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Folktales (African American, Chinese, Japanese and Korean)
Students participate in a variety of activities that are concerned with comparing different cultures through the literary genre of folktales. The stories are used to stimulate student interest and provide a context for how a society...
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Haitian Folktales
Seventh graders identify parts of Haitian culture through folktales. They compare and contrast a Haitian folktale with an African American folktale. They read "Bye-Bye" a Haitian folktale. They create and write their own folktale. They...
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Elements of African Oral Literature
Ninth graders examine the importance of family history. In this Language Arts activity, 9th graders read and discuss African oral literature with a focus on the roles of griots. Students compare /contrast the elements of African oral...
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African Savannah
Pupils are read two African fairy tales. Using the text, they create a map and key for each region mentioned. They compare and contrast the various communities and discover how geographic features affect how people live.
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Literature Overview of African Folktales
Students play a game of tug-of-war, participate in a discussion about the story, discuss the phrase "bigger doesn't mean better." , and illustrate a scene from the story.
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Sun and Moon Folktale
Learners become familiar with characteristics of folktales by reading or listening to African folktale that explains why sun and moon live in the sky. Students then create their own folktales about the sun and moon or another aspect of...
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Tradition through storytelling and music
Students discover how storytelling can shape a person's tradition.Students examine different methods of storytelling such as music, biographies, and African folktales. They then demonstrate their knowledge of storytelling by writing...
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An African Folktale
Students learn what a folktale is and illustrate their favorite part of the story The Orphan Boy. They also write a folk story that explains a natural phenomena.
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From Remus to Rap: A History in Theory and Practice of the African-American Storytelling Tradition
Students examine the specific form and function of tall tales and toasts.
They discover the importance of performance in the telling of a story and the importance of rhythm in the telling of toasts. They create stories of their own, in...
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Comparing African, American, and European Folktales
Learners listen to John Steptoe's story, "Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters," and then identify similarities and differences between an African, a Native American, and a European folktale.
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"Owl" A Haitian Folk Tale
Eighth graders read and discuss the Haitian folktale, "Owl." They compare it to the story, "Brer Possum's Dilemma," using a Venn diagram to show how they are different and alike. In groups, they retell the story in a skit format.
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Storytelling
Students explore the origins of folktales, fairytales, myths, legends, fables, and folktales in the ten lessons of this unit. A storytelling festival is held to feature the results of the variety of activities presented in the unit.
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Feltboard Storytelling
Students read African folktales and retell the story using feltboard. In this folktale instructional activity, students read the story Why the Sky is Far Awayand use feltboard to retell the stories.
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Zora Hurston Teacher's Guide
Students explore American culture by reading classic literature in class. In this African-American history activity, students read the story Zora Hurston and the Chinaberry Tree while identifying the work and contributions of the real...
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Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears
Second graders study folktales and their characteristics. After brainstorming what they know about Africa, 2nd graders read a book about mosquitoes. In groups, students develop a graphic organizer about the characteristics of the...
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The Talking Goat Lesson
Students analyze the meanings and patterns of a folk tale. They respond in their reading journals to the following prompts: How do you feel about the way "The Talking Goat" ended? Why? Which did you like better: your group's predicted...
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Her stories: African American folktales, fairy tales, and true tales
Students discuss the illustration's allusion to the myth, Pandora's Box. Students locate instances of folk sayings or expressions that make these tales seem authentic to the reader. Students draw a Venn diagram comparing Catskinella and...
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Making Cultural Connections
Students explore cultures through storytelling. They read African folktales. Students discuss characteristics of folktales. They research and write a folktale that includes an animal. Additional cross curriculum activities are included.
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Doll Making
Learners discuss folktales and read Tiger and The Big Wind, listening for animal characters for later discussion. In this language arts lesson, students complete a T chart on characters and make a doll for one either chosen or assigned....
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Literature: Porgy and Bess
Learners examine the various portrayals of African-Americans in literature, focusing on the opera, Porgy and Bess. They conduct Internet research on African-American culture between the two World Wars. Students write fictional or...
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Myth Connections
Ninth graders present tales and myths in the oral tradition. They discuss the African method of telling a story where each member of the group tells a part of the story. They make up a composite hero and write a story that describes...
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Anansi Goes to Lunch
Second graders read the story Anansi Goes to Lunch and complete language arts activities connected to the story. In this language arts lesson plan, 2nd graders complete activities including discussion, reading, writing, drawing, and role...
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Facts, Feats and Folklore: Spiders
Students review and discuss a variety of sayings, folklore and superstitions about spiders. They discuss this information and choose either an interesting fact or appealing foklore tradition to illustrate.
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Aesop and Ananse: Animal Fables and Trickster Tales
Students complete compare and contrast activities dealing with fables and trickster tales to determine how each uses animals to portray human characteristics, specifically strengths and weaknesses, as well as pass wisdom from one...