The Magic of Fairy Tales

So many of us all think that fairy tales are just for girls, but we are all wrong. Fairy tales have been around for centuries and can help everyone learn some important lessons.

Years ago when I was getting my masters, I spent a summer learning all about children's literature.  It happened to be one of my favorite classes because we learned so much about the world of children's books, things I had never known before.

I spent a great deal of my time delving into the world of fairy tales.  These tales of old intrigued me because I had known so little about them. I always just thought that they were fun stories that would either scare or delight young children.  Boy, was I wrong!

Long ago, fairy tales were quite different from the tales we hear now.  They were full of violence and horrible acts by many of the characters in the story. Consider this original story of Cinderella, so much different than the sweet story we all know and love!

So, what was the reason for fairy tales? 

They were written to warn children of the dangers of sin in their lives and to teach them good from evil. Many of the stories of old were told to teach lessons, not just a sweet story to tell our children.

Here are 3 things we can all learn from those stories of old.

1. Life lessons ~ Think about the Three Little Pigs for a minute. What life lesson can we learn from that one?

You got it! Build a strong house to withstand anything! Or stand strong to take care of yourself. We can also teach children these lessons too. What a great way to teach theme!

2. What it means to be strong! Despite what the characters are going through, they remain strong. Think about Cinderella for a minute. She doesn't want to do chores and listen to her mean stepsisters any more than you would, but she remains strong and prevails in the end.

3. Compassion ~ Think about the fairy tales of today. All of the main characters have compassion on someone who doesn't deserve it. I love reading these stories to children because they remind me that I need to show compassion for others, even when I don't feel they deserve it.

And what skills can we teach with fairy tales?

So many! Tune in next week when I discuss ways fairy tales can help your students with basic comprehension skills.

For now, pass it on and pin for later!

Click {here} to read part 2, which highlights how we can use fairy tales in our classrooms.