Learning to Give, Curriculum Division of The LEAGUE
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Unit Overview:
This unit introduces students to the genre of fairy tales. Students compare/contrast different versions of the Cinderella story. Students focus on identifying character traits and discussing the meaning of good character. The issue of not having appropriate clothes to wear is developed into a community project of a clothing drive.
Unit Purpose:
The purpose is to recognize fairy tales/legends as literature genre and to identify positive and negative character traits.
Focus questions:
- What is good character?
- Why are the lessons in fairy tales found in stories from all different cultures?
Unit Objectives:
The learner will:
- recall the story elements of the Cinderella story.
- orally retell the story of Cinderella.
- listen to versions of Cinderella (book and video).
- discuss the universal themes and traits of fairy tales.
- make a plan for a service learning project of gathering gently-used clothing to give to families who have the need.
- recall and make inferences about story events.
- compare and contrast Cinderella stories from different cultures.
- compare and contrast character traits.
- describe and compare character traits of the main characters.
- review characteristics of fairy tales/legends.
- role-play a scene from one of the stories studied.
- write an original fairy tale.
Service Experience:
The service learning component is a clothing drive. The class collects new or gently used clothes for children. The drive may be conducted as a class or as a school-wide project. The clothes are then donated to a local agency. The students may vote on which agency they prefer. (Some agencies redistribute locally while others distribute around the world. Some agencies charge a minimal amount to the clients.)
Unit Assessment:
- Assessment is obtained through ongoing teacher observation of student participation and understanding of material through discussion, retelling, brainstorming and drawings.
- Students’ original stories should be graded on originality, sense of story and fairy tale components
- Optional for Michigan teachers: Use the MLPP Writing Rubric.
- Assess second-grade comprehension of fairy tale traits with a quiz (see Lesson Three: A Native American Tale, Attachment One: Fairy Tale Quiz).
School/Home Connection:
:Copy-and-Paste" Class/School Newsletter Information Insert
What do fairy tales/legends teach us? One thing that fairy tales teach us is that good character ultimately wins over evil. Our class is exploring the traits of fairy tales as we read and compare different versions of the Cinderella story. We will compare the character traits of fairy tale characters from different cultures and discover the similarities. Cinderella’s lack of appropriate clothing inspires a service learning project of holding a clothing drive. We believe that our good character of helping and hard work will provide some individuals in our community with appropriate clothing for school and other events. Watch for a letter coming home soon about collecting gently-used clothing for our drive.
Interactive Parent / Student Homework:
Lesson One: Cinderella – Parents are invited to help with the clothing drive. A family letter involves families in collecting gently-used clothing for local agencies. See Attachment One: Clothing Drive.
Notes for Teaching:
There are several different versions of the Cinderella story (and movie). Some suggested books (and movies) are listed in Lesson One Bibliography. Use the versions that best fit your students’ interests and experiences. In the first lesson, use a traditional version (Cinderella) because Lessons Two and Three compare a different cultural version to the traditional Cinderella story. Also, there is a wide array of Cinderella stories from other cultures such as Chinese, Korean, Irish, Egyptian and Mexican, as well as modern-day versions. If one of these is more appropriate for your class, substitute it for Lesson Two or Three or add on to the unit. (See Bibliographical References, Lesson Two)
State Curriculum and Philanthropy Theme Frameworks:
See individual lessons for benchmark detail.
Lessons Developed and Piloted By:
Jeanne Prisco
Romulus Community Schools
Merriman Elementary School
15303 Merriman Rd
Romulus, MI 48174
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