When Mr Bluebird Won His Beautiful Coat

From Mother West Wind "When" Stories, by Thornton W. Burgess

Thornton W. Burgess (1874–1965) wrote hundreds of nature stories for children, blending gentle humour with lessons about kindness, courage and the natural world. This tale, first published in the early 1900s, explains how the bluebird earned his bright coat by volunteering for a difficult task when no one else would. A few period terms have been modernised. Burgess's stories remind children that small acts of bravery and faithfulness matter, and that true rewards come from doing the right thing.

Band

Yellow · Emerging readers, about 6 to 8

Length

medium · about 591 words in 6 sections · 4 pictures

Source

Mother West Wind "When" Stories, Thornton W. Burgess · 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 (8 questions) with answer key
• · Read-aloud script
• · Colouring page

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.