Little Red Ball Rolls Away
An interactive read aloud story for toddlers with rolling, hiding, finding and gentle movement play.
Age: Babies and toddlers, 0–3 years
Theme: Movement, colours, hide-and-seek, first words and cause and effect
Read aloud style: Slow, playful, repetitive and easy to act out
A little red ball
sat by one hand.
Round ball.
Smooth ball.
Still ball.
One small finger
touched it.
The ball did not move.
One small hand
pushed it.
Just a little.
The red ball moved.
Roll.
It moved again.
Roll roll.
Across the rug.
Past the blocks.
Past the sleepy cat.
Tap the picture to roll the red ball.
Tap once to roll the ball. Tap again to bring it back.
The sleepy cat
opened one eye.
The little red ball
rolled on.
Roll roll roll.
It rolled to the chair.
Brown chair.
Tall chair.
Four quiet legs.
The ball bumped
one chair leg.
Bump.
Then it slipped
into the shadow.
No red ball.
Only chair.
Only rug.
Only a little dark space
underneath.
Where did the ball go?
Tap under the chair to find the red ball.
Tap once to roll the ball out. Tap again to hide it.
A hand reaches down.
Slow.
Slow.
Fingers touch the rug.
The red ball waits
under the chair.
A tiny push.
Roll.
The ball comes out.
Round ball.
Smooth ball.
Found ball.
It rolls past
one blue shoe.
Then it stops.
Still.
Quiet.
The little red ball
sits by the shoe.
Read Aloud Prompts
- Ask: “Can you push the ball?”
- Ask: “Where did the red ball go?”
- Ask: “Can you say roll, roll, roll?”
- Try rolling your hands together while reading the word “roll.”