Purple bandReady now · Open and print today

The Table and the Chair

A nonsense poem retold from Edward Lear

Edward Lear was a Victorian writer famous for his nonsense poems, first published in the nineteenth century. In this story, a table and a chair come to life and decide to take a walk — a delightful, silly adventure full of friendship and kindness. Lear's nonsense verse has charmed children for generations because it invites them into a world where impossible things happen with warmth and humour. This reader retells the poem as a story so young children can follow the table and chair on their bumpy journey. This text reflects its era.

Band

Purple · Pre-readers and first readersTypical starting range: ages 4–5

Length

short · about 314 words in 6 sections · 4 pictures

Source

Nonsense Books, Edward Lear

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 (6 questions) with answer key
• · Read-aloud script
• · Colouring page
• · 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.

Report a concern about this reader · What’s in a HummingRead reader