Folk tales for elementary school children. Short bedtime stories

A fairy tale is that piece of childhood that remains with us forever, even when childhood passes away. This is a magical world that is wide open to the baby, and getting to know it begins with a short and sweet bedtime story.

At what age should you read fairy tales to your child?

There is no strict age limit for reading fairy tales to a child. Reading for a child is, first of all, an opportunity for emotional closeness with an adult. Even if not a word is understood yet, the familiar timbre of the voice and measured rhythm calm the baby and stimulate his development. This is why psychologists recommend reading fairy tales even to infants. The main condition: the process should bring pleasure to both the adult and the child.

Benefits of reading fairy tales

A bedtime story read by a parent is a powerful stimulus for the development of a child, and provides a wide range of opportunities for the child in the following areas:

• imagination;
• fantasy;
• creative thinking;
• speech skills;
• emotional development;
• the ability to find a way out of problematic situations.

Unlike cartoons, a fairy tale does not present the child with ready-made images and a world invented by the artist, but invites him to think, think through and imagine what is not in the illustrations.

Simply put, we read to children at night and unleash their creativity at the same time. The next step is children's first attempts at being an author and artist, but that will come later. And now such familiar and at the same time amazing short bedtime stories are coming to the aid of parents.

Fairy tales before bed - what should they be?

It often happens that every day a child asks to read a familiar fairy tale to him for the hundredth time, not wanting to listen to any others.

There is no need to argue and try to read something new - a bedtime story exists to lull you and give you pleasant dreams. This means it should be:

• short;
• calm;
• kind;
• without dynamic details in the plot, but with a happy ending.

Repeated repetition of the same situation (a familiar room, a favorite blanket and a soft toy, next to a mother reading a familiar fairy tale) turns into a kind of ritual for the baby, which has a calming effect. This helps relieve the emotional stress that has accumulated over a long day.

Short tales on our website

The “Short Bedtime Stories” section presents famous works by Russian and foreign authors that have become favorites of children all over the world.

Magical people created by Astrid Lindgren, kind tigers by Donald Bisset, inseparable Hedgehog and Little Bear by Sergei Kozlov - these and other characters are looking forward to meeting little readers.

Here you will also find folk tales and illustrated works by Vladimir Suteev. Kids will be delighted with simple educational stories and colorful pictures created by a real Master.

Tips on the site

The free bedtime stories presented on our website are so diverse that sometimes it can be difficult to find the one you need. To help parents, we have developed a convenient search system that allows you to view the parameters of a fairy tale without opening it:

• age of readers;
• reading time;
• short description;
• popularity indicator;
• illustration.

Secrets of reading bedtime stories

In order for a sweet dream to replace an evening fairy tale, it should be a short fairy tale, which should be read online in a calm and familiar environment.

Read in a low voice, without haste. Remember, we read to children at night not to give them new knowledge - there is daytime for that. In the evening, it is important to create a relaxing atmosphere and a feeling of peace. To do this, it is important to choose the right bedtime story, which is why our website is always open for you, dear parents!

- this is one of the oldest forms of storytelling, which in the simplest and most playful form tells children not only about the world around them, but also about manifestations of both the best and the ugliest. General statistics tell us that Russian folk tales are of interest only to children up to school age, but it is these tales that we carry in our hearts and, even if in a slightly modified form, we pass them on to our children. After all, it is impossible to forget about Masha and the Bear, Ryaba the hen or the Gray Wolf; all these images help us learn and understand the reality around us. You can read Russian folk tales online and listen to audio tales for free on our website.

Types of Russian folk tales

Folk tales are basically divided into three categories. These are tales about animals, everyday life and fairy tales.

Russian folk tales about animals- these are one of the most ancient types of fairy tales that exist, their roots go back to the times of Ancient Rus'. These fairy tales contain vivid and very memorable images; we all remember Kolobok or Turnip from childhood, and thanks to such vivid images, the child learns to understand good and evil. Learns to distinguish character traits and lines of behavior: a fox is cunning, a bear is clumsy, a bunny is cowardly, and so on. Although the world of folk tales is fictional, it is so alive and vibrant that it fascinates and knows how to teach children only good deeds.

Russian everyday tales- these are fairy tales that are filled with the realism of our everyday life. And they are so close to life that when delving into these fairy tales, be careful, because this line is so thin that your growing child will want to embody and experience some of the actions on himself or carry them out in real life.

Russian fairy tales- this is a world in which magic and the evil associated with it takes on very terrible outlines and vital shades. Fairy tales are the search and rescue of a girl, a city or the world entrusted to the shoulders of one hero. But it is the help of many minor characters that teaches us, the readers of these fairy tales, about mutual assistance to each other. Read and listen to folk tales online with us.

For preschool children, for teenagers and for dreamy boys and girls, Russian folk tales are collected on the page. Moms and dads, grandparents can remember their childhood and immerse themselves with their beloved children in the fascinating world of magical children's literature on our website, the “Russian Fairy Tale” website online, free of charge and without registration.

Author's and folk tales are accompanied by extraordinary illustrations. For several centuries after the invention of lacquer and artistic painting in Rus', a countless wealth of colorful fairy-tale sketches from Palekh, Fedoskino, Kholui, Mstera, Zhostovo, Dymkovo, Gzhel, Khokhloma, Russian nesting dolls and other folk crafts have been collected. One glance at the page is enough to understand the artist’s imagination is limitless!

Having no television, no radio, no Internet in their arsenal, but only canvas, paints and their own imagination, storytellers created real masterpieces.

The incredible riot of colors and the depiction of the smallest details make these paintings a property of national Russian art and true historical value.

Looking at the pictures, you can understand how our ancestors lived, how they dressed, how they imagined this huge world. Modern children, through the paintings of Russian artists, will be able to realize that life was not as comfortable and carefree as in our turbulent times!

People had to work hard to grow bread, weave linen and paint their lives in several bright colors.

A charge of goodness and light in Russian folk tales.

In times when there were no televisions or the Internet, all children and adults gathered in one large room in the evening. They lit candles, the women sat at work, and the kids climbed onto the warm and cozy stove and asked their grandmother: - tell me a story. The grandmother-storyteller began to bake and read beautiful little tales, stories that were composed by the people based on real events. The storytellers knew many, many folk tales and recited them, creating a magical theatrical production.

The children listened to long and short bedtime stories with bated breath, and absorbed with their souls and memories every word dropped about magical animals and people. Apart from playing in the yard and making up stories, they had no other entertainment, but the children grew up smart, brave and true patriots of the great Mother Russia.

Today, reading fairy tales with pictures is intended to develop the imagination and replenish the richness of the native Russian language. Large font will help you easily read the text, remember the words and love reading the book, and after each line of the story there is a picture, drawing or photo of a lacquer miniature that illustrates the event and the adventures of fairy-tale characters.

The page contains our favorite fairy tales by Russian and foreign writers. Here are stories about popular and famous characters that every child should meet in early childhood. It’s better to start immersing yourself in the magical world of fairy tales with Turnip, Masha and the Bear, Kolobok and the Pockmarked Hen. Then move on to meet Morozko, Emelya and the magic pike, Baba Yaga and Koshchei, Ivan the Tsarevich and Vasilisa the Beautiful, the Princess Frog and Sivka the Burka, Ivan the Fool, the Fisherman and the Goldfish. Gradually, children will get to know and love all fairy-tale characters, learn from their examples to live, love, do good, and will definitely remember fairy tales from childhood for many, many years.

Fairy tales for children 3 years old, 4 years old, 5 years old, 6 years old, 7 years old, 8 years old, 9 years old... for kindergarten children of all ages, school students and their parents, teachers and educators.

Fairy tales are poetic stories about extraordinary events and adventures involving fictional characters. In modern Russian, the concept of the word “fairy tale” has acquired its meaning since the 17th century. Until that point, the word "fable" was supposedly used in this meaning.

One of the main features of a fairy tale is that it is always based on an invented story, with a happy ending, where good defeats evil. The stories contain a certain hint that enables the child to learn to recognize good and evil and to comprehend life through clear examples.

Read children's stories online

Reading fairy tales is one of the main and important stages on your child’s path to life. Various stories make it clear that the world around us is quite contradictory and unpredictable. By listening to stories about the adventures of the main characters, children learn to value love, honesty, friendship and kindness.

Reading fairy tales is useful not only for children. Having grown up, we forget that in the end good always triumphs over evil, that all adversity is nothing, and a beautiful princess is waiting for her prince on a white horse. It’s quite easy to give a little good mood and plunge into a fairy-tale world!

If you close your eyes and travel back in time for a moment, you can imagine how ordinary Russian people lived. With large families, they lived in wooden huts, heated the stoves with wood, and the light was provided by home-made dry torches. Poor Russian people had neither television nor the Internet, so what could they do when they weren’t working in the fields? They relaxed, dreamed and listened to good fairy tales!

In the evening, the whole family gathered in one room, the children sat on the stove, and the women did housework. At this time, the turn of Russian folk tales began. In every village or hamlet there lived a woman storyteller; she replaced the radio for people and beautifully chanted ancient legends. The kids listened with their mouths open, and the girls quietly sang along and spun or embroidered while listening to a good fairy tale.

What did the respected storytellers tell the people about?

Good prophets kept in their memory a large number of folk tales, legends and fairy tales. All their lives they brought light to ordinary peasants, and in old age they passed on their knowledge to the next talented storytellers. Most of the legends were based on real life events, but over the years the fairy tales acquired fictitious details and acquired a special Russian flavor.

Note to readers!

The most famous storyteller in Rus' and Finland is a simple serf woman Praskovya Nikitichna, married to Vaska. She knew 32,000 poems and fairy tales, 1,152 songs, 1,750 proverbs, 336 riddles and a large number of prayers. Hundreds of books and poetry collections have been written based on her stories, but for all her talents, Praskovya Nikitichna was poor all her life and even worked as a barge hauler.

Another well-known storyteller throughout Russia is Pushkin’s nanny Arina Rodionovna. It was she who instilled in the poet a love of Russian fairy tales from early childhood, and on the basis of her ancient stories, Alexander Sergeevich wrote his great works.

What do Russian fairy tales tell about?

Fairy tales invented by ordinary people are an encyclopedia of folk wisdom. Through simple stories, workers and peasants presented their vision of the world and passed on information in encrypted form to subsequent generations.

Old Russian fairy tales are divided into three types:

Animal Tales. In folk stories there are funny characters who are especially close to ordinary Russian people. The clumsy bear, little sister fox, runaway bunny, little mouse, and frog frog are endowed with pronounced human qualities. In the fairy tale "Masha and the Bear" Potapych is kind but stupid, in the story about the Seven Little Goats the wolf is cunning and gluttonous, and in the fairy tale "The Boasting Bunny" the little hare is cowardly and boastful. From the age of 2-3, it’s time for children to become familiar with good Russian fairy tales and, using the example of funny characters with distinct personalities, learn to distinguish between positive and negative heroes.

Magical mystical tales. There are many interesting mystical characters in Russian fairy tales that could outshine famous American heroes. Baba Yaga Bone Leg, Serpent Gorynych and Koschey the Immortal are distinguished by their realism and have been living in good folk tales for several centuries. Epic heroes and brave noble princes fought with the mystical heroes who kept the people in fear. And the beautiful needlewomen Vasilisa the Beautiful, Marya, Varvara Krasa fought against evil spirits with intelligence, cunning and ingenuity.

Tales about the life of ordinary Russian people. Through wise fairy tales, the people told about their existence and passed on the accumulated knowledge from generation to generation. A striking example is the fairy tale “Kolobok”. Here an old man and an old woman bake an unusual loaf of bread and call on the clear sun to forever warm our native Earth. The hot sun-bun goes on a journey and meets the winter hare, the spring wolf, the summer bear and the autumn fox. The tasty bun dies in the teeth of a voracious fox, but then is reborn again and begins a new life cycle of eternal Mother Nature.

The page of our website contains the most beloved and popular best Russian fairy tales. Texts with beautiful pictures and illustrations in the style of lacquer miniatures make fairy tales especially enjoyable to read. They bring to children the priceless wealth of the Russian language, and the pictures and large print allow them to quickly memorize stories and new words, and instill a love of reading books. All fairy tales are recommended for bedtime reading. Parents will be able to read aloud to their child and convey to the child the meaning inherent in wise old fairy tales.

The page with Russian folk tales is a collection of children's literature. Teachers can use the library for reading lessons in kindergarten and school, and in the family circle it is easy to perform performances with the participation of heroes from Russian folk tales.

Read Russian folk tales for free online with your children and absorb the wisdom of bygone generations!