Teaching Resources
Welcome teachers!
Common Loon
Hello teachers!
This WebQuest is designed for 4th grade students as an interdisciplinary exploration of pourquoi tales and storytelling. Please see below for learning standards and objectives and for additional resources about pourquoi tales and storytelling!
Learning Standards and Learning Objectives
Curriculum Standards:
MN State Language Arts Standards
Comparing Pourquoi Tales:
4.1.2.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text; summarize the text.
4.1.3.3 Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., a character’s thoughts, words, or actions).
4.1.9.9 Compare and contrast the treatment of similar themes and topics (e.g., opposition of good and evil) and patterns of events (e.g., the quest) in stories, myths, and traditional literature from different cultures, including American Indian.
Learning and Telling a Pourquoi Tale:
4.1.7.7 Make connections between the text of a story or drama and a visual or oral presentation of the text, identifying where each version reflects specific descriptions and directions in the text.
4.1.5.5 Explain major differences between poems, drama, and prose, and refer to the structural elements of poems (e.g., verse, rhythm, meter) and drama (e.g., casts of characters, settings, descriptions, dialogue, stage directions) when writing or speaking about a text.
Learning Objectives:
1. Students will listen to and read pourquoi stories from the oral traditions of a variety of cultures.
2. Working in small groups, students will identify unique and similar elements between several pourquoi tales by filling out a Venn Diagram.
3. Students will work in small groups to pick a story that they will tell to the class showing understanding of good storytelling techniques.
This WebQuest is designed for 4th grade students as an interdisciplinary exploration of pourquoi tales and storytelling. Please see below for learning standards and objectives and for additional resources about pourquoi tales and storytelling!
Learning Standards and Learning Objectives
Curriculum Standards:
MN State Language Arts Standards
Comparing Pourquoi Tales:
4.1.2.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text; summarize the text.
4.1.3.3 Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., a character’s thoughts, words, or actions).
4.1.9.9 Compare and contrast the treatment of similar themes and topics (e.g., opposition of good and evil) and patterns of events (e.g., the quest) in stories, myths, and traditional literature from different cultures, including American Indian.
Learning and Telling a Pourquoi Tale:
4.1.7.7 Make connections between the text of a story or drama and a visual or oral presentation of the text, identifying where each version reflects specific descriptions and directions in the text.
4.1.5.5 Explain major differences between poems, drama, and prose, and refer to the structural elements of poems (e.g., verse, rhythm, meter) and drama (e.g., casts of characters, settings, descriptions, dialogue, stage directions) when writing or speaking about a text.
Learning Objectives:
1. Students will listen to and read pourquoi stories from the oral traditions of a variety of cultures.
2. Working in small groups, students will identify unique and similar elements between several pourquoi tales by filling out a Venn Diagram.
3. Students will work in small groups to pick a story that they will tell to the class showing understanding of good storytelling techniques.
Teacher Resources and Links
Lise Lunge-Larson’s Snip Snap Snute storytelling blog with background information about pourquoi tales, suggestions of great collections of pourquoi tales, and suggestions of activities to do with children related to pourquoi tales. In two parts:
http://www.childrensliteraturenetwork.org/blog/sss/?p=457
and
http://www.childrensliteraturenetwork.org/blog/sss/?p=470
Elements of a pourquoi tale:
http://www.ehow.com/info_8475556_three-elements-pourquoi-tale.html
About how to be a storyteller:
http://www.childrensliteraturenetwork.org/blog/sss/?tag=oral-storytelling
http://www.storynet.org/resources/howtobecomeastoryteller.html
Lesson plan about pourquoi stories:
http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/pourquoi-stories-creating-tales-324.html
Unit for writing pourquoi stories:
http://beautyandthebeaststorytellers.com/teachers.php
(go to the link for writing how and why stories to find the unit plan and handouts)
If you have access to the ERIC Database, check out this article: Foster, Karen, et al. (2008). Pourquoi tales on the literacy stage. ERIC Database. Reading Teacher, v61 n8 p663-667.
An 8-9 session unit that progresses step by step through how to teach children to tell stories, culminating in the children telling stories to their class:
http://www.planetesme.com/storytelling.html
PBS Circle of Stories website with links to Native American storytellers and stories and lesson plans:
http://www.pbs.org/circleofstories/index.html
http://www.childrensliteraturenetwork.org/blog/sss/?p=457
and
http://www.childrensliteraturenetwork.org/blog/sss/?p=470
Elements of a pourquoi tale:
http://www.ehow.com/info_8475556_three-elements-pourquoi-tale.html
About how to be a storyteller:
http://www.childrensliteraturenetwork.org/blog/sss/?tag=oral-storytelling
http://www.storynet.org/resources/howtobecomeastoryteller.html
Lesson plan about pourquoi stories:
http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/pourquoi-stories-creating-tales-324.html
Unit for writing pourquoi stories:
http://beautyandthebeaststorytellers.com/teachers.php
(go to the link for writing how and why stories to find the unit plan and handouts)
If you have access to the ERIC Database, check out this article: Foster, Karen, et al. (2008). Pourquoi tales on the literacy stage. ERIC Database. Reading Teacher, v61 n8 p663-667.
An 8-9 session unit that progresses step by step through how to teach children to tell stories, culminating in the children telling stories to their class:
http://www.planetesme.com/storytelling.html
PBS Circle of Stories website with links to Native American storytellers and stories and lesson plans:
http://www.pbs.org/circleofstories/index.html
Timing and Preparation
Timing. Please plan on the following amount of time for this WebQuest:
Materials to prepare:
- Finding, reading/listening to, filling out worksheet for 3 stories--30 minutes per story
- Comparing stories with a Venn Diagram--45 minutes
- Picking a story as a small group and first re-read--30 minutes
- Second (and third?) re-read and create a story map--30 minutes
- Practice sessions and polishing the story-teacher decides how many sessions (at least 3 recommended)--20 + minutes each depending on length of stories
- Storytelling concert--time for each group to preform as well as time for introduction, applause for each story, transition time in between each story, and socializing afterwards.
- Consider providing some time for reflection. Students can reflect using the questions on the conclusion page by individually thinking or writing about their answers, discussing in a small group, or coming up with a creative way to share their reflections.
Materials to prepare:
- double check that websites in links in task work. Also, choose if you want groups to read specific stories, such as all ones about celestial objects, all ones about the sky, etc.
- Make sure that there is paper and a working printer for the students to print the Pourquoi Tales Worksheet
- Print copies of the Venn Diagram worksheet for each group
- Provide blank paper for groups to create story maps