Worksheets
Every worksheet is based on a short story. Then do the worksheet for comprehension practice.
Every worksheet is based on a short story. Read the story first — you’ll find vocabulary, a glossary, phrases, and pronunciation notes. Then do the worksheet for comprehension practice.
Each story is 2- 3 minutes. Each worksheet takes about 30 minutes. Free to print, share, and use in classrooms.
The Plate Nobody Ate From
“Who is that plate for?” Mihir asked. Aaji was placing a small steel plate near the tulsi. Rice. Dal. A sp…
The Bag Thatha Held
"He needs to take this twice a day," the pharmacist said. "With food. Not with the blood thinner — those nee…
The Ten Minutes at Platform Three
"You're wasting ten minutes every day," the station master said. "One day you'll realize it." Aarav only smile…
Mushak and Bappa Visit the Mumbai Local
In a small Mumbai apartment, where the evening diya flickered, Mushak the mouse sat by the window and listened…
Mushak and Bappa Find the Lost Laddoo
In a small Mumbai apartment, where the evening diya flickered, a little mouse named Mushak sat on the kitchen …
The Five Stops
Ritvik walked half a step ahead of Dada. Every morning, before breakfast, they went for a walk together. And e…
The Courtyard Ishaan Almost Missed
Ishaan hated the new town before he'd even unpacked his last box. The building had peeling paint. The boys at …
The Road I Didn’t Choose
I have read the invitation to her exhibition three times tonight, and I still don't know if I'm happy for her …
The Day I Wanted to Quit
I have already typed the words I quit into my phone eleven times tonight, and deleted them eleven times. The o…
The Shore He Stopped Watching
There was once a young crow who lived along the banks of a wide river, the kind of bird who was always hungry …
Bye, Bappa. Come Back Next Year.
Mihika was six years old when she decided Ganpati Bappa couldn't swim, and that this was a problem only she ha…
The Library of New Beginnings
One rainy evening, twelve-year-old Aarav found an old library hidden behind a temple courtyard. Inside, the sh…
The Teacher’s Old Shoes
The whole class knew about the shoes long before they understood the man wearing them. Every morning at Vidya …
The Local Train Pause
Every weekday, Rohan squeezed into the 8:12 slow AC local from Borivali, one earbud already in before the door…
Yashoda’s Pot with the Crack
The crack in the butter pot ran from the rim to the middle, shaped like a small river. Yashoda maiya had notic…
Milo and Bappa’s Special Task
In the skirting board of an old Indian home, in a hole no bigger than a coin, Milo the mouse pulled his blanke…
Two Kisses Before Sleep
The Night Bhoomi Almost Didn't Kiss Papa Goodnight Every night was the same, and Bhoomi liked it that way. Din…
What the Butter Thief Really Wanted
Bhoomi had redone the same fraction problem four times, and four times the answer came out wrong. Her exam was…
The Pot That Needed a Human Pyramid
The clay pot had hung between the two balconies since morning, tied with jute rope, swaying whenever the wind …
Krishna Janmashtami: The Night Vasudev Crossed the River
Diya arrived at Bhoomi's house holding a tiny wooden swing, freshly painted, still smelling faintly of turmeri…
The Intern Who Wasn’t Supposed to Be in the Room
Ananya had been at the Ministry for six weeks, and her actual job that morning was to refill the water jugs in…
The Trophy on the Desktop
Aarav hadn't slept properly in eleven days, and it showed — in the shadows under his eyes, in the way his ha…
Two Birthdays
Lakshmi had missed her own daughter's birthday to bake someone else's. She'd been up since five that morning, …
Gate 18
Your phone buzzes at 5:47 am, and the moment you see your sister's name on the screen, your stomach tightens. …
Tara’s Falling Star Friend
Every evening, Tara shone beside her best friend, a bright little star named Chiku, just three specks away. Th…
The Star Who Waited for the Moon
Little Tara was the smallest star in the whole sky, tucked right at the edge where the dark just begins. Every…
The Waiting Room
The corridor outside Pathology at Sahara Hospital had exactly fourteen plastic chairs, and Rohan had counted t…
The Man Who Ran on Empty
Kiran hadn't left the office before ten at night in nineteen days, and he wore the number like a badge, the wa…
The Empty Chair at the Table
The cane chair at the head of the table had been empty for four months, but nobody had said so out loud until …
The New Car Next Door
Ninad had been driving the Santro for eight months now — errands mostly, his mother's saree emergencies, his…
The Girl Who Counted Likes
Aisha Deshmukh's phone buzzed at 11:47 pm, and she was awake in a second, thumb already unlocking the screen b…
The Pothole
The rain had stopped an hour ago, but the road outside their house still remembered it — brown water sitting…
The Lane Arjun Didn’t Take
The Kalanagar signal had turned red for the fourth time that morning, and Vikram Deshmukh had stopped counting…
The Bicycle Repair Shop
The signboard outside Gopal Kaka's shop had lost most of its paint years ago. Only three letters still held co…
Salabega Waits for Jagannath
In the Mughal camp at Cuttack, a soldier named Lalbeg lay wounded on the battlefield, his son beside him. The …
The Umbrella That Came Back
Manoj Kadam had driven the same black-and-yellow auto-rickshaw through the streets of Nashik for eleven years.…
The Last Bus Stop
In Devgarh, the highway had stopped sending its buses down the old lane years ago, but the bus stop was still …
The Teacher Who Remembered Everyone’s Name
In Class 5-C of the Zilla Parishad school in Latur, forty-six children sat elbow to elbow, three to a bench me…
The Rangoli That Went Wrong
Meera had been drawing rangoli since she was four, tracing chalk circles on the cool marble of their veranda w…
The Railway Station Reunion
Baburao Deshmukh reached platform two hours before the train was due. He always did. The station master, Praka…
What the Gods Forgot Before They Won
The evening prayers had ended, and the gurukul courtyard smelled of the last of the incense sticks. The childr…
The Legend of the Magic Rain
The sun was hot. The road was hot. Even Bhoomi's chappals felt hot. But the street was full of colour. Big woo…
The Boy Who Counted Stars Instead of Sheep
Kabir hated Sunday nights the most, though he could never explain why to anyone. Monday meant a spelling test.…
Dadi’s Last Piece of Roti
Every night, the same thing happened at the Sharma family table, and every night, nobody but Vihaan seemed to …
Milo Stopped Worrying
Milo the mouse sat inside his cosy little hole in the skirting board, wrapped in a soft scrap of cotton wool. …
Milo’s Very Long Tuesday
Milo the mouse sat by his little door and watched the sky. He was waiting for Dadi Mouse. She had gone to fetc…
The Cracked Clay Pot
Ganga was one of two clay pots that hung from a bamboo pole across old Bhola's shoulders every morning, swayin…
The Watchman Who Knew Everyone’s Footsteps
Arjun could set his watch by the residents of Sunshine Apartments — not because he tried to, but because Ram…
What Is the Story Behind Lord Jagannath’s Appearance?
Bhoomi had been standing with her arms stuck out stiffly for almost two minutes, trying not to blink, when Diy…
Second String
At his old school, Rohan was always picked first. Best dribbler, fastest runner, the boy everyone wanted on th…
The Stranger in the Dark
"Grandma, were you ever lost?" Aarav asked. She smiled. "Once. God helped me in a strange way that time." "Tel…
Meera’s Tulsi Plant
Every evening, just before dinner, Meera watered the tulsi plant in their small courtyard. It stood in an old …
The Goalkeeper Who Never Smiled
Dhruv hadn't smiled in three weeks. Not once. Not even when his team won. "He's not rude," his captain told th…
Playing Fair
Arjun loved Saturday mornings. That was when the boys from the Greenwood Society gathered at the small ground …
The Two Mango Trees
Raju and Babu were twins, but the two mango trees in their orchard were nothing alike. Raju's tree stood tall …
The Bench Player
Rohan loved football more than anything else. Every afternoon after school, he rushed to the playground near h…
The Sleepy River and the Silver Fish
The river flowed quietly under the moonlight. Its water shimmered like silver as it wound through fields and f…
Her Father’s Old Jersey
The jersey was too big for Meher. It hung past her shorts, the number on the back faded to a pale ghost of blu…
The Smallest Player
Aarav was the shortest boy in his class, and by a fair margin the shortest player on the team. "You'll get kno…
The Butter Pot Yashoda Never Moved
In Yashoda's kitchen, there was one pot kept on the highest shelf. It had been there for years. Nobody touched…
Aarav and the Last Diya
It was Diwali night, and the whole street outside glowed like a sky full of fallen stars. Aarav stood on his r…
Grandma’s Warm Shawl
It was a cold winter night. The stars twinkled above the little village. Seven-year-old Aarav sat beside the w…
The Teddy Bear Who Watched the Stars
On a soft little bed, by an open window, sat a teddy bear named Bunno. He had soft brown fur and one button ey…
The Tiny Raindrop’s Dream
High in a soft grey cloud, lived a tiny raindrop named Boondi. She was the smallest raindrop in the whole clou…
The Captain Who Listened
Vivaan had been made captain three weeks ago, and he had a plan for everything. He decided who took corners. H…
The Little Lantern and the Wind
One quiet evening, a little lantern glowed beside a garden path. Its warm light helped rabbits find their way …
The Missing Football
Dhruv's football went missing on Wednesday. Not just any football — the new one his father had bought him fo…
Why We Fast on Janmasthami
Stop eyeing those biscuits, beta. Not today. Today we wait. You're making that face again, the one you make wh…
The Sleepy Owl’s Goodnight Song
In a tall tree by the quiet pond, lived a little owl named Hoo-Hoo. Every evening, when the sky turned orange,…
The Flute At Midnight
Stop fidgeting and come sit close, it's getting cold. You know how some nights the moon is so full it makes yo…
The Goalkeeper’s Promise
Meera was the only girl who played goalkeeper in the whole Ashok Nagar league. She didn't mind. She liked divi…
The Boy Who Passed the Ball
Arjun could dribble past anyone in Sector 12. Even Class 9 boys couldn't take the ball from him. "Pass it, Arj…
What the Desert Took
Dharamraj's hands had made seven thousand saris. He could count them by the year, by the colour, by the weight…
The King’s Boulder Parable: The Reward Behind the Rock
Long ago, in a peaceful Indian kingdom surrounded by green hills and mango orchards, there lived a king known …
The Flute That Lost Its Song
In the green fields of Vrindavan, where laughter and music filled the air, Lord Krishna once sat beneath a kad…
The Lunchbox That Went Viral
It was one of those ordinary Wednesdays at the Mumbai corporate office of TechZen Solutions, where productivit…