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Using Fairy Tales to Teach Library Skills

 Rachel Horwitz 

The Academic Setting 

For the past year of my eight year teaching career, I have been the librarian at McKinley Middle School in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  McKinley is located on a busy street in the northeastern part of the city and is surrounded by smaller owner occupied homes, some rental homes, and apartments.  It is a working class neighborhood.  Based on conversations with some of the students at McKinley, the students move a lot within the neighborhood.  Often the library books they need to return are in a box somewhere. Students living in apartments move more frequently. 

            The enrollment at McKinley Middle School has been about 800 for the past three years.  According to the statistics of the Albuquerque Public School system, the majority ethnic break-down of McKinley students is as follows; 44% of the students are of Hispanic background, 36.8% are Anglo and 10.1% are Native American.  60.6 % of the students at McKinley receive free or reduced lunch. 

                    McKinley Middle School is well aware of the working class origins of its students.  The school is on the same site as the McKinley Community Center which has a day-care and a before and after school program. Many of McKinley’s students attend these after school programs and many have younger siblings at the day-care.  I often see McKinley students picking up their younger brothers or sisters and walking them home.   To the east of the community center, across the street, is a city park with a few swings.  At the end of the park is a Boys’ and Girls’ Club which also has after school programs, including a well attended basketball program.   I often hear McKinley students asking their friends if they will be going to the Boys’ and Girls’ Club after school.  Because the vast majority of McKinley students have parents or guardians who work, McKinley Middle School also provides its own after school programs with a snack every day except Friday until 4:30.  McKinley Middle School also has contracted with APS to provide a bus to take the students home at 4:30.   Many McKinley teachers, not directly involved with McKinley’s after school program, stay after school to provide extra help for their students.  They do this on their own time and are not paid for this work.  For the most part, the teachers at McKinley realize that they are sometimes the most consistent and caring adults that McKinley students deal with. 

                    Another nearby place for McKinley students to go to after school until their parents get off work is the temporary location of the Erna Fergusson Public Library.   It is located across the parking lot from the community center, but only for another year.  The library has lots of books and is well staffed, but what the McKinley students are attracted to are the computers.  Often I will find McKinley students on the computers at the library until six o’clock when the library closes. 

                    McKinley students, in general, are representative of today’s public school students. Family and living situations can be stressful.  Many students live with at least one non-biological parent and often move back and forth between biological parents. “Students nowadays have two sets of parents …and because of their living situation sometimes they don’t know where their stuff is or who is going to pick them up…” (Stevens 12).   Many students live with half and step siblings, some of whom they get along with and some of whom they don’t.  All the adults work, so the pressure for family time is hard.   Many students mention how one of their parents works nights. These often stressful living situations spill over into school and can lead to behavioral or academic problems in school.  McKinley is fortunate to have the services of two full time counselors, one full time nurse, and one full time social worker, all of whom provide emotional and physical support for the students.    

            Many of the McKinley students I have talked to have rarely, if ever, left Albuquerque.  Most of their experiences are local and therefore repetitive.  Their view of the world is extremely narrow and for the most part, unsophisticated.  However, one area where McKinley students are extremely sophisticated can be found in their ability to use computers.  Even incoming sixth graders are extremely competent with computers. Nowadays, most school libraries have lots of computers and that is where most students want to be when they go to the library.  Books are not the draw they used to be. However, this interest in computers needs to be encouraged because today’s students will need good computer skills to be successful in the present and the future.  

                    Because of their interest and facility with the computers, I wanted to find a way to combine the students’ desire to be on the computers and also spark an interest in books, which have been pushed into the background with the advent of computers.    The obvious place to start was to devise a curriculum that combined computers and books.  One of the larger collections in the McKinley Library happens to be fairy tales (398’s in the Dewey Decimal System.)  The McKinley Library has almost 200 books in this section.  Many are old, but fairy tales are not “time sensitive.”   Also, during the past 15 years there has been a resurgence of excellent novels based on the retelling of fairy tales that have been written for middle and high school audiences (De Vos 1).  Many teachers are not aware of these novels.  I wanted to create a curriculum that would show everyone, both teachers and students, what contemporary school libraries are all about. 

            Being the librarian presented special problems for the curriculum.  I have no regular students.  Middle school classes come to the library on a “per need” basis. I designed this curriculum to be as flexible as possible, both in time commitment and in content.   I set up the curriculum with enough lessons so that it could be used over the whole school year (two semesters) and to allow teachers to bring their classes in whenever it fit into their schedule.  I also wanted each lesson to be somewhat independent but also connected to previous lessons. I wanted this library curriculum not to interfere with the classroom curriculum so that the teachers could continue with their own curriculum needs. I also wanted to be able to grade my assignments using criteria that I would work out with each teacher. By making the curriculum helpful to teachers, fun for students, and informative for all, I hope to generate interest in fairy tales, both past and present, and get middle school students to realize that libraries are cool places to be, where they can learn new skills and enjoy computers and books together. 

Context and Background 

In a certain sense, fairy tales are one of the few things that remain constant in today’s hectic, crazy world.  People are always reminding each other that “life isn’t fair.”  Life isn’t fair when compared to what?  What else is there besides life to compare anything to?  There are those eternal “happily ever after” endings of fairy tales that everyone searches for and the theme song for all those searches is Dorothy’s “Somewhere over the Rainbow” from The Wizard of Oz.  Somewhere else it is better and with someone else there is a happy ending.  Modern day society is based on those two ideas.  Most movies have happy endings because viewers prefer it that way and will pay the admissions price.  Most successful novels have happy endings for the same reasons.  Most television shows have happy endings in just 30 minutes. Kids play endless hours of video games to get to the successful completion of many tasks, otherwise know as the “happy ending.”  Only half of all marriages succeed, because people are dissatisfied with anything less than “happily ever after.”   This pervasive idea of “happier ever after” is found in the earliest children stories and books.  The Three Little Pigs and Little Red Riding Hood are childhood classics with happy endings, read over and over again.  Books written for children all have happy endings. Happy endings are what children are taught to expect of life.  Part of growing up is realizing that life doesn’t always have “happy endings.” The source of the “happy endings” found in fairy tales is therefore a subject worth studying for children in middle school, who are starting to really grow up.   

The Origin of Fairy Tales 

All fairy tales arose out of an oral story-telling tradition of attempting to explain the “unfairness” or mysteries of life (David & Meek ix).  It is believed that oral tales were originally told to the whole community, not just the adults or children separately.  Over time, these oral tales became more organized and codified into what today are considered myths or origin stories, which can be found in all cultures.   Myths, or explanatory tales, eventually became the basis of modern organized religious beliefs.  Along the way, folk tales were also created as shorter oral tales that had a more specific moralistic purpose.     

            The Greek stories known as Aesop’s Fables are a good example of folk tales existing concurrently with a more formalized religion, such as Greek mythology.  The fables were compiled by a Greek slave, Aesop, in 563 B.C. and revised later by the Romans (Shelmerdine1).  These simple tales often involve talking animals, a simplistic story, and a moralistic ending such as in The Tortoise and the Hare.  A moralistic ending is often considered the requirement of a fable.  The pantheon of Greek gods is not mentioned in these fables, yet they came from an oral tradition that existed in Greece at the same time as the more elaborate Greek myths. The fables were trying to instruct the “folk” to be better people, just like they do today when they are read. These types of simple folk tales or fables, created for a particular cultural audience and outside of a more formalized religion, evolved into the fairy tales that exist today.  There are many similarities between folk and fairy tales.  Many fairy tales are based on the framework of a simple story with a moralistic ending and talking animals.  Little Red Riding Hood is a good example of one such fairy tale with obvious fable origins.  It has a child who is warned about a certain behavior, to stay on the path, or terrible things will happen.  It has a talking animal which tempts her to stray or go against the proper behavior. There is a moralistic ending using this child’s actions as an example of a “bad” behavior so that other children may learn what not to do.   Aesop’s Fables also have basically the same story outline. There are one or two main characters with a problem, such as the tortoise and the hare. There are actions which have positive and negative results, such as the race between those two main animals.  Then the fable ends with a moralistic lesson, which in this fable is that slow and steady wins the race. The fable implies that this is the type of behavior to emulate.  From their earliest beginnings, fables or folk tales were entertaining stories with lessons on how to live a better life, which were shared with the whole community. 

            In the western world, folk tales and fables remained relatively unchanged until almost the modern era.  In the middle of the 17^th century in the literary salons of the French aristocracy, a clever parlor game was invented based on the use of the formalized language of the court and the folk tales of the lower classes (Zipes 20).  During this time, most upper class children were raised by servants of the lower classes who utilized the folk tales of their backgrounds to train and entertain those children, just as they had been trained and entertained to exhibit the proper behavior by their parents.  Aristocratic women, looking for ways to show off their intellect, began to use these nursery folk tales of their childhood and their children’s caregivers. They dressed them up in the language of the court, and produced them as proof of their wit.  According to Zipes, the effect they were looking for was of spontaneity, even though these embellished tales were well practiced before they were spoken in public salons. This parlor game became so popular that someone had the good idea to write these polished folk tales down and have them published (Zipes 22).  In 1697, Charles Perrault, a high ranking civil servant and a member of the French Academy, published a book entitled Histories or Tales of Past Time with Morals under his son’s name (Griffen 1).   On the fly leaf of this book was a drawing of an old woman whose name was given as Mother Goose (Apseloff 1). Perrault’s book was very successful.  When Perrault’s book was published in England in 1729, the picture on the fly leaf was entitled Mother Goose’s Tales. (Apseloff 1).  Perrault’s book, which contained such familiar tales as Little Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty and Bluebeard was the beginning of the Mother Goose tales. These are the familiar nursery rhymes and fairy tales of England and later America (Apseloff 1).   It is interesting to think about why Perrault published his first book of tales under his son’s name.  Did he consider them too trivial to be published under his name? Perrault’s book was not the only book of embellished folk tales published in late 17^th  century   France.  Five other books of the same type of tales were published in the years 1697 and 1698 in France (Zipes 23).  Of the many elaborate folk tales published during those years, the tales that Perrault published are the most familiar to the western reader. What might not be so familiar to the modern reader are the moralistic poems that Perrault included at the end of his stories. For example, at the end of Cinderella Perrault includes two morals (Hallett 59).  The first moral is addressed to “Lovely ladies...” and reminds them that “to win a heart, to reach a happy ending, charm is the true gift of the fairies.  Without it, one can achieve nothing; with it, everything” (Hallett 59). Apparently, Perrault is reminding the reader that Cinderella lived by those ideals and that the reader should too.  Perrault’s gentle moralistic reminder of proper behavior, while simplistic, is a product of his courtly times. 

            Almost 100 years later another type of compilation of folk tales became popular.  In Germany in 1812, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm published their Children and House Tales (David & Meek x).  The end product of both Perrault and the Grimm’s brothers was the same, to publish modernized folk tales, but the motivation of the Grimms’ was different.  The territory that became modern Germany underwent great political and social upheaval throughout the Grimm’s brothers’ lives (Zipes xx).  Even though their lives and their careers were affected by this situation, both of the brothers remained fascinated by the Germanic language throughout those turbulent times and published many books dealing with the origin and grammar of the language  (Zipes xxiii).   By studying the German language, the Grimms hoped to “uncover the etymological and linguistic truths that bound the German people together.” (Zipes (xxiii).   While their scholarly reputations were growing, the Grimms brothers were asked by another German scholar to collect folk tales and send them on to him. They agreed to do so, and between 1807 and 1812 the Grimms brothers invited many people to their home to share Germanic folk tales.  Their scholarly research helped them to discover other written folk tales and they soon decided to published these tales themselves. In 1812 they published 86 of these written and oral tales in one volume, and 70 other tales in a volume published in 1815 (Zipes xxv).  In 1819, they published 170 tales all in one volume (Zipes xxv). The books were very successful.  The more they worked with the tales, the more they tightened and manipulated the language and morals of the stories. The Brothers Grimm seemed to have found a successful formula that appealed to a growing middle-class literate audience that included both adults and children (Zipes xxv).  Even though the tales had their origins in folk traditions, the Grimms refined them into the formulaic fairy tales that are so familiar today (McGlathery 1). Such familiar stories as Snow White, Rapunzel, and The Twelve Dancing Princesses are examples of the Brothers Grimms dedication to their goal. In the majority of the Grimms’ tales, truth, honesty, and kindness are behaviors that are rewarded. Opposite behaviors, such as being evil or unkind, are punished. The poor soldier in The Twelve Dancing Princesses is rewarded for his kind behavior to an old woman and he is then given the information he needs to uncover the truth about the princesses. By doing so, he is rewarded with marriage to one of them and the chance to live “happily ever after.” In Hansel and Gretel, the childrens’ evil mother who had thrown them out of the house is dead by the time the children successfully return from their adventure with the evil witch.  The witch is punished by death for her attempt to hurt the children. The children are happily reunited at the end of the story with their remaining parent, their father, who was extremely remorseful for the horrible action that precipitated the story.  “The poor man hadn’t had a happy hour since he had left the children in the forest” (Hallett 105). To the Grimms, abandoning your children was obviously not a good thing to do. The Grimms’ reworked folk tales, like Perrault’s, were a product of the morals of their times. 

            In 1835, the folk tale took another turn helped by the Danish author, Hans Christian Andersen.  In 1835, he published 156 tales in a series of pamphlets which later were turned into books. The stories became popular quickly and Andersen continued to write these types of fairy tales for the rest of his life (Ingwersen 1).  Andersen was a popular literary figure in Denmark before he published his fairy tales and that did help with their distribution.  Andersen compiled Danish folk tales, such as Perrault and the Grimms’ Brothers did in their own countries, but it was his ability to create new tales that adhered to the fairy tale formula that was so significant (Ingwersen 1).  Andersen’s original tales such as The Ugly Duckling, Thumbelina , and The Emperor’s New Clothes are stories that retain their messages and charm, a hundred years after their publication.  Andersen is noted as Denmark’s most widely read author (Ingwersen 1). Andersen’s tales often “exploit the traditional framework of the fairy tale for social criticism that may be light and gay or deeply sensitive” (David & Meek xix).  One of his most famous and popular fairy tales, The Ugly Duckling, still holds its validity as a moral tale today.  Its simple and powerful message of the hidden beauty of the individual has made its title a commonly used expression conveying the idea of the story without even having to refer to the whole story. Andersen’s fairy tales seem more modern than Perrault’s and the Grimms’ in that their moralistic teachings are about more modern concerns. Perrault would have never written about the worth of inner beauty.   Andersen’s tales, written later than Perrault’s and the Grimms’, still possess the endearing nature of the best fairy tales. 

            These three collections of literary fairy tales, the oldest dating from the 17^th century, demonstrate how fairy tales, which arose out of the ancient oral folk tale tradition, continue to be an expression of the “folk” who read them. Perrault’s collection is chatty and charming and full of courtly etiquette.  Perrault’s stories break no new ground and come across as retellings of existing tales.  The Grimms’ brothers’ tales seem to have a real purpose as the tales were polished to demonstrate and define typical Germanic characteristics.   Andersen’s fairy tales are the most sophisticated of the three and enter new territory with the addition of Andersen’s own creations such as the aforementioned The Ugly Duckling.  Even though fairy tales are based on old stories, there is still an obvious connection between the story and the audience.  The audience must respond to the connection.  Otherwise the stories tend to lose their validity and become relics of other times.  This is part of the charm of fairy tales and this is also what keeps people coming back to them.  Fairy tales entertain and teach and since each generation forgets the “folk” wisdom of the past generation, fairy tales fulfill a need to know and understand what happened before. Fairy tales let people know that the past was not so different than the present.  Everyone needs to be taught about straying from the path (Little Red Riding Hood) about blinding jealousy (Snow White), and about false flattery (The Emperor’s New Clothes).  Every generation blissfully forgets these life lessons. 

                  Although the three collections mentioned above are European, America’s European immigrants did create their own tradition of American folklore or folk tales based on their experiences in the New World. American’s age, in comparison to Europe, limits its contribution to the world’s collection of folk tales. This is not counting the Native American folk tales. Native American folk tales, of which there are many, are not considered part of the Western European fairy tale tradition. The European immigrant experience of life in America and their relatively short history in the New World seemed to be partial to creation of legends, which are slightly different than folk or fairy tales.  According to the folklorist Alan Dundes, a legend is a story told as though it were true (Dundes 2).  Legends are set in the real world and in relatively recent times (Dundes 3). In a short time, the lives of America’s historical figures became legendary.  Paul Revere’s famous ride, Betsy Ross’s sewing the first American flag and George Washington cutting down the cherry tree all became legends based on real Americans.  As America moved westward, frontiersmen became part of American folklore. The lives of Davy Crockett, John Henry, Daniel Boone, Johnny Appleseed and others, all became American legends. These American legends are based on the lives of real people.  Legends also can be about human beings who meet up with supernatural creatures such as fairies, ghosts, or goblins (Dundes 3).  America also has many of those.  Paul Bunyon’s adventures with his big blue ox, Babe, in the wilds of Minnesota, is a classic American legend that grows with each telling.  Rip Van Winkle’s encounter with some dwarfs in the Catskill Mountains and his subsequent long sleep is an American legend.  Ichabold Crane’s disastrous meeting with a headless horseman is also an American legend.  The last two stories are retellings of German folktales, which the American author, Washington Irving (1783-1859), reset in 19^th century America (http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/ 3).  The success of Irving’s stories turned his characters into American legends and makes the story seem as if the idea originated in America.       

                      America’s unique origins and optimistic history did produce an original fairy tale. The first original American fairy tale is considered to be The Wizard of Oz written by L. Frank Baum (1856-1919) and published in 1900. Baum was a creative person who tried many careers and while writing stories for his own children decided that he wanted to “create modern fairy tales that wouldn’t scare children like the Brothers Grimm” (http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/ 2).  The Wizard of Oz is a book length fairy tale, of which there are few (Zipes 121). It is a fairy tale because it follows the traditional definition of a fairy tale (Dundes 2). The heroine, Dorothy, leaves home to seek a goal, which she attains after many adventures.  Dorothy, as in many fairy tales, encounters several witches, both good and bad.  There are talking animals (the lion) and other talking magical beings (the scarecrow and the tin man) to help her on her quest.  There is also a wizard with magical powers and a strange and exotic town (Oz) where he lives.  Dorothy, with the help of the Wizard of Oz, overcomes her tasks and achieves her goal of returning to Kansas and, as in most fairy tales, ties up all the loose ends and desires of her helpful companions.  Baum continued the Oz stories with thirteen sequels, all successful (Zipes 121).  Baum used his later Oz stories for moralistic purposes. He used his stories to portray his personal vision of a utopian American society where individual happiness could be achieved by tenderness, goodwill, and co-operation rather than strict competition and financial achievement (Zipes 127). Baum’s Oz stories, set in a magical land of personal and political perfection, with simple plots and engaging characters, are considered a “fairy tale classic” (Zipes 121).  They accomplished Baum’s original dream of non-scary stories for children, yet could be enjoyed by adults for his political ideas. Good fairy tales have always been enjoyed on many levels and by many generations. 

            Another American also produced instantly “classic” fairy tales during this time. Howard Pyle (1853-1911) was a contemporary of L. Frank Baum, perhaps best know for his book illustrations, but he was also a writer of original fairy tales. In one of his books, Twilight Land (1895), Pyle sets the scene by describing the Inn of the Sign of Mother Goose with all the stylized fairy tale characters inside.  That is where he wants to go and he enters this inn when “Mother Goose herself opened the door” (www.churchman.org 1).    Pyle’s books, including The Wonder Clock (1887), are beautiful retellings of some classical fairy tales, such as Mother Hildegard, with original stories, such as Bearskin, told in the classical tradition. Pyle personalized the stories in The Wonder Clock by stepping in at the end with charming, nonsensical closures.  At the end of The Swan Maiden, he writes 

              After that the prince and the Swan Maiden were married, and a grand wedding they had of                 it, with music of fiddles and kettle-drums, and plenty to eat and to drink.  I, too, was there;                 but all of the good red wine ran down over my tucker, so that not a drop of it passed my                 lips, and I had to come away empty. And that is all (Pyle 240). 

In The Wonder Clock, Pyle’s stories are lavishly illustrated with four titled pen and ink drawings for each story. They make the book look like a classic collection of fairy tales, such as the Grimms’ or Hans Christian Andersen. Pyle today is famous for helping to make book illustration an art form, but his fairy tales are also a sublime form of their craft.              

        These two American authors added something uniquely American, uniquely personal, to the classic fairy tale. Baum added a utopian ideal to a kinder type of fairy tale, by describing in a multi-volume series, his ideal world.  Pyle added a sense of refined beauty, both in the story line (with his personalized endings) and the beautiful, perfect illustrations.  Both these author’s fairy tales are strongly stamped with their interests and personalities, which makes them seem very individualistic, idealistic, and American. 

         While America was finding its own voice for fairy tales and home grown legends, England was turning fairy tales into stories yearning for simpler times.  During the 19^th century and the early years of the 20^th, many such stories were produced for children’s magazines under the guise of fairy tales (Avery ix).   If a fairy tale has the main character suffer, and succeed by his or her actions, with a little help from a magical discovery, than Maria Edgeworth’s The Orphans, first published in 1796 and included in Gillian Avery’s story collection entitled In the Window Seat is one such story.  Four children are orphaned and manage to survive by the superhuman efforts of their eldest sister to maintain a life for them.  She then finds a pot of gold which allows the children to have a comfortable life. During the whole story the benefits of a simple life with simple wants are held up as exemplary. In another story in this collection, The Weather Maiden, written in 1911, an unhappy orphan taken in by her aunt, gets help from some fairy creatures and some magical gifts that allow her to predict the weather.  This ability is highly praised and the girl goes on to lead a wonderful life. Then, in the story, the author, Molesworth, points out that,        

The world is growing too clever for fairies, I fear, unless perhaps, unseen and unsuspected, they are still behind the scenes in some of the marvels and inventions all around us. (Avery 205).

This sentence offers a plea for the continued belief in the magic of fairy tales.

In another story in this collection entitled The Nuremburg Stove, written by Ouida and published in1882, the main character, the oldest son of a very poor family, follows a beloved decorated stove, sold for food, all the way to the capital city.  When he catches up with the stove he hides inside it and the illustrated tiles on the outside then tell him what to do to be allowed to stay with the stove.  Magic saves the day in this story, along with some help from a Prince, both prerequisite happenings for a fairy tale. All the stories in this collection are dated in the sense that they have classical story lines with the good characters winning out over the bad characters. They are also examples of contemporary fairy tales of the turn of the last century written for children that express a yearning for simpler times when magic and fairies could help.    

        People think of fairy tales as just being entertaining stories.  But fairy tales have always served a purpose by displaying examples of how people should live.  They seem to say that if you are good, good things will happen to you.  If you are bad, then bad things will happen to you.  Fairy tales also encourage people to pay attention to the little coincidences of life, such as being nice to the right person or animal that just happens to be there.  If you pay attention to those things, then maybe magical things will happen. In today’s modern world, which seems full of the most horrible news, fairy tales provide a pleasant escape.   In a world “dominated by speed, money, materialism and a reliance on applied science for the answers to life’s big questions…fairy tales provide a sense of mystery and wonder without making any demands” (DeVos 1).  Fairy tales also provide a “sense of community... in these rootless times” (De Vos 1).   It’s as if the teller of these old tales is reaching out to the modern reader with all the knowledge of the past and offering this knowledge, free of charge.   Modern life is stressful and fairy tales provide escapism and hope. Most people living in the 21^st century would love to have a fairy godmother to help them out. Citizens of the modern world are always looking for the leprechaun and his pot of gold or a fairy, genie, or wizard to grant them a few wishes.   Fairy tales keep those childhood dreams alive and that is one of the reasons why people still read them and enjoy them. 

Modern Fairy Tales  

In the past 15 years there has been a great deal of interest in the retelling of fairy tales, particularly for middle and high school readers (De Vos 1).  Short novels, such as Zel, Crazy Jack, The Prince of the Pond, and Beast by Donna Jo Napoli are masterful retellings of the classic fairy tales.  Napoli has turned these short stories into novels that more fully develop the story and the characters.  Robin Mckinley has also written some retellings, Beauty and Rose Daughter in particular, which are full length fairy tale novels.    The new retellings, which are more reflective of today’s society, still seem to be connected to the past. In many of these modern stories, the female character is presented as a true heroine.  Even though the stories are set at least 100 years ago, the heroine in these stories thinks and reasons.   She is smart.  She is often presented as not the most beautiful girl in the room, but the smartest.  The heroes are also modernized.  In Napoli’s The Frog Prince, the prince, who is now a frog, is extremely concerned about his tadpoles and manages to keep all of them alive.  That is not what would happen in nature, but somehow in the story it makes sense, since the frog is really a very nice human. In Napoli’s Crazy Jack the idea that Jack was crazy to trade the cow for those magic beans is highlighted.  Jack is also crazy in love with his childhood sweetheart and has to work very hard with the booty he steals from the giant to win her hand.  These stories are examples of putting more modern personalities into the old stories. 

            There is something about these old stories that still grips us.   The main plots are still worth dressing up and telling.  Fairy tales reflect the people who told them so long ago and who hear them now.  The fact that new retellings of these tales are successful just points out how little people have changed over the centuries.  Even though these tales often have a simple plot or two-dimensional characters, the modern reader finds the problems realistic enough to hold their interest.  That is the mark of a good story. Fairy tales are the eternal story, full of the twists and turns of life, with all the happy endings one could wish for. 

Implementation 

Recent research into the developmental stages of the human brain has shown that adolescence is a time of interesting changes in the brain (www.pbs.org 6).

“Just before puberty, children lose up to 50 percent of their brain tissue in the deep motor nuclei, which control motor skills such as writing and sports” (www.pbs.org 3). Many scientists consider this physiological development to be a type of “remodeling process” that the normal brain goes through (www.pbs.org 6).  Scientists do not understand why the brain does this, but it may have to do with stages of learning that go on throughout an individual’s life.  It has been shown that “new cognitive capacities emerge at 10, 15, 20 and 25 years, in which people become capable of using more abstract concepts more skillfully”(www.pbs.org 6). The frontal lobe of the brain also shows changes during adolescence.  The frontal lobe controls a person’s ability to integrate information, and includes such tasks as problem solving, critical thinking and organizational skills ((Dyck 19).  During adolescence, this part of the brain undergoes a period of quiescence, where not much growth takes place.  Thus, teen-age behavior appears and students find it difficult to focus, organize different tasks, and make good decisions (Dyck 19).  It is important to remember these physiological brain changes when teaching the young adolescence.  Teachers need to break assignments down into small pieces, keep all instructions simple, offer examples, and repeat everything in both written and oral form.  

            The following eleven lessons for the implementation of this curriculum attempt to follow these suggestions based on new findings about the development of the adolescent brain.  Students are not presented with new material (everyone knows what a fairy tale is) but they are asked to manipulate this information in a new manner by using the computer to generate the majority of their finished products. The lessons cover very narrow concepts and there is time for students to explore the assignment.  There are also assignments that are required to be done in pairs so that students may discuss their different approaches to the material.  It is hoped that by presented this material in this manner, designed to complement the abilities of most middle school students, that students will enjoy the assignments and demonstrate successful completion of the projects.  

            There are 11 content standards in the Library Student Performance Standards.  They are correlated with the APS Language Arts Standards and Benchmarks.  Each content standard is also broken down into K-5 benchmarks, 6-8 benchmarks, and 9-12 benchmarks.  This curriculum concentrates on the 6-8 benchmarks and performance standards and can be modified to fit each middle school grade.  This curriculum involves the whole school year, two semesters, and basically can be done in 11 “main” library visits, with subsequent library visits scheduled as needed.  It is my hope that language arts middle school teachers will find this curriculum useful and schedule it into their year. The curriculum does not have to be taught in its entirety.  Each lesson builds on the last and the teachers could use whatever lesson or lessons they want.  I have organized the curriculum into 11 lessons (one for each standard) but I would need the support of the classroom teacher.  The classroom teacher and I would ideally discuss a grading scale and/or prepare a grading rubric.  I would be available to grade the results.  I would hope that the teacher would add these “library” grades to the student’s classroom grades.  Unfortunately, without grades, there is little motivation for students to complete the assignments.  

Lesson 1 (Content Standard 1-The student who is reading and information literate reads and interprets increasingly complex texts for a variety of purposes.)

           Students come to the library where they are required to check out one fairy tale story collection book from any culture. They are required to read two different fairy tales in the book. Then they create a simple compare and contrast diagram (any kind the teacher prefers) showing both similarities and differences in the stories.  Since this is the first time the students are in the library for the year, library procedures can be explained and any new additions to the collections can be highlighted. It can also be pointed out that since they already know some fairy tales that this assignment will be very easy. The goal is to get students to read and to get them thinking about what a fairy tale is.  Assignments are turned into the classroom teacher but graded by the librarian who then returns them to the teacher. 

Lesson 2 (Content Standard 2-The student who is reading and information literate, responds to, examines, and critiques literature.) 

            Students come to the library, where the librarian reads them one fable (either by Aesop or Arnold Lobel) and one fairy tale, which the librarian and the teacher have chosen together.  Both the fable and the fairy tale should teach something.  Then the librarian leads a short class discussion about what the fable and the fairy tale did teach. Students are then required to write a one page opinion paper (in class or at home) entitled “What Fairy Tales Teach Us” using  examples from the two fairy tales they have already read and the fable and fairy tale that the librarian read to them. The paper’s grading criteria should be based on the specific classroom’s grading criteria. The teacher and the librarian could decide who grades this specific assignment. 

Lesson 3 (Content Standard 3-The student who is reading and information literate accesses information efficiently and effectively.)

            Students come to the library and this time they are allowed on the computer.   The search engine “Big Chalk” is explained and demonstrated.  Students are given a handout on how to cite web resources.  They are required to look up the key words; myth, folk tale, fairy tale, and legend in the Big Chalk search engine.  They are required to define those four words and any others the teacher might want using the resources in Big Chalk. They are then required to cite their sources for each word using the proper format. At the bottom of the assignment, the student is required to write at least five questions on the topic of fairy tales that they would like to find out more information about. Assignment is collected in class and graded by the librarian then returned to the teacher. 

Lesson 4 (Content Standard 4-The student who is reading and information literate evaluates information critically and competently.)

              Students come to the library and are allowed on the computers.   By this time their previous assignment has been returned to them and they have chosen one of their five questions to answer.  They are allowed to use any of the search engines on the web in order to answer their questions.  At this point, the librarian goes over the process of taking notes off the web and each student receives several large index cards to help them stay organized.  The students are also shown, very briefly, how to evaluate a web site.  Once the student has a specific number of facts (determined by the teacher and the librarian) they are then required to write a one page outline (in class or at home) that answers their question.   If outlining is not a skill that the specific class has mastered, the librarian will prepare a handout for the students.  The paper is collected in class, graded by the librarian and returned to the teacher.  

Lesson 5 (Content Standard 5: The student who is reading and information literate uses information effectively and creatively.)

               Students come to the library and with their returned outline and are required to turn their outline into a paper which must be typed on the computer.  They are required to create a title page and a bibliographic page. Images from the web can also be downloaded.  The finished product should be as polished as possible.  Paper is graded by the librarian using a rubric and/or grading scale which has been discussed with the teacher.  Papers are returned to the teacher.  

Lesson 6(Content Standard 6: The student who is reading and information literate pursues information related to personal interests.)

               Students return to the library, where the librarian previews many of the modern fairy tale novels for middle school students.  The librarian also reads a selection or two from some of the short story fairy tale retellings.  A prepared annotated bibliography of these books and other new books in the library is passed out. How to locate the books on the bibliography is reviewed.  Depending on the teacher’s requirements, each student will be required to check out one book from the fairy tale bibliography and/or another book.  Also, depending on the teacher’s requirements, a simple book report form can be passed out to each student.  The form can be as simple as requiring the student to convince the librarian to read or not read the book.  These book report forms are collected by the teacher and graded by the librarian.  They are then returned to the teacher. 

Lesson 7 (Content Standard 7: The student who is reading and information literate appreciates and enjoys literature and other creative expression of information.)

               Students return to the library after enough time has passed so that they have finished their book. The librarian then introduces the concept of “Power Point Book Previews” that are created by students for students.  These are short Power Point book reviews of new or interesting books in the library that can be used by students or teachers to preview books. The students in the class are then required to create a Power Point presentation of at least five pages about the book that they have just read to add to the Power Point Book Previews.  For students who do not know how to do a Power Point presentation, a short demonstration is given.  This assignment may take more than one visit to the library.   Once the students have completed their Power Point presentations, the class returns to the library so that the Power Point projects can be presented to the whole class. Each project is graded by a prepared rubric and/or grading system by the teacher and the librarian.  The presentations are then compiled on a disc for other classes to use. 

Lesson 8 (Content Standard 8: The student, who is an independent reader and is reading and information literate, strives for excellence in information seeking and knowledge generation.) 

              Students come to the library and the librarian reads them a children’s book of an updated fairy tale. The librarian leads a short discussion of what makes this book more modern and, if appropriate, funny.  They then are divided into groups of two, decided on by the teacher, and asked to create their own version of an updated fairy tale. Students are required to write this version down.  It has to be at least two typed pages long. Depending on the teacher, class time may be used or another session in the library.  The stories are turned in to the teacher, graded by the librarian based on a predetermined rubric and/or grading scale.  They are then returned to the teacher.        

Lesson 9 (Content Standard 9: The student who is reading and information literate contributes positively to the learning community and to society and recognizes the importance of information to a democratic society.)

              Students come to the library and the librarian shares more children’s picture books. Number of words to page ratio is discussed as well as the placement of illustrations.  Students are then shown how to make a mock up of a children’s book.  They are broken up into their groups of two and told to make a mock up of a children’s book using their updated fairy tale story. Illustrations are just to be sketched in. The story is to be broken up so that it fits nicely into a children’s book format.  Depending on the teacher’s requirements, class time can be used for this assignment. The finished mock up is not required to be in a polished form.  It is collected by the teacher, graded by the librarian based on a predetermined rubric and/or grading scale.  The mock ups are then returned to the teacher. 

Lesson 10 (Content Standard 10-The student who is reading and information literate contributes positively to the learning community and to society and practices ethical behavior in regard to information and information technology.)

              Students come to the library where the librarian informs them that once their children’s book mock ups have been perfected and turned into books that they will be going over to the day care and reading them to the pre-school students there. More children’s picture books are displayed and discussed.  Depending on the teacher, students are given class time to work on their books.  When they are finished, the class will go to the day care and each group will read to a small group of four year olds.  If there is enough time, a final discussion of how the readings went will be held in the library.  Each book will be collected by the librarian and graded by a predetermined rubric and/ or grading scale. 

Lesson 11 (Content Standard 11: The student who is reading and information literate contributes positively to the learning community and to society and participates effectively in groups to pursue and generate information.)

               Students come to the library where the librarian tells them that their books are now going to be put on the school’s web page.  This is a long process that involves scanning each page and uploading them to the school’s web page.  This may take each group more than once class period.  During this time, students should be comparing other school’s web pages and depending on the teacher’s requirements, reading or researching other projects.   Once the class has completed this endeavor, the whole class will review the school’s web page and their modern fairy tales.   This lesson would be appropriate towards the end of the year. 

These 11 lessons are computer based using fairy tales as the point from which the students start.   The lessons involve a combination of old skills and new skills.  The old skills are such things as reading, finding a book in the library, looking up words and concepts, and creating an outline.  The new skills are using power point, creating a mock up of a book and scanning the book onto the school’s web page.  All are skills necessary for today’s students.  Maybe by showing the students what today’s libraries can do, more interest will be created in what libraries have always done.       

Documentation 

Individual Books-Modern retellings of Fairy Tales.  All are good for Middle School students and up. 

Kindle, Patrice. Goose Chase. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 2001           

            Clever, fast paced, retelling of “The Six Swans.”    

McKinley, Robin.  Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast. New York: Scott Foresman, 1978. 

Excellent delineation of the character of Beauty.  The Beast appears after almost 2/3 of the book is done. 

McKinley, Robin.  Rose Daughter. New York: Greenwillow, 1997. 

            Very different retelling of “The Beauty and the Beast” with a surprise ending. 

McKinley, Robin. Spindles End. New York: Ace Books, 2001.              

            Longish book all about Sleeping Beauty. 

Napoli, Donna Jo.  Beast. New York: Atheneum, 2000. 

            Told from the Beast’s point of view, who happens to be a Persian Prince. 

Napoli, Donna Jo.  Crazy Jack. New York: Laurel Leaf, 2001. 

            “Jack and the Beanstalk” portrayed with much more real concerns. 

Napoli, Donna Jo.  The Prince of the Pond. New York: Puffin, 1992.  

            Marvelous retelling of “The Frog Prince” with surprises on every page. 

Napoli, Donna Jo.  Magic Circle. New York:  Puffin, 1995. 

            Out-of-print version of Hansel and Gretel told from the witch’s view. 

Napoli, Donna Jo & Tchen, Richard. Spinners. New York: Dutton, 1999. 

                     Sympathetic retelling of “Rumplestiltskin.” 

Napoli, Donna Jo. Zel. New York: Dutton, 1996. 

            Brooding, sensual retelling of “Rapunzel.” 

Children’s Books-Modern Retelling of Fairy Tales.  These are a few of my favorites.  There are many of these types of books.  One public library had 22 shelves of children’s fairy tales to choose from. 

Calmenson, Stephanie.  The Principal’s New Clothes.  New York: Scholastic, 1989. 

                Extremely clever, succinct retelling of “The Emperor’s New Clothes.”  Looks almost                   probable. 

Huck, Charlotte.  Princess Furball. New York: Scholastic, 1989. 

                  Beautiful, satisfying retelling of the original “Cinderella.” 

Lowell, Susan.   The Three Little Javelinas. New York: Scholastic, 1992. 

                  Charming retelling of “The Three Little Pigs,” set in the Southwest. 

Munsch, Robert N.   The Paper Bag Princess.  Toronto: Annick Press, 1980 

            Famous original revision of the classic “Princess” story. 

Scieszka, Jon.    The True Story of the Three Little Pigs.  New York: Scholastic, 1989. 

            Funny version of the classic tale told by a wolf with a cold. 

Story Collections that I found useful.  Once again there are many of these. 

Anderson, Hans Christian.  Andersen’s Fairy Tales. New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1980.

             Lovely formal collection of Andersen’s stories with amazing illustrations.

Avery, Gillian, ed.  In the Window-Seat: A selection of Victorian Stories. Princeton, N.J.: Van                Nostrand Co., Inc., 1965. 

            Interesting collection of stories, all extremely moralistic.

Brooke, William J.  Untold Tales. New York: HarperTrophy, 1992. 

            Four retelling of fairy tells, including a very interesting reworking of  “Beauty and the Beast.”

Datlow, Ellen & Windling, Terri, ed. A Wolf at the Door and Other Retold Fairy Tales.  New               York: Alladin Paperbacks, 2000. 

            Thirteen well done stories, some originals, some retellings, including an excellent retelling of                  
             “The Twelve Dancing Princesses.”

David, Alfred & Meek, Mary Elizabeth, ed.  The Twelve Dancing Princesses and Other Fairy               Tales.  Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1964.

           Classic collection of world fairy tales organized by authors.  Excellent and scholarly               
            introduction.

Hallett, Martin & Karasek, Barbara.  Folk and Fairy Tales.  Ontario, Canada: Broadview Press,              1996.

            Another classic collection of fairy tales divided by subjects.

Lobel, Arnold.   Fables.  New York: HarperCollins, 1980. 

           Original fables with marvelous modern morals. 

Tatar, Maria, ed.  The Classic Fairy Tales.  New York: W.W. Norton. 1999. 

            Various versions of six classic tales, plus a few tales by Andersen and Wilde. Critical essays               are also included.

Other books with critical essays, modern fairy tales or lesson ideas.

Warner, Marina.   From the Beast to the Blonde: On Fairy Tales and Their Tellers.  New York:                Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1994.

              Extensive critical history of the origins of fairy tales.

Zipes, Jack. Creative Storytelling: Building community, Changing Lives. New York: Routledge,                1995,

              Ideas on how to extend and fairy tales and involve an audience.

Zipes, Jack.   Don’t Bet on the Prince: Contemporary Feminist Fairy Tales in North America                and England. New York:  Routledge, 1987.                      

             Excellent collection of modern fairy tales. 

Zipes, Jack.   Fairy Tales and the Art of Subversion.  New York: Routledge,  1983. 

           Seven critical essays on the history and meaning of fairy tales. 

Articles from journals, encyclopedias, newspapers and the web that I found helpful. 

“L. Frank Baum” L. Frank Baum. 7. Jul. 2002. http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/fbaum.htm 

            Good article on L. Frank Baum with extensive bibliography. 

De Vos, Gail & Altmann, Anna.  “Who Says Folktales are Only for Children?”  The Booklist. May               15, 2000. 6. Jun. 2002 < http://library.bigchalk.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/WOPrimo.woa/>

              Excellent article about why fairy tales are still read and listings of new versions. 

Dundes, Alan. “Folklore.”  World Book Encyclopedia.  2002.  6. Jun. 2002            
                < http://library.bigchalk.com> 

              Concise introductory article about folk tales, myths and legends.

Dyck, Brenda A.   “Hovering: Teaching the Adolescent Brain How to Think.” Middle Ground: The              Magazine of Middle Level Education. 5 (2002): 18-23.

           Well written article about middle school children’s brain development and how it affects their             learning. 

Griffin, Robert B. “Charles Perrault.” World Book Encyclopedia.  2002. 22. Jun.2002
            <http://library.bigchalk.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/WOPrimo.woa/>   

            Short biographical information on Charles Perrault. 

“How Much Do We Really Know About the Brain?” Frontline: Inside the Teenage Brain: Work in               Progress.  7/July/2002                                      
            http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/teenbrain/

            Extensive web site about the latest research on teenage brain development. 

“Howard Pyle” Howard Pyle Biography Page. 16/July/2002         
            http://www.churchman.org/7howard-pyle.htm

            Excellent biography of Howard Pyle with photo of Pyle.

Ingwersen, Niels.  “Hans Christian Andersen.”  World Book Encyclopedia.  2002  18. Jun. 2002.
            <http://library.bigchalk.com/cgi-bin/WebOjbects/WOPrimo.woa/>  

            Good biographical information on Hans Christian Andersen. 

Jakes, David S., Pennington, Mark E. & Knodle, Howard A.  “Using the Internet to Promote               Inquiry-based Learning: An E-paper About a Structured Approach for Effective Student               Web Research.”  Internet Innovation, Inc.  2000.   2. Feb. 2002.
            <http://www.biopoint.com/msla/links.html#anchor231212> 

            Extremely well written lesson plan showing how to use the web for successful  student               research projects. Can be used for middle school students and up.

McGlathery, James. M.  “Grimm’s Fairy Tales.” World Book Encyclopedia.  2002. 10. Jun. 2002.              <http://library.bigchalk.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/WOPrimo.woa/>         

            Good biographical information on the brother’s Grimm. 

Postlethwaite, Diana. “Once More Upon a Time.”  Woman’s Review of Books. 1996  02. Jun.              2002. <http://library.bigchalk.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/WOPrimo.woa>         

           Nice review of Marina Warner’s book “From the Beast to the Blond.” 

Shelmerdine, Cynthia W.  “Aesop’s Fables.” World Book Encyclopedia.  2002. 22. Jun. 02
            < http://library.bigchalk.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/WOPrimo.woa/>   

            Good article on the history of Aesop’s Fables. 

Snelling, Charles D.  “Bad Bus Behavior: What are the Lesson?”  Allentown Morning Call.   2002.               17. Jun. 2002.  <http://library.bigchalk.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/WOPrimo.woa/>  

Interesting article about how society’s views on teaching morality have changed. 

Stevens, Franchesca.”Teacher 31 Years in the Classroom.”  Albuquerque Journal June 19, 2002,              Sunday morning edition: A-1 & A-2. 

            Article about a woman who is retiring from teaching public school after 31 years.

Swope, Sam.   “The Brave Little Seamstress/Betsy Who Cried Wolf.”  New York Times  Book               Review.  2002. 17. Jun. 02.             
            <http://library.bigchalk.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/WOPrimo.woa/>    

            Two book reviews of new fairy tale retellings. 

“Washington Irving”  Washington Irving.7/July/2002. http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/wirving.htm

              Extensive biography of Washington Irving with bibliographpy.

Wonder, Robert.   “A Savage World.”   New Statesman.  1998.  17. Jun. 02.                                  
            <http://library.bigchalk.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/WOPrimo.woa/>   

            Excellent review of new edition of the complete Aesop’s Fables.