Frankie Frog’s Very Big Hop
A bouncy story about practising a little each day.
Frankie was a young green frog who lived on a lily pad at the edge of the pond. On the far side stood a round, shiny rock with a perfect, sunny top. Frankie wanted to hop all the way over there.
“It is too far,” said a dragonfly. “Nobody can jump that far.” Frankie crouched down and sprang. Splash! He landed in the water, a long way short.
He climbed back onto his lily pad and shook the water off. “I will try again,” he said. He jumped again. Splash! A little further this time, but still not enough.
An old frog named Granny Bell watched from a log. “Frankie,” she called, “do you want to hop to the rock in one go? Or do you want to get there?” Frankie scratched his head. “What is the difference?”
“Hop from pad to pad,” said Granny Bell. “Practise each little jump. One day, the big jump will be easy.” So Frankie started hopping from one lily pad to the next, small hop, small hop, small hop.
Each day, he picked a pad a little further away. His legs grew strong. His landings got neat and quiet, just a little plip. The dragonfly watched and said nothing.
At last, one bright morning, Frankie looked at the shiny rock. He took a deep breath, crouched, and sprang. Up, up, over the water, he flew, and landed on the sunny stone with a soft pat.
“I did it!” he cried, and the whole pond heard. Granny Bell clapped her webbed hands. “You did,” she said, “one little hop at a time.”
✨ Key Takeaways
- Big goals are reached by small steps, taken again and again.
- Practice makes our bodies and our minds stronger.
- Listening to a wise friend can show us a better way.
💬 Questions for Discussion & Reflection
- What did Frankie want to do at the start of the story?
- What did Granny Bell tell him to practise?
- What have you practised that got easier over time?