There once was a hare who always bragged that he was the _______ animal in the forest.

“Not even the wind is as fast as me!” the hare would boast.

The tortoise got ________ of such bragging.

“We all have heard you talk and talk about how fast you are, but we have never seen you ______. I’ll race you,” said tortoise.

The hare laughed and laughed. “There’s no way you can beat me! I am the fastest and you are the ____________!”

The hare and the tortoise agreed to race the next __________. They would race to a big tree down the road and around a bend. Many other animals came out to _________.

GO! The hare zipped off the starting line in a blur, leaving the tortoise in a puff of dust. The tortoise coughed, __________ her eyes, and took the first of her slow, steady steps.

The hare was soon way ahead, far down the road. The tortoise could hardly see the hare in the distance, but she wasn’t worried.

As the hare rounded the bend in the road, he laughed and thought, “This is too _______! I’m going to rest. That tortoise is so slow that I’ll get up in time and still beat her to the finish line!”

The hare laid down on the warm, soft grass and fell asleep! Later, when the tortoise walked right by the ____________ hare, he didn’t

wake up. The tortoise didn’t stop. She just kept walking her slow and steady pace.

When the tortoise was nearly to the finish line, the hare woke up. Yawning and rubbing his eyes, he was shocked to see the tortoise nearing the __________ line.

The hare __________ to his feet and ran as fast as he could to try catching up to her to ______ the race.

But by then it was much too late. The slow little tortoise ________ the finish line first. All of the forest animals cheered loudly for her!