Curated OER
Story Retelling
Students explore storytelling by participating in an image analysis activity. In this story structure lesson, students read the book Cookie's Week by Tomie dePaola and retell the story to their teacher in sequential order. Students...
Curated OER
Cartoon Stories
All ages love to engage in cartoon writing –- little do they know that they actually learn quite a bit from it! In an instructional session focused on literacy syntax and vocabulary, your pupils work cooperatively to draw six pictures...
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
American Stories: Challenge Activities (Theme 2)
For those class members who have mastered the basic concepts and need extra challenges, here's a packet of activities sure to engage them in stories about American immigration and exploration. Kids may design a dramatic presentation...
Curated OER
Those Fabulous Fables
A video leads off this activity on fables, introducing the class to this important form of traditional storytelling. The group defines fable and hears an explanation of the origin of this type of folk tale. They summarize the story they...
Curated OER
Morality "Tails" East and West: European Fables and Buddhist Jataka Tales
Have your class explore Buddhist Jataka Tales to compare and contrast them to European fables. After defining fables, Jataka tales, and the elements of each, learners identify themes and patterns for both types of narratives and the...
Curated OER
What is History? Timelines and Oral Histories
Students consider how we learn about the past and discuss how the framing of history is always done by the person who is telling it. They construct a personal and class timelines, compare two or more accounts of the same event and record...
Curated OER
The Magical World of Russian Fairy Tales
Students read several fairy tales of Russian origin. They brainstorm common elements of a fairy tale and identify those elements in several examples. They retell a favorite fairy tale through a skit, oral storytelling, a sketch, or a...
Curated OER
What is History? Timelines and Oral Histories
Students determine that their lifetime shows just a small piece of history. They determine how two or more accounts of the same event can be different. They write an account of the same event from two perspectives.
Curated OER
One Story, Many Tales
Young scholars compare and contrast various versions of the fairytale Cinderella. In this folktale lesson, students read The Korean Cinderella and The Egyptian Cinderella and analyze the differences between the two stories. Young...
Curated OER
Story Retellings
Second graders complete story maps in order to retell stories to the class.
Curated OER
Introduction to Traditional Oral Narratives
Students are introduced to the idea of traditional oral narratives and divide them into genres. They explore the genres of context, motifs and variants. Each student finds oral narratives in their own lives and practice retelling them in...
Curated OER
It's All Part of the Story
Students explore storytelling through pantomime, improvisation, and dramatization. They watch an online video, discuss Native American earth stories, role-play various situations, explore websites, and present an oral story to the class.
Curated OER
Retelling Nursery Rhymes
Fourth graders explore language arts by reciting a famous nursery rhyme to their classroom. In this oral storytelling lesson plan, 4th graders read the story "The Three Little Pigs" and identify the characters, setting and story....
Curated OER
Presentations Come Alive!
Partners create oral presentations about a short story or poem incorporating audiovisual aids. Then they make presentations to their classmates. Linked story map will help guide readers' organization of their presentation;...
Curated OER
Cinderella Stories - Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters
Students examine an African Cinderella story. In this Cinderella instructional activity, students listen to the story, Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters, in order to compare it to the original Cinderella story and to increase their...
Curated OER
A Pixie Biography Report
Learners practice biographical writing after completing research on the subject. In this journalism lesson, students read a story of an important person's life and discuss the important moments along the way. Learners utilize their...
Curated OER
Picture Books, Retelling, and Writing
Students create stories using only pictures. In this visual storytelling lesson plan, students read Pancakes for Breakfast by Tomie de Paola and analyze the wordless story. Students create new text for the book by writing on sticky notes.
Curated OER
Storytelling
Eighth graders retell stories to peers and the entire class. In this storytelling lesson, 8th graders research short stories and select a short story to retell. Students rewrite the stories in their own words and tell it aloud.
Curated OER
Bunny Writing
First graders word process imaginative stories about rabbits to put into individual booklets to take home.
Curated OER
Cinderella Stories: An African Tale
Learners read and analyze an African version of the Cinderella story. They listen to John Steptoe's story, "Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters," locate Africa on a map, compare and contrast the story with Cinderella, and identify fairytale and...
Curated OER
Keeping the Past Alive
Students read about the oral histories of West Africa and complete related activities. In this oral histories lesson, students read about the importance of oral customs in African cultures. Students interview a family member about oral...
Curated OER
Personal Experience Narratives
Help your middle schoolers identify personal experience narratives in their own lives through telling stories themselves and from family members or other adults. They study personal experience narratives in Swapping Stories and compare...
Curated OER
Technology Rich Native American Unit
Student groups retell stories from Iroquois storytellers. They role-play Iroquois women, men and children and explain their roles. They read "Knots on a Counting Rope" and make up their own stories. They create timelines. They visit a...
Curated OER
A Fairy Tale By Any Other Name
Many classic tales, like "Cinderella," can be found worldwide. Bacis events are similar, but each retelling is molded by the culture in which it exists. Present your class with several version of tale (links provided) and have them...