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For this weeks make, my group and I decided to create an activity that would teach children the ABC’s by using both fairytales and characters that can be found in some the tales. Along with the presentation we also thought that it would be a fun activity for the kids if they were able to do something hands on so we created a puzzle for them to play with after they learn their ABC’s. For the puzzle we featured Cinderella because that was a character we focused on in class.

I personally like both activities because they would be something that would keep students engaged while still learning. The puzzle isn’t really meant to educate the students but it’ll work as a motivation for young students to learn their ABC’s so that they’ll be able to enjoy a game afterwards. This could be used in as an introduction for students who are learning their ABC’s or to give them an idea of what kind of fairytales they’d be able to find in books, movies, or the web.

When thinking about Coles quote, “the whole point of stores is not ‘solutions’ or resolutions but a broadening and even heightening of our struggles” it makes me believe that these fairy tales aren’t only meant for entertaining ourselves but are meant to offer a lot more than that. When rereading fairly tales I was told as a child I now notice that these stories are meant to teach us moral lessons. In the tale Little Red Riding Hood the lessons that are meant to be learned are quite clear, the first being that we shouldn’t give our trust to people who we don’t know and the second being that when given a task stay on the correct path and don’t wander off.

When reading fairly tales it’s interesting look at how different versions tell and explain different problems that the protagonist is faced with. In versions of Little Red Riding Hood that we read in class the morals that were being taught varies depending on how it was told. For example, in many of the versions Little Red was created to look like a foolish girls who gave trust in a wolf but when reading The True History of Little Golden-Hood by Charles Marelles the girl and grandmother are given new roles where instead of being hunted they become the hunters. Marelles version of the tale gives a different moral than the version we’re use to, I believe his moral is that you must pay attention and be focused.

Fairy tales are used to explain and give examples of human struggles. The struggles that are introduced in these tales can be both internal and external. In tales the involve internal problems the protagonist can be faced with things like ignorance, naiveness, narcissist, self-doubt, gullibility and sometimes love (ex: When Little Red enters her grandmothers house she should’ve see that her “grandma” had developed new physical features that should’ve told her something was wrong with “grandma”). The external struggle that are shown in tales can be problems with other characters, society, nature, and/or technology (ex: The Big Bad Wolf creates problems for Little Red while she’s on her way to deliver gifts to her grandma). Though fairy tales are often writing to be over the top, we can be faced with problems that are similar so the morals that fairy tales are teaching aren’t exactly solutions but they can teach you life lessons without having to experience them first hand.

I really like the idea of using fairy tales to give young children the idea that the world isn’t as friendly as it may seem. Telling people what kind of struggles they can be faced with in life is difficult so fairy tales offer a way explaining these problems in a way that is entertaining and relatable. The underlying messages can be powerful and could teach all of us things we may have never though of.

 

Hello, my name is Erik Sagrero and I want to teach elementary. I was born in Los Angeles (Go Dodgers!) but raised in Modesto, Ca. I get a lot if my motivation to keep going from my family; my two other brothers are both college graduates while my two younger sibling are currently in college pursuing their careers so I knew graduating from college was something I needed to do to better myself and push them to finish and graduate. When I first got to Chico State I wasn’t really sure which career I wanted to pursue but I knew wanted to do something that would leave a positive impact on the world around me. I spent some time looking at different majors but none of them caught my eye like the liberal studies major did. Growing up I didn’t have teachers who actually enjoyed their teaching career it always seemed like they were just there to earn paycheck and nothing else, that is until my brother came to Chico State and showed me what a passionate teacher looked like. Seeing a positive role model got me thinking of having my own students who I could inspire and guide them towards excellence meant a lot to me. Since declared for the liberal studies major I’ve had a great time learning a lot of material and eager to learn more. On my free time I like to go hiking, biking, listen to music or just hanging out with friends. I’m excited to see how this English course will help me grow.

To me be being a “reader” is complicated because I see it as someone who likes read about topics that they interesting about but not everyone will agree with that. Outside of school I read the sports news, NPR, lyrics, text messages, social media, reviews, recipes, subtitles and emails. I’d say the reading do outside of school is different than the reading I do in school because it isn’t always written in a formal manner it’ll could have spelling mistakes, slang and sometimes bad language. There are times where the reading I do outside of school connects with the reading I do in school for example when I’m reading NPR or anything written in a formal manner I’ll read it more carefully, slower or do more research about the given topic but when reading something like text message it won’t relate or connect with school. A big idea that I liked about Williams article was when he was describing the differences in how student and teachers viewed reader, the definition changes because their interest are different. Their views are different but most importantly they are still reading, so instead of telling a student to stop reading story books a teacher should find books that will educate the students but still met their interests. For example, if the students like sports find a way to incorporate sports to the lesson so the student will be engaged with material.