Once upon a time, there was a hardworking squirrel who had spent a lot of time and effort making his farm successful. He grew plenty of crops, and because he was great at climbing trees, he didn’t worry about building a road to his farm. Instead, he reached it by jumping from tree to tree.
One day, when his crops were almost ready to be harvested, a spider was out hunting nearby. Spider came across the squirrel’s farm and was amazed at how good it looked. He looked for a road that led to the farm but couldn’t find one. Spider returned home and told his family about the beautiful farm. The very next day, Spider and his family went to the farm and quickly built a road to it. Spider, being sneaky, scattered pieces of broken pottery along the road to make it look like his family had been working hard on the farm for a long time.
Then, Spider and his family started stealing the ripe crops from the squirrel’s farm. Squirrel noticed that some of his crops were missing, but at first, he didn’t know who was stealing them. Determined to catch the thief, Squirrel decided to watch his farm closely. Sure enough, Spider came back to take more crops. Squirrel confronted him, asking, "What right do you have to be on my farm?"
Spider, quick to lie, responded, "What right do you have? This farm belongs to me!"
Squirrel was shocked. "No, it’s mine! I planted and grew these crops," he said.
"But where is your road to the farm?" Spider asked slyly. "If this was really your farm, you would have a road leading to it."
Squirrel replied, "I don’t need a road. I get here by climbing the trees."
Spider laughed at this, mocking Squirrel. "A farm with no road? That’s ridiculous! This farm is mine now."
Squirrel was upset and decided to take the matter to court. However, the court ruled in Spider’s favor. They said no one could own a farm without a road, so it must belong to Spider.
Spider and his family were overjoyed. They planned to harvest the rest of the crops and take them to the market to sell. After gathering all the crops, they tied them up in large bundles and set off for the market. Halfway there, a terrible storm came, forcing them to drop the bundles by the roadside and run for shelter.
When the storm ended, they returned to get their bundles. But when they arrived, they saw a huge black crow standing over the bundles, using his wings to keep them dry.
Spider politely thanked the crow, saying, "Thank you so much for guarding our crops."
The crow stared at Spider and said, "Your crops? Who leaves bundles of crops by the roadside? These are mine now."
Without waiting for an argument, the crow picked up the bundles and flew away, leaving Spider and his family with nothing. Their dishonest ways had cost them everything, and they returned home empty-handed, learning that stealing brought them no rewards in the end.
Once upon a time, there was a hardworking squirrel who had spent a lot of time and effort making his farm successful. He grew plenty of crops, and because he was great at climbing trees, he didn’t worry about building a road to his farm. Instead, he reached it by jumping from tree to tree.
One day, when his crops were almost ready to be harvested, a spider was out hunting nearby. Spider came across the squirrel’s farm and was amazed at how good it looked. He looked for a road that led to the farm but couldn’t find one. Spider returned home and told his family about the beautiful farm. The very next day, Spider and his family went to the farm and quickly built a road to it. Spider, being sneaky, scattered pieces of broken pottery along the road to make it look like his family had been working hard on the farm for a long time.
Then, Spider and his family started stealing the ripe crops from the squirrel’s farm. Squirrel noticed that some of his crops were missing, but at first, he didn’t know who was stealing them. Determined to catch the thief, Squirrel decided to watch his farm closely. Sure enough, Spider came back to take more crops. Squirrel confronted him, asking, "What right do you have to be on my farm?"
Spider, quick to lie, responded, "What right do you have? This farm belongs to me!"
Squirrel was shocked. "No, it’s mine! I planted and grew these crops," he said.
"But where is your road to the farm?" Spider asked slyly. "If this was really your farm, you would have a road leading to it."
Squirrel replied, "I don’t need a road. I get here by climbing the trees."
Spider laughed at this, mocking Squirrel. "A farm with no road? That’s ridiculous! This farm is mine now."
Squirrel was upset and decided to take the matter to court. However, the court ruled in Spider’s favor. They said no one could own a farm without a road, so it must belong to Spider.
Spider and his family were overjoyed. They planned to harvest the rest of the crops and take them to the market to sell. After gathering all the crops, they tied them up in large bundles and set off for the market. Halfway there, a terrible storm came, forcing them to drop the bundles by the roadside and run for shelter.
When the storm ended, they returned to get their bundles. But when they arrived, they saw a huge black crow standing over the bundles, using his wings to keep them dry.
Spider politely thanked the crow, saying, "Thank you so much for guarding our crops."
The crow stared at Spider and said, "Your crops? Who leaves bundles of crops by the roadside? These are mine now."
Without waiting for an argument, the crow picked up the bundles and flew away, leaving Spider and his family with nothing. Their dishonest ways had cost them everything, and they returned home empty-handed, learning that stealing brought them no rewards in the end.
A squirrel works hard every day. He has a small farm in the forest. He grows food there. The squirrel doesn’t need a road to his farm. He climbs trees to reach it.
One day, a spider walks through the forest. He sees the squirrel’s farm and thinks, “This is a nice farm!” But he doesn’t see a road. The spider goes home and tells his family about the farm.
The next day, the spider and his family go to the farm. They build a road to it. The spider puts broken pieces of pottery on the road to make it look old. He wants it to seem like they have worked there for a long time.
The spider and his family start taking food from the farm. The squirrel notices that some food is missing. He watches his farm carefully and soon sees the spider stealing.
The squirrel says, “Why are you taking my food?”
The spider says, “This is my farm now. Where is your road? Farms must have roads.”
The squirrel says, “I don’t need a road. I climb trees to get here.”
The spider laughs. “No road? Then this is not your farm.”
The squirrel is upset. He goes to the judge. The judge looks at the farm and says, “The farm has a road. It must belong to the spider.”
The spider and his family are happy. They take all the food and tie it into big bundles. They plan to sell it at the market.
But on the way, a big storm comes. The spider and his family run to find shelter. They leave the bundles by the side of the road.
When the storm ends, they go back to get the food. But a big bird is standing on the bundles. The bird says, “You left these here. Now they are mine.”
The bird picks up the bundles and flies away. The spider and his family have nothing. They are sad and hungry. They learn that stealing is wrong and brings no reward.
Once upon a time, there was a hardworking squirrel who had spent a lot of time and effort making his farm successful. He grew plenty of crops, and because he was great at climbing trees, he didn’t worry about building a road to his farm. Instead, he reached it by jumping from tree to tree.
One day, when his crops were almost ready to be harvested, a spider was out hunting nearby. Spider came across the squirrel’s farm and was amazed at how good it looked. He looked for a road that led to the farm but couldn’t find one. Spider returned home and told his family about the beautiful farm. The very next day, Spider and his family went to the farm and quickly built a road to it. Spider, being sneaky, scattered pieces of broken pottery along the road to make it look like his family had been working hard on the farm for a long time.
Then, Spider and his family started stealing the ripe crops from the squirrel’s farm. Squirrel noticed that some of his crops were missing, but at first, he didn’t know who was stealing them. Determined to catch the thief, Squirrel decided to watch his farm closely. Sure enough, Spider came back to take more crops. Squirrel confronted him, asking, "What right do you have to be on my farm?"
Spider, quick to lie, responded, "What right do you have? This farm belongs to me!"
Squirrel was shocked. "No, it’s mine! I planted and grew these crops," he said.
"But where is your road to the farm?" Spider asked slyly. "If this was really your farm, you would have a road leading to it."
Squirrel replied, "I don’t need a road. I get here by climbing the trees."
Spider laughed at this, mocking Squirrel. "A farm with no road? That’s ridiculous! This farm is mine now."
Squirrel was upset and decided to take the matter to court. However, the court ruled in Spider’s favor. They said no one could own a farm without a road, so it must belong to Spider.
Spider and his family were overjoyed. They planned to harvest the rest of the crops and take them to the market to sell. After gathering all the crops, they tied them up in large bundles and set off for the market. Halfway there, a terrible storm came, forcing them to drop the bundles by the roadside and run for shelter.
When the storm ended, they returned to get their bundles. But when they arrived, they saw a huge black crow standing over the bundles, using his wings to keep them dry.
Spider politely thanked the crow, saying, "Thank you so much for guarding our crops."
The crow stared at Spider and said, "Your crops? Who leaves bundles of crops by the roadside? These are mine now."
Without waiting for an argument, the crow picked up the bundles and flew away, leaving Spider and his family with nothing. Their dishonest ways had cost them everything, and they returned home empty-handed, learning that stealing brought them no rewards in the end.
Once upon a time, there was a squirrel who was the picture of hard work. He ran a farm so well-organized it could’ve been featured on "Nature’s Got Talent." His crops were lush, his farm was tidy, and his technique? Let’s just say, he didn’t need roads. "Who needs roads when you’ve got parkour skills?" he often boasted, hopping from tree to tree to get to his fields.
Now, not far away, a sneaky spider was out for a nighttime stroll—or whatever spiders call it when they skitter around looking for trouble. He came across the squirrel’s farm, rubbed his eight little hands together, and thought, Well, this is a nice setup... for me.
Spider couldn’t find a road leading to the farm, which he thought was weird. "No road? Who does that? How do deliveries even work here?" But instead of pondering logistics, Spider had a different plan. He scurried back home and told his family, “Pack your bags, folks. We’re moving to our new farm!”
The next morning, Spider and his family arrived at the farm with everything but a moving van. They built a little dirt road to the farm and decorated it with some broken pottery for flair. “Voilà! Instant history,” Spider announced with a bow. “Now it looks like we’ve been working this land for years. Call it rustic chic!”
Then came the pilfering. At first, Spider and his gang just took a few ripe crops here and there. “Just a snack,” Spider said, munching on a juicy cob of corn. “We’re basically helping with quality control.” But soon, they got greedy, and Squirrel started noticing. “Hold on,” he said, scratching his head. “I know I planted more than two carrots. What’s going on here?”
Determined to solve the mystery, Squirrel decided to stake out his farm. One moonlit night, he saw Spider sneaking through the rows of crops, muttering to himself, “Oh, look at these juicy carrots. Perfectly ripe. I’m basically doing them a favor, eating them before they go bad. I should get a medal for this!”
Squirrel leaped down from the tree and shouted, “HEY! What are you doing on my farm?”
Spider froze, his eight eyes wide. Then he smirked. “Your farm? Excuse me, Acorn Breath, but this farm belongs to me.”
“What?!” Squirrel blinked. “No, it doesn’t! I planted these crops. I watered them. I even sang to them. Do you know how hard it is to hit a high note when you’re holding a watering can?”
Spider crossed his many arms. “Oh, really? Then where’s your road?”
“My road?” Squirrel asked, confused.
“Yeah,” Spider said with a sly grin. “Everyone knows farms have roads. You don’t have a road. I do. Ergo… my farm.”
“That’s ridiculous!” Squirrel shouted. “I don’t need a road. I use the trees.”
Spider rolled his eyes. “Oh, sure, because farms without roads are so practical. How’s that working out for Amazon deliveries, huh?”
Frustrated, Squirrel decided to take the matter to court. But to his horror, the court ruled in Spider’s favor. “We regret to inform you,” the judge said, polishing his tiny gavel, “but no road, no farm.”
Spider’s family cheered. “Victory dance!” shouted Spider, doing a little jig. “This place is ours now. Time to harvest!”
The spiders bundled up the crops and set off for the market. But halfway there, the sky darkened, and a storm rolled in like an angry neighbor. Rain poured, and thunder growled. Spider and his family scurried to safety, leaving the bundles by the roadside.
When the storm passed, they skittered back to retrieve the crops, only to find a huge black crow standing over them, wings spread dramatically like a villain in a bird-themed musical.
“Oh, good,” Spider said nervously, “you’re guarding our crops! Thanks, pal.”
The crow tilted his head. “Your crops?” he cawed. “Who leaves perfectly good food by the roadside? These are mine now.”
“Wait, wait, wait!” Spider protested. “That’s not fair!”
“Fair?” the crow squawked. “You want fair? Fair is for farmers who don’t lie and steal. Bye!” And with a flap of his massive wings, Crow grabbed the bundles and flew off, leaving Spider and his family staring into the empty sky.
Spider sighed. “Well, that didn’t go as planned.”
His family glared at him. “Next time, maybe we try honesty?”
And from then on, Spider learned to keep his sneaky schemes to himself—mostly because his family wouldn’t let him forget the time they got outsmarted by a bird. Meanwhile, Squirrel continued his tree-jumping, parkour farming life, wiser and more determined than ever.
High in the trees, where the green leaves play,
A squirrel worked hard every single day.
He planted his crops with patience and care,
His farm was a wonder, beyond compare.
From tree to tree, he'd leap and he'd bound,
No road to his farm was ever found.
"I need no path," he would cheerfully say,
"My trees are my road, my natural way."
One day, a spider came skittering near,
And saw the farm, its beauty clear.
"No road to this place? How odd it must be.
I’ll make it my own; just watch and see!"
Spider and family worked through the night,
Building a road, both sneaky and slight.
With shards of pottery, they made it appear
They’d toiled on the farm for many a year.
When crops went missing, the squirrel could tell
That something was wrong, and all was not well.
He hid in the trees, his eyes open wide,
And saw the thief with a bundle to hide.
"Spider!" he called, "This farm isn’t yours.
I planted these crops; these fields are my stores!"
But Spider just chuckled and slyly replied,
"Where is your road? You surely have lied!"
"No road do I need, for trees guide my way,"
The squirrel insisted, but Spider would say,
"A farm with no road? That cannot be true.
The court will decide it belongs to me, not you!"
The judges agreed, and the squirrel was sad;
Spider was gleeful, his family glad.
They stole all the crops, and off they did go,
But dark clouds above began to grow.
The storm rolled in with thunderous sound,
The spiders dropped bundles upon the ground.
They scurried for shelter, afraid of the rain,
Hoping to gather their loot again.
But when they returned, they found with dismay,
A crow with wide wings had come to stay.
"These bundles are mine," the crow did declare,
"Who leaves their crops just lying there?"
With a flap of his wings, the crow took flight,
The spiders were left in the dimming light.
Empty-handed, they trudged in despair,
Their greed had left them with nothing to spare.
Collected crops that are ready to be used.
Objects made from clay that are baked hard.
Fully grown and ready to be eaten.
Strongly decided to do something important.
Someone who takes things that aren’t theirs.
In a clever and sneaky way, often tricky.
Laughing at someone to make them feel silly.
A place where problems are judged fairly.
Groups of things tied together to carry.
A safe place to stay during bad weather.
Place to grow plants and food.
Big area with many trees.
Things made from baked clay.
Not whole; in pieces.
Not there when it should be.
Person who decides right or wrong.
Things tied together in a group.
Place to buy and sell things.
Safe place to stay during bad weather.
Taking something that is not yours.
Collected crops that are ready to be used.
Objects made from clay that are baked hard.
Fully grown and ready to be eaten.
Strongly decided to do something important.
Someone who takes things that aren’t theirs.
In a clever and sneaky way, often tricky.
Laughing at someone to make them feel silly.
A place where problems are judged fairly.
Groups of things tied together to carry.
A safe place to stay during bad weather.
What does the squirrel do every day?
Why does the spider think the farm is his?
What happens to the food the spider and his family take?
Why do the spider and his family feel sad?
What lesson do the spider and his family learn?
While the grasshopper dances through summer, the ant works hard, gathering food. Which one will survive when winter arrives?
A lion spares a tiny mouse who promises to return the favor one day. How could such a small mouse possibly help a lion?
The powerful North Wind and the gentle Sun try to make a traveler take off his cloak to prove who is stronger. Which one will succeed?
Steady and patient, a slow tortoise dares to race against a confident hare. Who will cross the finish line first?
When a farmer brings a bundle of sticks to his sons, they stop arguing. How did a simple bundle of sticks teach them?
A thirsty crow finds a pitcher with water too low to reach. What clever trick will he use to get a drink?
A king's elephant and a dog form a friendship, are suddenly separated, but they are reunited by the king and live happily.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Enjoy 25 selected fables for life, in print. Every purchase supports free stories for children, parents, and teachers worldwide at fablereads.com
Learn More
