My Son Pinocchio Enrichment Guide - First Stage

Modern Day Fairy Tales
LANGUAGE ARTS CLASSROOM ACTIVITY
Taken from: http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/fairy-tales-from-life-42.html?tab=4#tabs
Activity
1. Since most students are familiar with fairy tales, begin
by asking them to share the names of various fairy
tales that they know. Remind them to think of books,
television programs, and movies. As they share titles,
list them on the board or on chart paper. Save the
sheet for use later in the lesson.
2. Next, ask your students to brainstorm a list of
characteristics that describe these fairy tales. If
desired, choose an item or two from the attached list
of Common Elements of Fairy Tales to get things
started. Again, list the details on the board or on
chart paper.
a. As students make suggestions, encourage any
additional information that they volunteer that
provides examples. For instance, a student may
offer both a characteristic and an example:
“There’s usually a person like the stepmother in
Snow White.” Note the examples on the board or
chart paper as well.
3. Explain the writing project that students will complete:
students will choose an event from their own lives or
lives of someone they know, and create a fairy tale
based on the situation.
a. Refer back to the class’s brainstormed list of
fairy tale titles or share the Common Fairy Tale Situations listed on the next page.
b. Emphasize that students will share their stories with the class, so they should choose a situation that
they are willing to talk about in class with all their classmates.
4. If desired, review the general plot structure of one of the stories that the class is familiar with by mapping
out the story’s structure.
5. Explain the activities that students will complete during this session, as they begin work on their own
fairy tales:
a. Choose a situation from the list to use in their original fairy tales.
b. Decide on the lesson that the fairy tale will teach.
c. Sketch out the basic events of the plot for the fairy tale, including the conflict(s) and resolution.
d. Check the planned fairy tale against the list of common fairy tale elements. Revise plans if necessary
to include any missing elements.
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