The Hare and the Tortoise

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(traditional/folk)

The Hare and the Tortoise

by Helen Ward

This book is the traditional story of the Hare and the Tortoise. The Hare trips over the Tortoise and falls into a thorny bush so he gets angry at the Tortoise and calls him slow and stupid. The Tortoise is more polite and instead of insulting the Hare, he challenges the Hare to a race. The Hare laughs because he can't believe the Tortoise thinks he is faster than him. On the day of the race, the race begins and the Hare shoots off ahead of th Tortoise. The Tortoise is way behind, but is moving at a steady pace. The Hare gets lost in a forest and is tired so he decides to take a nap since the Tortoise is so far behind. When he wakes up he is in a garden so he decides he will have some lunch too. The Hare thinks he has all the time in the world and that the Tortoise could never beat him. While he is eating, he hears cheering, so he runs to the finish line and gets there just in time to see the Tortoise crossing the finish line ahead of him. The Hare, unable to stop, runs into another thorny bush. This time he just keeps his mouth shut because he has learned his lesson. Using this book in the classroom would be excellent to read to younger kids because of the morals behind it. This story teaches you not to brag, not to insult others, and not to be arrogant. Most younger kids think they are the best at everything and will often fall into this trap. This book teaches them to be wise and always do their best, instead of thinking they will always win or be better than someone else.