Forest Friends Comic Book for Kids: 4 Stories, 40 Pages, Ages 3–5 (Free PDF)
This free printable comic book for preschool and kindergarten tells four short, happy stories about Bruno Bear, Lulu Bunny, Rusty Fox and Hoot Owl. Each story is told in comic panels with big speech bubbles and sound words, so a child who cannot read yet can follow the pictures while you read the bubbles aloud. After the stories come tracing, counting, mazes, story-order pages and pages to make a comic of their own. Download the PDF in US Letter or A4, with a separate answer key.
Download Forest Friends Comic Book
- 40 pages for ages 3–5, plus a 4-page answer key
- Four stories with a bear, a bunny, a fox and an owl, each in eight comic panels
- Free for personal, home and classroom use, with no sign-up or email address
- Two PDF files: US Letter (8.5 × 11 in) and A4, or one zip file with everything
Answer key (4 pages, separate file):
Answer key, US Letter PDF · 1.0 MB of the Forest Friends Comic Book answer key (4 pages)Answer key, A4 PDF · 1.0 MB of the Forest Friends Comic Book answer key (4 pages)
Print at 100% (Actual size). Choose US Letter in the United States and Canada, and A4 almost everywhere else. How to print a workbook
Please note: this book is free for personal, home and classroom use. It is not for sale or resale.
A forest animals comic book with activities
This is a comic book first and a workbook second. Each story is told in eight panels over two pages, with short words in speech bubbles, so children can follow the pictures, listen for the sound words and join in with the dialogue. The activity pages after each story let your child trace the sound words, count the forest things, put the story in order and talk about how the characters feel.
Compare with: Halloween Comic Book and Space Pals Comic Book (same format, different stories) and Alphabet Activity Book
Who this comic book is for
The book is made for ages 3 to 5, which covers preschool, pre-K and the start of kindergarten. Ages are a guide, not a deadline.
At 3 and 4, plan to read the stories aloud, point to each speech bubble and let your child say the sound words (YUM! BUMP! SPLASH!). Color the picture pages and draw in the make-your-own pages. At 5, many children like to retell a story from the pictures, put the panels in order and trace the words in the bubbles.
If your child is still scribbling and is not yet comfortable holding a pencil, the stories and coloring pages still work well. For pencil control, add our pre-writing worksheets alongside.
The four forest stories
Each story has two pages of comic panels with friendly forest animals. The stories are short, gentle and about everyday feelings: sharing, trying again, kindness and friendship.
- Story 1: Bruno Shares His Berries. Bruno Bear finds a basket of berries. Lulu has none and is hungry, so Bruno shares. Rusty asks to join in, and soon everyone agrees that sharing is fun.
- Story 2: Lulu’s Big Hop. Lulu wants to hop over a log. She bumps it the first time, Bruno says “Try again, Lulu!”, and on the next try she lands on the other side and says “I did it!”
- Story 3: Rusty’s Umbrella. It is raining. Rusty loves rain and has an umbrella, Lulu is cold and wet, and Rusty invites her in. Then everyone fits under the umbrella until the sun comes out and a rainbow appears.
- Story 4: A Surprise for Hoot. Hoot is sad on his birthday. Meanwhile his friends hide and get ready with a cake, flowers and balloons, then jump out to say Surprise! Everyone sings Happy Birthday.
The cast is Bruno Bear, Lulu Bunny, Rusty Fox and Hoot Owl, with a bee, a mushroom and other small forest props. All of them are original characters made for this book, and all of them are friendly.
What is inside the Forest Friends Comic Book
The first pages explain how to read a comic: panels, speech bubbles, sound words and captions. Then come the four stories, each followed by one or two activity pages. The last part of the book is for your child’s own ideas.
Inside the book you will find:
- Meet the Forest Friends, plus pages to trace the friends’ names and forest words (TREE, BERRY, BEE, FLOWER)
- Sound-word tracing pages (YUM! WOW! HA HA! ZOOM! SPLASH! HOP! TWEET! BUZZ!) and a “Who Said It?” page
- Counting pages: count the forest things and circle the number, then count and trace the numbers 1 to 5 in Bruno’s picnic basket
- Story order pages for Story 2 and Story 4, where children write 1 to 4 under the panels
- Feelings pages: How Does Lulu Feel? and What Are They Thinking? (thought clouds to draw in)
- Two forest mazes (an easy one and a harder one), a dot-to-dot cozy house, find the different friend, patterns and finish-the-picture pages
- Coloring pages: Bruno’s berries and the birthday party
- Make-your-own-comic pages: a four-box comic, a six-box comic, draw the ending, invent a forest friend and design a comic cover
- A progress page, a “The End” page and a Super Comic Star certificate
| Pages | Section | Number of pages |
|---|---|---|
| 1–3 | Cover, This Comic Belongs To, How to Read a Comic | 3 |
| 4–6 | Meet the Forest Friends, Trace the Friends’ Names and Trace the Forest Words | 3 |
| 7–10 | Story 1: Bruno Shares His Berries, Trace the Sound Words and Color Bruno’s Berries | 4 |
| 11–14 | Story 2: Lulu’s Big Hop, Count the Forest Things and an easy Forest Maze | 4 |
| 15–18 | Story 3: Rusty’s Umbrella, More Sound Words and Bruno’s Picnic Basket (count and trace 1 to 5) | 4 |
| 19–22 | Story 4: A Surprise for Hoot, Who Said It? and Color the Birthday Party | 4 |
| 23–27 | Put Story 2 in Order, Put Story 4 in Order, How Does Lulu Feel?, Trace the Words in the Bubbles and What Are They Thinking? | 5 |
| 28–32 | Find the Different Friend, What Comes Next?, Dot to Dot: Cozy House, a harder Forest Maze and Finish the Picture | 5 |
| 33–37 | Make Your Own Comic, Six Box Comic, Draw the Ending, Invent a Forest Friend and Design Your Comic Cover | 5 |
| 38–40 | My Comic Progress, The End and the Certificate | 3 |
Sample pages
Four pages from the finished Forest Friends Comic Book. The PDF is sharp enough to print at full size.
Skills your child practices
- Reading a comic: left to right, panels, speech bubbles, captions and sound words
- Listening, retelling and putting a story in order
- Talking about feelings and what a character is thinking
- Tracing names, forest words, sound words and words in speech bubbles
- Counting up to 6 and tracing the numbers 1 to 5
- Patterns, the odd one out, mazes and dot-to-dot
- Drawing, coloring and making a comic of their own
How to read a comic with your child
Look at the pictures first
Ask what is happening in each panel before you read any words. Young children read the pictures long before they read the letters.
Read the bubbles aloud
Use different voices for Bruno, Lulu, Rusty and Hoot. Point to each speech bubble as you read it, so your child sees that the words go with the character.
Say the sound words together
Words like BUMP! and YUM! are written in big letters on purpose. Let your child shout them, then trace them on the sound-word pages.
Talk about the story
Ask “What did Bruno do?” or “How does Lulu feel now?” Then try the story-order and feelings pages.
Make a comic of your own
The last pages give empty boxes. Your child can draw a story, and you can write the words they say in the bubbles.
How to use this forest comic book at home or in class
Print a few pages at a time
Choose US Letter or A4 above and print a story with its activity pages instead of all 40 pages. Type a page range in the print window. The cover and certificate have full-color backgrounds, so printing the inner pages only saves ink.
Read one story a day
One story takes about five minutes to read aloud. Do the activity page after it while the story is fresh.
Follow your child’s interest
Pages do not have to go in order. Start with a story, a maze or a coloring page if that is what they like, and come back to tracing later.
Keep sessions short
About 10 to 15 minutes is plenty at ages 4 and 5, and 5 to 10 minutes at age 3. Stop while your child is still enjoying it.
Use it for story time or a center
In a classroom, use the stories for small-group reading and the activity pages as a center. At home, staple the pages into a book and keep it in the reading corner.
Answer key for the Forest Friends comic book
The answer key is a separate 4-page PDF, so children do not see the answers inside the book. Green marks the right answers. It covers the counting page, Who Said It?, How Does Lulu Feel?, the story-order pages for Story 2 and Story 4, find the different friend, patterns, both mazes and the cozy house dot-to-dot.
Names, drawing, thought clouds, make-your-own-comic and design pages are open-ended, so they have no single right answer. Praise the effort and the ideas rather than the neatness.
Printing tips: A4 or US Letter?
- US Letter (8.5 × 11 inches) is the standard paper size in the USA and Canada. A4 (210 × 297 mm) is used in most other countries, including the UK, India, Pakistan, Australia and Europe.
- Choose the PDF that matches your paper. Print at 100% or Actual size, not Fit to page, so nothing gets cut off.
- The cover and the certificate have full-color backgrounds. A home printer may leave thin white edges and use a lot of ink on those two pages, so printing the inner pages only is a good option.
- Draft mode saves ink if you are printing many pages.
- Use slightly thicker paper if your child will use markers, so the color does not show through.
- Staple or hole-punch the pages to make a book.
More help: how to print a workbook.
Free worksheet generators to go with this book
The comic pages are ready to print. For extra practice with other pictures, these free tools make single pages in seconds.
Maze Worksheets
Easy, medium and hard mazes with a start and finish picture. Solutions included.
Dot to Dot
Connect the dots 1
Counting
Count pictures, then write or circle the number, 1 to 20.
Shadow Matching
Join each picture to its shadow: 4 to 10 pairs at three levels.
Color by Number
Pick a picture and 4, 6 or 9 colors. Prints with a color key.
Patterns
AB, AAB, ABB, ABC and AABB patterns with shapes, colors or pictures.
More practice: maze worksheets, counting worksheets, dot to dot worksheets and word tracing worksheets.
Guides for parents and teachers
Coloring Activities for Preschoolers: A Practical Guide
Try six preschool coloring activities with practical teaching tips, easy adjustments, free printable coloring pages and activity books in A4 and US Letter.
Pre-Writing Activities for Preschoolers: 15 Fun Ideas
Explore practical preschool pre-writing activities, sample play sessions, materials, adjustments and line tracing ideas for home or classroom.
How Long Should Preschoolers Practice Tracing?
How long should a preschooler trace each day? Get simple time guides by age, a 10-minute tracing routine, and signs it is time to stop or move on.
More free printable workbooks
Halloween Comic Book
Four friendly picture stories in comic panels, then sound-word tracing, counting, mazes and make-your-own-comic pages.
Space Pals Comic Book
Four happy space stories with an astronaut pup, an alien, a robot and a star, then sound-word tracing, counting, mazes and make-your-own-comic pages. With an answer key.
Mini Detectives Comic Book
Four gentle mystery stories in comic panels, then a word search, secret codes, logic puzzles, a maze and make-your-own-mystery pages. With a 7-page answer key.
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Frequently asked questions
Is the Forest Friends comic book free?
Yes. You can download it free and print it for your own children or classroom. It is free for personal, home and classroom use, and it is not for sale or resale. Please do not put the file on another website. No sign-up or email address is needed.
What age is the Forest Friends comic book for?
It is made for ages 3 to 5, which covers preschool, pre-K and the start of kindergarten. Younger children can enjoy the stories and coloring with help, and older children can work more independently.
Can my child read it?
The stories use pictures and a few short words in each bubble. Read the bubbles aloud together. Children who are learning letters can trace the sound words and the words in the bubbles.
Which size should I print, A4 or US Letter?
Choose the one that matches your paper. US Letter is standard in the United States and Canada, and A4 is standard in most other countries. Both PDFs have the same 40 pages.
How do I print it?
Print at Actual size or 100%, not Fit to page. The cover and the certificate have full-color backgrounds, so a home printer may leave thin white edges and use a lot of ink on those pages. Printing the inner pages only is a good option.
Is there an answer key?
Yes. A separate 4-page answer key PDF covers the counting page, Who Said It?, feelings, story order, find the different friend, patterns, the two mazes and the dot-to-dot. Open-ended pages have no single right answer.
Do I need to print all 40 pages at once?
No. Print a few pages at a time and keep the rest on your device. Open the PDF, choose a page range in the print window and print only the pages you need. The contents table above shows the page numbers.
Is the book scary?
No. All the stories are gentle and happy, and all the animals are friendly.
Can I use it in a classroom or for homeschool?
Yes. Teachers and homeschool parents can print copies for their own students. The book is free for personal, home and classroom use, and it is not for sale or resale.