Tiddalik the Frog is so thirsty that he drinks every drop of water in the entire landâŠ
Long, long ago during the Dream Time there lived a very large frog called Tiddalik.
Tiddalik lived in the rushes by the stream. He was always hungry and always thirstyâŠand because he was always hungry and thirsty he was always grumpy too.
What an appetite Tiddalik had! He would gobble up all the flies before the other frogs had a chance. He didn't care if they went hungry. All he cared about was himself.
It was the hottest time of the year. The sun beat down on the dry, dusty land and the frogs were all thirsty. But they weren't the only ones who needed to drink. So did all the other animals.
Kookaburra lived in a tree nearby. âLetâs go to the stream to drink,â he said to the other birds.
What a welcome sight the stream was. And the birds were just about to drink when Tiddalik arrivedâŠ
âOut of my way! I'm thirsty!â he croaked.
Tiddalik pushed the birds aside and opened his enormous mouth. He drankâŠand drankâŠand drank. He was drinking all the water in the stream! Down went the waterâŠdownâŠdownâŠuntil all that was left was mud.
The water inside Tiddalikâs tummy swished and rumbled.
âThatâs better,â he yawned. Now all I need is a little restâŠâ
The giant frog slept, while the birds and other animals gathered round Kookaburra. âThereâs no water left for us to drink. What can we do?â they cried. Kookaburra didn't know either.
âI know somewhere we can go for water,â said a voice. It was Kangaroo. âFollow me!â
The animals and birds followed Kangaroo as she hippety hopped across the land. Before long, a wide, flowing river appeared.
And the thirsty animals lowered their heads, ready to drinkâŠwhen they heard a soundâŠ
It was Tiddalik - his giant water-filled belly swishing and rumbling.
âOut of my way! I am still thirsty!â he croaked.
The enormous frog pushed the other animals asideâŠthen he opened his mouth and drankâŠand drankâŠand drank. He was drinking all the water in the river! Down went the waterâŠdownâŠdownâŠuntil all that was left was mud.
Tiddalik had drunk so much water he was as big as a bushâŠ
And the water inside his tummy swished and rumbled louder than ever.
âThatâs better,â he yawned. Now all I need is a little restâŠâ
The giant frog slept, while the birds and other animals gathered round kangaroo. âThereâs no water left for us to drink. What can we do?â they cried. Kangaroo didn't know either.
âThereâs one more place we can go for water,â said a voice from a tree. It was Koala bear. âFollow me!â
The animals and birds followed Koala as he padded across the hot dusty landscapeâŠuntil Koala bear stopped at the billabong. The animals gathered at the pool of water and were just about to drink whenâŠthey heard a familiar sound. It was Tiddalik again - his giant belly swishing and rumbling.
âOut of my way! I am still thirsty!â he croaked.
He pushed the animals asideâŠthen he opened his mouth and drankâŠand drankâŠand drank. He was drinking all the water in the billabong! Down went the waterâŠdownâŠdownâŠuntil all that was left was mud.
Tiddalik had drunk so much water he was as big as a gum treeâŠ
And the water inside his tummy swished and rumbled louder than ever.
âThatâs better,â he yawned. Now all I need is a little restâŠâ
The giant frog slept, while the poor thirsty animals worried. âThereâs no more water to drink in the entire land!â they cried. âWhat are we going to do?â
Tiddalik the Frog - Part one
Tiddalik the Frog is so thirsty that he drinks every drop of water in the entire land⊠the stream, the river and the billabong. The other thirsty animals have to think of a way to get the water back.
The illustrated text is available as downloadable pdf files and the teaching resources include a sequencing activity and outline drawings to print and colour in.
Resources
Download / print the Resource Pack - worksheets and learning activities suitable for home and school (pdf)
Download / print Resource Sheet 1: key vocabulary from the story (pdf)
Download / print Resource Sheet 2: Illustrated text of Part one of the story (pdf)
Download / print Resource Sheet 3: Illustration of Tiddalik
Download /print Resource Sheet 4: Missing suffixes (pdf)
Download / print Resource Sheet 5: templates for factual writing (pdf)
Download / print Resource Sheet 6: Find the mistakes (pdf)
Download / print Resource Sheet 7: lyrics for 'Tiddalik the Frog was thirsty, thirsty' (pdf)
Song: 'Tiddalik the Frog was thirsty, thirsty'
Download / print an A4 outline drawing of Tiddalik the Frog for a colouring-in activity (pdf)
Download / print an A4 outline drawing of the thirsty animals for a colouring-in activity (pdf)
Download / print an A4 outline drawing of Snake stuck in a knot for a colouring-in activity (pdf)
See also...
KS1 Music: Traditional Tales. collection
Tiddalik in our Music section - presented by Andy Day and Rebecca Keatley
