Crocodile’s Smile
Bedtime Stories For Toddlers
How will you feel if a crocodile flash a smile at you?
Coco, the crocodile, was enjoying some time to herself in the warm sunshine on the edge of the pond. “What an uninteresting day it has been. I need someone to talk to but don’t have anyone.” He thought. Just then, Monty, the monkey, arrived close to the pond, hoping to catch some fish. As he got closer to the pond, he heard a squeaking sound coming from the tree. “Look out! There is a huge crocodile here!”
Monty heard the squirrel and turned in the direction indicated by the squirrel. Coco smiled broadly at Monty as their eyes met for the first time. Monty let out a horrified scream and ran away.
“Was there something on my face? What did I do wrong?” Coco was bewildered. “I was just trying to give him a kind smile!” Coco scowled.
Coco was grumpy for rest of the day after this incident. “How come I can’t make a friend?”
At that very moment, Peter the plover came in from a nearby branch and perched himself on top of Coco’s head. Coco’s bird buddy, who has known her since childhood, saw that she was not as upbeat as she usually is and became concerned. He asked, “Why do you look so glum today?”
Coco responded, “Is my face frightening? I was smiling at a monkey, and he ran away in horror.”
“Oh, Coco, you just can’t let yourself laugh. When you flash those razor-sharp teeth, it gives everyone the chills. Are you aware?” Peter said.
“Really? I’ll close my mouth except when eating the next time.” Coco responded.
Coco kept her mouth tightly clenched during the next few days so she would not frighten anyone else. However, as time passed, Coco’s mouth is starting to stink from food stuck all around her teeth after closing her mouth for days without cleaning it. Her teeth started to ache.
Soon, she was in pain from the aching tooth. One day, Gruffy the giraffe spotted her from a distance.
Gruffy exclaimed, “Wow, that’s a large crocodile!”
Suddenly, Peter appeared and flew up to Coco. Coco asked, “Peter! Would you be able to check my teeth? It’s starting to hurt more and more.”
Peter replied, “Of course, I can help you check and clean those teeth. You have not been opening your mouth for cleaning. Your teeth will decay.”
Coco opened her mouth wide, and Peter flew into her mouth, pecking at the food remnants on her teeth.
“Wow——! A small bird flew into the giant crocodile’s mouth.” Gruffy the giraffe spoke loudly, while watching,.
“Is it going to eat the bird?” Monty, the monkey, who was nearby, came over to investigate.
After a while, Peter the bird flew away after helping the crocodile clean up the food residue in her teeth.
“It turns out that crocodiles aren’t that bad after all.” Monty laughed in response.
The end.
Bedtime Stories For Toddlers ~ Let’s Discuss
Learning and Discussion Corner
- The Egyptian Plover Bird has a great relationship with crocodile as it gets into the crocodile’s mouth to feed on food pieces stuck in the crocodile’s teeth. This helps keep the crocodile’s mouth clean and free from infections.
- This type of relationship between animals is called a symbiotic relationship. Other examples of symbiotic relationships includes zebra and ostrich and also water buffalo and oxpeaker.
- Do you think a crocodile will eat the Plover bird? It seems like most of the time it doesn’t. What do you think?
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This story “Crocodile’s Smile” .
Cover designed By: StoryDino
Special Thanks To: My two boys for their suggestion on the design 🙂