Introduce the concept of myths to your class. Using the link to "Myths Around the World," read a story aloud and have learners list characteristics of a myth. Readers then choose their own myths from the site and work in groups to answer...

Have your class explore the art of storytelling through this lesson on fairy tales and folktales. Learners interact with a variety of fairy tales and folktales. They practice telling stories out loud as well as writing their own. This...

Students examine the art of storytelling. In groups, they write their own African folktales, design costumes, props and scenery, and videotape folktale presented in dramatic form.

Students are introduced to the characteristics of folktales and their purpose. As a class, they listen to a folktale, answer questions about the characters and share which part they enjoyed the best. In groups, they compare and...

Students 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...

Young scholars compare and contrast the details from the life of the real David Crockett and the legendary folk hero he later became. They identify the characteristics of a tall tale and follow a rubric to create a tall tale of their own.

Young scholars work in groups to write an original fairy tale in Italian. They research the components of a fairy tale, compare and contrast fairy tales with myths and follow an outline to write a complete, 15-20 page fairy tale.

Young scholars break into groups of 4 or 5 and choose an option to demonstrate a different cultural perspective in a fairy tale or other folklore that they are familiar. Possible choices are: PowerPoint presentation, video, digital...

Americans may think of Mount Everest as a region dedicated to adventurous hikers, but many cultures have flourished there! Learners read informative books, watch videos, participate in classroom discussion, analyze folk tales, and...

Write and work with authors on the Scholastic Website to promote the recognition of various genres.  Young writers will participate in activities based on the type of writing such as biography, descriptive, folktales, mystery, news,...

Students identify character traits in African folklore by creating a character web of Anansi the Spider. In this character web lesson plan, students watch a video featuring a storyteller who tells a Pourquoi story about Anansi the...

Students investigate Chinese culture by reading their folk tales.  In this creative writing lesson plan, students practice identifying the different elements in a folk tale and examine the related vocabulary.  Students organize...

Students, with the use of the Internet among various other resources, research/locate Polish folktales and re-tell the Polish folktales in their own words. In addition, they examine the art of Wycinanki, Polish paper cutting.

Students analyze, synthesize, and use the elements of various US cultural folk tales to describe the elements of fiction in general and in folk tales specifically.

Learners read the story of Paul Bunyan and identify the characteristics and actions that make him a hero. In this heroes lesson plan, students explain their answer and draw pictures.

Learners read the tall tale of Pecos Bill and identify an exaggeration in the story which they state as being part of a tall tale. In this exaggeration lesson plan, students identify the exaggeration by drawing a picture.

Students reflect on characteristics of good citizens, examine democratic symbolism, create an award and choose an individual to receive the award as part of this lesson plan on citizenship. Lesson ties together social studies, language...

Sixth graders gain an appreciation for the traditions and vast contributions of the Chinese culture in this unit of lessons.

Young scholars explore folk tales by completing a graphic organizer with classmates. In this tall tale instructional activity, students read the famous story Paul Bunyan and identify the many characteristics of a fictional tall tale...

Eighth graders use first-hand slave narratives that show conditions of slavery. They paste text into Appleworks and publish with a picture clipped from web sites. They create a group account of life during slavery to prepare for reading...

Students explore characteristics of Indian Tales/ Parables. In this literature lesson, students compare contemporary society to western culture through analysis. Students create their own tales using this genre.

Students explore American tall tales. For this tall tale lesson, students discover the six characteristics that are included in tall tales. Students survey their class to find each student's favorite tall tale character and organize the...

Students read a variety of Cinderella tales from different cultures. They discuss the differences in character, plot, and conflict resolution in the stories from different countries.

Learners review the characteristics of various characters in fairytales. As a class, they review the story details and create a concept map using a software program. They create their own wanted poster of the villians in the fairytale to...