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Short Bedtime Stories for Kids

Every story on this page is original, written by the My Baby is Hero team, and takes about four to six minutes to read aloud. The time next to each tale is worked out from its length, so a five-minute story really is one.

Each of these takes about five minutes to read. The app writes a new one about your child in 15 seconds.

Toddler in pyjamas patting the roof of a chunky sunny yellow toy digger whose raised scoop holds one small white star

Big Yellow Digger's Last Scoop

Big Yellow Digger has dug all day, and now there is just one more scoop to do before the engine can rest. Join in: scoop, lift, tip!

  • about 5 min
  • ages 3–5
Child in pyjamas and a plump plush bear sitting shoulder to shoulder, both looking up at one sunny yellow leaf drifting down between them

Bruno and the Last Leaf

Bruno the bear cub refuses to sleep for the winter until the very last leaf has fallen, and the last leaf is in no hurry at all.

  • about 5 min
  • ages 3–6
Child with a towel wrapped round their head holding up a sunny yellow rubber duck wearing a tiny folded paper captain's hat, a few sky-blue drops in the air

Captain Wobble and the Bath-Time Storm

Captain Wobble the rubber duck sails the fiercest sea in the house every night, which is Noor's bath, right up until the plug comes out.

  • about 5 min
  • ages 4–7
Child in pyjamas with a finger to their lips beside a plump plush frog, one big flat sky-blue drop shape hanging in the air above the frog's head

Dara and the Drippy Tap

The bathroom tap will not stop dripping, and Dara decides the only way to get it to sleep is to tuck it in. Join in: drip, drop, stop!

  • about 4 min
  • ages 3–5
Child in pyjamas sitting cross-legged with a plump plush badger in their lap, five tiny sunny yellow dots floating in a loose arc above them

Fenn and the Five Fireflies

Five fireflies are dancing round Fenn's tent, and one by one they go out for the night. Count them down together: five, four, three, two, one.

  • about 5 min
  • ages 3–5
Child in pyjamas with hands on the cheeks of a round plush hippo whose cheeks are puffed out mid-hiccup, three small sky-blue bubbles rising above

Hilda the Hippo Has the Hiccups

Hilda's hiccups make waves across the whole pond, and every animal has a cure, none of which involves sitting still.

  • about 5 min
  • ages 4–7
Toddler kneeling on a rug beside a wooden toy train with a yellow engine, three small carriages lined up behind it and a plush rabbit riding in the last one

Juno and the Yawning Train

Juno's wooden train has to get all its passengers home before bed, but the little yellow engine keeps yawning at every station.

  • about 4 min
  • ages 3–5
Child in pyjamas and a plump plush kangaroo lying flat on their backs side by side with their feet in the air, a small yellow leaf on the kangaroo's tummy

Lulu the Joey and the Lost Hop

Lulu has lost her hop somewhere between the creek and the big gum tree, and everyone helps her look. Join in: hop, hop, flop!

  • about 5 min
  • ages 3–5
Child in pyjamas sitting beside a plush cat dusted with flour, a big round loaf of bread between them with a sunny yellow crust

Mira and the Night Bakery

Mira cannot sleep, so the baker next door lets her help with the morning bread, and bread, it turns out, is very good at waiting.

  • about 4 min
  • ages 3–6
Child in pyjamas tipping a small watering can over one tall white flower that is half closed, a plump plush hedgehog watching beside it

Nico and the Moonflowers

Grandad grows flowers that only open at night, and tonight Nico is allowed to stay up and water them, one by one, until they close.

  • about 5 min
  • ages 3–6
Child in pyjamas laughing beside a round plush octopus whose eight legs wear mismatched pyjama legs in lavender, yellow, pink and sky blue

Octavia and the Eight Pyjama Legs

Octavia the octopus has eight legs and eight favourite pairs of pyjamas, and tonight she cannot choose just one.

  • about 5 min
  • ages 4–7
Child in pyjamas leading a small plush cat and a small plush mouse in a line, both animals wearing striped pyjamas with buttons

Poppy and the Pyjama Parade

Nobody in the farmyard will go to bed until they are in pyjamas, so Poppy dresses them one by one. Join in: pyjamas on, lights low!

  • about 4 min
  • ages 3–5
Child in pyjamas and a yellow mitten holding one hand up flat, a plump plush polar bear beside them, one big white snowflake drifting down towards the mitten

Suki and the Slow Snowflake

One snowflake will not land. It drifts and dithers all the way down while Suki waits with her mitten out. Join in: down, down, nearly!

  • about 5 min
  • ages 3–5
Child in pyjamas patting a small round white cloud with sleepy closed eyes that rests on a stack of three pillows

The Cloud That Needed a Nap

A very small cloud is too tired to rain, so Theo lends it his pillow hill for the night.

  • about 5 min
  • ages 3–6
Child in pyjamas and a plush dog standing side by side, each with a flat deep-plum shadow shaped like the other one

The Day the Shadows Swapped

Kai wakes up with his dog's shadow, his dog has his, and the whole mixed-up day only sorts itself out when the lights go off.

  • about 5 min
  • ages 4–7
Child in pyjamas holding one finger just above a small round drum with a sunny yellow star on its side, a plump plush owl listening with its head tilted

The Quiet Drum

Zara's new drum only knows how to be loud, so she teaches it the other thing a drum can do: tap, tap, softer, softer.

  • about 5 min
  • ages 3–6
Plump plush sheep lying on its back on a pillow with a pencil behind one ear, a child in pyjamas mid-jump above it with knees tucked up

The Sheep Who Counted Children

Everyone knows children count sheep to fall asleep, but what does a sheep count? Shona is about to find out.

  • about 5 min
  • ages 4–7
Child lying on their tummy nose to nose with a plump snail whose shell carries a tiny folded dark-plum blanket, a yellow star tucked into the fold

The Snail Who Delivered the Dark

Every evening somebody has to bring the dark to the garden, and this evening the job goes to Sol, the slowest snail in the flowerbed.

  • about 5 min
  • ages 3–6
Child in pyjamas and a plump plush cow both mid-yawn with eyes squeezed shut, a tiny sunny yellow chick asleep on the cow's head

The Yawn That Went Round the Farm

One small yawn starts with the cat and travels from animal to animal across the whole farm, until it reaches the last one awake.

  • about 5 min
  • ages 2–5
Child in pyjamas holding a small yellow torch that throws one flat round beam, a plump plush raccoon blinking in the circle of light

Tom's Tiny Torch

Tom's little torch has one job tonight: to find out who is making the small noise under the bed. Join in: click on, click off!

  • about 5 min
  • ages 3–5
Child in pyjamas on hands and knees lifting the corner of a round lavender rug, a plump plush koala peeking under it beside them

Where Did the Day Go?

Mum says the day has gone, so Kofi goes to find it, in his pockets, under the rug, inside the biscuit tin. Join in: not here, not there!

  • about 5 min
  • ages 3–5
Child in pyjamas holding up one finger for a plump moth with soft lavender wings to land on, a crescent moon above them

Wren and the Window Moth

A small moth wants Wren's lamp more than anything, until Wren switches it off and shows her something bigger.

  • about 4 min
  • ages 3–6

Questions parents ask

They are built for the end of the day: one small thing happens, somebody kind helps, and the last lines are meant to be read more and more quietly. Pick one, or let your child pick.

How long is a short bedtime story?
The tales here run from about four to six minutes read aloud, which is roughly 450 to 650 words. The minutes shown on each card come from the word count, not from a guess.
What makes a bedtime story short but still satisfying?
One character, one small problem, one kind fix, and an ending that slows down. A tale can be brief and still feel complete when the last paragraph lands somewhere quiet.
Can I change the names?
Yes. Swap in your child's name, their pet or their street. Or let the My Baby is Hero app build a brand-new illustrated story around them from a theme you pick.

These are stories, not sleep advice. If bedtime is a nightly struggle, your pediatrician is the right person to ask.

Make your child the hero of tonight's story

My Baby is Hero writes personalized, illustrated stories starring your little one. Free to try, three stories included.

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