Hänsel und Gretel

Read this tale aloud, or read along with your little one. Sentences are short and the words are simple.

Once a woodcutter had two children. They were Hansel and Gretel. Their mother was cruel.

The father took them to the woods. They left bread behind. The children saw white pebbles.

They followed them home. The father was happy. The next time they left bread.

The birds ate it. They could not find the way. They walked and walked.

They found a house made of bread and cake. They began to eat. An old woman came out.

She was a witch. She put Hansel in a cage. She made Gretel work.

She cooked Hansel. But Hansel held out a bone. The witch said: he is thin.

Gretel said: look in the oven. The witch leaned in. Gretel pushed her in.

The oven was hot. The witch was gone. The children took her gold.

They walked home. The stepmother was dead. The father was happy.

And they lived happily ever after.