A Read Aloud Story for Kids 🦊 Poppy's Forest Adventure | Kindness & Friendship

Hi kids, welcome to Dixie's Storytime World. Are you ready for a little adventure in the forest today? Well, we're going to meet a very special little fox cub called Poppy. She's off exploring the forest where she'll meet some new friends, discover the joy of sharing and learn that even the smallest acts of kindness can make a big difference. Our story is called Poppy's Forest Adventure, written by Anthony Portella. So, get cosy, open your listening ears and come along with me on this wonderful woodland adventure. And don't forget to stay until the end, because I've got a rather surprising fox fact to share with you. Are you ready? Let's begin. Once upon a sunny morning, in a dappled forest, a little fox named Poppy set out looking for an adventure and found something even better, written with love for bedtime reading. Chapter 1 The Nose Knows Poppy the fox had bright orange fur. One floppy ear and a nose that could smell a blueberry muffin from three trees away. One sunny morning, she skipped out of her burrow, sniffing the air. I smell furniture, she announced to nobody in particular, since her whole family was still snoring. So, off went Poppy, down the winding forest path, humming a wobbly tune, and not really planning on any adventure at all. Which, as everyone knows, is exactly how the best adventures begin. She hadn't gone far when she heard a very small, very sad sniffle coming from behind a big, mossy log. Chapter 2. Hazel the Squirrel Behind the log sat Hazel the squirrel, staring at a single, sad, half-eaten acorn. What's wrong? asked Poppy, plopping down beside her. Corn, Hazel said. I want to eat the whole thing myself. I feel funny about it, because my friend Chester is hungry too, and I only have the one. She took a tiny guilty bite. You might have already eaten most of it before you got here. Poppy looked at the acorn. Then she looked in her own little travel pouch where she happened to have three blueberry muffins because Poppy was never one to leave the house unprepared. Well, said Poppy, I have muffins. You have half an acorn. That's four things split between the two of us. Three of us, if Chester shows up, that's still breakfast. Hazel blinked. You'd share your muffins? With a squirrel you just met? That's usually how you make a squirrel you just met into a squirrel you know really well, said Poppy, already breaking a muffin in two. By the time Chester waddled up, he'd smelt the muffins from two trees away, which he was very proud of. All three of them were laughing with crumbs on their whiskers. Sharing, Hazel said thoughtfully, makes a tiny breakfast into a whole party. Chapter 3. Oliver the Owl. Poppy waved goodbye to her new friends and continued down the path, which soon led into a shadier, quieter part of the woods. High in a hollow tree, she spotted an owl with enormous round, glasses-like eye markings sitting alone. Hello up there, Poppy called. The owl startled so badly, he nearly fell off his branch. Oh, oh my, hello, sorry, I don't get many visitors. Most animals think owls are too hooty, or too night-timey, or too weird-eyed. That doesn't sound like a very good reason, said Poppy. It's not a reason at all, really, the owl admitted, brightening. I'm Oliver. I know all sorts of things, like which mushrooms glow and how to count stars, and the best hollow trees for echo shouting. Nobody ever asks. I'm asking, said Poppy, sitting right down at the base of his tree. Tell me about the glowing mushrooms. Oliver talked for an hour. Poppy learned about seven different mushrooms, roughly 900 visible stars, and discovered that echo shouting, Poppy, then to a hollow tree, is in fact extremely satisfying. Thank you, Oliver said quietly when the sun began to dip. Nobody usually stays long enough to find out I'm interesting. Everybody's interesting, said Poppy. Some of you just need someone to sit down and ask. Chapter 4 Bramble the Porcupine Poppy's tummy rumbled loudly enough to scare a nearby cricket. Ahead, she saw a clearing full of the ripest, reddiest berries she had ever smelt and a very unhappy-looking porcupine sitting all by himself at the edge of it. Aren't you going to eat the berries? Poppy asked. I want to, said the porcupine, whose name was Bramble, but every time I get close to anyone they run away because of my quills, so I just eat alone, over here, far away, where it's safe, for everyone else, I mean. Poppy looked at Bramble's quills, then she looked at the berries, then she had an idea, which was a very poppy thing to have. What if, she said. I sit sideways to you, then your quills point that way, and my face points this way, and we can both reach the berries just fine. Bramble looked doubtful. You're not scared? Don't do anything scary, said Poppy. You just look a little different than a squirrel. That's not the same thing. So, they sat sideways together, stuffing their faces with berries, and it turned out Bramble told excellent jokes and had strong opinions about which berries were properly ripe versus just pretending. By the time the moon came up, Bramble had berry juice on his chin and was laughing so hard he nearly rolled over, quills and all. Nobody's ever just sat with me, he said. Thank you for including the porcupine. Thank you for the berries, said Poppy. Also, you were right. That one was just pretending to be ripe. Chapter 5. The Walk Home Poppy trotted home under a sky full of stars. The same stars Oliver had taught her to count. Her pouch was empty of muffins, her tummy was full of berries, and her heart was full of something even better. She thought about Hazel's half an acorn that became a whole party, about Oliver who just needed someone to stay and ask, about Bramble who only needed someone to sit sideways and see him. Funny, Poppy yawned, climbing into her cosy burrow bed. I went looking for an adventure, and what I found were friends. She fell asleep smiling. One floppy ear flopped over her nose, already dreaming about tomorrow. Because a fox with a nose like hers always smells another adventure coming. The end. Sweet dreams, little adventure. Oh wait, kids, I have one more surprise. Now I've got a fun fox fact. Did you know what we call a group of foxes? It's called a skulk. Have you ever heard that word before? So now you know when you see a group of foxes together, it's called a skulk. And guess what? This isn't the end of Poppy's Adventures. As you can see here, there are more lovely books starring Poppy. So, if you'd like to discover more of her adventures, ask a grown-up to check the links in the description below this video. And until next time, keep being kind, keep being curious, and never stop loving stories. Bye for now.