2. A fable is a short story, often with animal characters, intended to teach a moral lesson.

3. Fables were told orally over the years. People retold them to each other. Fables were finally written down in 300 B.C.

4. Fables have been around for a long time. Many people have written or told them. The most famous person who wrote fables was Aesop. He was a Greek slave, who lived around 600 B.C.

5. Aesop told stories to amuse his friends. His stories were called fables. Most of the stories had animal characters in them. The animals acted like humans. Each fable ended with a moral. A moral is a lesson to be learned from the story.

6. The Ant and the Grasshopper Traditional Version http://www.umass.edu/aesop/content.php? n=0&i=1http://www.umass.edu/aesop/content.php? n=0&i=1 Modern Version http://www.umass.edu/aesop/content.php? n=0&i=2http://www.umass.edu/aesop/content.php? n=0&i=2

7. Moral of Story It is best to prepare for the days of necessity

8. Compare/Contrast Traditional Same Modern

9. The Lion and the Mouse http://us.penguingroup.com/static/package s/us/yreaders/aesop/index.htmlhttp://us.penguingroup.com/static/package s/us/yreaders/aesop/index.html

10. Moral of Story Little friends may prove great friends

11. The Tortoise and the Hare http://us.penguingroup.com/static/package s/us/yreaders/aesop/index.htmlhttp://us.penguingroup.com/static/package s/us/yreaders/aesop/index.html

12. Moral of Story Plodding (working steadily and laboriously) wins the race

13. The Fox and His Shadow http://us.penguingroup.com/static/package s/us/yreaders/aesop/index.htmlhttp://us.penguingroup.com/static/package s/us/yreaders/aesop/index.html

14. Moral of Story Remember…A false appearance is no match for the real thing!

15. A Lesson For the Foolish Crow http://us.penguingroup.com/static/package s/us/yreaders/aesop/index.htmlhttp://us.penguingroup.com/static/package s/us/yreaders/aesop/index.html

16. Moral of Story Remember…Don’t always believe what you hear!