TheUglyDuckling

the ugly duckling. It is a beautiful summer day in the forest and the weather is hot and sunny.

The mother duck is sitting and looking at her eggs.

They take so long to hatch. I wonder when my babies will come out, she thinks.

The mother duck has got six eggs in the nest. One of the eggs is bigger than the others.

Five of them are white, but this bigger one is gray. The mother duck thinks.

That egg is different from the others. Why is it big and gray?

The mother duck doesn't have to wait for her babies too long. Soon the eggs start cracking.

The little yellow heads appear. The mother duck feels very excited.

Five little yellow ducks start taking small steps out of the shells.

Oh my ducklings are so beautiful, says the mother duck.

Now come and line up all of you here, she says. One, two, three, four, five. Hey, there should

be one more, she says. She sees that one of the eggs is still in the nest.

She sits on the egg at night and waits for it to hatch. The next morning, the big gray egg

hatches too. Finally, the last duckling comes out of the egg. The mother duck is surprised when

she sees the duckling. He doesn't look like his brothers and sisters, she says. It is huge,

gray and ugly. He is bigger because he was in the egg for longer time than the other five.

It isn't a problem, she thinks. She hugs her ducklings. She is very happy because

all her ducklings are with her now. The five yellow ducklings play games together every day.

The ugly duckling wants to play with them. What his brothers and sisters say, they make fun of

the ugly duckling. You can't play with us. They say, the ugly duckling is very sad.

One day, the mother duck takes her ducklings to the lake. They all jump in the water with a splash.

They swim behind their mother and have fun. The ugly duckling is in the lake too.

He swims with his brothers and sisters. The mother duck sees her friend, the old duck.

Hello old duck. She says, what a beautiful day to swim. The old duck is happy to see the mother duck.

She looks at the ducklings in the lake. Hi mother duck, your ducklings are so cute.

She says, then she sees the ugly duckling and she screams, look at that ugly thing.

He has got grave feathers and a long neck. He has got big feet. What is that?

The mother duck is angry. Stop this nonsense. That's not a nice thing to say.

He is my child. He can be ugly but he is very kind and I love him.

She says, she takes all her ducklings and swims away.

Days pass by. The ugly duckling is not happy with his life.

Everyone is rude to him. He cries all the time.

Why doesn't anyone like me? He thinks. He sits by the lake and looks down in the water.

He sees the reflection of his face and says to himself,

Oh no, look at me. I'm very ugly. Nobody wants to talk to me or play with me.

I will run away from this place. He leaves his family and goes away into the forest.

The ugly duckling walks in the forest. He feels hungry and tired.

Then he sees a cottage. There is an old woman in front of it.

She has got a cat and a hen. The woman sees the ugly duckling and says,

Hello. Come here please. Are you hungry? Yes, I am.

Answers the ugly duckling. The woman gives food and water to the ugly duckling.

She feeds him every day. She likes the ugly duckling,

but the cat and the hen are not kind to him. Aren't you scared when you look at your face in the mirror?

asks the cat. You don't even lay eggs, says the hen. Go away. We don't want you.

The ugly duckling feels very, very sad. He leaves his new place and this time finds a lake to live.

It is winter now. The weather is snowy. The lake freezes and the ugly duckling sits on the ice.

He feels very cold. A man walks by the lake and sees the ugly duckling.

Come with me to my farm. He says, it's very cold for you here.

The man takes the ugly duckling to his farm. He gives him food and water every day.

He likes the ugly duckling, but this time his sons are rude to the ugly duckling.

They bully him and laugh at him. He is very ugly. They say.

The ugly duckling stays on the farm all winter, but he isn't happy.

The ugly duckling grows up and spring comes. He has got a big body and strong wings now.

He can swim very well and he can fly too.

I don't want to be here. I want to fly in the sky, he thinks. He leaves the farm and flies away.

One day the ugly duckling sees beautiful white birds in the lake.

They have got shiny white feathers. They are very beautiful. I want to play with them,

but I am very ugly. I hope they are friendly, he thinks. He starts swimming in the lake.

One of the birds comes near him and says, hello young swan.

The ugly duckling is surprised. I am not a swan. I am a duck. What is a swan?

He says, the two beautiful birds start laughing.

We are swans. You are a swan too. You are a beautiful swan, they say.

The ugly duckling looks down and sees the reflection of a beautiful swan in the water.

Oh, it's me. I've got a shiny beak, big eyes, strong wings and beautiful feathers.

I am not a duck. I am a swan. He says, from then on he stays with the other swans.

They play, swim and fly together happily.