Main characters: Mouse, Lion
Summary: A scared mouse that was about to be killed by a lion pleaded that if the lion let her go, she will repay him in the future. He ended up letting the mouse go even though he thought a mouse could never help him. Days later, the lion gets caught in a hunter's net and roared for help. The mouse came to the rescue and set the lion free.
This would be a great story for younger students to read and learn about how anyone can help another person. I would also use this to teach younger students about sequence of events. I would have students cut out pictures and paste them in their notebooks in the order that the story happened. Below are the pictures that I would use.
Reference:
Library of Congress Aesop Fables. The Lion and the Mouse. 2017. Retrieved from http://read.gov/aesop/007.html.
4 texts that have won Caldecott awards
Main characters: Beetles, Damselflies
Setting: Backyard
Summary: A tiny shoot appears and two damselflies look at it wondering what they could do with it. The plant gets taller and leaves sprout from it and two beetles arrive and with the help of other bugs, they build a tree fort. They keep running into bigger bugs and animals that are taking over the fort and eventually the fort gets carried away. This book is written in a made up language and you have to use the picture clues and have an imagination to understand what struggles these bugs are facing.
I would use this book in my classroom to teach students about using pictures and context clues to figure out what the story is talking about. I would also do an activity where students wrote a word or phrase from the book and then wrote what they think it means. Then, I would have students state why they think that's what it means.
Reference:
Ellis, Carson. Du Iz Tak? Candlewick Press. Somerville, Massachusetts. 2016. Print.
Main Character: Old woman
Setting: A village where winter was coming
Summary: An old woman lived in a house with a big family and she knew winter was coming so she had to get some knitting done. With so many people around, she couldn't take it anymore and one day yelled "leave me alone" and left the village. Everywhere she went there were distractions whether it was bears, mountain goats, or little green moon-men. Once she was finally alone and had knitted 30 sweaters, she started to get lonely and decided to head back to the village where everything was exactly like she left it.
After reading this book, I would have students write their own story about a time that they were overwhelmed or stressed. I would have them draw pictures and create their own little book so they can relate to the story and make a text-to-self connection.
Reference:
Brosgol, Vera. Leave Me Alone! Roaring Brook Press. New York, NY. 2016. Print.
Main characters: A cat
Summary: A child, dog, fox, fish, mouse, bee, bird, flea, snake, skunk, worm, and a bat all saw a cat walking with its whiskers, ears, and paws. The story ends with the cat walking to the water looking at its reflection and asking you to imagine what the cat saw. The pictures in the book reflect what all the characters see in a really amazing way.
I would use this book to teach my students about perspective. I would explain what perspective is and how it is a point of view and how someone sees or feels about a situation. I would have students look at the same picture and write down what they think the character's perspective is and then compare what students thought was the character's perspective. This is also a great lesson about how everyone can have different opinions and see things differently and it doesn't necessarily mean that they are wrong.
Reference:
Wenzel, Brendan. They All Saw a Cat. Chronicle Books. San Francisco, CA. 2016. Print.
Main characters: African slaves
Setting: Congo Square in New Orleans, Louisiana
Summary: While unfairly working all week, slaves counted down the days until Sunday where they were briefly able to come together at Congo Square. They were free to dance, sing, and listen to music. This book shows how hard the slaves work during the week and are patiently waiting until Sunday to not have a care in the world.
I would use this book to teach my students about slavery. This would connect with any history lessons regarding slavery and oppression. After reading this book, I would have students write a poem or rap about slavery relating to the book. I would also ask them to write in their journals and ask them what they think life was like as a slave.
Reference:
Weatherford Boston, Carole. Freedom in Congo Square. Bonnier Publishing Group. New York, NY. 2016. Print.
A tall tale
Main characters: Dona Flor
Setting: A tiny village in the American Southwest
Summary: Dona Flor is a giant woman that lives in a village where her neighbors love her. She has the biggest heart and assists her neighbors in any way that she can. She carries kids to school when they are running late, makes giant-sized tortillas for people to eat or use as roofs, and calms the wind when it is too loud. When the neighbors start getting worried after hearing a loud roar, Dona Flor begins searching. Later she finds a tiny puma and realizes that the puma is no threat to her neighbors and returns home to happy and relieved neighbors.
This book shows a great lesson about how just because you or someone you know might be different, it doesn't mean you can't love them the same. Looks should not affect how you treat someone and you should always remember the golden rule. After reading this book, I would have students create their own tall tales. I would also have them illustrate their tall tales and then share them with the class.
Reference:
Mora, Pat. Dona Flor. Random House, Inc. New York. 2005. Print.
A fractured fairytale
Main characters: Princess Miserella, Plain Jane, an old fairy, Jojo
Setting: A kingdom in the middle of the woods
Summary: Princess Miserella was very beautiful, but not on the inside. When she got lost and was trying to get home she ended up meeting an old fairy and Jane. Jane was beautiful on the inside, but not so much on the outside. When the princess was being rude to the old fairy she ended up sending them all into a deep sleep. After 100 years of sleeping, Jojo came along and saw the three women sleeping and noticed how beautiful the princess was. He had never kissed anyone before so he practiced on the old fairy and Jane first and woke them up. Jane wished that Jojo loved her and the old fairy said that was a great wish and suddenly Jojo realized that the princess was smiling while having a bad dream and he knew girls like that who were pretty on the outside, but ugly on the inside and he didn't like that. The story ended with Jane and Jojo falling in love and having three children.
I would use this book to compare fractured fairytales to fairytales. Before reading this book, we would read Sleeping Beauty and students would compare and contrast the two books. I would have them explain which one they liked better and why. After comparing the two books, I would have them write their own fractured fairytale.
Reference:
Yolen, Jane. Sleeping Ugly. Puffin Books. London, United Kingdom. 1981. Print.
A fairytale retold for teens
Main characters: Cinder, Prince Kai, Linh Adri, Linh Peony, Linh Pearl, Iko, Dr. Erland, Levana
Setting: New Beijing
Summary: In the futuristic New Beijing, a deadly plague happens where humans and androids are now living. Cinder is a cyborg and is the best mechanic in New Beijing. Prince Kai comes to her to fix a broken android. Cinder's stepsister, Peony, dies of the plague and her stepmother blames her for it so she volunteers her for plague research. After discovering that Cinder is immune to the plague, Dr. Erland starts to look into her immunity and researches her life prior to becoming a cyborg, which Cinder has no recollection of. Meanwhile, Prince Kai becomes Emperor of the Eastern Commonwealth and people are wanting an alliance between Earth and Luna, which is ruled by Queen Levana. Kai wants to get out of doing this by marrying someone else and he's also searching for the heir of Luna. Cinder finds out that Levana plans to marry Kai and then kill him so at the annual ball, Cinder tries to kill Levana first. Kai is forced to arrest Cinder and while in prison, Dr. Erland comes to tell Cinder that she is the true queen of Luna.
There are many characters in Cinder. I would use this book to have students learn about character traits. I would use the CLUE strategy while reading this book with students. I would have students make predictions, read a chapter, look back at their predictions, and then make new ones as they continued to read the book. I would also have students compare and contrast this story to Cinderella and use text-to-text connections.
Reference:
Meyer, Marissa. Cinder. Macmillan Publishers. London, United Kingdon. 2012. Print.
One story from The Stinky Cheese Man
"The Really Ugly Duckling"
Main characters: Ugly duck, father duck, mother duck
Setting: A pond
Summary: A father and mother duck had seven ducklings. Six of the duckling were normal-looking ducklings, but there was one ugly one. Others would comment on the ugliness of the duckling, but he knew he would grow out of it one day and be a swan so he didn't listen to them. In the end, it turned out that the ugly duckling did grow up to be an ugly duck.
I would definitely use this with younger students because I think they would find all of the stories really funny. I would use this story to have students come up with their own "stupid" fairytale. I think students would have a lot of fun with this and after completing them, they can read them to the class.
Reference:
Scieszka, Jon. The Stinky Cheese Man and other Fairly Stupid Tales. Viking Press. New York, NY. 1992. Print.
Africa:
Main characters: Sun, Moon, Water
Setting: Earth
Summary: The sun and the water were good friends, but the water would never visit the sun. After asking the water why, the water revealed that the sun didn't have a big enough house for all of his people. The sun went home to his wife, the moon, and said he was going to build a big house so the water could visit. After building the house, water came and kept coming in and asking as the water grew higher in the house if it was still safe to invite more people in. The water overflowed the house so the sun and the moon were forced to go up into the sky and they have been there ever since.
Reference:
World of Tales. (2008). Why the Sun and the Moon Live in the Sky. Retrieved from http://www.worldoftales.com/African_folktales/African_Folktale_10.html.
Asia:
Main characters: The beggar, the miser
Setting: An old village
Summary: The beggar goes to the miser's house because he was very rich even though he never helped people. The beggar asked for meat, milk, wheat, beans, bread, and water. After the miser said he didn't have any of these things, the beggar said he better start asking people for some food because he was even more poor than him!
Reference:
World of Tales. (2008). The beggar and Miser. Retrieved from http://www.worldoftales.com/Asian_folktales/Asian_Folktale_1.html.
Australia:
Main characters: Oolah, Galah
Setting: Near the bindeah bush
Summary: Oolah the lizard was tired of lying in the sun so he started playing with his boomerangs. He was throwing them with Galah watched and one ended up hitting Galah on the head making her feathers and skin fall off. She then rubbed Oolah's skin with her bleeding head so the lizard will always have the stain of her blood and carry bindheads and Galah will always be a bald-headed bird.
Reference:
World of Tales. (2008). The Galah and Oolah the Lizard. Retrieved from http://www.worldoftales.com/Australian_folktales/Australian_folktale_2.html.
China:
Main characters: Li, Sing, Chang, the king fish, the king fish's nephew
Setting: the village of Everlasting Happiness
Summary: Li and Sing were two rich men who often treated people poorly. After moving to the village of Everlasting Happiness, Li fell very ill with a fever and was acting mad. Li suddenly awoke feeling the need for water so he went to the pond where he met a fish who said he was the nephew of the king. Li begged the nephew to talk to the king and turn him into a fish. After granting his wish, Li turned into a fish, but he was caught by his servant Chang after trying to eat a worm off of Chang's fishing hook. Chang took Li inside and wanted the cook to chop him up for dinner. After the blade fell down, Li woke up out of his sleep and was starting to feel better.
Reference:
World of Tales. (2008). The Talking Fish. Retrieved from http://www.worldoftales.com/Asian_folktales/Chinese_Folktale_5.html.
I would use all of these folktales from other countries to help my students see that there are different folktales in different cultures. I would relate these stories to different history lessons about different countries. After reading these books, I would have students research different countries and have them present what they learned about the different countries. I would have them list popular books from these countries, what food they eat, how they dress, and more. After researching different countries, I would have students compare and contrast these books to folktales in America.
Three versions of the same story written from the viewpoint of different cultures
Main characters: Cinderella, Gus, Jaq, Anastasia, Drizella, Lady Tremaine, Fairy Godmother, Prince Charming
Culture: United States of America
Summary: After Cinderella's father dies, she is stuck living with her stepmother and stepsisters who make her do all of the chores and treat her very poorly. When the entire family gets invited to a ball, they get excited because they know that the prince is looking for a wife. After Cinderella's friends helped create a beautiful dress for Cinderella to wear, her stepsisters ripped the dress apart. When her stepsisters and stepmother left for the ball, Cinderella stumbled upon her Fairy Godmother. She made her a beautiful dress and carriage and sent Cinderella to the ball and told her the spell would wear off at midnight. After arriving at the ball, the prince couldn't take his eyes off of her. Midnight was approaching and Cinderella ran off, but she left a shoe behind. The prince searched all over for the girl that the shoe would fit and in the end, found Cinderella and they could finally be together and she was free of her stepfamily.
Reference:
Disney. (2017). Cinderella's Story. Retrieved from http://princess.disney.com/cinderellas-story.
Main characters: Kao, her mother, stepmother, stepsister, prince
Culture: Thailand
Summary: Kao lives with her stepmother and stepsister who make her do all of the chores around the house. After Kao's father dies, she goes to the fish pond and a golden fish comes up to her saying that it is her mother. After spending so much time talking to her mom in the pond, Kao's stepmother sends her daughter to spy on her and see what she's up to. After learning her secret, the stepsister captures the fish, cooks it, and eats it. Kao buries the fish bones in hopes that her mother will return. She does return as an eggplant plant and once again Kao gets to spend time with her mother. Once the stepsister finds out again, she digs up the plant, and then they eat and burn it. Kao finds leftover seeds and decides to plant them. They grow into two trees and when the wind blows, she can hear her mother's voice. One day, a prince stops and he wants to dig up the trees and bring them to the palace because he likes the sound they make in the wind. Kao allows the prince to take the trees and they end up getting together and living happily ever after.
Reference:
Hamada, Cheryl. Kao and the Golden Fish. Children's Press. Chicago, IL. 1993. Print.
Main characters: Yeh-Shen, stepmother, stepsister, magical fish, King
Culture: China
Summary: Yeh-Shen lives with her stepmother and stepsister, who do not treat her very well. Yeh-Shen becomes friends with a fish in a nearby pond and shares a handful of rice with the magical fish. Her evil stepmother discovers what she's been doing and decides to capture and eat the fish. The magical fish comes back and helps Yeh-Shen get ready for a local festival. In fear of being recognized, she leaves the festival and accidentally leaves behind a golden slipper. The king finds the tiny, golden slipper and searches for the owner of it. She tries to steal her slipper back, but while trying to steal it the king catches her and figures out who she is. As you can probably guess, they lived happily ever after.
Reference:
Louie, Ai-Ling. Yeh-Shen: A Cinderella Story from China. Puffin Books. London, United Kingdom. 1982. Print.
I would use all of these books to teach my students about different cultures. It would be interesting for them to see how the same story is re-told in different ways in different cultures. I would have them compare and contrast the different cultures and different books. I would connect these books to a history lesson about different cultures. I would have students write in their journals about which version they liked the best and why. I would also have students write their own versions of Cinderella and allow them to be creative as they would like and create any version of the story that they would like.
A story in a format other than a traditional book
The Princess Mouse-A Tale of Finland
Main characters: A farmer and his two sons, narrators, Princess Mouse
Format of the story: Reader's Theater
Summary: A farmer said his two sons had to cut down a tree and whatever way that tree fell, they had to follow to pick a sweetheart for them to be their bride to be. Mikko's tree pointed toward the forest and he stumbled upon a mouse. He was a little embarrassed, but he picked the mouse to be his sweetheart. The brother's sweethearts had to create a fine cloth for the farmer to approve of before marrying the brothers. Once approved, the mouse and Mikko came to their wedding where Mikko's brother kicked the mouse into the stream. Out of the stream, popped out a lovely princess and the brothers and guests could not believe their eyes. They learned that a witch enchanted the mouse and the spell could only be broken why a brother who wanted to marry her and a brother who wanted to kill her. Mikko and the princess got married and lived happily ever after.
I would use this reader's theater in the classroom to teach students about fluency and reading with expression. After modeling for students and telling them what a reader's theater is, I would have them pick a character from the story and practice reading through the story. I would have them present their reader's theater while reading with expression. I would use this reader's theater to help students comprehend the story and it would be a really fun way for them to read a story and act it out.
Reference:
Shepard, Aaron. (2003). The Princess Mouse. Retrieved from http://www.aaronshep.com/rt/RTE31.html.
Questions to consider:
- What stories did you enjoy the most? Why?
- How would students react to the stories? Do you have any certain types of students or grade levels in mind?
- How will these books help students understand culture?
- How will these books help students gain perspective on their lives?
- How did the illustrations or mediums add to the meaning and enjoyment of these books?
- How could you use these stories in your classroom? Think of the reading standards.
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