In this section the genre of Fairy Tales will be introduced. Discussion of story elements and fairy tale components will ensue. A large chart organizer (suggested by McCarthy in her aforementioned book) will allow us to chart information gained from each tale (i. e., good people, bad people, magic, tasks, rewards, etc.). As each fairy tale is read, we will fill in the data and then compare and contrast aspects of the various tales. A bulletin board display with a multi-windowed castle will be used as a second reference where main characters will be drawn and placed in the castle’s windows. A large world map will also be on display and, using yarn, we will locate the country in which each fairy tale originates.
Nancy Boyles in her aforementioned book divides books to use in eliciting quality written reflections from students into two categories. Read-alouds are the first category to be used for whole-group instruction. Such books, according to Boyles, are “wonderful sources for literature response because they eliminate whatever challenges children may encounter during the reading process and allow everyone to focus on the thinking process associated with the response itself” (p. 6). I designate this type of story with a capital R in this unit. The second category are Teach books (designated by a capital T) and are also of high interest and at the students’ reading level. They will be used in small group settings where the teacher directs the students’ study of the story, using discussion, modeling comprehension strategies and guiding and monitoring closely student attempts at strategic thinking.
There are a suggested series of open-ended questions and story frames in Boyles’ book that will help students to think about basic narrative story elements and aid them in retelling, synthesizing and understanding the story. They include:
|
1.
|
What is the problem in this text? Give specific details.
|
|
2.
|
How does [character] solve his or her problem in this story?
|
|
3.
|
Summarize briefly what happens in this story.
|
|
4.
|
Choose one word best describing [character] and give evidence from the story.
|
|
5.
|
What was your first reaction to this story? Use details.
|
|
6.
|
How can you tell that [character] cared about _________?
|
It is essential that the teacher model written responses to these questions in order for the students to see what a quality response consists of.
In addition to questions, a teacher can also use answer frames that provide more structure to the response. Students can later be weaned off these frames when they are ready to write responses more independently, using a paragraph format. Below is a sample of such an answer frame structured after Nancy Boyles’ example on p. 67.
This fairy tale is about a main character named _______________________and it takes place in ___________________________. The problem in this tale is ________________________________________. One important event that happens as the characters try to solve this problem is ______________________________________. A second important event is ____________________________________. A third important event is ___________________________________. Finally the problem in this fairy tale is solved when ___________________________. At the end of the fairy tale _____________________________________________.
I plan to begin this unit by reading aloud several multicultural fairy tales. Besides the fact that children love to be read to, it is also a way to capture their hearts and nurture a love of this genre. Fairy tales in the past were transmitted orally, by personal recitation, from generation to generation. By reproducing this direct manner of transmission, I will be reinforcing the personal atmosphere of fairy tales so congenial to their nature.
What follows is a selection of fairy tales that I plan to use in my unit. In addition to charting story elements, eliciting written responses to specific questions using the strategies mentioned above for each tale, I have provided another reading or writing activity that suits the tale being presented.
