Mei and the Hen Pen

Mei and the Hen Pen

by

Patches the Story Dog

Patches the Story Dog

for your Preschooler

Preschooler The -en Hen Pen Common Rhyming

Make this story your own!

Remix Story
Mei stands at the entrance of a sunny, colorful farm, holding her sketchbook and looking excited. A big red barn rises ahead of her, and a bright green meadow full of wildflowers stretches out around her. The sky is painted in soft crayon-like swirls of blue, pink, and yellow. In the background, a cozy wooden hen pen sits near the big red barn, and a friendly pond glimmers in the distance.

Mei loved to draw. She drew cats. She drew hats. She drew big, round suns. Today, Mei took her sketchbook to the farm!

Mei stands beside the cozy wooden hen pen, leaning in to read the tiny scribbled poems covering its walls. Jen the Hen pokes her head out from inside the pen, looking proud and cheerful. In the background, the big red barn glows warmly in the sunshine, and wildflowers dot the green meadow.

Mei walked up to a cozy wooden pen. Little poems were scribbled all over it! "Who writes poems on a pen?" Mei asked. "I do!" said a voice. "I am Jen the Hen!"

Jen the Hen stands proudly inside the cozy wooden hen pen, holding up a small scrap of paper with a poem on it, her feather quill tucked behind her wing. Mei crouches nearby, clapping her hands with delight, her sketchbook resting on her lap. In the background, the pen walls are covered with tiny scribbled poems, and sunlight streams in through the open door.

Jen the Hen was round and fluffy. She had a little feather quill tucked behind her wing. "I write poems all day long!" Jen said. "Want to hear one?" Mei clapped her hands. "Yes, please!"

Mei sits in the bright green meadow near the friendly pond, drawing in her sketchbook. Jen the Hen stands beside her, looking toward the friendly pond. Wren One hops out of the water, dripping and cheerful, wings spread wide. In the background, the friendly pond sparkles with ripples, and cattails sway at its edges.

"The sun is big! The pond is fun! I like to rhyme with everyone!" Jen clucked. Just then—SPLASH! A tiny bird hopped out of the friendly pond. "I rhyme too!" she chirped. "I am a wren! That makes ONE!" Mei drew the little wren in her sketchbook.

Mei holds up her sketchbook, drawing happily as Jen the Hen watches. Wren One, Wren Two, and Wren Three are perched on the wooden fence of the cozy wooden hen pen, each with their beak open, singing together. In the background, the big red barn stands under a crayon-colored sky of swirly blues and pinks.

"Pen, hen, wren!" sang the little wren. Then another wren flew down. "TWO!" And another! "THREE!" Each wren sang a rhyme. "Pen, hen, wren, ten!" Can you count with them? One... two... three!

Mei stands in the bright green meadow laughing as Wren Seven perches on top of her head. Wren Four hops on a mossy rock, Wren Five splashes in the friendly pond, and Wren Six glides through the air. Jen the Hen watches from nearby, clucking happily. In the background, wildflowers dot the meadow and the friendly pond shimmers with little splashes.

More wrens came! FOUR hopped on a rock. FIVE splashed in the pond. SIX rode the wind. SEVEN landed on Mei's head! "That tickles!" Mei giggled. She drew them all—four, five, six, seven!

Mei holds her sketchbook open to show her drawings of all ten wrens. All ten wrens are gathered around her in the bright green meadow—some perched on the fence, some on the ground, some hovering. Wren Nine does a little dance. Jen the Hen stands beside Mei, beaming with pride. In the background, the cozy wooden hen pen and the big red barn sit under a warm, crayon-swirled sky.

EIGHT sang a song. NINE did a dance. And then came TEN! "TEN wrens!" Mei cheered. "I drew ten wrens in my sketchbook!" All ten wrens sang together: "Pen, hen, wren, TEN! Let's rhyme again!"

Jen the Hen stands outside the cozy wooden hen pen, reaching her wings up toward a small scrap of paper swirling high in the wind. Mei gasps, dropping her sketchbook to her side. The ten wrens look up at the paper flying away, alarmed. In the background, the crayon-colored sky swirls with a playful gust of wind, and wildflowers bend in the breeze.

Jen ran to her pen. "I want to show you my BEST poem!" she said. But just then—WHOOOOSH! A big gust of wind blew the poem right out of Jen's wings! The little paper twirled up, up, up into the sky. "Oh no!" Jen cried. "My poem!"

Mei runs through the bright green meadow, holding her open sketchbook up high like a net. The ten wrens fly in a line above her, chasing the small scrap of paper as it tumbles through the air. Jen the Hen runs along the ground behind Mei, flapping her wings. In the background, the big red barn and the friendly pond are visible as the chase sweeps across the farm.

"We can help!" said the ten wrens. "One, two, three—GO!" Up they flew! Mei ran below, holding out her sketchbook like a net. The wrens chased the poem over the meadow, past the pond, around the big red barn!

Wren Ten flutters down and drops the small scrap of paper into Mei's outstretched hands. Mei beams with happiness. Jen the Hen hops up and down with joy beside her. The other nine wrens swoop down around them, celebrating. In the background, the bright green meadow is bathed in warm golden sunshine, with wildflowers all around.

Wren Ten caught the poem in her tiny beak! "I got it! I got it!" she chirped. She flew down and dropped it gently into Mei's hands. "Hooray!" everyone cheered. Jen clucked with joy. "Thank you, friends!"

Mei sits cross-legged in the bright green meadow, holding up her sketchbook to show a beautiful crayon-style drawing of Jen the Hen surrounded by ten wrens. Jen the Hen leans in close to admire the drawing, her feather quill behind her wing. The ten wrens crowd around, peeping with delight. In the background, the cozy wooden hen pen is visible, its walls covered in tiny scribbled poems, glowing in the afternoon light.

Mei read the poem out loud: "Friends are fun, friends are sweet. Friends make every day complete!" "That IS the best poem," Mei said. She sat down and drew a beautiful picture of Jen and all ten wrens to go right next to it. Jen clucked and clucked. "I love it!"

Mei stands in the center of the bright green meadow, hugging her sketchbook to her chest with a big smile. Jen the Hen stands at her side, and all ten wrens are perched on Mei's shoulders, arms, and head, everyone looking happy and cozy together. In the background, the big red barn, the cozy wooden hen pen, and the friendly pond are all visible under a beautiful crayon-swirled sunset sky of orange, pink, and purple.

They all sang one last rhyme together: "Pen, hen, wren, ten—we will rhyme and count again!" Mei closed her sketchbook and hugged it tight. It was full of brand-new farm friends. What a day! Can YOU count to ten?

Browse More Stories

from the Fable Public Library

Preschooler The -en Hen Pen Common Rhyming