The Little Match Seller: I absolutely loved this story as I was reading it. It had both an extremely sad and eerie quality to it while also providing us with a happy ending. This is probably one of my favorite stories I've read this semester.
Friday, April 24, 2015
Extra Reading Diary: Hans Christian Anderson
This story comes from the Hans Christian Anderson unit.
The Little Match Seller: I absolutely loved this story as I was reading it. It had both an extremely sad and eerie quality to it while also providing us with a happy ending. This is probably one of my favorite stories I've read this semester.
The Little Match Seller: I absolutely loved this story as I was reading it. It had both an extremely sad and eerie quality to it while also providing us with a happy ending. This is probably one of my favorite stories I've read this semester.
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
Reading Diary A: Brothers Grimm (Ashliman)
These stories are from the Brothers Grimm (Ashliman) unit.
The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids: This story was one that I had been familiar with before reading. It was a lot of fun to go back and read it again. The wolf character thinks he's quite clever in getting what he wants but in the end he gets what he deserves.
The Seven Ravens: This was a very interesting story to read. It was not one of the Brothers Grimm tales that I was familiar with and I enjoyed reading a new story.
Rumpelstiltskin: This was one of my favorite stories when I was a kid. It was really enjoyable to read it again.
.jpg)
The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids: This story was one that I had been familiar with before reading. It was a lot of fun to go back and read it again. The wolf character thinks he's quite clever in getting what he wants but in the end he gets what he deserves.
The Seven Ravens: This was a very interesting story to read. It was not one of the Brothers Grimm tales that I was familiar with and I enjoyed reading a new story.
Rumpelstiltskin: This was one of my favorite stories when I was a kid. It was really enjoyable to read it again.
Monday, April 13, 2015
Portfolio Guide
Turning the Tables - A con artist comes up with a great scheme after business becomes slow, but is the scheme really going the way he thinks?
Sinbad the Suspect - The ever adventurous Sinbad attempts to convince the authorities of how he acquired some diamonds but it seems no one will believe him!
The Perfume Fiasco - What begins as a disagreement turns into quite the adventure for two young college girls.
The Twins of Trast Forest - Two young girls are found in a forest by a man who wants to help them get home, but the girls don't want to leave.
Sinbad the Suspect - The ever adventurous Sinbad attempts to convince the authorities of how he acquired some diamonds but it seems no one will believe him!
The Perfume Fiasco - What begins as a disagreement turns into quite the adventure for two young college girls.
The Twins of Trast Forest - Two young girls are found in a forest by a man who wants to help them get home, but the girls don't want to leave.
Friday, April 10, 2015
Extra Reading Diary: More English Fairy Tales
This story comes from the More English Fairy Tales unit.
Tattercoats: This story was very much a type of Cinderella story. I really enjoyed reading it in a different version. Instead of the wicked stepmother we have the grandfather who refused to look at her face. We also have the gooseherd who takes the place of the fairy godmother. It's always fun to read what we consider a classical story in a different way.
Tattercoats: This story was very much a type of Cinderella story. I really enjoyed reading it in a different version. Instead of the wicked stepmother we have the grandfather who refused to look at her face. We also have the gooseherd who takes the place of the fairy godmother. It's always fun to read what we consider a classical story in a different way.
Wednesday, April 8, 2015
Reading Diary A: English Fairy Tales
This story is from the English Fairy Tales unit.
The Rose Tree: This story was really great to read. It's about a little girl who is killed by her wicked stepmother but in the end the stepmother gets what she deserves and is also killed. It was a bit unexpected because usually when we think of fairy tales we think of happily ever after endings but that was not the case here. I really liked this story because it wasn't happy ending but it was a just ending.
The Rose Tree: This story was really great to read. It's about a little girl who is killed by her wicked stepmother but in the end the stepmother gets what she deserves and is also killed. It was a bit unexpected because usually when we think of fairy tales we think of happily ever after endings but that was not the case here. I really liked this story because it wasn't happy ending but it was a just ending.
Thursday, April 2, 2015
Storytelling Week 11: The Twins of Trast Forest
Ivy ran through the field. Her sister, Lily, followed closely behind. They often ran through these woods. They played tag and raced one another. Sometimes they would play with the animals who resided in the forest as well. But today was different. Today they weren't running for fun. They were running because they had to. They had to run in order to escape. Their feet flew over the ground as fast as they could. Behind them a voice shouted. Hearing how close it was only urged them to go faster.
Ivy reached out and took her sister's hand as they ran. No matter what, they would stay together. They had always been together.
They came upon a large oak tree. The trunk was large enough to hide both of their small frames. They pressed their backs to the trunk and quieted their breathing. They listened for the sounds of the person following them. For a moment they didn't hear anything. The forest was filled with a strange silence. They started to believe they had escaped. However soon enough noise reached their ears.
It wasn't hard to hear. Their pursuer tramped around the forest with complete disregard for his surroundings. Ivy dared to peek around the tree. She saw him stumble past a bush. She quickly pulled back, squeezing Lily's hand. The man stopped and looked around.
"You don't have to be afraid," he called out. "I'm not here to hurt you."
"Then how about you leave us alone like we asked," Lily hissed under her breath.
"Quiet," Ivy hushed her sister. "If, we don't respond maybe he will go away."
"There you are," said a voice beside them. They turned, screamed and jumped back. The man had made his way around the tree while they were talking.
"Wait! It's alright, I'm not here to hurt you. I just want to help. " He extended his arms towards them and crouched down a bit.
"Help? Why would you want to help us?" Ivy asked, taking a step back.
"You two shouldn't be out here alone. Where are your parents? Why don't you let me help you find them?"
"We're perfectly capable of taking care of ourselves," Lily stated.
The man gave his best reassuring smile. "I have no doubt of that. But it can still be dangerous out here for two young girls all alone. How old are you two?"
Ivy and Lily looked at each other and then around at the forest around them. "It's hard to say. It's been a while," Ivy said, almost to herself.
The man furrowed his brow at that. Definitely not a normal response from what appeared to be a six-year-old child. "Well, what are your names?"
"We weren't given names. The birds took to calling us Ivy and Lily. They were some of the plants near where they found us."
"Found you?"
"Yes. Found us," Lily repeated.
"You said you wanted to help us," Ivy continued. "How do you expect to do that?"
"I want to help you return to your home. That's all. I'm sure your family must be worried about you."
"But this is our home," Lily protested.
"You live here? In the forest?"
The girls giggled. "No," they said together as if he had missed something important.
"I don't understand."
"How can you expect to help anyone if you don't understand something as simple as that?" Lily asked.
"You're right. Perhaps you should explain it to me."
Ivy rolled her eyes. "We were brought here when we were very small. We don't know by who. They left us here nameless and alone. The days turned to night, no one came for us. No one ever came for us. It turned cold and quiet. Then we heard the birds singing. They brought flowers to cover us. This forest is our home, our resting place. But we don't live here. We can't live here."
The man stood up slowly as Ivy spoke and took a few steps back. The girls vanished before his eyes. He only turned around when he heard the one called Ivy speak again from behind him. "We can't live here, you see, because we're already dead."
Author Note: This story is based on the nursery rhyme Babes in the Wood. The nursery rhyme describes a tale in which two nameless children are taken and left in the woods. Over time they were left alone and they died. After they have died, the robins covered them in strawberry leaves and sing a song to remember them. I set my story after they have already died. Their spirits remain in the forest, happy and isolated from the world. They befriend the animals around them and take the names Lily and Ivy because those are some of the plants around where they were left. Their presence in the forest leads to some stories and legends cropping up about the forest; local tales that makes people want to investigate. This story is about one of those encounters.
Bibliography: The Nursery Rhyme Book, edited by Andrew Lang and illustrated by L. Leslie Brooke (1897).
Ivy reached out and took her sister's hand as they ran. No matter what, they would stay together. They had always been together.
They came upon a large oak tree. The trunk was large enough to hide both of their small frames. They pressed their backs to the trunk and quieted their breathing. They listened for the sounds of the person following them. For a moment they didn't hear anything. The forest was filled with a strange silence. They started to believe they had escaped. However soon enough noise reached their ears.
It wasn't hard to hear. Their pursuer tramped around the forest with complete disregard for his surroundings. Ivy dared to peek around the tree. She saw him stumble past a bush. She quickly pulled back, squeezing Lily's hand. The man stopped and looked around.
"You don't have to be afraid," he called out. "I'm not here to hurt you."
"Then how about you leave us alone like we asked," Lily hissed under her breath.
"Quiet," Ivy hushed her sister. "If, we don't respond maybe he will go away."
"There you are," said a voice beside them. They turned, screamed and jumped back. The man had made his way around the tree while they were talking.
"Wait! It's alright, I'm not here to hurt you. I just want to help. " He extended his arms towards them and crouched down a bit.
"Help? Why would you want to help us?" Ivy asked, taking a step back.
"You two shouldn't be out here alone. Where are your parents? Why don't you let me help you find them?"
"We're perfectly capable of taking care of ourselves," Lily stated.
The man gave his best reassuring smile. "I have no doubt of that. But it can still be dangerous out here for two young girls all alone. How old are you two?"
Ivy and Lily looked at each other and then around at the forest around them. "It's hard to say. It's been a while," Ivy said, almost to herself.
The man furrowed his brow at that. Definitely not a normal response from what appeared to be a six-year-old child. "Well, what are your names?"
"We weren't given names. The birds took to calling us Ivy and Lily. They were some of the plants near where they found us."
"Found you?"
"Yes. Found us," Lily repeated.
"You said you wanted to help us," Ivy continued. "How do you expect to do that?"
"I want to help you return to your home. That's all. I'm sure your family must be worried about you."
"But this is our home," Lily protested.
"You live here? In the forest?"
The girls giggled. "No," they said together as if he had missed something important.
"I don't understand."
"How can you expect to help anyone if you don't understand something as simple as that?" Lily asked.
"You're right. Perhaps you should explain it to me."
Ivy rolled her eyes. "We were brought here when we were very small. We don't know by who. They left us here nameless and alone. The days turned to night, no one came for us. No one ever came for us. It turned cold and quiet. Then we heard the birds singing. They brought flowers to cover us. This forest is our home, our resting place. But we don't live here. We can't live here."
The man stood up slowly as Ivy spoke and took a few steps back. The girls vanished before his eyes. He only turned around when he heard the one called Ivy speak again from behind him. "We can't live here, you see, because we're already dead."
(Personal photo from a trip to Sulphur, OK)
Bibliography: The Nursery Rhyme Book, edited by Andrew Lang and illustrated by L. Leslie Brooke (1897).
Friday, March 27, 2015
Extra Reading Diary: Native American Hero Tales
These stories come from the Native American Hero Tales unit.
The Jealous Uncle (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3): I really enjoyed reading this story. I loved how the nephew continuously was able to outwit the uncle and escape from the attempts on his life. It was a really great story. The ending was great with the uncle getting exactly what he deserved. The fact that the boy used the playthings of his murdered older brothers to outwit the uncle was also really great.
Dug-From-Ground (Part 1, Part 2): This story was really interesting to read. There seems to be a theme of curiosity and exploring throughout the story. The woman gets curious and pulls up a root. The man gets curious and follows his mother. Overall it was a really good story.
The Jealous Uncle (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3): I really enjoyed reading this story. I loved how the nephew continuously was able to outwit the uncle and escape from the attempts on his life. It was a really great story. The ending was great with the uncle getting exactly what he deserved. The fact that the boy used the playthings of his murdered older brothers to outwit the uncle was also really great.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)