A nation's folk literature offers a window into its people and their beliefs across time and geographic locations. Whether the stories are tall tales, creation stories, or fairy tales, they reveal insights into the make-up of the populace--what they believe, what motivates them, what their attitudes are, how they behave, and how time and place…

There is a wealth of material in the oral tradition of fantasy which can be used in creating gripping fiction for young readers. One way of employing a tale from the oral tradition to produce a modern fantasy is to superimpose the old story on a new one in such a way that it is tightly interwoven in the action and meaning of the new story. This…

This student booklet, one of a series of readings on minority cultures, contains nine Indian folktales. Stories included are: Minnesota is Minabozho's Land, about the way Minnesota was formed; How We Got the Rainbow; How the Birds Came to Have Their Many Colors; The Study of Coyote and Moradjawinga (Earth Wanderer); The Four Winds, A Sioux legend,…

This book is a collection of folklore and tales written or collected by and/or about people in Flagler County, Florida, and intended to stimulate adult reading enthusiasm. Most of the stories are humorous; they are grouped into seven chapters in the book. Chapters include tales of events, ghosts, drinking and moonshine, courting, old cures and…

The translator selected six short stories by modern Indian writers and compiled them as a reader for advanced students of Hindi and Area Studies. The Hindi text on the right-hand page is translated into English on the left. The stories were selected to include vignettes of urban and rural life and characters from both middle and lower class…

This volume, the third in the International Reading Association's Perspectives Series on literature for school age children, concerns the role of folklore and the types of folktales in several areas of the world. These papers were originally presented at IRA's Fifteenth Annual Convention held in Anaheim, California, in 1970. Several articles are…

Discusses the historic derivation and the format and characteristics of traditional tall tales, and modern adaptations of these stories. Describes a selection of tall tales for modern young adult readers; notes titles and authors of original tall tales and those with female heroes. Discusses the enduring appeal of traditional and modern tall…

Undoubtedly, primitive man sat around the campfire sharing lessons of survival while telling tales of dangerous animals, ferocious storms, and other scourges of nature. We can well envision these early storytellers embellishing their escapades with waving arms and other exaggerated expressions, but these accounts effectively increased man's…

This article shows how Northrop Frye's theories of literature apply to the tales that children relish and how his theories help teachers to make connections and perceive hidden likenesses. (MM)

Designed to enrich reading programs, this book presents 13 illustrated, reproducible patterns and directions for creating small books that feature folktales from around the world. Each mini-book is in a special format that offers children in grades 1-4 some element of surprise: flaps to lift, tabs to pull, and pictures that pop up. The book begins…

This annotated bibliography lists recommended books and other instructional media dealing with folktales, fairy tales, and myths for use in preschool, elementary, and secondary education. The list is divided into four grade-oriented divisions. The first section, aimed at prekindergarten through third grade, offers annotations of 44 books, lists 30…

Presents two brief articles--the first discusses purposes for using children's picture books in a secondary classroom, activities for children's literature, and integrating children's books into the classroom curriculum; and the second discusses using folktales in the classroom to engage reluctant readers and writers, suggests ideas/topics for…

Discusses some of the best of the vast amount of folklore that has been published in 1989 and early 1990. Identifies and annotates 45 children's books and 10 poetry collections. (MG)

Upper-elementary students encounter a sometimes dizzying array of traditional and nontraditional texts both in and outside of the classroom. This practical handbook helps teachers in grades 4-6 harness the instructional potential of fiction, poetry, and plays; informational texts; graphic novels; digital storytelling; Web-based and multimodal…

Describes the following instructional aids for French: (1) a word study kit; (2) a set of language arts fascicles; (3) bilingual French-Creole cartoons illustrating Creole folk tales; and (4) a collection of 13 bilingual French-Creole folk tales. These may be used in teaching French as a native or second language. (Text is in French.) (AM)