Name of School: Rose Parks Elementary

Topic: Multicultural fairytales and Folktales

Standards 5th Grade
1. Library Media K-5
Strand 7
Standard 1
Engage with information by reading, listening, and viewing sources in a variety of
formats.

a. Use questions to guide reading, listening, and viewing of sources while building
connections between prior knowledge and new information. 
b. Analyze and make sense of information (e.g., identifying main ideas, supporting details,
bias, point of view, misconceptions, conflicting information).
2.English
Writing Standard 3 
Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique,
descriptive details, and clear event sequences.
Reading: Informational Text Standard 5 
Compare and contrast the overall structure (e.g., chronology, comparison, cause/effect,
problem/solution) of events, ideas, concepts, or information in two or more texts.
Reading: Informational Text Standard 6 
Analyze multiple accounts of the same event or topic, noting important similarities and
differences in the point of view they represent.
Reading: Literature Standard 9 
Compare and contrast stories in the same genre (e.g., mysteries and adventure stories) on their
approaches to similar themes and topics.

3.Heath
Standard 2 
The students will adopt health-promoting and risk-reducing behaviors to prevent substance
abuse.
Objective 2 
Use decision-making skills to increase the likelihood of positive outcomes.
a. Describe how advertising may influence individual choices. 
b. Predict the consequences of a variety of choices. 
4. Fine Arts
Visual Arts
Strand: CREATE (5.V.CR.) 
Students will generate artistic work by conceptualizing, organizing, and completing their artistic
ideas. They will refine original work through persistence, reflection and evaluation (Standards
5.V.C.1–3).
Standard 5.V.C.1: 
Combine ideas to generate an innovative idea for art-making.
Standard 5.V.C.2: 
Experiment with and develop skills in multiple art-making techniques and approaches through
practice.
Standard 5.V.C.3: 
Create artistic statements using art vocabulary to describe personal choices in art-making.

Synopsis:
The multicultural fairytale and legend project are to expose students to many different
underrepresented cultures. We will examine and discuss in depth about each tale over the course
of a three-week period. We will focus on how the decisions the characters made shaped their
lives and others around them in the stories. We will discuss main themes from each tale and see
how they relate to each other. In doing this, I hope it will allow students to see that despite all
the various cultures that kindness and goodness is the same no matter where you are from. We
are all part of a human family, and sharing, helping, and love will always prevail, even across
cultures.
In the last week we will go over the major themes to help them write their own create
your own adventure story. They will write and illustrate a book with two to three different
endings based on the readers choice. They can choose to write the book with two to three people
or alone. The students will then go read their stories to first graders, and the first graders will
choose which ending they read.

Educational Goals:
 To gain a better understanding of underrepresented cultures.
 To see the similarities and differences between cultures
 To see how love and kindness is a theme in all cultures all over the world
 To hopefully learn that no matter what someone looks like or where they are from, we are
alike underneath.
  To complete a project where the students use the characteristics/attributes we’ve gathered
from the stories into their own tale.
 To have the students think critically from various points of view.
 To have students think about consequences for their actions as they write their own
multiple ending tale.
 To be kinder

Annotated Bibliography:
Abrahams, R.D. (1985). Afro-American folktales: Stories from black traditions in the new world
(Ed.). New York, NY: Pantheon Books.
This is a collection of African American folktales. One tale that will be shared with the
class is called “Spreading Fingers for Friendship.” A man has two wives and tells each
one “when you eat you must spread your fingers.” One wife took that to mean to share
the food she was given with all around her. The other, ate alone and would walk outside
and spread her fingers towards the sky. When the husband died, the wife who had shared
of her means with all those around her was taken care of by her friends. The other who
only ate herself and shared with no one, had nothing to eat. The moral always share and
care for others, because one never knows when we may need their help one day. We
must build a community of friendship with those near us. By sharing this story with the
class, it will help them see to always be aware of others around us and not to just care
only for themselves.
Ehlert, L. [Carlena Cody]. (2017, May 25). Cuckoo A Mexican Folktale [Video file]. Retrieved
from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7emYN5zCmvQ
This is a Mexican Folktale, read from a book. It centers around a bird, Cuckoo, who is
the most beautiful bird in the land. Her feathers are colorful and her voice so lovely.
Others judged her to be conceited and only thought of herself. One night a fire came, and
Cuckoo alone saved all the seeds for all those around her to make sure everyone had
food. Her feathers were scorched black, her once beautiful voice gone, and her eyes
blood red. Those who had judged her based on her looks repented of their ways. They
realized one cannot fully know what is in an individual’s heart based solely on looks.
The class will reflect on this principle to not judge others based on appearance.
Gunderson, J. (2015). Little red riding hood: Stories around the world. North Mankato, MN:
Picture Window Books.
A series of the same classic Red Riding Hood tale of a bad wolf and a little girl, from
different parts of the world. The class will compare and contrast the differences between
the various versions of the tale.
Hello Kids (2014, April 3). HelloKids # Korea Traditional Fairy Tale 30 # Faithful Daughter
 Shim Cheong [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=vsTvZw7odoc
This is a Korean fairytale about a blind father and his faithful, loving daughter. He is told
that to restore his sight he must give 300 bowls of rice to Buddha. They are too poor to
afford that cost. His daughter hears of fisherman who will pay 300 bowls of rice for a
woman to calm the waves by being thrown in the sea. She sacrifices herself, and has the
men give the rice to her father. The sea god takes piety on her and puts her in a giant
flower, which gets taken to a king. The flower opens and the king falls in love. Her
father, who’s sight is restored, are reunited in the end. The class will examine what it
means to be a “faithful daughter.” What sacrifices, if any, are required.
Peter Chand Storyteller (2014, June 8). The Boy Who Wanted a Drum. Indian Folktale by
Storyteller Peter Chand [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=WQuclqJwcdM
This Indian tale is about a little boy who asks his mother for a drum. They are poor so
the best she could give him was a stick she found. From that gift, the boy shows his
unselfish nature by giving all he has to each person he meets along the way, and in return
they give him gifts as well. In the end he finally gets the drum he wanted; from someone
he has helped in the course of his tale. In class, we will focus on the boy’s choices and
his kindness. We will ask what might have happened if he made different decisions.
Meister, C. (2015). Cinderella: Stories around the world. North Mankato, MN: Picture
Window Books.
This is a collection of various Cinderella stories, evil sisters and eventually marrying a
prince, from around the world. We will read “Little Burnt Face” from the Micmac tribe
of North America and compare it to the most well-known version of this tale.
McAllister, A. (2016). A year full of stories: 52 folktales and legends from around the world.
New York, NY: Frances Lincoln Children’s Books.
This book has many different cultures tales and legends from around the world. We will
read the Indian story “The Cracked Pot.” It is about an older man who draws water from
the stream and carries it to his master’s home. One of the pots has a crack in it and the
water leaks out the side. The man sits down next to the pots to rest. The cracked pot
speaks and asks why, after all these years, has he not gotten rid of it. The man then
shows the pot the flowers on the road that the leak had watered all these years. He said,
“To me your flaw is a blessing. That my friend, is why I never replaced you.” In class I
want the students to realize that no matter how broken or flawed they may feel they are
valued. We will discuss times where they or others felt undervalued or broken and what
the did to deal with that.
Mora, O. [Sankofa Read Aloud]. (2019, April 12). Thank You, Omu! [Video file] Retrieved
 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S628jnrp8JU&app=desktop
This is based on a Nigerian tale, where a grandmother is making some red stew for
dinner. The smell of the red stew brings many different visitors to her door. Each time
they comment on the wonderful scent and the old women gives each one some stew.
Come dinner time when the woman sits down to eat, she opens her pot and discovered
she had given it all away and had nothing left for herself to eat. Just then there is a knock
on the door and each person she shared with had brought her something from their
kitchen to share with her. She had all different types of food that night for dinner. As a
class we will discuss the kind nature of the woman and her willingness to share. We will
compare it to different tales that have a similar theme, which we had read.

Yolen, J. (2017). Once there was a story: Tales from around the world perfect for sharing. New
York, NY: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.
This is a children’s picture book which includes tales from different parts of the world.
We will read an African tale “How Anansi Spider Got all the Stories.” It is a story in
which Anansi spider goes to the sky god and asks for the stories to give to the humans
below. The sky god gives Anansi an impossible task, believing no one could achieve it,
in order to get the stories. Through his tricky and persistent nature Anansi completes all
the tasks and gets the stories for humankind. We will talk in class about Anansi’s
reasoning as to why he wanted the stories for the humans. Also focus on never giving up,
even when the task seems “impossible.”
Young, E. (1989). Lon po po: A red-riding hood story from China. New York, NY: Penguin
Putman Books for Young Readers.
This is a Chinese version of the classic Red-Riding Hood. It is a bit different than the
more familiar version of this tale. Three sisters are left alone while their mother goes to
visit their grandmother, or “Po Po” as they call her. A wolf shows up at their door posing
as their “Po po.” In the middle of the night they let him in. The older sister must then
figure out a way to keep she and her little sisters safe. She devices a plan with her sisters
and in the end defeats the wolf. In class we will discuss their innovation and skills to get
out a bad situation. We will almost compare the tale to the original better-known version
of the tale.

Weekly Outlines
We will discuss various questions, in groups and then as a class over the course of the first two
weeks. Then we will work on our project for the last week of classes.
Week One:
Monday:
 Introduce the fairytale theme by reading the well-known Little Red-Riding Hood. It will
be immediately followed by the Chinese version of this same fairytale Lon Po Po
 As a class we will create a Venn diagram, and discuss what was similar between the two
stories and what was completely different.
 I will then pose a question to the class and break the students up into groups of 3-4
students. The question will be: Place yourself in the place of the characters, in Lon Po
Po. Once the wolf was in your house, what possible ideas or cleaver ways would you
have come up with to get away from the wolf? How would that those decisions effected
the ending? We will then share some of the ideas with the class.
 What are the positive attributes of these characters? What were the negative? We will
then write some on the board to be added to everyday during the 3 week period.
Tuesday:
 Another famous tale Cinderella will be read and discussed. Widely know version and
“Little Burnt Face.”
 We will compare and contrast. We will break up in small groups to discuss and then
share their findings with the class.
 We will discuss the actions of the mean sisters who burnt their sisters face every day
and lied about it. Based on their actions what consequences did they face in the end?
Was this fair? Why or why not?
 Were there ever times in your own lives where you lied to not get in trouble or to hide
something? What happened? What do you think should have happened?
 Discuss the positive/negative attributes and add to the board
Wednesday:
 Ask the class what they know about Africa? What do they think might be in this story?
Why?
 We will read an African tale “How Anansi Spider Got all the Stories.”
 How was this similar or different than what you thought it might have been?
 Why do you think Anansi Spider wanted the humans to have all the stories? What are
important about stories? What is important about your own life story?
 Why didn’t Anansi spider give up? Have there been times in your own lives where you
felt people didn’t feel you could do something? How did that feel or how did you
overcome the negative talk?
 Discuss the positive/negative attributes and add to the board

Thursday:
 Read the Indian story “The Cracked Pot.”
 What did you like about this story? Was it similar to anything we’ve read so far?
  Why do you think he didn’t get rid of the cracked pot? Would you have gotten rid of the
pot? Why or why not?
 What do you think we can learn by not giving up on people or seeing their flaws as a
blessing, like in the story?
 Discuss the positive/negative attributes and add to the board

Friday:
 Watch Cuckoo a Mexican Folktale
 Have you ever judged someone based on looks? How do you think we can know what is
in someone’s heart? What would you have to do to discover that? Many people judge
others before knowing who they are inside. Have you ever felt like that?
 Why do you think Cuckoo saved all the seeds even though she gave up her singing voice
and her beauty to do so? Would you have done the same? Why or why not?
 Do you see any similarities or differences in this tale versus the other tales?
 Discuss the positive/negative attributes and add to the board

Week Two:
Monday:
 Watch Korean fairytale “Faithful Daughter”
 What reasoning do you think led to the daughter jumping into the water? Do you think
she thought she would survive? Why or why not? While not to this extreme, have you
ever sacrificed something for someone else? How did that feel? Would you want friends
with those attributes?
 What are the similarities and differences in this tale compared to the previous ones?
 Discuss the positive/negative attributes and add to the board
Tuesday:
 Watch the Indian story The Boy Who Wanted a Drum
 Have you ever asked for something and gotten something different than you asked for?
How did you react? Were you grateful like the boy in the story? Or were you upset/sad?
 What attributes does this boy have? Are they attributes you may want? Are they ones
you want in a friend?
 Come up with an idea of something kind, big or small, that you can do for someone else
this week. Think about it and we will share what you did and how you felt on Thursday.
 Discuss the positive/negative attributes and add to the board

Wednesday:
 Watch the Nigerian story Thank you, Omu!
  What similarities do you see between this story and The Boy Who Wanted a Drum? Are
there any other similar stories we’ve read?
 Do you have a favorite family recipe in your house?
 Why do you think she gave her food away to complete strangers? Do you think she
expected anything in return when she gave them her stew? Why or why not? Why do
you think the people brought her food in the end?
 Would you want a friend who was like Omu?
 Discuss the positive/negative attributes and add to the board

Thursday:
 Read African tale “Spreading Fingers for Friendship”
 How is this story similar to Thank you, Omu! And The Boy Who wanted a drum?
 Are there other stories we’ve read or have not read these past weeks that you can think of
that are similar to this? What about The Little Red Hen? Is that similar?
 What do you think is the moral of the story? What lessons can we learn from this and the
three previous stories?
 Share their kind deed they were supposed to come up with on Tuesday. What did they
do? How did they feel? How do they think the other person felt?
 Discuss the positive/negative attributes and add to the board

Friday:
 Member of the community to come in and tell a story. Gary D. Hansen a Native
American Flute Player & Teller
 Ask the class what was different about having a live storyteller come in and deliver a true
“oral” story?
 We will then discuss various points from the story and relate it to other stories that we
have read.
 Tell the class to start thinking over the weekend of their own fairytale or folktale they
want to write and illustrate, to be read to a younger class next week. Tell them that it will
have a twist, and they will have to come up with two to three different endings depending
on the choices they make. A choose your own adventure story. This way they will have
a real-world issue of choice and accountability. Ask them to think about if they want to
work alone or in a group.
Week 3
Monday:
 Have the students look on the board at the big list of positive/negative attributes that were
in the stories from the past two weeks. Have them choose if they want to incorporate
those attributes into the stories that they compose.
  Have the students began brainstorming, either alone or in groups on their stories. What
characters will they have? How many? What moral will the story have? How many
endings will you put in your story?
 Students will start to work on their stories.
Tuesday:
 A member of the community will come in to show the students how to illustrate for a
story.
 The students will start on their artwork and work on their stories
Wednesday:
 The students will work on their artwork and stories
Thursday:
 The students will work on their artwork and stories and finish up what they need for
tomorrow.

Friday:
 Go to a first grade class and read their completed stories to small groups of students.
 Discuss their experience in sharing their stories with others.
 Ask what they have learned over the past three weeks. What tales were their favorites?
Why? What similarities, if any, were there in the cultures and stories? Was anything
similar to their own culture? If so, what? What was their biggest take-way from doing
this project?

Community Resources:
1. A native American Flute Player and Teller:
http://utahstorytelling.org/chapters/farmington-chapter/gary-d-hansen-native-
american-flute-player-storyteller
2. Artists in the classroom: http://saltlakearts.org/grant/artist-in-the-classroom/