Learn Spanish (Spain): Los niños están oyendo el cuento en la librería. - The children are hearing the story in the bookshop.

Oyendo comes from the verb oír (to hear). Normally, to make an -ing word (a gerund) for an -ir verb, you add -iendo. But in Spanish, when an unstressed i is trapped between two vowels, it changes to a y. This makes it oyendo and prevents three vowels from piling up in a row.

Why do we use están oyendo here instead of just saying Los niños oyen?

Están oyendo is the present continuous tense, which pairs the verb estar (to be) with a gerund (an -ing word). You use this when you want to emphasize that an action is happening right at this very moment. If you just said Los niños oyen, it could mean they hear the story generally, rather than focusing on them actively listening to it right now.

Doesn't librería mean library?

This is a classic false friend! Librería actually means bookshop or bookstore, which is a place where you buy books. If you want to go to a library to borrow a book, you need to look for a biblioteca.

What is the difference between cuento and historia?

Cuento usually refers to a short story, a fictional tale, or a children's book (like the one the children are hearing here). Historia is broader and can mean history as a school subject, or a more general story whether it is true or made up.