The Ugly Duckling

by Jane Jerrard

Because of his ugly and awkward appearance, a duckling is ostracized by other animals.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fairy Tales, Animals

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1992

Reviews

[Kaci Beesecker]

The classic nineteenth-century fairy tale tells the story of a duckling who, when hatched along with his brothers and sisters, is ridiculed and ostracized because they perceive him as ugly. He wanders alone through the fall and winter and suffers from fear, loneliness, and sadness. As he continues to grow people are always criticizing him, only to find out later that he is a swan.

This could be used to teach a moral lesson for people to accept themselves for who they truly are. It could also be used as a way to teach the students not to treat others differently if someone else is different than how they look. An activity that could be used but you may have to be careful with is to have students draw if they are a swan or duck and have them create that on a paper plate. They have to carry it around and then they would understand what it's like to be different. it would teach them to be kind to everyone.

[Emily Kono]

The classic fairy tale tells the story of a duckling who, when hatched along with his brothers and sisters, is made fun of because they perceive him as ugly. He wanders alone through the fall and winter and suffers from fear, loneliness, and sadness. In the spring he flies away from the marsh and meets up with a group of swans, and realizes that he too has become a beautiful swan. I would use this story to enforce the idea to never judge a book by its cover or make fun of people who look different.

[Jasmine Stocker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this version of The Ugly Ducking in this series versus some of the other books from this same series because this story is okay when it's shortened up. There doesn't need to be a lot of explaining done because this story is originally right to the point. The moral of the story is still there, therefore, it is still effective.

[Kristin Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story starts sad and disappointing, but ends with a happy ending. The ugliest duckling from the bunch is not wanting by her mom, so the mom and other babies leave her. The duckling finds himself moving from place to place to try and find love, but it doesn't work out for the duckling. However, at the end something amazing and happy happens to the duckling.

[Kylee Champlin]

The Ugly Duckling is the story of a young duckling that is different from all the other ducklings in the group. After enduring some fun being made, the duckling grows up into a beautiful swan. This teaches the children that sometimes it is a good thing to be different.

[Candyce Steiner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charlotte loved that Hansel and Gretel were in the books illustrations!

[Jill Wolf · Rating 3 out of 5]

Traditional Literature #6
This book is about a "duck" hatching and not looking like any of his brothers and sisters. He got tired of other animals being mean to him, so he ran away. Even when he ran away, others were still mean to him. It wasn't until after one winter that he realized that he was grown up and now a beautiful swan. This book would be good for teaching children about differences and how they should not be mean, especially if they do not know the circumstances of others.

[Lauren Sharp]

Traditional Literature 12
This tale follows the duckling that is born gray, clumsy, and not like the other yellow ducklings. People make fun of him and wonder where he must have came from. When the teasing gets to bad the poor little duckling runs away. An old woman takes in the duckling where he again runs away to a lake he finds very appealing. When spring comes the ugly duckling finally becomes a beautiful swan.

[Alicia Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Ugly Duckling is a great story with a great message. After being called ugly his whole life and not fitting in, this ugly duckling looks down at his reflection in a pond and realizes that he is a beautiful swan.

[Alex]

This is the classic fold tale about the Ugly Duckling. It was a great read, and I do not think I have ever actually read the story myself, however, I knew what it was about.

[Julia Buffington]

I LOVE this story. It is an awesome story for little kids and showing them that everyone is different and it's okay. It's such a cute and inspiring story for kids.