Why the Bear Has a Short Tail

A nature myth retold from Florence Holbrook

This nature myth comes from The Book of Nature Myths by Florence Holbrook, published in 1902. Nature myths are traditional stories that explain why animals look or act the way they do. This story is a trickster tale: clever Fox fools trusting Bear, and Bear learns a hard lesson. The story shows children that not everyone tells the truth, and that tricks can have consequences. It is remembered for the image of Bear sitting with his tail frozen in the ice.

Band

Purple · Pre-readers and first readers, about 4 to 5

Length

short · about 313 words in 4 sections · 4 pictures

Source

The Book of Nature Myths, Florence Holbrook · Project Gutenberg

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

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.