Fables, Fairytales & Folktales
These are powerful stories to use in class - for many solid reasons.
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Just a shortish post about a topic dear to my heart - reading and especially the power of fables, fairytales and folktales as a language learning material.
There are many reasons why these timeless stories work so well instructionally and help students learn language - beyond just the narrative drive built into stories. They are;
Cultural context. Students are often familiar with the story in their own language or there is a similar story in their own culture. This is a strong scaffold for the learning process.
Repetitive nature. Often, fables and folktales have repetition built in. The characters perform similar actions over and over, the characters themselves are repeated and there is repetitive language.
Meaning. These types of stories are “wisdom” stories and teach universal truths. A strong SEL (social and emotional learning) approach is embedded. Also, this “meaning” to the story prompts strong engagement by students, as they try to determine and understand the general meaning of the story/parable.
Of course there are many other reasons to use these stories in class. Especially if the language has been adapted to the students’ level.
A few resources to recommend in our Lesson Library.
Aesop Fables. Just wonderful to use. Short, powerful. See our full list of materials and also, this reader with pptx versions for subscribers to download and use. We also have many Aesop fables on our Youtube channel, here is an example - The Ant And The Grasshopper.
Animal Tales. A wonderful book of African folktales. In pptx form also.
Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears. An enchanting story. Also, video version.
How The Birds Got Their Colors. A wonderful story brought alive with our video version
So many more stories I could mention - find them in our Lesson Library. Onions and Garlic, Heugbu Nolbu, The Paper Bag Princess plus all the regular ones we love and enjoy!
Happy storytelling!
