Unit 6: What Tales Tell Opening Lecture

Unit 6:

What Tales Tell

Middle School ELA

Horizon Science Academy

What is a Folktale?

• Folktales are a kind of story that gets passed on from generation to generation.

• For generations the tales were spoken aloud and never written down. Storytellers would memorize the stories and keep them alive-- this is known as Oral Tradition

• Many folktales are very old

What is a Folktale?

• True folktales do not have a single author. They develop as different people tell them over time.

• As such, they are creations of “the folk,” or the people- and they can change based on who is telling the story.

Example:

Disney's Cinderella

• Poor, helpless

• Fairy Godmother

• Mice and birds as animal companions

• Glass slippers

• Prince searching for her

Example:

Folktale Cinderella

• Not helpless, kind of a witch?

• Magic tree on her mother's grave

• Prince uses tar to stop her

• Glass slippers, but...

• Birds as friends, but...

What is considered a folktale?

• Myths and Legends

• Fairy Tales

• Tall Tales

• Spooky Stories

• Fables or Trickster Tales

What are they about?

• Folktales tell about many different parts of life. They may tell about joys and sorrows, animals and magic beings, and heroes and villains.

• Different types of folktales may entertain, teach a lesson, or try to explain things that people do not understand.

Common Elements:

• Rule of Three: Items happen in sets of 3 or 7s, lots of repetition or repeated phrases:

  - 3 characters

  - 3 events

  - 3 tests to overcome

• Magic is commonly used, to explain the unexplainable.

• May be used to teach a lesson

So?

This unit is about stories and how cultures use stories to tell us and show us and reveal to us who they are. We will learn the power of stories across time and place to help us understand and make sense of things. In comparing stories in this way we also learn about the many similarities and differences between cultures.

Multiple Choice

A folktale is...

• a true story

• a fictional story

• a movie

• a kid's show

Multiple Choice

Folktales are stories told...

• from family to family

• from friend to friend

• from storyteller to audience

• all of these!

Multiple Choice

Oral Tradition is...

• A kind of toothpaste

• Stories passed from person to person by word of mouth

• Stories written down by storytellers to tell to their kids

• The new store at the mall

Folktales and Theme

Different cultures tell different stories. However, some similar themes appear in folktales told in many different places and cultures. So, it's important to understand what a theme is!

Multiple Select

Which of these folktales might fit a theme of "It pays to work hard and plan for the future"?

• The Three Little Pigs

• The Little Red Hen

• The Ugly Duckling

• The Frog Prince

• Beauty and the Beast

Multiple Select

Which of these folktales might fit a theme of "appearances can be deceiving"?

• The Three Little Pigs

• The Little Red Hen

• The Ugly Duckling

• The Frog Prince

• Beauty and the Beast

Multiple Select

Remember, a theme is NOT a subject. Which one below is a theme? (Hint: there are two!)

• Death

• Trusting your instincts is key to survival

• It’s better to have a few good friends than many superficial ones

• Rapunzel had the courage she needed all along

Done!

We will do some more work with theme tomorrow. Have a good day!