Stories For Little Kids

I had to share this FANTASTIC site for online stories for little kids.  WIZZ-E.com features loads of classic fairy stories for young children as well as new children’s books we had not seen before. All the children’s books on the site feature interactive stories for children who like to watch as the magic of books comes to life. The illustrations are animated, the books have audio so kids can read-along to the story. What is really cool is that for emerging readers they can turn the narrator off and read to themselves yet click on ANY unfamiliar word to hear it spoken. So these stories for little kids grow with your child’s reading confidence. The online stories can be downloaded to your PC so you can view them even when you are not connected to the internet.

The firm favorite in our house is “When I don’t Want to Sleep” which is the most gorgeous illustrated story for children we have found on the web. It is a truely magical story about what you can do in your dreams – it certainly has my kids rushing to go to bed to see what they can do in their dreams! No more bedtime battles in our house. Definitely worth the $3.99!!!

Click here to preview the book for free.

My youngest age 3 loves the counting story “Add One Teddy”. The teddies are cute and the rhyming is perfect. The answer to the next number rhymes so it helps her predict the number. What a great counting book for young children.

Click here to go to the preview of the book

There are classic fairy tales there too that have been given the 21st Century treatment including Three Little Pigs, Goldilocks and the 3 Bears, Little Red Riding Hood and The Ugly Duckling. There are also TWO FREE ebooks for children that you can download. Brilliant.

Be sure to check out the Alphabet Book if you have very young toddlers as well as the book on Opposites. They are sure to make learning fun.

There is also childrens books on Telling the Time and Simple Math, so learning can be fun!

Prices start at just $1.99.There is no advertising on the site but I really like the fact I can download these stories for little kidsto the desktop and they can access them without going near the internet.

If you are looking for great online stories for little kids I’m sure you will find some of the very best at www.wizz-e.com. Check out the lovely wizard who opens the website.

short stories for little kids

Meddybemps is a great for stories for young children. They are not as sophisticated as some of the other online stories for little children but there are loads of fun activities and games on the site too which should keep them occupied. You will have to read the short stories to your child as there is no audio, although you could also choose the video option if your child would prefer the story to be read to them. There is no animation or interactivity however there are some sweet short stories so you may want to check them out.

I’ve been searching the web for stories that my kids can listen to. Story telling online can be audio books but my children prefer the short stories online where they can listen and watch. Here are some of the sites I have found for stories for little kids.

Speekaboos have lots of the classic fairystories and kids can read along to the narrator. There is some simulated animation as the ‘camera angle’ pans across the illustrations. There are also some fun games on here too. Read along books that are quite simple but the best thing is they are free!

Light Up Your Brain is a slightly different site. You can read the story and have the choice to listen to the narration. Good for loading audio books but my kids found the lack of pictures a bit boring.   These short stories for little kids are free.

Another great site for free children’s online books is International Children’s Digital Library. Here kids can access loads of wonderful short stories. They are electronic copies of hard copy books, there is no audio or animation but you can make the text in the picture books bigger. A great resource if you are ever stuck for bedtime stories.

Mightybook has loads of small stories for little kids as well as online rhymes and games. Proaly most suited for ages 3 – 4 because the books are very simple. Cost is $25 for a year subscription. There are a couple of books to try before you sign up to see if it is right for you and your kids.

I hope you enjoy exploring these great sites for short stories for little children online. I hope you find them a great resource for bedtime stories or keeping your children entertained in an educational way.

Whilst looking for stories for little kids online I also discovered some lovely websites for kids where they could read along to the story. These sites had someone reading the story aloud whilst the words highlighted. The kids loved this and it mimicked me reading aloud and using my finger to show the words I was reading. The kids loved this storytelling style. 

KOL Jr. has delightful bedtime stories online that include a narator reading the story whilst the words in the book are highlighted. My kids love these and it helps to increase their vocabulary, fluency and sound/word recognition.  And they are free!

Of course as you would expect Disney have digital story books. They have the full collection of their books aimed at different reading levels. At $8.95 a month you can gain access to their full collection. They feature you read to me short stories including a dictionary feature. I was quite surprised that  their books weren’t animated stories.  We didn’t subscribe.

The BBC website is great for small stories for kids. They feature animation which really brought the stories to life, certainly for my youngest children. The words do appear but they are not highlighted as the narator reads the story.

Bookpop has lovely illustrated stories with naration and music. These small stories for little kids will no doubt enchant your kids. ”A safe haven on the web filled with magic and wonder.” We agree.

Here are some of the free sites that I have found for online stories for little kids.

Starfall This is a great free site for the youngest of kids to enjoy online stories. It opened in September of 2002 as a free public service to motivate children to read with phonics. It starts from the learning the ABC’s where kids can click within the ‘books’ and drag and drop letters as well as see pictures associated with the letter. The next level ‘learn to read’ requires children to click on words to hear them spoken, which my kids enjoyed but it wasn’t like listening to an online story. It clearly is aimed at being educational as well as fun. Very simple graphics and illustrations with some minor animation.

Your child can progress from letters to simple words and then onto simple stories however these books do not read the story aloud, your child will have to click on each word to hear it but it is a great free resource to help your child who is just starting to read. There are some simple games too. My kids used to use this site but have grown out of it now. Shame but not one to miss. Suitable for ages 2 – 5.

Children’s Storybooks Online is another free resource. Simple online stories for a wider range of children.  One or two have audio. My kids really like Pirate’s Treasure. The illustrations are full color.  They don’t have page flipping just an arrow to bring up the next page. Parents be aware that there is advertising on the site and links to third party sites. I personally supervise my kids whilst they are using this site [just in case]. Suitable for ages 3 – 5.

Lil Fingers has some sweet online stories for little kids. Again this is a free website so it does contain advertising as well as affiliate links to hard copy books that pop up at the end of the story. Some books are flash based which include animation and some also have sound. The short stories online which read out loud to my kids were certainly the favorite ones of the online stories from this site in our house. Suitable for ages 3 – 5.

StoryPlace has an english and spanish option. The books are for pre-school and elementary kids. The books take a long time to load because they have sound as well as animation. Some books you can taylor by choosing a character, typing in names etc. The kids found this fun to do but the loading times meant the kids often had to leave the computer and find something else to do for a while! If your kids are patient it may well be worth the wait for them to be creative and involved in these stories for little kids. There is some sound and animation however the story is not read aloud so children cannot follow the words to the audio.

 Storyline Online is not really “story books online” rather a collection of “videos of actors reading story books online”. That said because the actors are fantastic at reading the stories my kids love this site. The video clips pan from the actor to the illustrations contained in the book. Unfortunately my kids we so engrosed with the story they didn’t notice that the words to the story appear under the video! So these are more like watching a TV programme. Kept the kids entertained though!

I’m a mother of 4 kids so would often search for “stories for little kids” on the internet.  My kids all enjoy reading bedtime stories with me as well as online stories during the day. I love the fact that they are reading in lots of different ways. It’s great. It gives them and me more choice as well as improving their reading skills. Win win. It also means if they are being entertained listening to and reading online stories I can get some of my chores done around the house! ;) I’d rather they use the computer in an educational way than just watching silly videos or playing games. It also enhances their IT skills.

So if you are like me and are looking for great stories for little kids available on the internet that support a love of reading and books hopefully my experiences may help you and your children find some new resources.

In our house online stories are not a substitute for cuddling up with a story book they are another way that I can share the love of reading books.  “You read to me” is still a request from my youngest children and we do spend lots of quality time together reading bedtime stories. We still make regular trips to the library and have a ton of books around the house.

So for me online stories for little kids add to the richness of literature in our house. The kids love them. I love them. And here I’ll share some great sites that I have found that have the best online stories for little kids.