Free African Folktales for Kids

Deep in the Ashanti forest, Kwaku Anansi finds a strange moss covered rock that puts anyone to sleep the moment he whispers seven secret words. Soon every animal is nodding off and losing their dinner. But who is that little deer watching quietly from the shadows, counting each stolen meal? When Anansi’s greed gets the better of him, will the trick he loves so much turn against him? This clever Bookbot level practices the ‘ph’ sound with words like ’elephant’, ‘atmosphere’, ‘aphids’, and ‘phew’.

In the lake town of Oguta lives Adaeze, a princess who reads the weather in the water and solves every riddle she meets. So when a smooth-voiced suitor glides up to the palace gate, why does she alone feel that something is wrong? What secret hides beneath his sharp dark suit, and can one clever girl and a small disc of ash unmask him before the whole court? This Bookbot Level S9 story practices the /sh/ phonograms in ’tradition’, ‘ancient’, ‘accusation’, ‘attention’, and ‘aberration’.

Deep in the Ashanti forest lives Mmoatia, a fairy no bigger than your thumb, who owns a magical stirring-spoon that fills any pot with food. When greedy Anansi the spider snatches it away, why won’t the spoon work in his hands? Can a hungry trickster ever learn the secret hidden inside a giving heart? A warm West African tale about sharing something ‘precious’. This Bookbot story practices the /sh/ sound with words like ‘portion’, ’especially’, ’nutritious’, and ‘gracious’.

Anansi the spider has a plan. The great fig tree drips with sweet fruit, but a swarm of hornets has claimed every last one, stinging anyone who dares come close. How can one small spider outwit a whole angry swarm and win back the figs for his hungry village? With a ‘wry’ grin and a clever trick, Anansi sets to work, while the hornets buzz with ‘wrath’ at his whispered words. This Bookbot level practices the ‘wr’ sound in words like ‘wrapped’, ‘wrangle’, and ‘wriggled’.

Kwaku Anansi has a plan so big it makes his eight eyes shine: gather all the wisdom in the world into one pot and become the wisest creature alive. But when his climb keeps ending in a slide back to the roots, who offers the simplest idea of all, and why does the pot suddenly feel so heavy? Can a clever spider learn to ’laugh’ at himself? This Bookbot level practices the ‘augh’ sound in words like ‘haughty’, ‘distraught’, ’naught’, and ‘onslaught’.

Why does spider have such a tiny waist? Anansi the greedy spider loves to eat, so when seven village feasts all fall on the same day, he hatches a clever plan to taste every dish at once. But what happens when all seven villages tug their ropes at the very same moment? Will Anansi get his juicy feast, or will his big appetite backfire in the funniest way? This Bookbot level practices the ‘ui’ sound with the words ‘fruit’, ‘juicy’, ‘pursuit’, and ‘bruise’.

Anansi owes great Python a debt, and Python has decided that the payment will be Anansi himself, cooked with pepper in a bright pot! But this clever spider has never met a problem he cannot talk his way out of. Can Anansi spin a story about a royal knot cunning enough to trap a giant snake? What happens when a trickster faces a hungry legend of the forest? This Bookbot Level G book practices the soft ‘g’ sound with lesson words like ‘giant’, ’legend’, ‘danger’, ‘huge’, and ‘village’.

Anansi the spider sneaks inside Farmer Kofi’s prize melon for a cool, sweet snack, then eats so much he can’t squeeze back out. What will he do when the whole village hears the melon talk? Can a hungry trickster fool an elephant, a crowd of ’eighty’, and even the King himself, or has Anansi finally outsmarted himself? A juicy West African tale of one very greedy spider. This Bookbot book practices the ’eigh’ sound with words like ’eighty’, ’eightieth’, ’neighbors’, and ‘weighs’.

Anansi is caught, and Leopard means to eat him at dusk. But how does one small spider outwit a hungry leopard guarding the only way out? When Anansi finds a bundle of fiery pepper in the den, a clever idea begins to spin. Can a whisper about seasoning and a leopard’s proud reputation buy enough time to escape? This Bookbot book practices reading longer words of three or more syllables, like ‘unfortunate’, ‘reputation’, ‘magnificent’, and ‘satisfaction’.

Kwaku Anansi has cooked a feast fit for a king, and he plans to eat every last bite himself. But when dusty, hungry Turtle knocks at the door, will clever Anansi share his soup, or trick his tired guest away from the table? And when Turtle sends a leaf ‘signed’ with an invitation to his own river feast, who will go home with an empty stomach this time? This Bookbot level practices the ‘gn’ sound in ‘gnawed’, ‘gnarled’, ‘gnashing’, and ‘resigned’.