Myths, Legends, Folk Tales and Fables Westfield State College Computers in Education Fall 2008 Megan M Banks

Introduction There are four types of literature in the Oral tradition – Myths, Legends, Folk Tales and Fables. Every culture, in every corner of the world has stories. Whether they are creation myths formed to understand the world around us, fables designed to instruct, or legends and folktales to entertain and awe, we have all heard them, we all know them and we will all tell them. Storytelling is everywhere you go. Listening to stories from different cultures can help us understand them better. Listening to some can help us understand our own history better.

Task But do you know the differences between these types of stories? Do you know their fundamentals? Could you write one if you had the chance? Yes you can! Over the course of this project, you will discover what makes each of these types of story unique, what elements they share and you will be challenged to create your own oral tradition!

Process Look up and record the definitions of Oral Tradition: Myth, Folk Tale, Fable, and Legend. Be sure to put these definitions in your own words. Make a chart showing the elements of each type and the elements they have in common. Choose one of the four types of oral tradition (myth, legend, folk tale or fable). Read several (at least 5) of this type of story as a group to familiarize yourself with its structure and format.

Once you have chosen your type of story, complete the corresponding task: Myth: Write your own creation myth. Then, present your myth to the class. Folk Tale: Choose a folk tale and work with your group to present it to the class. Legend: Write a legend based on a real person either in history in current day. You may choose someone famous, an ancestor or someone that has had an impact on your life. Fable: Create a modern fable that conveys a message about life that you think is important for children to learn. Then present your fable to the class.

Conclusion **When writing your stories, make sure that you are staying within the format of your chosen genre of story.** When you present your story, you may choose to tell the story as a group, act it out, do a puppet show or present it in a form of your choosing. Make sure that you tell the story and that whole group is involved. Pay close attention to the presentations of your classmates. Hopefully you’ve had fun learning about oral tradition and creating your own stories. Your stories will be printed and posted in the media center for others to enjoy. As a class, we will also be presenting our new myths, legends, folk tales and fables to the first grade!

Evaluation You will be evaluated on your group presentation as well as the written tasks you will hand in to the teacher. Your presentation will be evaluated for full group inclusion, clarity and your inclusion of the components of your chosen story form. Your definitions, chart and stories must all be typed. All activities will be evaluated for completeness, neatness, and literary content and accuracy.

Internet Resources Grimm's Fairy TalesGrimm's Fairy Tales - This book contains 209 tales collected by the brothers Grimm. Hans Christian AndersonHans Christian Anderson - Fairy Tales and Stories - English Translation: H. P. Paull (1872) Aesop's FablesAesop's Fables - List of famous fables plus colorful illustrations Stories, Folklore, and Fairy Tales Theme PageStories, Folklore, and Fairy Tales Theme Page - A collection of links related to story telling. Creation Myths From Around the WorldCreation Myths From Around the World – A collection of links to creation myths from several different cultures. What is a Myth? Myths, Legends, Fables & Folklore Fact Monster DictionaryFact Monster Dictionary – An online children’s dictionary to help you with your first task.

Department of Education Frameworks Topic : Myth, Traditional Narrative, and Classical Literature Grade 5: 16s.3. Compare different versions of the same story from traditional literature (for example, American folktales). 16s.4. Identify common structures of traditional literature (for example, that characters or story elements often come in threes, such as three bears, three sisters, three wishes, or three tasks; or that there are magic helpers, such as talking animals, fairies, or elves). 16s.5. Identify common stylistic elements in traditional literature (such as repeated refrains, similes, hyperbole). Grades 5-6: For imaginative/literary writing: Write stories or scripts containing the basic elements of fiction (characters, dialogue, setting, plot with a clear resolution).

Credits This WebQuest was developed by Megan M. Banks in the fall of 2008, as part of a class on Recent Development in Computer Education offered by Westfield State College. This WebQuest was developed by exploring other webquests. Credit is due to: Rebecca Anderson and Robin Pellegrini and their webquest “Myth Makers” Mary B. Reid and her webquest “Once Upon A Time… A WebQuest on Fairy Tales, Fables, Myths, and Legends” Department of Education Frameworks can be found at