Listen to “Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!” on Spreaker.
One day, a friendly bus driver had to leave his bus for a while to run an errand. As he was about to leave, he turned to the children standing nearby and said, “Hey, could you do me a favor? Don’t let the pigeon drive the bus! No matter what he says, don’t let him. I’ll be back soon.” The children nodded, promising to keep an eye on the bus.
As soon as the bus driver was out of sight, a little blue pigeon with big, round eyes and a playful grin appeared. The pigeon looked around, saw the empty bus, and looked very excited. “Hey, guys!” the pigeon said, waddling over to the children. “I have a great idea! How about I drive the bus?”
The children shook their heads strongly. “No, the bus driver told us not to let you drive the bus.”
The pigeon frowned for a moment, then brightened up. “Oh, come on! I’ll be careful. I’ll just drive it around the block. What’s the harm in that?” he pleaded.
Again, the children shook their heads. “No, pigeon, we can’t let you drive the bus.”
The pigeon sighed in a big way and said, “I’ll be your best friend! I’ll give you five bucks! I’ll even let you drive the bus!” But the children remained firm. “No, pigeon. The answer is still no.”
The pigeon tried everything he could think of. He begged, he pleaded, he whined, he threw a little tantrum, but nothing worked. The children were sure to follow the bus driver’s rules.
Finally, the pigeon sat down, looking sad. “Aw, shucks! I never get to do anything fun,” he muttered. But just as he was about to give up, the bus driver returned.
“Great job, kids! I knew I could count on you,” the bus driver said with a smile. The pigeon slumped his shoulders and sighed one last time. “Well, it was worth a try,” he muttered as he waddled away.
The children waved goodbye to the pigeon and watched as the bus driver climbed back into his seat. “Thank you for keeping an eye on the bus,” he said. “And remember, sometimes saying ‘no’ is the right thing to do.”
The children nodded, feeling proud of themselves for not letting the pigeon drive the bus. And as the bus drove away, they could hear the pigeon in the distance, dreaming about all the things he would do if he could ever drive the bus.
The end!
Follow-Up Questions:
- What did the bus driver ask the children to do?
- How did the pigeon try to convince the children to let him drive the bus?
- Why did the children say “no” to the pigeon?