Once upon a time (sigh, had to get that phrase in here), I felt the crippling effects of time and wanted to remedy my malaise by having my students work with fairy tales. It’s a thankful genre to work with for many reasons: they are in general quite short, exist in most cultures, and most of us got acquainted with a handful of them as children.
Timewise, this plan covers one lesson but could be used as part of an entire unit on fiction. Kick off the lesson with a discussion about storytelling, and have the students write their own tales to fill out additional lessons.
Lesson Plan
Materials
Words and expressions from the blog
Instructions
Start by reading this blog post and explain the words and expressions in bold below. What do they mean in this context? As always, you may turn to your best pal — the dictionary — for help but I expect you to write using your own words.
Write a short synopsis about a fairy tale of your choice. Here’s a great online source if you’re impatient.
Words and Expressions from the Blog Post
#1
“I grew up hearing Grimm’s stories, not from books, but passed down to me by my mother from her mother from her mother, through the oral tradition.”
#2
“As a storyteller, I know if I tell a fairy tale or a story structured like one, my audience will understand what I’m doing and come along for the ride.”
#3
“We still yearn for love, for fiscal comfort, for a better life for ourselves and our children.”
#4
“If you believe that, as I do, then fairy tales are one of your most potent tools to feed your imagination.”
#5
“It’s important that we keep these stories in circulation, even the disturbing ones, because they tell us so much about what it is to be human.”
#6
They offer us unexpected solutions to the oldest problems.
