Sharing for kids: stories about taking turns

Sharing for kids is one of the first social skills children learn, and one of the hardest. On this page Golu reads two short picture stories aloud, in Hindi and English, about sharing and taking turns. In the first, Riya shares her yellow crayon with Kabir. In the second, three friends and one red cycle learn "my turn, your turn". At one moment in each story your child chooses what the friends should do, and the kind choice moves the story on.

Both stories are original and written for children aged 2 to 6. They take about four minutes each. Nobody is told off: if your child picks "Hide the crayon box", Golu gently shows how Kabir feels and offers Let's try again.

The two sharing stories on this page

Each story ends with the question "How did the story make you feel?" and six feeling faces. Every answer is accepted. Then a small real-world mission appears, such as "Share your crayons or a toy with someone today", and a marble drops into your child's Goli Jar.

Why sharing is hard for young children

If your 2-year-old grabs a toy and shouts "Mine!", that is normal. Toddlers are only beginning to understand that other people have feelings and wants that are different from their own. They also cannot yet picture the future well, so "you will get it back soon" means very little to them. What looks like selfishness is mostly a brain that has not finished growing.

Between 3 and 4, most children start to take turns with help, especially in a simple game with clear rules. By 5 and 6, many can share without a grown-up stepping in, and they begin to share because they notice a friend is sad, not only because an adult asked. That is why both stories show a feeling first ("Kabir looked at the yellow crayon. He felt a little sad.") before asking what to do.

Sharing and taking turns are two different skills. Sharing means letting someone use something at the same time or giving part of it away. Taking turns means waiting while someone else has the whole thing. Young children usually find turn-taking easier, because the toy comes back.

How to teach sharing to toddlers and preschoolers

Ages 2-3: show it, name it, keep it short

• Share with your child all day and say it out loud: "I am sharing my roti with you. One piece for you, one for me."
• Play simple back-and-forth games: roll a ball to each other, pass a spoon, stack blocks one each. Say "my turn, your turn" every time.
• Do not force a toddler to hand over a special toy. Put the favourite teddy away before a friend comes over, and bring out toys that are easy to share, like blocks or crayons.

Ages 3-4: use a timer and a plan

• Use a sand timer, a song or counting to ten, just like Golu does with the cycle. Waiting is much easier when a child can see or hear when it ends.
• Before a playdate, ask: "Which toys are okay to share? Which ones shall we keep safe in the cupboard?"
• Praise the effort, not the child: "You waited for your turn and counted for Anu. That was patient." Avoid "good girl" or "good boy".

Ages 4-6: talk about feelings and fairness

• After the crayon story, ask: "How did Kabir feel when he had no crayons? How did he feel after Riya shared?"
• Let children solve small sharing problems themselves: "There is one swing and two of you. What could you do?" Listen to their ideas before offering yours.
• Show that sharing is a choice, not a rule that makes them lose things. It is fine to say "I am still using it. You can have it when I am finished."

Sharing and turn-taking activities for kids at home

Five to ten minutes a day is plenty. These sharing activities for kids need nothing you do not already have:

1. The fruit plate. Cut one banana or mango into pieces and let your child share them out: "One for Papa, one for Dadi, one for me." Counting and sharing in one game.
2. Turn-taking tower. Build a tower of blocks or steel glasses, one piece each, until it falls. Everyone cheers.
3. One crayon, one picture. Give two children one sheet of paper and one set of crayons. They must draw one picture together, like Riya, Kabir and Golu.
4. Ludo or snakes and ladders. Classic board games are excellent turn-taking practice for 4 to 6 year olds. Let your child roll the dice for everyone.
5. The counting ride. At the park, count to ten out loud for each child's turn on the swing or slide. Children love being the counter.

When your child does share, point out the result: "Look, Rohan is smiling because you gave him the red car." Children repeat what makes other people happy once they can see it.

What to do when your child will not share

Every child refuses sometimes. Try to stay calm and practical:

• Name the feeling: "You really want the cycle. It is hard to wait." A named feeling often calms a child quickly. Our emotions for kids page helps children learn words like angry, sad and frustrated.
• Offer a plan: "Anu has it now. After I count to ten, it is your turn." Then keep your promise.
• Offer something else to do while waiting: cheer, count, or play with a different toy.
• If feelings are very big: take a break together. Our calm-down activities for kids have breathing games that help.

Children with autism, speech delay or ADHD often find waiting and sharing extra hard. Visual supports help a lot: a picture card that says "my turn" and "your turn", a sand timer, and the same short phrase every time. Keep turns very short at first. For bilingual homes, use the same phrase in both languages: "मेरी बारी, तुम्हारी बारी" and "my turn, your turn".

How to use the stories on this page

Sit with your child and hold the phone or tablet together. Golu reads each page aloud, and each word lights up as he says it. Tap 🔊 to hear the page again, ◀ to go back and ▶ to go forward. Tap any picture, such as the cycle or Riya, to hear it talk. The अ+A button at the top switches the language order: Hindi first, English first, or only one language.

Screen time for young children works best as short, shared sessions. One story, then close the screen and play the "one crayon, one picture" game for real. Children under 2 get more from sharing a snack with you than from any screen.

Picture questions to ask after each story

These questions check that your child followed the story. Let younger children point to the answer on the picture instead of saying it.

Riya's Crayon Box

• Who had no crayons? (Kabir)
• Where were the children? (At school, in the classroom)
• What happened when Riya shared the yellow crayon? (Kabir drew a sun, and they made one picture together with a rainbow and a cloud)

Whose Turn on the Cycle?

• Who had the first ride? (Anu)
• Where were the friends? (In the park)
• What happened while Sam waited? (He counted to ten and cheered for Anu, and then it was his turn)

For more questions like these for all our new stories, see story comprehension for kids. For more stories about kindness, try our moral stories for kids, which include a mango-sharing story and a kite turn-taking story.