Paul Holmes -
University
English Professor

Free Materials For ESL Teachers and Learners

Short Stories for Kids

Complete lesson plans, including stories, listening, classroom activities, quiz questions and more!

The Three Friendly Ghosts

Three friendly ghosts bring joy and laughter to a lonely boy, teaching him the power of true friendship.

Try this story at a different level?

 

In a little village, there were three ghosts named Casper, Jasper, and Hester who were nice and liked to play tricks for fun. They were best friends and liked to go on adventures.

One day, they found a sad boy named Timmy who was new in town and had no friends. The ghosts thought it would be great to make him laugh by being his secret friends.

At first, Timmy was scared because weird things were happening, like toys moving on their own. After a while, he figured out it was the ghosts playing tricks. He started to like their funny games and they all became best buddies.

They had so many fun times together, like exploring caves, climbing trees, and scaring off mean witches. They made the village happy and Timmy was no longer sad. Timmy learned that it doesn’t matter who your friends are, even if they’re ghosts.

As Timmy got older, the ghosts found new people to make happy. They never forgot their fun with Timmy and kept spreading joy to everyone they met. This story shows that friends can come from anywhere and that being kind and having fun is what’s important. Sometimes, friends who are ghosts can be the best surprise!

🎧 Listen:

Slow

Normal

📖 Vocabulary:

1villageA small town or community, usually in the countryside
2adventuresExciting experiences or journeys
3ghostsSpirits of dead people that some believe can appear to the living
4tricksClever actions meant to entertain or fool someone
5exploringLooking around or traveling through a place to discover what it’s like
6cavesBig holes in the ground or in the side of a hill or mountain
7climbingGoing up something, like a tree or a mountain, often using your hands and feet
8witchesWomen in stories who can use magic, sometimes to do bad things
9joyA feeling of great happiness
10surpriseSomething unexpected that can be exciting or make you happy
11kindBeing nice and caring about others
12importantSomething that is very valuable or needs to be given a lot of attention

🤔 Comprehension Questions:

1. Who were the three ghosts in the village?
2. Why did the ghosts want to make Timmy laugh?
3. How did Timmy feel at first when strange things were happening?
4. What did Timmy and the ghosts do together?
5. What did Timmy learn about friends from his time with the ghosts?
6. What did the ghosts do as Timmy got older?
Go to answers ⇩

🎧✍️ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:

In a little village, there were three ghosts named Casper, (1)______, and Hester who were nice and liked to (2)______ tricks for fun. They were best friends and liked to go on adventures.

One day, they found a sad boy named (3)______ who was new in town and had no friends. The ghosts thought it would be great to make him laugh by being his secret friends.

At first, Timmy was scared because weird (4)______ were happening, like toys moving on their own. After a while, he figured out it was the ghosts playing tricks. He (5)______ to like their (6)______ games and they all became best buddies.

They had so many fun times together, like exploring caves, climbing (7)______, and scaring off mean witches. They made the village happy and Timmy was no longer sad. Timmy learned that it doesn’t (8)______ who your friends are, even if they’re (9)______.

As Timmy got older, the ghosts found new people to make happy. They never (10)______ their fun with Timmy and kept spreading joy to everyone they met. This story shows that friends can (11)______ from anywhere and that being kind and (12)______ fun is what’s important. Sometimes, friends who are ghosts can be the best surprise!
Go to answers ⇩

💬 Discussion Questions:

Students can ask a partner these questions, or discuss them as a group.

1. What is a ghost? Why do you think some people believe in ghosts?
2. How would you feel if you moved to a new town and didn’t have any friends?
3. Do you like playing tricks on your friends? Why or why not?
4. Do you think it’s important to have friends who are different from you? Why or why not?
5. What fun things do you like to do with your friends?
6. Have you ever been scared of something at first, but then realized it was just a joke? How did you feel?
7. Do you think it’s important to be kind to others? Why or why not?
8. Have you ever had a surprise friendship? How did it make you feel?

📖💭 Vocabulary Meanings:

Match each word to its meaning.

Words:
1. village
2. adventures
3. ghosts
4. tricks
5. exploring
6. caves
7. climbing
8. witches
9. joy
10. surprise
11. kind
12. important

Meanings:
(A) A feeling of great happiness
(B) Big holes in the ground or in the side of a hill or mountain
(C) Being nice and caring about others
(D) Something unexpected that can be exciting or make you happy
(E) Women in stories who can use magic, sometimes to do bad things
(F) Looking around or traveling through a place to discover what it’s like
(G) Exciting experiences or journeys
(H) Spirits of dead people that some believe can appear to the living
(I) Something that is very valuable or needs to be given a lot of attention
(J) Going up something, like a tree or a mountain, often using your hands and feet
(K) Clever actions meant to entertain or fool someone
(L) A small town or community, usually in the countryside
Go to answers ⇩

🔡 Multiple Choice Questions:

1. Who are the three ghosts in the story?
(a) Timmy, Casper, and Jasper
(b) Timmy, Hester, and Casper
(c) Casper, Jasper, and Hester
(d) Jasper, Hester, and Timmy

2. What did the ghosts like to do for fun?
(a) Scare people
(b) Sleep all day
(c) Watch TV
(d) Play tricks

3. How did Timmy feel when he first encountered the ghosts?
(a) Excited
(b) Scared
(c) Angry
(d) Bored

4. How did Timmy and the ghosts become friends?
(a) Timmy scared the ghosts away.
(b) The ghosts helped Timmy with his homework.
(c) The ghosts played tricks on Timmy and he enjoyed it.
(d) Timmy and the ghosts never became friends.

5. What did Timmy and the ghosts do together?
(a) Explore caves
(b) Go to school
(c) Sleep all day
(d) Watch TV

6. What did the ghosts do after Timmy grew up?
(a) They moved to a different village.
(b) They stopped playing tricks on people.
(c) They became sad and lonely.
(d) They found new people to make happy.

7. What is the moral of the story?
(a) Friends can come from anywhere and having fun is important.
(b) Ghosts are scary and should be avoided.
(c) It’s best to be alone and not have any friends.
(d) Only humans can be friends, not ghosts.

8. What did the ghosts teach Timmy?
(a) Ghosts are mean and should be avoided.
(b) It doesn’t matter who your friends are, even if they’re ghosts.
(c) Timmy should be scared of everything.
(d) Timmy should only have human friends.

Go to answers ⇩

🕵️ True or False Questions:

1. They meet a new boy named Timmy who is sad and has no friends.
2. As Timmy grows older, the ghosts continue to make new people happy, but they never forget the fun they had with Timmy.
3. Timmy learns that it only matters who your friends are, not if they’re ghosts.
4. Timmy starts to enjoy the ghosts’ funny games and they become best friends.
5. They have no adventures together, like avoiding caves and appeasing mean witches.
6. At first, Timmy is excited because strange things are happening, but he eventually realizes it’s the ghosts causing mischief.
7. There are three friendly ghosts named Casper, Jasper, and Hester who like to play tricks.
8. The ghosts decide to openly be Timmy’s enemies and make him cry.
Go to answers ⇩

📝 Write a Summary:

Write a summary of this story in two sentences. Here are some hints:
Who are the main characters?
What happens in the story?

Answers

🤔✅ Comprehension Question Answers:

1. Who were the three ghosts in the village?
The three ghosts in the village were Casper, Jasper, and Hester.

2. Why did the ghosts want to make Timmy laugh?
The ghosts wanted to make Timmy laugh because he was new in town and didn’t have any friends.

3. How did Timmy feel at first when strange things were happening?
At first, Timmy felt scared when strange things were happening because he didn’t know what was going on.

4. What did Timmy and the ghosts do together?
Timmy and the ghosts had many fun adventures together, like exploring caves, climbing trees, and scaring off mean witches.

5. What did Timmy learn about friends from his time with the ghosts?
Timmy learned that it doesn’t matter who your friends are, even if they’re ghosts. Friends can come from anywhere and it’s important to be kind and have fun together.

6. What did the ghosts do as Timmy got older?
As Timmy got older, the ghosts found new people to make happy. They never forgot their fun with Timmy and kept spreading joy to everyone they met.
Go back to questions ⇧

🎧✍️✅ Listen and Fill in the Gaps Answers:

(1) Jasper
(2) play
(3) Timmy
(4) things
(5) started
(6) funny
(7) trees
(8) matter
(9) ghosts
(10) forgot
(11) come
(12) having
Go back to questions ⇧

📖💭✅ Vocabulary Meanings Answers:

1. village
Answer: (L) A small town or community, usually in the countryside

2. adventures
Answer: (G) Exciting experiences or journeys

3. ghosts
Answer: (H) Spirits of dead people that some believe can appear to the living

4. tricks
Answer: (K) Clever actions meant to entertain or fool someone

5. exploring
Answer: (F) Looking around or traveling through a place to discover what it’s like

6. caves
Answer: (B) Big holes in the ground or in the side of a hill or mountain

7. climbing
Answer: (J) Going up something, like a tree or a mountain, often using your hands and feet

8. witches
Answer: (E) Women in stories who can use magic, sometimes to do bad things

9. joy
Answer: (A) A feeling of great happiness

10. surprise
Answer: (D) Something unexpected that can be exciting or make you happy

11. kind
Answer: (C) Being nice and caring about others

12. important
Answer: (I) Something that is very valuable or needs to be given a lot of attention
Go back to questions ⇧

🔡✅ Multiple Choice Answers:

1. Who are the three ghosts in the story?
Answer: (c) Casper, Jasper, and Hester

2. What did the ghosts like to do for fun?
Answer: (d) Play tricks

3. How did Timmy feel when he first encountered the ghosts?
Answer: (b) Scared

4. How did Timmy and the ghosts become friends?
Answer: (c) The ghosts played tricks on Timmy and he enjoyed it.

5. What did Timmy and the ghosts do together?
Answer: (a) Explore caves

6. What did the ghosts do after Timmy grew up?
Answer: (d) They found new people to make happy.

7. What is the moral of the story?
Answer: (a) Friends can come from anywhere and having fun is important.

8. What did the ghosts teach Timmy?
Answer: (b) It doesn’t matter who your friends are, even if they’re ghosts.
Go back to questions ⇧

🕵️✅ True or False Answers:

1. They meet a new boy named Timmy who is sad and has no friends. (Answer: True)
2. As Timmy grows older, the ghosts continue to make new people happy, but they never forget the fun they had with Timmy. (Answer: True)
3. Timmy learns that it only matters who your friends are, not if they’re ghosts. (Answer: False)
4. Timmy starts to enjoy the ghosts’ funny games and they become best friends. (Answer: True)
5. They have no adventures together, like avoiding caves and appeasing mean witches. (Answer: False)
6. At first, Timmy is excited because strange things are happening, but he eventually realizes it’s the ghosts causing mischief. (Answer: False)
7. There are three friendly ghosts named Casper, Jasper, and Hester who like to play tricks. (Answer: True)
8. The ghosts decide to openly be Timmy’s enemies and make him cry. (Answer: False)
Go back to questions ⇧

📚 How about these other Level 2 stories?

A little girl named Lily embarks on a magical adventure along the Patchwork Path.

The Patchwork Path

Lily goes on an exciting adventure using a magical blanket that takes her on a journey full of talking animals, secret treasures, and brave moments.

The Chocolate Waterfall

Tommy loves chocolate so much that he goes on an adventure to find a magical chocolate waterfall in the forest.

Dara the daring dragonfly embarks on a quest, only to discover that the true treasure is within.

The Daring Dragonfly

Dara the dragonfly found a secret map and went on an adventure to find treasure, but she discovered that the real treasure was learning to have fun and be brave.

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