Chapter 5 of 7

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ICSE Class 3 English★ 5-8 marks in Class 3 English Literature; comprehension and moral of the story

The Little Red Hen

A hard-working LITTLE RED HEN plants, cuts, threshes, grinds, and bakes — all by herself, while her lazy friends say 'Not I.' So who gets to eat the warm, golden BREAD? A classic tale about hard work and reward. ICSE Class 3 English Literature.

⏱ 7 min readEasy difficulty✓ Free · NCERT-aligned

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By the end of this chapter you'll be able to…

1Retell the steps of making bread in order
2Explain why the friends got no bread
3Identify the repeated line 'Not I'
4State the moral about hard work and reward
5Use new words like thresh, grind, and reward

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Why this chapter matters

'The Little Red Hen' is a classic folk tale that teaches hard work and the idea that you reap what you sow. Children practise sequencing the steps of making bread and learn that those who do not share the work cannot share the reward.

Before you start — revise these

A 5-minute refresher here will save you 30 minutes of confusion below.

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Class 2 English: Sequencing a story

Following the order of events

The Little Red Hen

About the Story

'The Little Red Hen' is an old FOLK TALE that has been told to children for hundreds of years. It is a simple story with a BIG lesson about HARD WORK and SHARING the rewards of that work.

The Story

Finding the Wheat

A LITTLE RED HEN was scratching in the farmyard one day when she found some grains of WHEAT. 'These grains can grow into wheat, and the wheat can be made into bread!' she thought. But it would be a lot of work, so she went to ask her friends for help.

'Not I'

'Who will help me PLANT the wheat?' she asked.

'Not I,' said the DOG.
'Not I,' said the CAT.
'Not I,' said the DUCK.

'Then I will do it MYSELF,' said the Little Red Hen. And she DID.

She asked the same question at every stage, and every time her friends answered 'Not I':

'Who will help me CUT the wheat?' — 'Not I.'
'Who will help me THRESH the wheat?' — 'Not I.'
'Who will help me GRIND the wheat into FLOUR?' — 'Not I.'
'Who will help me BAKE the BREAD?' — 'Not I.'

Each time, the Little Red Hen did the work HERSELF.

The Reward

At last the BREAD was ready — warm, golden, and smelling delicious. Now the Little Red Hen asked: 'Who will help me EAT the bread?'

'I will!' said the Dog.
'I will!' said the Cat.
'I will!' said the Duck.

'NO,' said the Little Red Hen. 'You would not help me plant, cut, thresh, grind, or bake. I did ALL the work, so I will eat the bread MYSELF.' And she DID — every last crumb.

What We Learn

You reap what you sow. If you do not help with the work, you cannot expect to share the reward.
Hard work pays off. The Little Red Hen worked alone, but in the end she enjoyed all the bread.
Be willing to help others. The dog, cat, and duck learned that being lazy left them with nothing.

New Words

Word	Meaning
Thresh	To beat the wheat to separate the grain
Grind	To crush grain into flour
Reward	Something you get for your effort
Lazy	Not wanting to work

Fun Activity

Draw the FIVE steps the Little Red Hen took to make bread, from PLANTING the wheat to EATING the loaf. Label each step.

Self-Test

Q1: What did the Little Red Hen find in the farmyard?

Q2: What did her friends say every time she asked for help?

Q3: Name the steps the hen took to turn wheat into bread.

Q4: Why did the Little Red Hen eat the bread by herself?

Q5: What lesson does this story teach?

Answers

A1: Some grains of WHEAT. A2: 'Not I.' A3: Plant, cut, thresh, grind into flour, and bake. A4: Because she did all the work and her friends refused to help. A5: If you do not share the work, you do not share the reward; hard work pays off.

Key formulas & results

Everything you need to memorise, in one card. Screenshot this for revision.

Steps to make bread

Plant, cut, thresh, grind into flour, bake

The hen does every step herself.

Moral of the story

You reap what you sow; hard work earns the reward

Those who refuse to work get none of the bread.

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Common mistakes & fixes

These are the exact errors that cost students marks in board exams. Read them once, save yourself the trouble.

WATCH OUT

✗ Thinking the hen was unkind to keep the bread

✓ She did all the work alone, so it was fair that she ate it; the friends chose not to help.

WATCH OUT

✗ Getting the bread-making steps out of order

✓ Remember: plant, cut, thresh, grind, then bake.

WATCH OUT

✗ Forgetting the repeated answer of the friends

✓ Each time they replied 'Not I' until the bread was ready.

NCERT exercises (with solutions)

Every NCERT exercise from this chapter — what it covers and how many questions to expect.

Comprehension

Questions on the wheat, the friends, the steps, and the reward

Questions

Self-Test

Recall and reasoning on the story and its lesson

Questions

Practice problems

Try each one yourself before tapping "Show solution". Active recall > rereading.

Q1EASY· Recall

What did the Little Red Hen find?

▶ Show solution

Some grains of wheat.

Q2EASY· Comprehension

What did the dog, cat, and duck say each time the hen asked for help?

▶ Show solution

They said 'Not I' and refused to help.

Q3EASY· Sequence

List the steps the hen took to turn wheat into bread.

▶ Show solution

Plant the wheat, cut it, thresh it, grind it into flour, and bake the bread.

Q4MEDIUM· Moral

Why did the hen eat the bread by herself, and what does this teach?

▶ Show solution

Because she did all the work while her friends refused; it teaches that if you do not share the work, you do not share the reward.

5-minute revision

The whole chapter, distilled. Read this the night before the exam.

•The Little Red Hen finds grains of wheat.
•She asks for help at every step and is refused.
•Steps: plant, cut, thresh, grind into flour, bake.
•Her friends always say 'Not I'.
•When the bread is ready, the friends want to eat it.
•She eats it herself because she did all the work.
•Moral: you reap what you sow; hard work earns the reward.

ICSE marks blueprint

Where the marks come from in this chapter — so you can plan your prep.

Typical chapter weightage: 5-8 marks, depending on the school paper

Question type	Marks each	Typical count	What it tests
Comprehension	3-5	2-3	Events, steps, and reasons
Vocabulary / Moral	2-3	1-2	New words and the lesson

Prep strategy

Learn the order of the bread-making steps
Note the repeated 'Not I' answers
Practise words like thresh and grind
Be ready to state the hard-work moral

Where this shows up in the real world

This chapter isn't just an exam topic — it lives in the world around you.

Hard work

Teaches that effort leads to reward.

Helping others

Shows the value of pitching in and not being lazy.

Where food comes from

Introduces the steps from wheat to bread.

Exam strategy

Battle-tested tips from teachers and toppers for this chapter.

Answer in full sentences
List the bread-making steps in order
Explain why the friends got no bread
State the moral about hard work

Going beyond the textbook

For olympiad aspirants and curious learners — topics that build on this chapter.

Draw the five steps from wheat to bread.
Write a new ending where the friends learn to help.

Where else this chapter is tested

CBSE board isn't the only one — other exams test this chapter too.

ICSE Class 3 School ExamHigh

English Olympiad (junior)Medium

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Questions students ask

The real ones — pulled from the Q&A community and tutor sessions.

No. The hen asked her friends to help at every single step of making the bread, and each time the dog, cat, and duck refused by saying 'Not I'. She did all the hard work of planting, cutting, threshing, grinding, and baking completely on her own. So when the bread was ready, it was fair that she enjoyed it herself. The story teaches that the reward should go to those who do the work.

The main lesson is that you reap what you sow, which means you get back what you put in. If you are willing to help with the hard work, you can share in the reward, but if you are lazy and refuse to help, you cannot expect to enjoy the result. The story gently teaches children to be helpful and to value hard work.

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