General Plantation Activity

Objectives
Students will learn how folktales teach moral lessons and preserve the history of a group of people. This will be done by having students read a folktale, answer questions about the story, and then writing their own folktale.

Age
3rd-5th grade

Enhances
SS.B.2.2.2, SS.D.1.2.2, LA.A.2.2.1-3, LA.B.1.2.1-3, LA.B.2.2.1-3,5, LA.E.1.2.2, LA.E.2.2.3-5

Time and Place
Classroom pre- or post-visit activity, 1 hour

Worksheets
The Spider and the Honey Tree pdf (78k); Activity Sheet pdf (96k); Coloring Sheet pdf (66k)
These files must be viewed using Adobe Acrobat Reader.
To download this program (free of charge), click here.

The folktale was found on the following web page:
http://www.phillipmartin.info/liberia/
The color sheet page was found at:
http://www.phillipmartin.info/liberia/text_folktales_intro.htm

Background
Folktales are a special way of preserving a group's history. The stories can tell of people's fears, dreams, hopes, and explain people's beliefs about how the world works. Folktales are found in cultures worldwide, and can be shared by anyone, anywhere.

Students of any age can use folktales to learn about cultural roots. Some communities still use folktales today to preserve history or genealogy. These stories, sometimes sang as folk songs, have been influenced through time by society, politics, and education. One way that African traditions have been preserved in North American is through folk songs.

Procedure
Have your students read the African folktale, The Spider and the Honey Tree, and answer the questions on the activity page. Students will then write their own folktale. For younger students (or simply to add to the activity) we have included The Spider and the Honey Tree coloring sheet. This may help students visualize the story. Another option that may aid students in writing their own folktales is to read the story to the class, discuss the questions provided, and use the coloring sheet as a follow-up.

For older students, add the following discussion question: Is it right to leave someone in trouble even if he/she brought it upon him/herself? Students could, as a group, create a chart of pros and cons to work through this dilemma. .

Evaluation
Answers to questions from the reading of The Spider and The Honey Tree by Phillip Martin:

1) A young girl may have the responsibility of gathering food for herself and her village.

2) Some of the diet of the young girl and her village was made up different types of fruit, such as oranges, plums, bananas, as well as honey.

3) There are a variety of morals and values found within this folktale. One example would be that greed is not a desirable trait in person. A second example is laziness is an unfavorable trait for a person to have. And a third example is that it is good to be unselfish and to want to help others.