Here are some of the things we did this week for our Fairy Tale/Storybook Character Unit: We talked about what a fairy tale is and what fairy tales sometimes have in them. We talked about the Story Elements in each of the Fairy Tales we read this week. Little Red Riding Hood Here is the chart I used to fill in the Story Elements as we talked about them as a class. While filling this chart out, we made our characters and set up our classroom (setting) so we could act out the story. Little Red Riding Hood Activity: They made a picture of Little Red Riding Hood and then filled in the boxes describing her. Goldilocks and the Three Little Bears We filled this in after reading the story. I had the students make this story character map for Goldilocks. Cinderella We filled this in together as a class. I laminated these Story Element Anchor Charts so I could write on them with an Expo Marker and easily wipe them off! Writing Activity: If I had a Fairy Godmother... The Three Little Pigs I read two versions of The Three Little Pigs and we compared the two stories. I had the students fill out these WANTED posters for the Big Bad Wolf. Jack and the Beanstalk We did a measurement activity. The Frog Prince Graphing Activity: Would you kiss a frog? Fairy Tale Elements Chart: After reading each fairy tale we went through and marked what fairy tale elements the book had. Storybook Character Dress-up Day: To end our unit we had the students dress up as their favorite storybook character. They came to school dressed in their costume with their book and we guessed who they were. Even all the first grade teachers dressed up! Here is just a peek at some of the storybook characters the first grade teachers have dressed us as during the years. The Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed Alice in Wonderland All Laura Numeroff book characters! Click HERE to download my Fairy Tale Unit from my TpT store!
Creating fairy tale story maps are a fun and engaging way to integrate literacy and social studies in kindergarten, first, or second grade.
I have to admit. I love the classroom transformations that we've done this year so far. When my students walk into the classroom, their eyes light up! We had so much fun learning about the elements of fairy tales and it made it even more fun with a fairy tale classroom transformation! Transform Your Room!
“Once upon a time...and they lived happily ever after.” It’s time to finish up another year of reading workshop! And that is just what Uni...
Exposing students to a wide variety of genres is so important to creating lifelong readers. It helps students begin to identify who they are as readers, including their likes and dislikes. By building genre background
This post contains affiliate links of products I recommend. Read my full disclosure statement. I love using The Gingerbread Boy by Paul Galdone to teach the elements of a fairy tale. This book fits perfectly, especially when it comes to finding something in sets of three or seven. After reading the book, use these fractured
**UPDATE: I'm working hard to make more pieces of this unit available. In the meantime, enjoy my favorite unit and one of love2learn2day's...
The week before any holiday or school break can be, well, let’s just say interesting! Add in some spring fever in first grade and you’d better bring your A-game! Our week was a little messy and hectic in the middle but I can now safely say that we all made it! The kiddos left today...
In this blog post: Download a set of decodable readers based on your favorite fairytales and folktales including The Little Red Hen, The Three Little Pigs, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Jack and the Beanstalk, and The Three Billy Goats Gruff. If you’ve been around for a while, you know that one of my favorite […]
Time to get a little dirty while learning about how plants grow! After reading books about parts of plants and how plants grow, we of course had to plant our own seeds to witness this first hand. First we added soil to our cups... ...then the kiddos planted two lima beans, two pinto beans, and some grass seeds in a clear plastic Solo cup. (I like to consolidate!) The clear cups allow the kids to see the roots as the plants grow! (Which they think is really cool!) We also watched this awesome video on YouTube to see how the lima beans would grow. Since we were also learning about Fairy Tales, we read Jack and the Beanstalk and added the castle in the clouds to our plants. When I saw this idea on Pinterest, I just had to add a huge beanstalk to the corner of our classroom! Here's our anchor chart we made for our study of Fairy Tales.
Want a new way to enjoy Fairy Tales with your kids? Read together, then explore math and engineering with this set of Fairy Tale STEM challenges for K-5!
STEM challenges to engage your primary students. Students collect clues by completing STEM and math activities to break the spell on Cinderella.
These fun fairy tale activities for kindergarten are a great way to keep your students engaged in math and literacy practice throughout the year!
Fairy Tales activities unit with Common Core aligned literacy companion activities for six popular fairy tales for First Grade and Second Grade
Fairy tales are old stories told and retold again, but do they deserve a place in a modern language arts curriculum? Besides the fact that the Common Core standards require exposure to fairy tales, there
You've found the perfect Fairy Tales Emergent Readers for your Preschool, Kindergarten, or First Grade kids. These easy to read books will go right along with the other activities, ideas, & crafts you have planned for your little readers. They are a perfect way to practice high frequency words. Download The Little Red Hen FREE!
Teaching writing to 2nd-4th graders does not have to be painful! Make it fun with fractured fairy tales! Your students will love this unit!
Teaching a unit on fairy Tales, folktales and fables was always one of my favorite times in school. We would start with traditional tales, which even back in the 1990’s not everyone knew, and if they did it was often just an wide-eyed Disney version. Then we would move on to lesser known tales, like […]
"7 Ways to Fracture a Fairy Tale" can help in writing & teaching fractured fairy tales and for creating a classroom anchor chart.
The Three Little Pigs Fairy Tales activities unit with literacy printables, reading companion activities, lesson ideas for First Grade & Second Grade
I'm here to share my favorite go-to fairy tale activities my preschool and pre-k students want to play again and again.
Who loves a good fairy tale? I know I do and I also know that my students love them, too. There are plenty to choose from, multiple versions of them, and so many great learning opportunities wrapped up in one. So, besides simply reading and responding, what else can we use fairy tales for? Read on to see topics you could address with a simple fairy tale. 1. KEY DETAILS As with any text, fairy tales can easily be used to work on finding key details. Aren't the characters, setting, and plot in a fairy tale a lot more engaging than most other stories? Students are still practicing the skill, but are enjoying the story simultaneously. I like using graphic organizers for students to practice writing down key details in the story. I also like taking a commonly known fairy tale and shortening it (or finding an already shortened version - check out KidsGen for some shorter versions that you could read aloud, print, or adapt even further - they also include videos). Once I have a shortened version, we can then practice our close reading and answer questions for students to go back into the text to find. You know, the usual! ;) The Fairy Tale Unit on Teachers Pay Teachers includes close reads as well as graphic organizers and you can get a sample of the graphic organizers for free below. This free pack of graphic organizers will help you get started on key details with your students. Click the image to grab it. 2. STORY ELEMENTS Fairy tales are a little unique in that they have a few other elements that set them apart from other fiction. Yes, we have characters, setting, problem, and solution, but we also sometimes have "magic," and always a "happily ever after." Adding in those extra elements makes learning all of them that much more special. Hang posters throughout the room with these fairy tale elements. They will help us remember them through the recall questions, but once students are beyond that, they can use these story elements to answer higher order questions as well as create their own. The posters below are FREE on Teachers Pay Teachers. Click HERE or the image below to get your set and hang them up, ready to go in your classroom. How to Use These Posters: - hang them up and use them for student reference - read aloud parts of the story and ask students which story element it belongs with. You could also provide written cards and students can sort them as a learning center/station. - hang them up or attach them to a binder ring to place within a writing center for students to use while writing their own fairy tale (more on that later). Paired with this fun graphic organizer, students can analyze and break down fairy tales they are reading or they can use it to write their own (again, more on that later). 3. COMPARE AND CONTRAST We know that fairy tales have a lot in common, so let's compare! Using a simple venn diagram will have students using those fairy tale story elements we already learned about and thinking about what these stories have in common and what sets them apart. 4. RETELLING/SUMMARIZING We all know the kid(s) who summarize by telling you the WHOLE story without leaving out any detail, right? I can't be the only one that has seen that! Summarizing is a skill we use throughout our entire lives and we practice it starting in Kindergarten! Fairy Tales are amazing stories to use to practice this skill. There are opportunities for puppet shows for your younger grades and, what I like to call, The Ultimate Retelling Challenge for your upper grades. Students retell a story either by writing it or acting it out. Read about it on this excerpt from The Fairy Tale Unit on TpT: Here's a couple of my lovely theater students using puppets to retell a fairy tale. 5. READER'S THEATER I. Love. Reader's theater. LOVE LOVE LOVE it. Fairy tales are exceptional stories to use for reader's theater because there are so many different ones, they are easily modified for any reading level, and students love them. Not only that, but Disney has helped a lot in this area, too. Odds are, most of your students have seen or at least heard of the Disney movie of Cinderella or Snow White or Sleeping Beauty, so even if they aren't great at acting out a part, they have a character they've actually SEEN to refer to. The Fairy Tale Unit on TpT has 5 reader's theater scenes as well as 5 reader's theater monologues at varying levels of reading difficulty. This is also a fun time to add in costumes (again... sucker for theater...). Here are some of my students watching another student perform a monologue. Gotta love those costumes! 6. CREATIVE WRITING Now that students know the key details of their favorite fairy tales and they know what makes a fairy tale, it is SO exciting to have students write their own. By exposing students to multiple fairy tales, they'll have an idea of varying characters and different problems and solutions. I've had some students come up with every detail brand new, but I have also had students that combined their favorite parts of various fairy tales to make a brand new mashup of sorts. Both are awesome and both are showing the creative side of your students while using this new found style in story telling. Below is a game I call "Roll a Fairy Tale." Students roll the dice and develop their story that way. There's never the "I don't know what to write," issue with this game and it is a fun addition to any writing center. They just choose a sheet (character, beginning, middle, end, finish the story, or how did this happen?), roll a die, and basically fill in the blanks. This is included in The Fairy Tale Unit on TpT. 7. CREATIVE APPLICATION We just used our fairy tale knowledge to write our own, but there are so many other opportunities for students to be creative with fairy tales. Here's a bullet list of just some of these opportunities: - For younger students, dress up in costumes for retelling purposes or have them create their own crown. - For older students, play the Creative Castle Card Game where they write about or draw a castle with combinations of various fairy tales. - For any grade level, have students discuss, write, or act out "What If..." questions, such as "What if Cinderella didn't make it back before midnight?" There are many of these included in the Fairy Tale Unit on TpT. - Read fractured fairy tales, such as The Stinky Cheese Man and The True Story of the Three Little Pigs and have students write their own taking a fairy tale and twisting it around. This is GREAT for teaching point of view! Here are some GREAT fractured fairy tales to go with your unit. I absolutely LOVE The Stinky Cheese Man. - For older students, have them write and perform their own fairy tale reader's theater or have them write a skit to have others perform. This is also really fun for those fractured fairy tales. I had a student write a monologue from the point of view of "Awake Beauty," a princess who was given the curse of never being able to fall asleep. LOVE kids' creativity! For everything you see in this post and MORE, check out The Fairy Tale Unit in my TpT shop! And definitely make sure you snag those free posters and free graphic organizers to use with all these other fun ideas for using fairy tales.
Cinderella Fairy Tales activities unit with literacy printables, reading companion activities, and lesson ideas for First Grade and Second Grade
Fairy Tales STEM Blog Series What are STEM Tales? STEM Tales are a way to integrate literacy and STEM/STEAM activities for kids in first through third grade. The stories engage the kids, and as they read through the story they are seamlessly lead through the Engineering Design Process. Click any of the images below to read more about the STEM challenge, read this post about how to run a STEM tale challenge, or visit my Teachers pay Teachers shop where you can purchase one STEM tale, sets of 3, or 12 altogether. Goldilocks and the Three Bears Robin Hood Rapunzel Hansel and Gretel Beauty and the Beast Jack and the Beanstalk The Ugly Duckling The 3 Billy Goats Gruff The 3 Little Pigs Snow White Little Red Riding Hood The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
Are you looking for fun fairy tale activities and centers with lesson plans that you can use with your fairy tale themed unit in preschool?
Y'all I love teaching with Fairy Tales SO, SO much! I know I've said it before, but it's probably one my favorite unit to teach all year!!...
If you're not using fairy tales in your classroom - you're missing out. And here's why. If you want to grow students with imagination, better comprehension and are more excited about learning - then fairy tales can help with that! Find out what's in a fairy tale that's irresistible to kids and makes using them in the classroom a winner. Why Fairy Tales are a Classroom Must Fairy tales are unique. Certain elements like 'once upon a time,' the presence of magic and epic battles between good and evil are key features that draw students in. These unique stories demand 5 outcomes and therefore reasons that
This free fairy tale unit of study is a free unit of study you can add to your reading workshop.
These multicultural fairy tales will give your chid or student a broader and different look at the world that keep us all entertained.
Fairy Tales STEM Blog Series What are STEM Tales? STEM Tales are a way to integrate literacy and STEM/STEAM activities for kids in first through third grade. The stories engage the kids, and as they read through the story they are seamlessly lead through the Engineering Design Process. Click any of the images below to read more about the STEM challenge, read this post about how to run a STEM tale challenge, or visit my Teachers pay Teachers shop where you can purchase one STEM tale, sets of 3, or 12 altogether. Goldilocks and the Three Bears Robin Hood Rapunzel Hansel and Gretel Beauty and the Beast Jack and the Beanstalk The Ugly Duckling The 3 Billy Goats Gruff The 3 Little Pigs Snow White Little Red Riding Hood The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
These fun fairy tale activities for kindergarten are a great way to keep your students engaged in math and literacy practice throughout the year!
Visit the post for more.
Do you use fairy tales in your classroom? They are the perfect way to explore readers' theater, mask making, letters to character, literacy skills and more!
These multicultural fairy tales will give your chid or student a broader and different look at the world that keep us all entertained.
Use this fairy tale story map to follow the details of your child's favorite stories and strengthen his reading skills.
One of Nora’s favorite things to do is act out Fairy Tales. I love to see how she has taken ownership of these simple stories after “playing them” over and over. Lately we have …
The Jack and the Beanstalk Fairy Tales Activities packet draws upon the story elements found in the fairy tale to provide an assortment of literacy and math activities.
Classic fairy tales, with a twist! These fabulous fractured fairy tales for kids will keep your little ones entertained for hours!
With this FREE Reading Comprehension with Fairy Tales unit, you can help build reading comprehension skills in your children using the familiar tales of "The Three Little Pigs" and "Beauty and the Beast."
Once Upon a Time.... Whew!! My how this summer is flying by...and my how long it has been since I posted anything to this blog! Sorr...
Are you reading fairy tales??? Last week, I shared with you how to make CUTE fire-breathing dragon heads ! Today, I'll be sharing a sim...
Printable set of fairy tales ad libs for kids is a captivating activity that offers grammar & vocabulary practice!
You'll love teaching your Comparing Fairy and Folk Tales unit with this guide to some of the best books available for primary students.
This free fairy tale unit of study is a free unit of study you can add to your reading workshop.
This Goldilocks and the Three Bears free printable set is perfect for storytelling. You can use these ideas to explore this classic tale through imaginative play, and to develop sequencing skills and math concepts. Goldilocks and the Three Bears free printable storytelling kit Goldilocks and the Three Bears is a classic fairytale, which […]
Do you use fairy tales in your classroom? They are the perfect way to explore readers' theater, mask making, letters to character, literacy skills and more!
Graphic Organizers for a Fairy Tales Unit - Can be used with ANY fairy tale! These graphic organizers are generic fairy tale themed and therefore can be used over and over again with every fairy tale you read during a fairy tale unit. **Download the preview to take a look! Included: *Elements of Fairy Tales - anchor chart *"Somebody, Wanted, But, So, Then" (with and without lines) *Plot Recount (who, what, where, why, when, how) *Retell (First, Then, Next, Last) *Character analysis (with space for text evidence) *Cause and effect *Point of View (retell story beginning, middle, and end from a character's point of view. *Comparison - venn diagram (compare two completely different fairy tales or compare a traditional and fractured fairy tale) *Elements of a fairy tale checklist (to be used during/after reading) *Elements of a fairy tale checklist with text evidence *Story map (characters, setting, problem, solution) ****************************************************************************** Please consider leaving feedback for FREE TpT credits and following my store for updates on new units, sales, freebies, and more! :)
Cinderella Fairy Tales activities unit with literacy printables, reading companion activities, and lesson ideas for First Grade and Second Grade
