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The Willow-wren and the Bear

From Grimms' Fairy Tales, by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

This tale comes from the collection of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, first published in the early nineteenth century. The brothers gathered traditional German folk tales and published them for a wide audience. This text reflects its era; a few period terms have been modernised. The story is worth reading because it shows that size and strength do not always win the day—cleverness, courage and a united purpose can defeat even the mightiest opponent. It also reminds readers that careless, insulting words can have serious consequences.

Band

Green · Independent readers, earlyTypical starting range: ages 9–11

Length

medium · about 797 words in 6 sections · 3 pictures

Source

Grimms' Fairy Tales, Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm

First published

see the About page in the reader

Regions

Canada · United States

Included formats

• · Web reader and PDF
• · EPUB for e-readers
• · Home-print sheet
• · Folded booklet
• · Binder edition (8.5 × 11)
• · Worksheet
• · Quick Check (10 questions) with answer key
• · Read-aloud script
• · Teacher’s Edition (members)

Readers are engineered from the original public-domain text with AI under HummingRead’s published canon and Content Philosophy, checked by automated audit and sampled by a person. Pictures are made with AI to HummingRead’s brief for each story. How a reader is made.

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