The Cat That Walked by Himself
From Just So Stories, by Rudyard Kipling
Rudyard Kipling first published this tale in 1902 as part of his Just So Stories, playful explanations of how things came to be. In this story, the clever Cat wins his place by the fire without giving up his independence. The text reflects its era; a few period terms have been modernised. Kipling's story is worth a child's time because it shows that some creatures—and some people—choose their own path, and that cleverness can be as powerful as strength.
- Band
- Yellow · Emerging readersTypical starting range: ages 6–8
- Length
- medium · about 571 words in 6 sections · 4 pictures
- Source
- Just so stories, Rudyard Kipling
- First published
- 1902
- 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 (8 questions) with answer key
- · Read-aloud script
- · Colouring page
- · Teacher’s Edition (members)
Lesson at a glance
- Reading
- about 10 minutes at this band
- Pause questions
- 2
- Words to Know
- 5
- Quick Check
- 8 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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