Deidre Lovett, 7 th Grade Lake Cormorant Middle School

Folktales are stories passed down orally from generations from generations. The stories are about people lives, struggles with their fears about the world around them. Folktales were made up to explain the wonders of the world.

Trickster Tales – where one character is clever and devious. He or she cause problems for the other characters. They usually goes unpunished. Example: The Trickster Monkey (Listen)

Short stories that teach a lesson or have a moral. The lesson or moral is never stated, but needs to be inferred by the reader. Examples: The Boy Who Cried Wolf (Listen)

Explain WHY something is as it is Explains HOW something came to be Example: How the Elephant Got his Big Ears (Listen)

Stories that include good and bad characters. Good versus Evil They usually starts off “Once upon a time” and have a hero or heroine included. The conflicts in the story are resolved through kindness, courage or intelligence. Example: Elves and the Shoemaker and The Pied Piper of Hamelin

Fear of not being loved Fear of leaving home Good and Evil Right and Wrong Happiness, Kindness, Friendship, Loyalty

Characters are uncomplicated and change only in their mindset (from the lesson learned) throughout the course of the story. The hero or heroine is usually young and fair, kind, charitable, honorable, courageous, unselfish, and may possess some sort of special power.

Place is usually described easily and briefly, leaving the imagination to fill in the gaps. Time is fantasy time, such as Once upon a time, or A long time ago

Folktales are full of action and follow a basic plotline of events, that usually starts quickly to grab the readers attention. Conflicts are usually resolved with great deeds or acts of human kindness.

Descriptions are quick and to the point, but create strong images without a lot of language. Often there are promises made or promises broken. Magic is commonly used, to explain the unexplainable. Sometimes, folktales have repeated phrases. Folktales explain a natural phenomena that otherwise would have no explanation.

With your shoulder partner, read your folktales. Read them together and locate the elements of the folktale that are evident in you selections and write them on chart paper. Be prepared to share your work with the class.