Traditional+Literature_Resources

= Stories stand the test of time..... = = Let's teach through storytelling! =

= Diana Ellis and Ashley Wallace =

= Brainstorming is an important part of any assignment! =

Brainstorming Session: []
= Resources : =

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The resources below have been selected for a lesson unit on traditional tales. The stories may be used individually as resources for the students to complete their learning projects, or may be paired to compare and contrast as two versions of a traditional tale. Picture books or audio books with a hardcover book have been chosen so that the students may have the support of the rich illustrations to help them develop a strong understanding of the story.=====

|| ===**Caduto, Michael J. //The Crimson Elf//. Ill. by Tom Sarmo. 1997. 50p. Fulcrum Kids. $12.95 (1555919953)**===

This old Italian tale has a little resemblance as being a version of //Little Red Riding Hood.// There is a little girl named Donatella that is left at home while her mother goes to the market in another village. Donatella wants to go with her mother but she will not let her due to the bad ogre that lives in the woods. The next day Donatella decides to follow her mother without her knowing. When the townspeople and her grandfather ask where she is going she says that she is with her mom going to the market. She gets a little further behind and loses sight of her mother. An evil little elf disguised as a little boy takes Donatella to the house and offers her many treats and toys. Her mother continues to look for her and Donatella keeps playing without noticing that days have gone by. Grandfather remembers that there is a house on the hill and finds Donatella. The elf has miraculously disappeared.

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This story is in a compilation of old Italian Tales by Michael Caduto who is of Italian descent with relatives still living in Italy. He went to visit and did research on some tales that he had been hearing while growing up. He had great author and source notes which leads me to believe that this piece of work is authentic. The story has the "quick and satisfying" ending as many tales do. Greenlee states that the moral of the story is to obey and stay close to your parents. The pictures are black pencil on white paper which makes them look old fashioned.=====

This book will be used as a storytelling by the librarian.
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|| ===Diakit// é //, Baba Wague`. //The Hatseller and the Monkeys//. 1999. 32p. Scholastic Press. $15.29 (978-0-590-96069-4)===

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This tale tells the story of a hatseller, BaMusa, who is off to a neighboring town to sell his dibiri hats at a festival. In his rush to get started, BaMusa does not eat breakfast and has to stop during his journey and rest at base of a mango tree. While he is asleep, monkeys sneak down and steal his hats. When he awakes, he is frustrated and hungry and tries several things to get his hats back. After he eats some of the mangoes, he is able to think more clearly and realizes that the monkeys are imitating him. He throws his own hat to the ground and of course the monkeys do the same. Finally he gets his hats back and learns the lesson, “it is with a full stomach that one thinks best.”=====

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The author, who grew up in Mali, includes a note at the end of the book. He tells the story of how he first heard this tale growing up, and he lists other well-known versions of this tale, including Esphyr Slobodkina's //Caps for Sale//. Diakite` also discusses the significance of monkeys, and other animals in African tales, as teachers of lessons for people. This particular lesson teaches the reader that you can think better on a full stomach than an empty one.=====

This picture book is an option for students comparing two traditional tales.
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|| ===**Hickox, Rebecca. //The Golden Sandal.// Ill. by Will Hillenbrand.** 1999. 32p. **Holiday House. $6.99 (**9780823415137)===

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This is the story of Maha whose father marries a woman that has another daughter. As the years pass so do the days of the stepmother treating the daughter kindly. One day when she is delivering a fish to her stepmother, the red fish tells her that he will be at her service forever if she will free him. So she frees him. There was a henna, bride's celebration, for the rich merchant's daughter. Maha wanted to go so she asked the fish to dress her nicely and get her to the henna. The fish tells her that she must leave before her stepmother. She loses track of time, runs home, and loses a shoe in the river. The bride's brother,Tariq, finds it the next day. Finally, they find that the shoe belongs to Maha. Maha and Tariq are married. The bride's hair smells and looks beautiful. Tariq's brother wants to marry Maha's sister. Maha's sister uses the same potion on her hair only to have her head blister. Tariq's brother sends her back to live the rest of her life with her mother.=====

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This story is another Cinderella story told through an Iraqi tale. The author states in her notes that she found two Cinderella tales that were of Middle Eastern decent but chose this one due to there being very little literature from that part of the world without being told with an //Arabian Nights// flare. Morgan proclaims that the illustrations capture "a strong sense of place." Hillenbrand's notes state the complicated artistic procedure he went through to make these pictures such pieces of work. His hard work helped make this story come to life and wouldn't be the same without these beautifully detailed illustrations. The moral to this story is to treat everyone equal and be kind to one another.=====

This picture book will be an option for the students when creating their group project.
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media type="youtube" key="3573WrKKS4I" height="149" width="255" || ==="How to prepare a story for telling.." //www.youtube.com//. Web. 22 Jul 2010. <[]>.===

This video will be used to review skills for the students that choose to do the storytelling as their project.
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||< ===Louie, Ai-Ling. //Yeh-Shen: A Cinderella Story from China.// Ill. by Ed Young. 1996. 32p. Putnam Juvenile. $6.99 (9780698113886)===

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The story begins with Yeh-Shen's parents dying and she has to live with the other wife and her daughter. They treat her terrible. She finds comfort in feeding her fish. One fish grows to be humongous and jumps out of the water and sits on the bank with her. They become close friends. The unpleasant new mother finds this out and puts on Yeh-Shen's coat to trick the fish. She kills him and serves him for dinner. An old fairy man visits Yeh-Shen and tells her to recover the fish's bones. She should use these bones to wish upon and this is how she eats for a time. Then there is a ball and the typical Cinderella story occurs at this point in the story. She goes, she's beautiful, and she loses a slipper. A villager finds the slipper and sells it to a merchant who returns it to the king. The shoe is placed in the middle of the pavilion and Yeh-Shen sneaks out to try it on and of course it fits. She marries the king and the second mother and child remain in the cave and are crushed by stones falling in.=====

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The author, Ai-Ling Louie, grew up hearing this story that had been told in her family for three generations. In the author's note it explains how Ai-Ling found a Chinese manuscript of this story and confirmed that this story had been told in China since the T''ang dynasty in 618-907 A.D. The illustrations by Ed Young are whimsical and light but gorgeous. The pages have a fish essence overshadowing every picture once the fish has entered its life as her guardian angel. This symbolizes how Yeh-Shen and the fish have unified as one being. The moral of this story is to be kind to everyone and treat everyone with equality.=====

This picture book is an option for students comparing two traditional tales.
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|| === === || ===**Manson, Christopher. //The Crab Prince.// 1991. 32p. Henry Holt and Company. $5.50 (9780805012156**)===

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//The Crab Prince// tells the story of Rosella and a green crab. One day, Rosella meets a huge green crab at the well. They become friends and the green crab comes to see Rosella everyday. The green crab leave at the same time daily and Rosella, curious, decides to follow him down the deep well. When she arrives there is a ghula telling the crab to come out of his shell and out pops a handsome prince. The prince sings a song so that he may eat supper that night. After the ghula passes out from eating too much, Rosella lets the prince know she is there. He tells her that he is a prince but the ghula cast a spell on him many years ago to live as a crab. Rosella learns that she can save the prince if she can get the gold fish that ghula is always carrying around. Inside the gold fish is the secret to the spell. Rosella is able to obtain the gold fish through a great excursion into the ocean. After this the ghulu falls off of a cliff and is never heard from again. The crab is turned into a prince and receives the love of Rosella.=====

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This story was derived from an old Italian folktale and the art is encouraged by old world Venice art. The story is a rendition of //The Frog Prince.// The illustrations have been described as "theatrical" and as having "comic strip simplicity" and this description is exactly right. This story's moral is to never judge someone by their looks because what is on the inside is what really counts.=====

This story will be an option for the children when constructing their projects.
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|| ===Slobodkina, Esphyr. //Caps for Sale: a tale of a peddler, some monkeys and their monkey business// [sound recording]. 1987. 45p. Read Along Hardback. Live Oak Media. $28.95 (978-1-59112-698-0)===

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In this well-known read aloud, a peddler is walking to a village to sell his caps. On the way he becomes tired and stops to rest at the base of a tree. While he is napping some mischievous monkeys steal his caps. When he awakes, he tries everything he can think of to get the monkeys to return the caps, getting more frustrated and angry. Eventually he throws down his own cap in anger and the monkeys mimic him by throwing down all the caps from the tree.=====

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This story is another version of the West African tale, //The Hatseller and the Monkeys//. The specific origins of this version are not known, but it is believed to be of Eastern European origin. Its repetitive words and easy to mimic sound effects have made it a popular choice for read aloud or storytelling. The simple but humorous illustrations add to the story’s appeal. Unlike the West African version, this story does not have a stated moral.=====

This story as a picture book or as a read along is an option for students completing their project.
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|| ===Steptoe, John. //Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters// [sound recording]. read by Robin Miles. 2001.Read Along Hardback. Live Oak Media. $24.95 (978-1-59112-542-6)===

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This is the story of two daughters: one, considerate and kind, the other, selfish and spoiled. The daughters journey to meet the king to present themselves as a candidate for marriage. Along the way, both girls are tested to see which is worthy. Only Nyasha (whose name means "mercy") proves her character as worthy of being queen. Like most Cinderella tales, this story shows that kindness and good character is rewarded.=====

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The audio version is narrated by Robin Miles and accompanied by original music. The hardcover book accompanies the sound recording. Students will develop a deeper understanding of the story through the illustrations.=====

This story as a read along is an option for students.
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|| ===Wargin, Kathy-Jo. //The Frog Prince / the Brothers Grimm//. Ill. by Anne Yvonne Gilbert. 2007. 32p. Mitten Press. $17.68 (978-1-58726-279-1)===

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In this tale a princess makes a bargain with a frog in exchange for his help. Instead of honoring her promise, she runs home, leaving the frog behind. When the frog shows up at the castle asking to be let in, the princess must tell her father about her promise to the frog. The king insists she honor her word and share her dinner and her room with him. In anger, the princess throws the frog against the wall and he is transformed back into a prince.=====

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This beautifully illustrated version is a retelling of the Grimm tale. The rich colorful pictures help develop the characters in the story. For example, the princess’ disgust at the frog is clear on her scowling face.=====

This story may be used as a comparison to //The Crab Prince//.
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|| ===Young, Ed. //Lon Po Po: A Red Riding Hood Story From China//. 1989. 32p. Philomel. $14.52 (9780698113824)===

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This is the story of three daughters that are left at home while their mom goes to their grandmother's house. The girls are instructed to latch the door and not open it for anyone. A wolf comes disguised as their Popo and the children let her in. The wisest and oldest child devises a plan to get the wolf out of the house by telling him that there are ginko nuts in the tree outside. They trick the wolf into getting in a basket to go up to the top of the tree. Each time they drop him out of the basket until he is dead. Then, the children are able to go back into the house safely until their mom returns.=====

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Ed Young won a Caldecott medal for this book's pictures that look like colorful oriental paintings. He does a good job of showing exaggeration on the girl's sweet faces. This book is a Chinese tale that is a portrayal of //Little Red Riding Hood. The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books // claims the folktale is more than a thousand years old. The age old moral in this story is to obey your parents.=====

This story will be used as a read aloud to the class.
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"Amazon.com Books: New & Used Books,textbooks,children's Books,biographies & More." //Amazon.com: Online Shopping for Electronics, Apparel, Computers, Books, DVDs & More//. Web. 21 July 2010. .======

Carton, Debbie. "Frog Prince." //Booklist// 103.19/20 (2007): 76. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 22 July 2010.
Greenlee, Adele. " The crimson elf (Book Review)." //School Library Journal// 43 (1997): 145. //Article Citation//. Web. 23 July 2010.