маленькому

маленькому

"Dative form of 'маленький' (small, little)."

The word 'маленькому' is in the dative case, modifying 'мальчику' (boy) to describe it as 'little' and show to whom the toy was given.

Я дал маленькому мальчику игрушку.

I gave a toy to the little boy.

The word 'маленькому' is also in the dative case here, modifying 'домику' (house) to describe its small size and showing the house is the indirect object of the action.

Мы подошли к маленькому домику в лесу.

We approached a small house in the forest.

In this sentence, 'маленькому' modifies 'ребёнку' (child) in the dative case to describe the child as small, indicating to whom the fairy tales are read.

Моя мама часто читает сказки маленькому ребёнку.

My mother often reads fairy tales to the little child.