The Vagabonds
A tale retold from Household Stories by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
The Brothers Grimm collected this story in the early 1800s in Germany. It tells of a proud rooster and hen who refuse to walk home, build a carriage, and trick their way through a journey—then leave mischief behind them. This text reflects its era; a few period terms have been modernised. The tale is remembered for its playful animal characters and the clever, cheeky ending. It rewards curiosity about consequences and reminds children that tricks can catch up with the trickster.
- Band
- Purple · Pre-readers and first readersTypical starting range: ages 4–5
- Length
- short · about 367 words in 5 sections · 4 pictures
- Source
- Household Stories by the Brothers Grimm, 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 (6 questions) with answer key
- · Read-aloud script
- · Colouring page
- · Teacher’s Edition (members)
Lesson at a glance
- Reading
- about 9 minutes at this band
- Pause questions
- 4
- Words to Know
- 4
- Quick Check
- 6 questions, with the answer key
- Let’s Talk
- 3 questions for afterwards
- Worksheet
- questions, an activity and a drawing prompt
About 35 minutes with one story, all of it.
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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The same story
Other bands of this story
This story is ready now at the Purple band only. Other bands can be made to order for members after launch.