Goldilocks and the Three Bears

English fairy tale retold by Clever Hedgehog

Dear friends! Read a story about what may happen if we do not follow directions.

Part 1: A Girl Named Goldilocks

Once upon a time, a girl named Goldilocks lived at the edge of the woods. She got her name because of the golden hair locks that flowed down from her head to her shoulders. She was a good girl, but sometimes, not very polite.

One day, Goldilocks’ parents were busy in the garden. Goldilocks was told not to go anywhere. Her parents asked her to stay home and do her homework. 

One of the yellow ducklings pointed. “What is THAT? He cannot be one of us!”

Her mother had said many times Goldilocks must never go into the woods alone. But this time, Goldilocks forgot her mother’s directions and went into the forest.

Deeper and deeper into the woods… Goldilocks soon realized she was lost.  

Wandering around for some time, she found a little house. “I wonder who lives so deep in the woods”, she thought to herself.  

Part 2: The House in the Woods

She knocked on the door. There was no answer. She knocked again. Still no answer. Goldilocks knocked a third time. This time the door opened, but no one was behind the door.  

“Well, the door is already open,” said the girl. “I may as well go in.”

“How can you say such a thing?” said Mama Duck in a stern voice. “You are only one day old!  
“How can you say such a thing?” said Mama Duck in a stern voice. “You are only one day old!  

What Goldilocks did not know was that three bears – a Father Bear, a Mommy Bear, and a Bear Cub lived in this house. That very morning, the three bears had sat down to eat oatmeal for their breakfast, but the porridge was too hot, so they decided to take a short walk to gather some raspberries for lunch. “By the time we return home, our oatmeal will be ready,” they said.

As Goldilocks entered the room, she noticed a big table and three chairs – a big chair, a medium-sized chair, and a wee little chair. 

All of a sudden, Goldilocks felt how hungry she was when she smelled delicious food! On the table, she could see three steaming bowls of oatmeal.  

Goldilocks thought, “I’m sure whoever lives here won’t mind if I eat a few spoons of porridge.” 

She sat on the biggest chair and tasted from the biggest bowl. “Ah!” she said, “it is too hot.”

She moved to the middle chair and got a spoonful from the second bowl. “Ah!” she said, “it is too cold.”

She moved to the smallest chair and tried some porridge from the third bowl. “This one is good!” Before she knew it, the oatmeal was gone.  

In the living room, three chairs were lined up in a row – a big chair, a medium-sized chair, and a wee little chair.

“I’m sure whoever lives here won’t mind if I sit on that big chair,” said Goldilocks. She sat on it, but it was too hard to sit on. So she moved to the medium-sized chair, but it was too soft.

“That wee little chair looks comfy,” said the girl. She sat down on the little chair and it was perfect!  And then Goldilocks started rocking on the chair. But that chair was not made for rocking, so the chair broke into a dozen pieces. She plopped down on the floor.

“Oh, no! There is no way I can fix it. I hope whoever’s chair it was will forgive me.” Goldilocks said. 

After all of Goldilocks’s adventures that day, she started to feel tired and sleepy. Where could she lie down for a nap?

She looked around and in the second room, she found three beds lined up in a row – a big bed, a medium-sized bed, and a wee little bed. 

“I’m sure whoever lives here won’t mind if I laid down for just a short nap,” she said. 

 She laid down on the big bed, but it was too hard to lie on. She laid down on the medium-sized bed, but it was too soft. The girl laid down on the wee little bed, and it was just fine! Before her head hit the pillow, Goldilocks was fast asleep.

Part 3: The Three Bears

Just then, the three bears came home from their walk.  “Oh, my!” said Mama Bear. “Did either of you leave the front door open?” 

“Not I,” said Papa Bear. 

“Not I,” said Little Bear.

Slowly, the three bears stepped inside. Carefully, they looked around.    

“How can you say such a thing?” said Mama Duck in a stern voice. “You are only one day old!  

“Most odd!” said Papa Bear, noticing his spoon in his bowl of oatmeal.  “Someone was eating my breakfast!”

“Most odd indeed!” said Mama Bear, also seeing a spoon in her bowl of oatmeal.  “Someone was eating my breakfast too!”

“This is the oddest of all!” said Little Bear.  “Someone was eating my breakfast, and they ate it all up!”

The three bears shook their heads with wonder. They stepped into their living room.

“Why won’t they let me stay here?” said the Ugly Duckling to himself. He hung his head down low. “Ah, they are right. I should go.”

“I think someone was sitting in my chair,” said Papa Bear.

“I KNOW someone was sitting in my chair,” said Mama Bear, “because I can see the seat cushion is pushed down.”

“I know someone was sitting in my chair, too!” said Little Bear. “Because it’s BROKEN!”

The three bears were now alarmed. Yet, they must explore their entire cottage.

“Someone has been sleeping in my bed,” said Papa Bear, who could see that his blankets had been moved.

“Someone was sleeping in my bed, too,” said Mama Bear, who could also see that her blankets had been moved.

And only the Bear Cub didn’t say anything because he saw Goldilocks in his bed.

“No one ever wants me,” said the Ugly Duckling with a tear in his eye.  

Part 4: A Fresh Start

Goldilocks woke up, saw three bears, and was very scared. Then the Bear Cub said to her:

“Don’t be afraid, little girl. We are friendly bears and we do not hurt people. But tell me, please, why did you eat my porridge, break my chair, and sleep in my bed without permission?”

Here, Goldilocks became very sorry for the mess she caused in the bears’ house. She asked them to forgive her for the eaten porridge, the broken chair, and for sleeping in their beds. She decided to right her wrongs – she made the beds and then helped the Father Bear repair the chair for the Bear Cub.

The three bears treated Goldilocks with raspberry pie and invited her to stay for dinner. But Goldilocks knew it was time to go home. She ran as fast as possible before her mom and dad began to worry.

From that day on, Goldilocks always listened to her parents and never did things without permission.

Then, the bird who used to be the Ugly Duckling knew what had happened!  He was no longer an ugly gray bird that wobbled when it walked. 

The End

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