Menu

Menu
Prompts
Contests
Stories
Blog
Featured stories
Activity feed

Discover weekly, the best short stories

Looking for a steady supply of kids short stories? Every week thousands of writers submit stories to our writing contest.

150+ Kids Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. Whether you plan to read them aloud or just indulge your own childlike imagination, look no further! The most magical tales live in this collection of free short stories for kids.

Kids Short Stories – Page 4 of 10

Ocean Singer of the Night - Voyages of the Destiny's Dreams

Submitted to Contest #304

"Labyrinths of the wild,Nature entwined,Ocean's stories,Beyond time and mind."The voice of Ocean Singer wafted over the ocean.The canvas sails of the boat gleamed in the lantern light, beneath the stars and moon.A new tale bubbled up from Ocean Singer's mind.Something different had been carved into him by his recent experiences. His stories took on new shapes.Now, each night he wandered the mystical sailing ship decks. In the darkness, more stories sparkled in the depths and essence of his being.His lost storytelling skill was coming back. S...

49 likes 16 comments 16
Read story

Pita's Great Adventure

Submitted to Contest #304

Hi, my name is Pita. It is a pleasure to meet you, woof woof! Let’s have some fun! I am a playful puppy who loves to go on adventures. Everyone calls me a little dalmatian. Some of my favorite things to do are play fetch with newspapers and get all dirty in the mud. But what makes me feel the absolute best is helping others in need. Boy, that sure makes my heart feel warm and fuzzy. One day, when I was doing my daily walk around my neighborhood, there was a new little girl who caught my attention. The little girl and her family just moved in...

7 likes 5 comments 5
Read story

Yours Truly..., The Shadow Syndicate of Playground Justice

Submitted to Contest #304

Ares, pint-sized god of war and notorious night-owl (by necessity, not by choice), clutched his superhero blanket, emblazoned with a surprisingly inaccurate depiction of Hercules wrestling a rubber duck, even tighter.His eyes, usually gleaming with fierce determination, were wide and darting, scanning the shadowy battlefield of his bedroom."Sarah," he whispered, his voice a tiny squeak that barely registered above the mournful creak of his bedroom door,"Are you absolutely, positively sure the plan is sound? Because it's... really dark."Sarah...

4 likes 0 comments 0
Read story

The Girl Who (Cried) Wolf

Submitted to Contest #303

Miss D smelled trouble as soon as she heard the footsteps approaching her home office.“Mum, this is the third time this month Myrtle stole my money,” Veronica said, dragging in her younger sister by the hair.“I didn’t, I didn’t!” Myrtle screamed as she released herself from her sister’s grasp. “I swear, Mum, I didn’t.”“You’re lying.”“No, I’m not,” Myrtle growled at her sister. “ I said I swear.”“What do you swear upon?”“I swear on—Jesus.”“You don’t believe in Jesus.”“Maybe I do,” retorted Myrtle, then turned to her mother. “Mum, Veronica is ...

8 likes 1 comment 1
Read story

Devil in a Pink Dress & Pig Tails

Submitted to Contest #303

The late morning sun beat down on the technicolor battlefield of the kindergarten playground. To the casual observer, it was a scene of innocent chaos: shrieks of delight, the rhythmic squeak of swings, the dull thud of a kicked ball. But to five-year-old Ares, the budding god of war, it was a testing ground, a realm ripe for conquest.He surveyed his domain from the top of the climbing structure, a plastic castle complete with turrets and a slide that served as his personal drawbridge. His eyes, already possessing an unsettling intensity for...

10 likes 8 comments 8
Read story

Two Cats In the Yard

Submitted to Contest #304

Pets were the furthest things from her mind as Vera conducted her seasonal ritual, the change-up of the items stored in the hall closet. Out with winter, in with summer. A bellow from the basement jolted her, a bellow that was born deep down inside the diaphragm of a ten-year-old old boy. “Aaaarghhh! Mom!” Vera jumped at the murderous yell. What in God’s name are those kids up to now? She was startled rather than alarmed. Not out of any lack of concern for the welfare of her darling children, mind you, but because her motherly intuition t...

6 likes 2 comments 2
Read story

Respectable

Submitted to Contest #303

Content warning: This story deals with sensitive topics including child poverty, pregnancy termination and drug dealing. The high-pitched barcode scanner sound at the self-checkout always elevated her stress level. Her body heat was spreading under her old winter coat. She was sure to be the main focus on the radar of the security guard in the corner of the grocery store. Her oversized red coat looked shabby; she was wearing jeans that had lost their rich black colour. Someone could say she was a natural beauty with no trace of mak...

6 likes 1 comment 1
Read story

A Dish Best Served Cold

Submitted to Contest #303

The sun was high. It hit the kindergarten playground. It was a golden light on Sarah’s sandcastle, Castle Sparklehoof. She saw it as a fortress. It had seashell turrets. A moat, dug with care, held water from the dripping fountain. A popsicle stick made a drawbridge. Sarah, five years old, knelt before it. A queen, watching her kingdom.Her subjects were plastic dinosaurs. A one-eyed teddy, Bartholomew. They stood guard."Here," she told Bartholomew, adjusting his ear, "is where the dragon will fall. Princess Sarah will vanquish it. Her steed,...

7 likes 3 comments 3
Read story

Deep Diver of Arctic Seas - Voyages of the Destiny's Dreams

Submitted to Contest #302

Deep Diver, the 4,000 elephant seal, swam through the twilight zone of the sea near the Arctic, where sunlight disappears in the water's depths.The Ice Age melt raised the seas where Deep Diver swam.He had a magnificent nose like the beginning of an elephant's trunk.It flopped up and down when he tossed his head. Deep Diver liked to inflate it with air to make it even larger. Then he could look more threatening when he faced rivals in battles on beaches.He and his kind were sensitive to patterns, currents, and flows in the ocean system.Each...

39 likes 12 comments 12
Read story

Sixth Sense

Submitted to Contest #302

Sunlight filters across the veranda and a light airy breeze rustles the leaves of the great oak tree. Thor squints his amber eyes open briefly and quivers his nose, picking up the sweet grass breeze tainted with a hint of sheep. He heaves a sigh and continues to bask his white fluffy coat in the warm afternoon sunlight. Thor enjoyed stretching out his achy limbs after making his morning rounds along the border of Meadow Ridge Farm. He was a good livestock guard dog for the past ten years and pleasingly served his Upwalkers. They rewarded him...

11 likes 2 comments 2
Read story

The Wooden Tiara

Submitted to Contest #302

There was once a young girl named Rella. She lived in a small village amid the Scattered Wildwoods, and there was nothing more that she wanted in life than to be a princess. Now, of course, that would never happen. Rella was a human—a mortal—and only a demigoddess born of the royal family can be a princess. But Rella did not care about this fact. No matter how many times her parents told her that such a fantasy was impossible, Rella would claim that they were lying to her. Often, she would plug her ears with her fingertips and make faces at ...

10 likes 5 comments 5
Read story

The Party I Didn't Choose

Submitted to Contest #303

The Party I Didn’t Chooseby Candy Tedford I didn’t have a choice.It was happening with or without me.Turning ten, I mean.People kept saying, “Double digits! That’s so exciting!” and “You’re practically a pre-teen now!” as if I’d just won some sparkly award. But I didn’t feel excited. I felt…nine. Perfectly, completely nine.Nine-year-olds don’t have to do fractions.Nine-year-olds can still eat dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets.Nine-year-olds don’t get blamed for stuff like cake disasters.Ten? Ten sounded suspiciously like trouble.Mom had this v...

8 likes 16 comments 16
Read story

Prince Charming

Submitted to Contest #302

I am, most assuredly, not a prince. If you kiss me, I will continue to be exactly what I am, which is not a prince. Although I have not been alive for very long, I know this to be true. Some other things I know to be true are as follows:1. I was born in a small creek which winds serenely through a patch of untamed woods until lazily spilling out into a river some five miles or so away.2. I have no idea what “miles” are or how far they might be.3. I am very good at making myself sound knowledgeable.4. I am also very good at making lists.5. I ...

9 likes 7 comments 7
Read story

Elite Gymnastics

Submitted to Contest #301

Fred was just a normal boy who did gymnastics at his average gym, and rarely got scores higher than an eight out of ten, which is average, too. Across the street from the gym at which he practiced there was an unmarked building, except for a sign on the door that said “Elite Gymnastics Training Facility.” There was one of those neon signs that said “OPEN” but he had never seen it lit. When Fred passed the building at seven-thirty in the morning, on his way to school, the sign wasn’t lit. It wasn’t lit when he walked home f...

5 likes 2 comments 2
Read story

Ocean Tsunami Surge Carries Away the Ship Destiny's Dreams

Submitted to Contest #301

White sails glided through the marine layer and into the bay.The promise of a peaceful anchorage beckoned. The 1800s wooden ship under square canvas sails waltzed over the waves like a sleek, beautiful woman.She was the mythical vessel known as the Destiny's Dreams on her world voyages.The sea reflected the sun's sparkle. The air caressed the skin with a light, warm touch. The ship settled at anchor with sounds of happy ripples on the water.But unseen rhythms of the sea were bringing changes.Soon the day turned into chaos.Earlier that mornin...

40 likes 20 comments 20
Read story
RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

Bring your short stories to life

Fuse character, story, and conflict with tools in Reedsy Studio. All for free.