Fairy Tales Unit Study

Fairy Tales

We've been doing a fun lit unit on fairy tales at home.  There are so many wonderful books out there that it's hard to narrow the list, but these are the ones that we've enjoyed most recently.  Also, I've easily found printable activities online that fit this unit nicely.  It can be adapted to many grade levels without much work - and it's a great multilevel unit if you're looking for a way to simplify.

This list is for elementary grades... stay tuned for my upcoming list of teen resources.

Collections (a great jumping off point)
The Random House Book of Fairy Tales (my favorite) by Ehrlich/Goode
Classic Fairy Tales by Scott Gustafson
The Kingfisher Book of Fairy Tales by Vivian French (hard to find, but I love the illustrations)

Activities and Study Guides
Literature Pockets: Folk and Fairy Tales (K-1)
Literature Pockets: Folk and Fairy Tales (2-3)
Fables, Myths and Fairy Tales Writing Lessons by IEW
Fairy Tales Comprehension Guide by Veritas Press
Imitation in Writing - Fairy Tales by Logos Press

Websites and Printables
Cinderella Stories (K-2)
Cinderella Stories from Around the World - extensive list!
Graphic Organizers - great for comparing stories, story maps, etc.
Fairy Tale Unit Guide
K-2 fairy tale lessons and printables
Unit for grades 3-5
Scholastic site - nice background information. Click on the Teacher's Guide icon.

We're doing a 6-week unit, and studying a different story every week.  We're reading multiple versions of the same story, and doing some compare/contrast activities using the printables I linked above.  One week is all about Fractured Fairy Tales (The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales by Jon Scieszka is a fun collection), and one week is dedicated to reading the original story contrasted with one told from a different narrator's point of view (I highly recommend The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs, also by Scieszka).  In the final week we'll use a blank story map to plan out our own version of a standard fairy tale, and spend the week drafting and polishing our story.

Here's a list of some of my favorite picture books in this category (not linked for purchase - they are readily available at most libraries):

The Rough-Face Girl by Rafe Martin & David Shannon
The Persian Cinderella by Shirley Climo & Robert Florczak
Yeh-Shen: A Cinderella Story from China retold by Ai-Ling Louie, illustrated by Ed Young
Cinderella by Barbara McClintock
Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story from China by Ed Young (Caldecott Medal winner)
Rapunzel by Paul O. Zelinsky (Caldecott Medal winner)
Rapunzel by Alix Berenzy
Little Red Riding Hood by Jerry Pinkney
Honestly! Red Riding Hood Was Rotten!... by Trisha Speed Shaskin and Gerald Guerlais
Beauty and the Beast by Marianna Mayer and Mercer Mayer
Beauty and the Beast by Jan Brett

Series books for kids who love fairy tales:
The Sisters Grimm
Tales of the Frog Princess by E.D. Baker
Princess Academy books by Shannon Hale

Happy reading!

ALA Awards Announced Tomorrow!

I think that I will not be able to sleep tonight in anticipation... you can keep the Golden Globes.  I'm on the edge of my seat for the book awards on Monday morning!  Caldecott, Newbery, and Printz awards, among others, will be named at 7:45 am.  If you want to watch the webcast, click here.

The Lion and the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney- my pick for the Caldecott Medal

 

I stand by my personal pick for Newbery, The Magician's Elephant by Kate DiCamillo (even though she probably won't be chosen since she's a previous winner).  But I would be pleased as punch to see Grace Lin get a nod, since she's written some wonderful books that have been overlooked.

The Printz Award for young adults has me a bit perplexed.  When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead has been getting all the buzz.  Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson is a solid choice, too, but has limited appeal since it's a "girl" story.  My choice:  Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld.

And on the subject of the National Mythology Exam

The sub-test for this year is Heracles (or Hercules).  I found this wicked cool book at the Walters Art Gallery (they had stacks of books throughout the Greek Myths exhibit that you could peruse as you enjoyed the ancient art).  Strong Stuff: Herakles and His Labors is a picture book that describes the twelve labors given to the title character as a punishment for his transgressions (killing his family).  School Library Journal says its for grades 2-4, Booklist says 4-7, and I say all of the above.  It's a great book, and will certainly appeal to the younger kids that like superheros, monsters and all things destructive.  I like it because it's a terrific explanation of the story of Hercules/Heracles/Herakles that kids will remember.  Includes a map and pronunciation guide.

How many versions of the Odyssey could there be?

And which is the "right" one for me?

We've gone through about 7 versions so far!  Not all from start to finish, of course... lots of hopping around as library books are due, one wants to read ahead, etc.  Here are a couple of reviews:

The Children's Homer by Padraic Colum is a good, solid retelling of both the Illiad (the Trojan War) and the Odyssey (wanderings of Odysseus).  Publisher says it's for ages 9-12, but I think most 9 year-olds would stumble over the King James style English.  But, it's pretty thorough, doesn't leave out any of the adventures, and has a handful of black and white illustrations throughout.  Good for middle grades to read independently.

I find Mary Pope Osborne's (of Magic Tree House fame) version, Tales from the Odyssey, the most... interesting.  Broken into three volumes, the books are highly readable by the younger set - probably those that are used to reading her Magic Tree House series.  However, just because the language is relaxed and there are fewer words per page does not change the content.  The cyclops Polyphemus still bashes the brains out of the skulls of Odysseus' men, etc.  So while you may be able to hand these books over to your second grader, you may not want to.  The Odyssey has some scary stuff in it.  I like it better as a read-aloud, and I find these books on the "light" side for our read-aloud tastes.  I would recommend it for older elementary students that are still having reading difficulty.


So far my favorite version has been right in the middle.  The Adventures of Odysseus by Hugh Lupton, Daniel Morden and Christina Balit is an excellent picture book version that still has a complete text.

This book is just under 100 pages, and is broken into 16 stories including a prologue (Trojan War story) and epilogue.  Each page of text is surrounded by gorgeous watercolor, gouache and gold ink illustrations that really bring the story to life.  I find the narration to be beautifully lyrical (and this story was a poem, right?), neither too antiquated nor simplistic.

"The next morning, when dawn took her golden throne, we said our last farewells to Circe.  She gave us a wind to fill our sail.  When the wind failed us, when the sail sagged, we knew we were approaching the enchanted regions of the Sirens."

I've renewed this book from the library twice already!  Almost time to turn it in for good, so I think this weekend we will read the last few stories and put Odysseus to rest for a bit.  But if we ever get the hankering again, this book is available in full text, for free, on Google Books.

Highly recommended as read aloud for all ages, and independent reader for ages 9 & up.

Crow Call

If we didn't already love Lois Lowry...

Crow Call by Lois Lowry

Lowry (The Giver, Number the Stars) released her first picture book last week (illustrations by Bagram Ibatoulline).  Crow Call is an autobiographical story of Lois (Liz) as a young girl, her father just returned home from WWII.   He's been gone so long she hardly knows him, and in this early morning adventure they set out to reconnect.  This book is absolutely lovely.  It's as quiet as its country morning setting, and envelopes the reader in its warmth, wrapping us up in its bright woolen shirt.  I hugged it when I finished reading it.  =)

Highly recommended - ages 4-up

Unite or Die!

Love this little book!

Unite or Die by Jacqueline Jules

If there were ever a fun way to learn about how the Articles of Confederation were replaced by the Constitution, this is it.  For ages 8 and up, this picture book tells the story (in the form of a school play - *very* funny!) of the squabbles among the states during the post-revolutionary period.  Each state, played by an elementary school actor, has its own distinct personality that beautifully displays the concerns and desires of each particular state.

Although it's a picture book, it can easily be enjoyed by older kids.  I learned a few things!  And while my kids are not likely to check out picture books from the library these days, I find that if I check them out and leave them scattered around, they definitely get read and are certainly enjoyed.  ☺

As a lovely bonus, the book's website has a free download of the Unite or Die Reader's Theater, which is a play format of the book for up to 17 actors.  How fun for a group of kids to act out the scenes in the book!