Folk Literature in the Classroom

Folk Literature as Traditional Literatures: Comparing Cultures Folklore: a reflection of people Subgenres of Folk Literature

Poetry Forms Prose Narrative Forms

Animal Tales

Nursery rhymes Myths Pourquoi Tales

Childhood rhymes Legends Trickster Tales

Ballads Tall Tales Fables

Folk songs Folk Tales

Epics Fairy Tales (marchen)

Fables

FABLES

Benefits Gained from Experiences with Folk Literature Experiencing pleasure in the language of folk

literature Increasing students’ literary options Negotiating fantasy and reality Transacting with literature on a personal basis Widening the view of the world

Pourquoi

Concerns over Folk Literature “unacceptable literature for children”

Children are incapable of understanding the differences between real and fantasy worlds.

Children should not escape the real world. Tales cause haunting, disabling, and pathological

fears. C. S Lewis insists otherwise:

Fantasy world is more orderly than the real world.

Transactional Model of Reading

Themes for Instructional Units

Overcoming Odds Unit Astonishing Animals UnitThe protagonists, through their cleverness or “gifts,” overcome almost impossible situations.

Objectives:1.Compare fantasy elements with realistic elements.2.Recognize themes.3.Observe justice systems that reward “good” over “evil.”

Animal characters use “trickery,” allowing children to analyze and compare the tricksters’ motivations and cleverness.

Objectives:1.Recognize story grammars.2.Note language differences as observed in literature.3.Analyze character motivations.

Stories: a universal tradition Tales reflect a people’s concept of

themselves: (Miller, 1995).

Same stories: different audiences

Worthy Resources Related to Folk Literature Bourke, R. T. (2008). First graders and fairy tales: One teacher’s action

research on critical literacy. The Reading Teacher, 62(4), 304-312. EDSITEment Lesson Plans. National Endowment for the Humanities.

http://edsitement.neh.gov/. Florentine, M., & Smith, R. (2006). Collaborating on a fairy tale

newspaper. Book Links, 19-21. Goforth, F. S., & Spillman, C. V. (1994). Using folk literature in the

classroom: Encouraging children to read and write. Phoenix: Oryx Press. Grebin, M. (2002). Fairy tales get real. November/December 2002.

www.TeachingK-8.com/. Winner, M. C. (2008). The great fairy tale mix-up. School Library Media

Activities Monthly, 24(8), 12-14. Young, T. A. (2004). Happily ever after. Newark, DE: IRA.