Children's classic · Fantasy
Five Children and It
Reading level: we suggest CEFR B1 for reading Five Children and It. Length: about 52,000 words.
- Suggested levelB1
- Lengthabout 52,000 words
- Original languageEnglish
The story
Five siblings digging in a gravel pit uncover the Psammead, a grumpy, ancient sand-fairy with eyes on stalks. It grants them one wish a day, and every wish ends at sunset.
The children wish for beauty, for gold, for wings and to be grown up — and every time, the wish goes wrong in ways they never imagined.
Themes: wishes and consequences, family, humour, Edwardian childhood.
Why it's a good book for language learners
Nesbit's narrator talks directly to the reader with humour and warmth, which makes this a friendly classic for intermediate learners. Each chapter is a complete episode, so you can read one wish at a time. The conditional sentences (“if we had wished…”) are a natural grammar lesson.
How hard is the English in Five Children and It?
- Flesch Reading Ease77.4
- Flesch–Kincaid grade7.3
- Words per sentence19.6
Measured by PageWalker on the full English text of the book. Flesch Reading Ease runs from 0 to 100 (higher is easier; 60–70 is plain English) and the Flesch–Kincaid grade is a US school grade. These formulas only count sentence and word length, so they miss old-fashioned vocabulary, wordplay and style. That is why our CEFR level, which takes those into account, can be higher than the formula suggests.
What you'll practise
- Conditionals and wishes: I wish…, if only…
- Family and household vocabulary
- Humorous narration and irony
- British English of the early 1900s
Reading tip
After each chapter, write the wish you would have made — and how it could go wrong.
Did you know?
E. Nesbit wrote two sequels, The Phoenix and the Carpet and The Story of the Amulet.
The PageWalker adventure
In the adventure you make the wishes — and you live with the consequences until sunset. You can try the first page in your browser, and the adventure is available in 13 languages with click-to-translate.
Five Children and It in other languages
- EnglishFive Children and It
- العربيةخمسة أطفال وذاك
- DeutschFünf Kinder und das Es
- EspañolCinco Niños y Esto
- FrançaisCinq Enfants et moi
- हिन्दीपाँच बच्चे और वह
- ItalianoCinque bambini e la cosa
- 日本語砂の妖精
- 한국어다섯 아이와 모래요정
- PortuguêsCinco Crianças e a Coisa
- РусскийПятеро детей и Оно
- TürkçeBeş Çocuk ve O
- 简体中文五个孩子和那个
Questions about Five Children and It
What reading level is Five Children and It?
We suggest CEFR B1 for reading Five Children and It. Nesbit's narrator talks directly to the reader with humour and warmth, which makes this a friendly classic for intermediate learners. On readability formulas the English text scores a Flesch Reading Ease of 77.4 and a Flesch–Kincaid grade of 7.3, with an average of 19.6 words per sentence.
How long is Five Children and It?
Five Children and It by E. Nesbit (1902) is about 52,000 words.
Can I play Five Children and It as an interactive adventure?
Yes. In the adventure you make the wishes — and you live with the consequences until sunset. You can try the first page in your browser, in 13 languages.
Updated 16 October 2026
