Rani the Little Referee
Rani is too small to play with the big kids, but has the loudest whistle in town.
Rani the rabbit loved football more than anything. But she was much, much too small to play against the big players. ‘You’ll get squashed!’ they said kindly.
One day, Rani’s neighbour gave her a shiny silver whistle. Rani blew it. PHWEEEE! It was so loud that a bird fell off a branch and said a very rude word. Rani giggled.
‘I know!’ said Rani. ‘I can be the referee!’ The big players looked at each other. A referee that small? They shrugged. ‘Okay, we’ll give it a go.’
Halfway through the game, Rosie gave Cleo a great big shove. Rani gulped. The players were so big and she was so small. Everyone waited to see what Rani would do.
Rani took the deepest breath she had ever taken. ‘STOP!’ she shouted, and blew the whistle with all her might. PHWEEEEEEEE! The whole park froze.
‘That was a foul,’ said Rani. Rosie looked down at the tiny referee and, to everyone’s surprise, said, ‘You’re right. Sorry, Cleo.’ And the game went on.
At the end, both teams clapped for Rani. ‘Best referee ever,’ said Cleo. Rani stood very tall, and for a moment she felt as big as the biggest player in the park.
The little lesson
Being small doesn’t stop you from doing something big and brave.
Let’s talk about it
- Why do we need referees in games?
- Have you ever had to say something that was hard to say?
Finish stories to collect Rani as a sticker in your Sticker Book.
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