Stories to Read - Stories to Write

Aesop's Fables
Although little is known about this wise and witty storyteller, scholars belie he was a slave in ancient Greece. Upon being freed by his master, he became part of the court of King Croesus. He was a keen observer of both animals and people. Most of the characters in his stories are animals, some of which take on human characteristic and are personified in ways of speech and emotions. However, the majority of his character retain their animalistic qualities; tortoise are slow, hares are quick, tigers eat bird, etc. Aesop uses these qualities and natural tendencies of animals to focus on human traits and wisdom. Each fable has an accompanying moral to be learned from the tale.
Some of his most well-known tales are 'The Tortoise and the Hare," "The Lion and the Mouse," and, of course, "The City Mouse and the Country Mouse."
Aesop's stories qualify as fables because they are short, humorous and teach important lessons by way of example. Despite being created thousands of years ago, they remain as relevant today as they were then.

Discussion Questions
1. Why does the country mouse decide to go to the city?
2. Why does the country mouse decide to go back to the country?
3. What lesson is the author trying to teach us in this tale?
VOCABULARY: finest, hikes, nibbled,roam,wrinkled.
SUPPORTIVE FEATURES: many short sentences.
CHALLENGING FEATURES: use of ellipses, dialogue,moral or story.
PHONICS: variant vowel oo: food,took,room,stood,good-bye;words ending with -le: little,nibble,wrinkle,table.
WRITING: Students write a letter from the city mouse to the country mouse telling
about his experience during his visit.
FLUENCY: Have partners reread the story, taking turns to read one page at a time.Circulate and listen in. Evaluate sutdents’s speed,accuracy, and expression.
ACTIVITIES.
1) Look at the collection of tales from the Greek story teller, Aesop. Choose one of the tales and write a short summary in your blog.
2) Listen to The Country Mouse and the City Mouse and complete the worksheet.