan, pero eso no significa que no pueda intentar otro deporte extremo. Vuelve a su computadora y busca el tĂ©rmino «deportes extremos». No quiere hacer nada alta, ni nada en espacios pequeños. No quiere hacer nada muy rápido tampoco. DespuĂ©s de mucha investigaciĂłn, Juan decide hacer el buceo. 

En el buceo, nadas en el agua con un tanque de aire. En el agua, miras las plantas y peces que viven en arrecifes de coral.  Juan decide que el buceo es perfecto para Ă©l como no es rápido, ni alto en el aire ni en un espacio pequeño. Programa una cita para hacer el buceo.

El día de su cita, Juan mira un video educativo sobre el buceo. Se pone un traje especial, una máscara, un tanque de aire y aletas. Va en un barco a un arrecife de coral con otros turistas y unos buzos profesionales.

Juan entra al agua. Practica con usar las aletas y cuando está cĂłmodo, sigue a los buzos por el agua. Al principio, su tiempo en el agua es relajante. Ve plantas y peces pequeños. ¡De repente, ve un tiburĂłn! Juan tiene miedo al tiburĂłn. Entonces una tortuga marina pasa. La tortuga es muy grande y espanta a Juan. Otros peces grandes vienen y pasan por Juan. Los otros turistas piensan que los peces son fantásticos, pero Juan no. Juan está sorprendido y espantado por los peces y quiere salir del agua. 

Cuando sale del agua, Juan respira profundamente. Los otros turistas y buzos profesionales tienen sonrisas enormes y están llenos de adrenalina, pero Juan no está contento, no le gusta el buceo.

Quizás el buceo es demasiado extremo para Juan. Está empezando a pensar que no hay un deporte extremo para él, pero vuelve a la computadora para investigar. No quiere hacer nada alta en el aire, ni bajo el agua, ni nada en espacios pequeños, ni nada demasiado rápido. Juan busca y busca. Por fin, ve un deporte que parece divertido. Es el esquí. En el esquí, bajas una montaña cubierta de nieve. Muchas personas hacen el esquí, entonces Juan decide que no puede ser tan malo. Programa una cita para hacer el esquí.

El día de su cita, Juan se pone ropa caliente, un abrigo grande, pantalones de nieve y guantes. Renta esquíes, palos y un casco. Como es su primera vez, decide tomar una lección. El instructor es muy paciente y enseña que para ir rápido los esquíes son paralelos, como papas fritas, y para ir lento, los esquíes forman un triángulo, como una pizza.

Juan practica haciendo «pizza» y «papas fritas» en un monte pequeño. Se cae unas veces, pero se levanta y sigue adelante. Cuando está cómodo, sube la montaña a un punto más alto en la telesilla. La telesilla es alta, pero no tan alta como el avión del paracaidismo o el bungee. Desde la telesilla, puede ver por millas. La vista es impresionante y no siente claustrofobia como en la espeleología.

Luego, Juan baja la montaña. A veces va rápido, pero no tan rápido como el automovilismo. Hay otras personas en la montaña, y a veces sorprenden a Juan, como los peces del buceo, pero Juan se enfoca en el espacio de frente, respira profundamente y siente mejor.

Después de unas horas, Juan empieza a divertirse en la montaña. ¡Le gusta el esquí! Le gusta la sensación del aire frío en la cara y la adrenalina de bajar la montaña. Juan encontró un deporte divertido para cambiar su vida aburrida.

El fin.

You can also watch a video of this story on YouTube!

¡Muchas gracias por escuchar! Thank you for listening, and a HUGE thank you for your support. I really enjoy creating and sharing simple, comprehensible stories in Spanish. If you would like to help me in that endeavor, consider buying me a taco!

You can download a printer-friendly PDF of this story. Looking for the English translation? I have a PDF for that too! Read a paragraph in Spanish and then read the English translation to see what you understood.

Simple Stories in English: The Monster

Season 1, episode 35

Arthur the monster lives alone in the mountains. He is tired of being alone in his cave and decides to go to the city to make some animal friends. Some animals look down on him because of his size, looks, and smell, but one animal steals his heart.

This story is in the third person and the past tense with some present tense dialogue. Important vocabulary in the story includes: stank (smelt bad), hurt, monkey, and pig.

The Monster

Once upon a time, in the high mountains, there was a monster. The monster was small and ugly, but fierce. It had a lot of green hair, big eyes, and sharp teeth.

The monster lived in a cave. The cave was primitive. There wasn’t a bed or a bathroom. The monster didn’t need a bed because he preferred the hard rocks. The monster didn’t need a bathroom because he lived in the mountains, far from civilization.

The monster never bathed and so he stank. He never washed his hair and he never brushed his teeth. His hair stank. His breath stank. The monster stank like the socks and shoes of a football player. The monster didn’t care that he stank because he was a monster.

The monster’s name was Arthur. Arthur felt very alone in his cave in the mountains. There were other monsters, but monsters are very bad friends. Monsters are bad friends because they are fierce and monstrous.

One day Arthur decided that he didn’t want to be alone in the mountains. He wanted friends. He didn’t want to be friends with the other bad monsters and so he decided to go to the city. In the city there was more diversity. There were a lot of people and animals of all kinds, not just fierce monsters.

Arthur went to the city and saw the big buildings. He saw people and animals. Arthur found an animal club. He entered the club and saw a lot of animals. He saw giraffes, monkeys, dogs, cats, and more. The animals danced like crazy in the club. They seemed very happy.

Arthur wanted to be happy like the animals in the club. Arthur saw a giraffe. The giraffe danced gracefully. Arthur wanted to dance with the giraffe.

“Hello, beautiful giraffe. Do you want to dance?” Arthur asked.

“Who is talking? Oh, there you are. I don’t want to dance with you. You are very short. I only dance with tall animals like me. Goodbye, little monster,” the giraffe said.

Arthur felt a little hurt, but there were other animals in the club. Arthur saw a monkey. The monkey wasn’t tall like the giraffe. Also, the monkey was pretty. Arthur wanted to dance with the monkey.

“Hello, pretty monkey. Do you want to dance?” Arthur asked.

“Ah, a monster! I don’t want to dance with you. You are ugly. I only dance with pretty animals like me. Goodbye, scary monster,” the monkey said.

Arthur felt a little hurt, but there were other animals in the club. Arthur saw a dog. The dog wasn’t tall like the giraffe or very pretty like the monkey. Plus, the dog had a lot of friends. Arthur wanted to dance with the dog.

“Hello, dog friend. Do you want to dance?” Arthur asked.

“Yuck! What smells? Pew! I am not going to dance with you. You smell terrible. I only dance with animals that smell good. Goodbye, stinky monster,” the dog said.

Arthur felt a little hurt, but there were other animals in the club. Arthur saw a cat. The cat had a lot of pretty hair. Arthur wanted to dance with the cat.

“Hello, precious cat. Do you want to dance?” Arthur asked.

The cat didn’t respond; she simply ignored Arthur. Evidently, she didn’t want to dance with him.

After the four rejections, Arthur was sad. He sat at the bar and looked at all the happy animals. Everyone was dancing in groups. Everyone, except one. There was an animal sitting alone at a table full of food, and Arthur loved food. The animal was small and pink. It was dirty, with mud stains on its body. It was a pig.

The giraffe didn’t dance with the pig because it was short. The monkey didn’t dance with the pig because it was ugly. The dog didn’t dance with the pig because it was stinky. The cat didn’t dance with the pig because the cat ignored it. Arthur wanted to dance with the pig.

“Hello, magnificent pig. Do you want to dance?” Arthur asked.

“Are you talking to me?” The pig responded.

“Yes. I am talking to the most impressive animal in the whole club,” Arthur said.

“Yes, I do want to dance with you!” The pig shouted

The pig did not think that Arthur was short. She didn’t think that Arthur was ugly. She didn’t think that Arthur was stinky. She didn’t ignore Arthur. The pig thought that Arthur was perfect, a green-haired prince charming.

Arthur and the pig danced and talked all night. Arthur was very happy. At last he was not alone.

Arthur wanted to see the pig again. He couldn’t wait. So, the next day, Arthur invited the pig to eat. Arthur was a good chef and wanted to prepare an excellent meal.

The pig was nervous because she didn’t know Arthur very well and she had heard stories about fierce monsters, but Arthur seemed different from other monsters and lots of times appearances can be deceiving. So, the pig accepted the invitation from her new friend.

Arthur was very excited. He was going to eat like a king! He cleaned his cave and went to the supermarket to buy ingredients for the meal.

The pig arrived at Arthur’s house and preparations began. Arthur prepared an incredible meal of sausage, bacon, ham, and ribs.

Then, Arthur ate like a king. He ate the sausage, bacon, ham, and ribs with a lot of barbecue sauce. Arthur ate the whole pig. After eating so much pork, he let out a lot of stinky farts.

That’s why monsters are bad friends. They are monstrous, they eat everything, and they stink. Sometimes appearances do not deceive.

The End.

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I really enjoy creating and sharing simple, comprehensible stories. I work hard to provide tools and supports for those who want to learn. Please, consider buying me a taco to support my work!

You can download a printer-friendly PDF of this story.

Simple Stories in English: The Brave Little Kitten

Season 1, episode 34

Jack is a little cat. He thought today would be like any other day exploring with his family, but instead he woke up to discover that is home became a construction site! Will he be able to make his way through the heavy equipment and find his family?

This simple story is told in the present tense and focuses on the words beam, dirt, edge, crane, dump truck, and looks for.

The Brave Little Kitten

Jack is a cat. He is a little cat. He is a kitten. Jack has 6 brothers and 5 sisters. All his brothers and sisters are big. Jack is the smallest in the family.

Jack’s siblings explore a lot, but Jack is more shy. Jack prefers being close to his mother and father. He likes the protection of his father and the love of his mother. Jack’s siblings are brave and explore everything, but Jack is afraid of the world. The world is big and Jack is only a little kitten.

At night, Jack and his siblings sleep. They sleep in a box. There is not a lot of space and it is not an elegant house, but Jack is with his family and nothing else matters. Jack moves close to his siblings and parents and sleeps contentedly.

One day, Jack gets up with a strange sensation. He is cold. He is not close to his siblings. Jack opens his eyes and sees that everything is different. Jack is not in the box with his family, he is in the air! He is not just in the air, he is moving in the air. Jack is in the bucket of a front loader. The front loader is big – much bigger than Jack. It is yellow and very loud.

Jack is scared, but he is also curious. Where is he? Where is he going? Where is his family? Jack moves carefully to the edge of the bucket. He looks down and is very scared. He is very high up in the air! From the air, Jack can see a lot more. He sees a lot of heavy equipment. The heavy equipment are construction trucks. There are a lot of huge vehicles. Jack sees an excavator that puts dirt in a dump truck. He sees a forklift that transports beams. He sees a crane that lifts a metal beam. He sees a tractor that pushes dirt and several other trucks..

There are also a lot of men and women. The men and women wear yellow hats. The hats are special. They are helmets. The helmet protects the head. Construction is very dangerous and helmets are necessary.

There is a lot of activity and sounds. Jack is scared, but he is also curious. Jack sees that there is a man driving the front loader. The man has a yellow helmet. The man looks at Jack and is surprised. There is a kitten in his front loader!

The man stops the front loader and lowers the bucket. Jack sees his opportunity. Jack jumps from the front loader bucket and runs. He runs far from the noisy front loader bucket. Jack wants to find his family, but first he wants to escape from the front loader.

“Come here kitten!” The man in the front loader yells. But Jack ignores him. He wants to find his family.

Jack sees a mountain of dirt. He decides to climb the dirt to look for his family. Jack climbs the mountain of dirt. He looks for his family, but he doesn’t see them. Suddenly, an excavator lifts the dirt. Once again, Jack is in the air. The excavator moves the dirt to a dump truck. When the excavator is close to the dump truck, drops the dirt. Jack falls with the dirt into the dump truck. The woman driving the excavator sees Jack when he falls. She is surprised. There is a kitten at the construction site!

“Come here kitten!” The woman on the excavator yells. But it is too late. The dump truck moves. The woman calls the man in the dump truck on the radio. There is a kitten in the dump truck! The dump truck stops.

Jack is scared. Where is the dump truck going? Jack doesn’t want to leave the construction site – his family is in the construction site! Jack runs to the edge of the dump truck. The dump truck stops close to a beam. Jack is typically shy, but now he is brave. Jack jumps from the dump truck to the beam.

“Come here kitty!” The man driving the dump truck yells, but Jack ignores him. Jack is looking for his family.

Jack runs on the beam, but the beam is not on the ground. The beam is in the air. The beam is on a forklift. The forklift is not very big, but it is very useful. It moves heavy objects in small spaces. The forklift moves some beams near the construction site. Jack uses the time to watch and look for his family. He looks for his brothers and sisters. He looks for his mother and father. Where are they?

The forklift stops and lowers its cargo. The woman driving the forklift looks at Jack and is surprised.

“Come here kitty!” The woman yells, but Jack ignores her. He is looking for his family.

Jack sees a tube. He enters the tube and thinks. What is he going to do? Where is his family? Suddenly, the tube moves. The tube moves upwards. Jack goes higher and higher in the sky. The tupe is connected to a crane. The crane lifts the tube and Jack. Jack is scared, but he is also curious. He walks to the edge of the tube. He is higher in the sky now than the forklift. He is higher than the dump truck. He is higher than the front loader. He is higher than the excavator. Jack decides to use this opportunity to look for his family.

The crane lifts the tube higher and higher. Finally it stops. The crane passes the tube to some workers in yellow helmets. The workers grab the tube and are surprised. There is a kitten in the tube!

“Come here kitty!” One of the workers grabs at John. John Is scared, but the man is good. The man walks with Jack to the dirt. The man passes the front loader, excavator, dump truck and forklift. The man walks to an office. He opens the door and Jack sees a box. It is a very familiar box. The man puts Jack in the box with his family.

Jack tells the whole story about his adventure with his brothers and sisters. They are all very impressed with the brave little kitten.

The End.

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I really enjoy creating and sharing simple, comprehensible stories. I work hard to provide tools and supports for those who want to learn. Please, consider buying me a taco to support my work!

You can download a printer-friendly PDF of this story.

Simple Stories in Spanish: Feliz Navidad

Season 10, episode 14

Isabel wishes she were home for Christmas instead of all alone in a big city. She knows that other people in her apartment building are also alone, so when the electricity goes out, she decides to spread light and joy through candles and song.

This story is in the third person and the present tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: “siente” (feels),“vecinos” (neighbors), “velas” (candles),“caja” (box), “Navidad” (Christmas), “Nochebuena” (Christmas Eve, and “villancicos” (carols).

Feliz Navidad

Isabel es una muchacha simpática. Ella vive muy lejos de su familia. Le gusta pasar tiempo con ellos y típicamente va a casa para celebrar la Navidad. Sin embargo, este año no tiene ni el tiempo ni el dinero para viajar a casa por Navidad.

El 24 (veinticuatro) de diciembre, Isabel camina por la ciudad donde vive. Piensa en todas las cosas que estarĂ­a haciendo en casa con sus padres, hermanos y familia extendida.  PasarĂ­an mucho tiempo afuera: jugarĂ­an en la nieve, construirĂ­an un muñeco de nieve, tirarĂ­an bolas de nieve, bajarĂ­an en tobogán y patinarĂ­an sobre hielo. 

También harían muchas cosas en casa. Cocinarían una cena grande para la Nochebuena. Harían galletas de Navidad. Cantarían villancicos mientras llevaban las galletas a los vecinos. Escucharían cuentos de sus abuelos sobre las Navidades pasadas. Irían a la iglesia para una reunión especial de Nochebuena. Abrirían regalos y estarían muy felices.

Isabel pasa una iglesia. Hay un nacimiento grande con figuras de María, José y el niño Jesús. Una gran bandera dice: «Feliz Navidad». Isabel pausa para observar la escena. Escucha el sonido de un coro practicando villancicos para la Nochebuena. La música y la escena le hacen sentir un poco mejor, y continúa a su apartamento.

Cuando llega a su apartamento hay una caja frente a su puerta. Es de su mamá. Isabel abre el paquete y encuentra una carta dentro.

Querida hija, Lamento que no estés con nosotros para la Navidad este año. Espero que con las cosas en la caja te sientas más cerca de nosotros. Feliz Navidad, Mamá

Isabel se siente triste y sola. Extraña mucho a su familia y no siente que sea una Navidad feliz. Mira las cosas en la caja. Hay una bolsa de galletas de jengibre, sus favoritas. Hay bombones caseros y una variedad de chocolates. Hay pequeños regalos y muchas velas.

Isabel toma los regalos y abre uno. Es un burro, como el que llevó a María a Belén. Isabel pone el burro en su mesa y abre otro regalo. Este contiene un joven pastor. Isabel piensa en los pastores que escucharon el canto de los ángeles y luego buscaron al niño Jesús.

El prĂłximo regalo tiene una figurita de MarĂ­a. Isabel piensa en la fĂ© absoluta de MarĂ­a y en la responsabilidad de ser la madre de Jesucristo. Isabel siente una gran admiraciĂłn por MarĂ­a. El siguiente regalo es JosĂ©. Isabel piensa en la confianza que JosĂ© puso en Dios. 

Isabel sigue abriendo los regalos. Hay un ángel, una vaca, los tres reyes magos, otro pastor y un cordero. Pone las figuritas en la mesa para formar el Nacimiento, pero falta la figurita más importante: ¿dónde está el bebé Jesús?

Isabel busca en la caja otra vez, pero solo encuentra las velas. Es una tradición en la casa de Isabel cenar en Nochebuena solo con la luz de las velas, sin ninguna luz eléctrica. Es una tradición que le gusta mucho, pero son demasiadas velas para una cena para una sola persona. Debajo de las velas hay una nota de su mamá que dice: «Ilumina el mundo».

De repente, la electricidad se apaga. Isabel mira por la ventana y ve que toda la ciudad está a oscuras. Isabel se siente muy triste y sola. No es una Nochebuena perfecta como cuando está en casa.

Isabel está triste y sola, pero ella sabe que hay otras personas que tambiĂ©n se sienten tristes y solas durante la Navidad. Mira la caja de velas y tiene una idea. 

Enciende una vela y camina con la caja al pasillo. Toca a la puerta de su vecino. Cuando su vecino, un hombre mayor, abre la puerta, Isabel canta.

La primera Navidad un coro se oyó; a humildes pastores el cielo cantó, y un ángel les habló, rodeado de luz, anunciando la Natividad de Jesús. Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel. Hoy ha nacido el Rey de Israel.

Isabel enciende una vela y pasa la vela al hombre. Él acompaña a Isabel al próximo apartamento. Tocan a la puerta. Una mujer y su hija abren la puerta e Isabel y su vecino cantan.

Venid, adoremos, con alegre canto; venid al pueblito de Belén. Hoy ha nacido el Rey de los ángeles. Venid y adoremos, venid y adoremos, venid y adoremos a Cristo Jesús.

La mujer y su hija toman velas de la caja. Encienden sus velas y caminan con Isabel y su vecino al prĂłximo apartamento. Una familia de seis abre la puerta. Isabel y su grupo de vecinos cantan.

Noche de luz, noche de paz; reina ya gran solaz do el niño dormido está, mensajero del Dios de verdad. Duerme, niño, en paz; duerme, niño, en paz.

El grupo sube un piso y toca a la puerta de otro apartamento. Una mujer mayor con un bastĂłn abre la puerta. Isabel y su grupo de vecinos cantan.

Cantan santos ángeles con celeste entonación; las montañas eco dan como fiel contestación. Gloria a Dios en lo alto. Gloria a Dios en lo alto.

La mujer con el bastĂłn no puede caminar con el grupo, pero Isabel le da una vela para iluminar su apartamento. El grupo de vecinos va a la prĂłxima puerta y canta.

Escuchad el son triunfal de la hueste celestial: Paz y buena voluntad; salvación Dios os dará. Cante hoy toda nación la angelical canción; estas nuevas todos den: Nació Cristo en Belén. Escuchad el son triunfal de la hueste celestial.

El grupo sigue por los pasillos del edificio de apartamentos cantando villancicos y pasando velas a los vecinos. Algunos vecinos deciden unirse al grupo mientras que otros, como la mujer con el bastĂłn, se quedan en casa. Algunos vecinos tienen su propias velas, mientras que otros vecinos toman velas de la caja de Isabel.

Después de cantar en el último apartamento, Isabel tiene un grupo bastante grande. No quieren simplemente regresar a sus apartamentos solitarios, así que deciden reunirse en un salón grande en la planta baja del edificio. Van a sus apartamentos a buscar comida para compartir en su improvisada fiesta de Navidad.

Isabel se sienta en el salĂłn iluminado por velas y come con sus vecinos. Ahora no siente sola ni triste, pero siente que algo falta.

Piensa en la mujer con el bastón. Ella no está en el salón porque no puede bajar las escaleras, y el elevador no funciona por la falta de electricidad. Isabel llena un plato de comida y camina al apartamento de la mujer.

Cuando toca a la puerta, la mujer la invita entrar. Isabel se sienta y habla con ella. Aprende que los hijos de la mujer no pudieron venir a casa este año por trabajo y que era su primera Navidad sin familia. Ella se sentía muy triste y sola hasta que escuchó la música de sus vecinos. Ahora su Navidad es mucho más feliz.

Luego, Isabel regresa a su apartamento con su caja vacía. Cuando entra, tira la caja a un lado, pero escucha algo. La caja no está completamente vacía. Dentro de la caja hay un regalito más. Isabel abre el paquete y encuentra la figurita del niño Jesús. Pone la figurita con el resto del Nacimiento y canta su villancico favorito.

¿Qué niño es este que, al dormir

en brazos de MarĂ­a,

el cielo hoy le rinde honor

y el pastor vigila?

Él es el Cristo Rey;

mirad la gloria descender.

Ved, ved al Salvador,

al hijo de MarĂ­a.

El fin.

You can also watch a video of this story on YouTube!

¡Muchas gracias por escuchar! Thank you for listening, and a HUGE thank you for your support. I really enjoy creating and sharing simple, comprehensible stories in Spanish. If you would like to help me in that endeavor, consider buying me a taco!

You can download a printer-friendly PDF of this story. Looking for the English translation? I have a PDF for that too! Read a paragraph in Spanish and then read the English translation to see what you understood.

Simple Stories in English: Merry Christmas

Season 1, episode 34

Isabel wishes she were home for Christmas instead of all alone in a big city. She knows that other people in her apartment building are also alone, so when the electricity goes out, she decides to spread light and joy through candles and song.

This story is in the third person and the present tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: feels, neighbors, candles, box, Christmas, Christmas Eve, Nativity, and carols.

Merry Christmas

Isabel is a kind young woman. She lives very far from her family. She likes spending time with them and typically she goes home to celebrate Christmas. However, this year she doesn’t have the time or money to travel home for Christmas.

On December 24, Isabel walks through the city where she lives. She thinks of the things she would be doing at home with her parents, siblings, and extended family. They would spend a lot of time outside playing in the snow, building snowmen, throwing snowballs, sledding, and ice-skating.

They would also do a lot of things in the house. They would cook a big dinner for Christmas Eve. They would make Christmas cookies and sing carols while they took the cookies to their neighbors. They would listen to their grandparents’ stories about past Christmases. They would go to church for a special Christmas Eve service. They would open gifts and they would be very happy.

Isabel passes a church. There is a big Nativity with figures of Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus. A big banner says: “Merry Christmas”. Isabel pauses to observe the scene. She hears the sound of a choir practicing carols for Christmas Eve. The music and the scene make her feel a little better, and she continues on to her apartment.

When she arrives at her apartment there is a box in front of her door. It is from her mom. Isabel opens the package and finds a letter inside.

Dear Isabel, I am sorry you are not with us for Christmas this year. I hope that with the things in this box help you feel closer to us. Merry Christmas! Love, Mom

Isabel feels sad and alone. She misses her family a lot and she doesn’t feel like it is a merry Christmas. She looks at the things in the box. There is a bag of gingerbread cookies, her favorite. There are homemade marshmallows and a variety of chocolates. There are small gifts and a lot of candles.

Isabel takes the gifts and opens one. It is a donkey, like the one that took Mary to Bethlehem. Isabel puts the donkey on her table and opens another gift. This one contains a young shepherd. Isabel thinks about the shepherds that listened to the angels’ song and then looked for the Christ child.

The next gift has a figurine of Mary. Isabel thinks about Mary’s absolute faith and in the responsibility of being the mother of Jesus Christ. Isabel feels a great admiration for Mary. The next gift is Joseph. Isabel thinks about the trust that Joseph put in God.

Isabel keeps opening the gifts. There is an angel, a cow, the three wise men, another shepherd and a lamb. She puts the figures on the table to form the Nativity scene, but the most important figure is missing: where is the Christ child?

Isabel looks in the box again, but she only finds the candles. It is a tradition in Isabel’s house to eat Christmas Eve dinner only with the light of candles, without any electric light. It is a tradition that she likes a lot, but there are too many candles in the box for a dinner for only one person. Under the candles there is a note from her mom that says: “Light the world”.

Suddenly, the electricity goes out. Isabel looks out the window and sees that the whole city is dark. Isabel feels very sad and alone. It is not a perfect Christmas Eve like when she is at home.

Isabel is sad and alone, but she knows that there are other people that also feel sad and alone during Christmas. She looks at the box of candles and she has an idea.

She lights a candle and walks with the box to the hallway. She knocks on her neighbor’s door. When her neighbor, an older man, opens the door, Isabel sings.

The first Noel the angel did say Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay, In fields where they lay keeping their sheep On a cold winter’s night that was so deep. Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel! Born is the King of Israel!

Isabel lights a candle and passes the candle to the man. He goes with Isabel to the next apartment. They knock on the door. A woman and her daughter open the door and Isabel and her neighbor sing.

Oh, come, all ye faithful, Joyful and triumphant! Oh, come ye, oh come ye to Bethlehem. Come and behold him, Born the King of angels; Oh, come, let us adore him; Oh, come, let us adore him; Oh, come, let us adore him, Christ, the Lord.

The woman and her daughter take candles from the box. They light their candles and walk with Isabel and her neighbor to the next apartment. A family of six opens the door. Isabel and her group of neighbors sing.

Silent night! Holy night! All is calm, all is bright Round yon virgin mother and Child. Holy Infant, so tender and mild, Sleep in heavenly peace; Sleep in heavenly peace.

The group goes up a floor and knocks on the door of another apartment. An older woman with a cane opens the door. Isabel and her group of neighbors sing.

Angels we have heard on high Sweetly singing o’er the plains, And the mountains in reply Echoing their joyous strains. Gloria in excelsis Deo. Gloria in excelsis Deo.

The woman with the cane can’t walk with the group, but Isabel gives her a candle to light her apartment. The group of neighbors goes to the next door and sings.

Hark! the herald angels sing Glory to the newborn King! Peace on earth and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled! Joyful, all ye nations, rise; Join the triumph of the skies; With th’angelic host proclaim Christ is born in Bethlehem! Hark! the herald angels sing Glory to the newborn King!

The group continues through the hallways of the apartment building singing carols and passing candles to the neighbors. Some neighbors decide to join the group while others, like the woman with the cane, stay home. Some neighbors have their own candles, while others take candles from Isabel’s box.

After singing at the last apartment, Isabel has a pretty big group. They don’t want to simply return to their lonely apartments, so they decide to get together in a big room on the main floor of the building. They go to their apartments to get food to share in their improvised Christmas party.

Isabel sits in the room lit by candles from her box and eats with her neighbors. Now she doesn’t feel alone or sad, but she feels like something is missing. She thinks about the woman with the cane. She is not in the room because she can’t go down the stairs and the elevator isn’t working due to the lack of electricity. Isabel fills a plate of food and walks to the woman’s apartment.

When she knocks on the door, the woman invites her to enter. Isabel sits and talks with her. She learns that the woman’s kids couldn’t come home this year due to work and that it is her first Christmas without family. She was feeling very sad and lonely until she heard the music of her neighbors. Now her Christmas is much happier.

Later, Isabel returns to her apartment with her empty box. When she enters, she throws the bow to the side, but she hears something. The box is not completely empty. Inside the box there is one more small present. Isabel opens the packet and finds the figure of the baby Jesus. She puts the figurine with the rest of the Nativity and she sings her favorite carol.

What Child is this, who, laid to rest, On Mary’s lap is sleeping— Whom angels greet with anthems sweet, While shepherds watch are keeping? This, this is Christ, the King, Whom shepherds guard, and angels sing: Haste, haste to bring Him laud, The Babe, the Son of Mary!

Merry Christmas!

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Simple Stories in English: The Lazy Turkey

Season 1, episode 33

Tom Turkey is a lazy turkey. He lives in the woods and just wants to eat all day. The other woodland animals are worried about Tom. They know hunting season is coming and Tom needs to learn how to avoid humans. Each animal gives Tom advice on how to stay safe. But, will Tom listen?

This story is in the third person and the present tense. Important vocabulary in the story includes: turkey, advice, avoid, ignore, and legs.

The Lazy Turkey

There is a turkey. The turkey lives in the woods. It is a wild turkey. The turkey’s name is Tom. Tom Turkey is a big, lazy turkey. He is a big turkey because he eats a lot and he is lazy because he never exercises.

The other woodland animals are worried about Tom Turkey. They know that many people come to the woods to hunt animals. They don’t want to be food for humans and they don’t want their friends to be food for humans either. It is important that the animals know to avoid humans.

The animals fear that Tom will be trapped by a human. They don’t think that Tom can take care of himself alone. They decide to talk to Tom Turkey to give him advice on how to avoid humans and their guns. Each animal shares a strategy they use to avoid humans.

The animals look for Tom Turkey. Tom is eating bugs under a tree. Rick Rabbit talks first. Rick is small. In the summer he is gray and in the winter his hair changes to white. His hair changes to give him camouflage. 

Rick Rabbit recommends that Tom Turkey change the color of his feathers. If Tom changes the color of his feathers, he can have better camouflage in the woods. But Tom is not a rabbit, he is a turkey. He can’t change the color of his feathers. So Tom ignores the advice of Rick Rabbit and he doesn’t change the color of his feathers.

Sally Squirrel is very small. She doesn’t change color, but she has another recommendation to avoid humans. Sally Squirrel collects food all summer. In the winter, she doesn’t have to leave her house because she has enough food.

Sally advises Tom Turkey to collect food and store it in his house to avoid humans. But Tom is not a squirrel, he is a turkey. He can’t store food because he doesn’t have a house. He sleeps in different trees each night. So Tom ignores the advice of Sally Squirrel and he doesn’t collect food to store for the winter.

Fanny Fox notices that Tom sleeps in the trees. She doesn’t think that it is very safe. Fanny lives in a den. Fanny dug the den. Fanny advises Tom to build a den to serve as his house. When humans come, Tom can hide in his den.

But Tom is not a fox, he is a turkey. He doesn’t want to dig a den. He prefers sleeping in the trees, not under the ground. So Tom ignores the advice of Fanny Fox and he doesn’t dig a den.

Rebecca Raccoon has a different suggestion. She is very social. When she steals food from human houses, she goes with her friends. She thinks there is safety in numbers. Rebecca Raccoon has a lot of friends in the woods and she notices that Tom Turkey is alone a lot of the time. Rebecca Raccoon insistes that Tom Turkey spend time with other turkeys because there is safety in numbers.

But Tom is not a raccoon, he is a turkey. He prefers being alone, not in the company of other animals. So, Tom ignores the advice of Rebecca Raccoon and he doesn’t spend time with other turkeys.

Dennis Deer has another idea for Tom. Dennis is big and athletic. He has four long, strong legs. He jumps through the forest and runs quickly when he sees danger. Dennis Deer encourages Tom Turkey to run and jump through the forest.

But Tom is not a deer, he is a turkey. He doesn’t have four long legs, he has two short legs. He doesn’t want to run and jump. So Tom ignores the advice of Dennis Deer and he doesn’t run or jump through the woods.

Micheal Moose is similar to Dennis Deer, but he is taller and prefers the water. When Micheal is in danger, he swims to the center of a lake. When he is in the lake, Micheal sees ducks and other birds that swim. So, Micheal suggests that Tom Turkey swim in the lakes like him and the ducks.

But Tom is not a moose nor a duck, he is a turkey. Tom has different legs, he can’t swim in the lake. So, Tom ignores the advice of Micheal Moose and he doesn’t swim in the lake.

Betty Bird thinks she has a good solution for Tom. When she sees humans, Betty flies to the trees. She flies very high and very fast. Betty Bird suggests that Tom Turkey fly high and fast to avoid humans.

Tom is a bird and he has wings like Betty, but Tom is not a small bird, he is a very fat turkey and his wings are not very strong. Tom can fly to sleep in trees at night, but he can’t fly high or far. So Tom ignores the advice of Betty Bird. He doesn’t fly high or fast.

Beatrice Beaver thinks that Tom’s problem is his activity. Tom is very fat and he is not very active. Beatrice Beaver is very active. She moves trees to build houses and block rivers. Beatrice advises Tom to be more active. She recommends that he do exercises like lifting trees. If he is active and exercises his muscles, he can fly and run to avoid humans.

But Tom is not a beaver, he is a turkey. He can’t move trees or swim. He doesn’t want to exercise, he wants to be lazy. So Tom ignores the advice of Beatrice Beaver and he doesn’t exercise. He doesn’t do anything.

Holly Hedgehog sees that Tom refuses to exercise. She has another idea. When Holly sees a human, she curves her body in a ball. Holly is covered in spikes. When she forms a ball, the spikes protect her. Holly recommends that Tom protect himself.

But Tom is not a hedgehog, he is a turkey. Tom is not covered in spikes, he is covered in feathers. Tom can’t protect himself with feathers. So Tom ignores the advice of Holly Hedgehog. He doesn’t protect himself.

Brutus Bear thinks that all the suggestions of the other animals are unnecessary. Brutus avoids humans by sleeping in a cave all winter. Brutus proposes that Tom also sleep in a cave all winter.

But Tom is not a bear, he is a turkey. He can’t sleep all winter. So Tom ignores the advice of Brutus Bear. He doesn’t sleep in a cave.

The animals don’t have any more advice for Tom. They regret that Tom doesn’t follow their suggestions. But they can’t force change. It is necessary that Tom decide to change.

One day, Tom is in the woods. He sees a pile of corn. Tom loves corn. He wants to eat the corn. But something seems strange. Where did the corn come from? Typically there is no corn in the woods. Could it be a trap?

Tom looks at the woods. He doesn’t see any humans. It is very probable that the corn is a trap. Tom’s instincts demand that he avoid the area and that he doesn’t eat the corn. Tom’s instincts say that it is a trap.

But Tom is not a smart animal, he is a turkey. He can’t think about anything but eating the corn. So he ignores his instincts and eats the corn.

It’s regrettable that Tom ignores everyone, especially his own instincts. If Tom listened to the advice of his friends, it is possible that he would still be in the woods with them, instead of on the table of an American family on Thanksgiving Day.

The end.

You can also watch a video of this story on YouTube!

I really enjoy creating and sharing simple, comprehensible stories. I work hard to provide tools and supports for those who want to learn. Please, consider buying me a taco to support my work!

You can download a printer-friendly PDF of this story.

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