151 West 26 th Street 212.647.1100 New York, NY 10001 www.twusa.org presents BGSJDBOGPMLUBMFT STUDY GUIDE EfbsUfbdifs; We have created the following study guide to help make your students theater experience with African Folk Tales as meaningful as possible. For many, it will be their first time viewing a live theatrical production. We have learned that when teachers discuss the play with their students before and after the production, the experience is more significant and long-lasting. Our study guide provides synopses of each of the stories features in the show, discussion topics, classroom activities, as well as reproducible activity sheets. These are just suggestions Please feel free to create your own activities and areas for discussion. We hope you and your class enjoy the show Hfuujohsfbezgpsuiftipx Review proper theatre etiquette with your students. During the performance, they should be quiet so that they do not disturb other audience members (and the actors) during the performance. However, actors love laughter, cheers and applause, especially after each story they present and when the show is over this is a great way to thank actors for all their hard work in performing this show for you Students should be prepared to use their imaginations during this show with a minimum of props and costumes, the two actors become various animals throughout the performance. Instruct your students to watch how the actors use their bodies and voices to become wasps, snakes, monkeys, and more XibuJTbGpmlUbmf@ Simply put, a folk tale is a story or legend passed down orally from generation to generation. Many of these stories feature animals taking on human attributes, and several explain how the world came to be (how animals got their defining characteristics, what causes lightning and thunder, where stories came from). Some provide lessons for people to live by. Every culture has its own name for its explaining stories myths, parables, tall tales, fables they all boil down to the same thing. As explained in the show, folk tales begin with a kernel of truth, but the specifics change and become exaggerated as the stories are passed on from person to person. To demonstrate how messages can get blurred, play telephone with your class. Whisper a message to one student, who then whispers the message to the next person, and so on. (No repeating the message if someone doesn t hear it clearly) The last person then announces out loud what they heard your students may be surprised to hear how the original message evolved BmmbcpvuBgsjdb The stories featured in African Folk Tales originate from parts of Western and Southern Africa. Encourage your students to find the continent of Africa on a globe. What are some of the 53 countries (including island groups) in Africa?
GVOGBDUT; About 900 million people live in Africa that s nearly three times the population of the United States. Africa is the second-largest continent and the second most-populous continent, after Asia. The Nile River, which flows through Uganda, Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt, is the longest in the world Africa s Sahara Desert is the largest in the world. Africa covers nearly 11,700,000 square miles larger than the United States, Europe, China, India, Argentina, and New Zealand put together. Over 1,000 different languages and dialects are spoken in Africa. Your students may be surprised how many words of African origin have found their way into the English language. A few of these words include: Aardvark (Afrikaans word meaning earth pig ) Banana (West African word, possibly from the Wolof) Banjo (Bantu word mbanza ) Coffee (either from Ethiopian kingdom of Kaffa, where coffee originated, or Arabic kahwa ) Jamboree (possibly from Swahili Jambo, which means hello ) Jazz (from West African languages Mandinka jasi, Temne yas ) Kwanzaa (from the Swahili phrase matunda ya kwanza, meaning first fruits ) Safari (from Swahili word for travel ) Trek (from Afrikaans word for move ) Zombie (from Central Africa: Kikongo zumbi or Kimbundo nzambi ) SFTPVSDFT; PBS s AFRICA (website based on the PBS documentary series about Africa, including tools and lesson plans): http://www.pbs.org/wnet/africa/tools/index.html (for teachers) http://pbskids.org/africa/ (for children) teacher UIFTUPSJFT; BobotjboeuifTupszCpy TZOPQTJT; A long time ago, there were no stories on earth the sky god Nyami kept all stories in a box by his throne. Anansi the spider wanted to hear the stories, so Nyami told her that she must first retrieve a leopard s tooth and a wasp s needle. Upon completing these tasks, Nyami gave her the box, but she realized it was too great a gift to keep to herself, so she opened the box and tossed all the stories into the wind for everyone to hear.
EJTDVTTJPO; The only thing better than reading stories is sharing them. Have your students select their favorite book from their home collection or the school library. Why is this their favorite story Is it the plot (sequence of events), characters (different people or animals whose adventures are followed, or genre (science fiction, western, comedy, etc.) that appeals to them? Have them trade books with a classmate. Did their friends like the book as much? Why or why not? More advanced students may write a book report for their story, or a persuasive paragraph encouraging others to choose this book from the library; younger students may give their opinions orally. STORY STARTERS Devise a list of original first sentences for stories for example, I just had the craziest day ever, or After I went to school all my toys came to life, or A bored princess sat in her tower. Each student should select one of these story starters from a box, and they should create original stories using this as their first sentence. You may also put duplicate story starters in the box when your students read them aloud, they may be surprised at how the same first sentence can yield so many different tales SFTPVSDFT; Scholastic s Myths, Folktales & Fairy Tales Website (advice on how to teach myths, with classroom activities) http://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/mff/ (for teachers) http://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/mff/mythmachine.htm (for students) UifNpmmpdlboeuifTbmbnboefs The mollock lizard and the salamander were complete opposites, but the best of friends. All the animals in the world held a contest to see which animal had the most beautiful back, but neither animal had anything on their backs, so they decided to help each other. The meticulous, careful mollock painted a gorgeous pattern on the salamander s back, but the sloppy, reckless salamander painted an ugly design on the molluck, who was furious at the results. This is why you never see a mollock and a salamander living in the same tree. OPPOSITES The mollock and the salamander are total opposites The mollock is tidy and the salamander is sloppy. The mollock is serious and the salamander is silly. Use the worksheet at the end of this study guide to further explore opposites (antonyms) and similarities (synonyms). MIXING COLORS The salamander mixed lots and lots of different colors in a bucket, which resulted in a muddy mess. The molluck knew that you have to mix the colors very carefully to come up with the right hue. To demonstrate how colors mix, have your class draw three circles that intersect as in this drawing. Students should then use crayon, marker or colored pencil to color each of the three circles one of the primary colors: red, yellow and blue. What color results when, for example, the red and blue circles are conjoined? How about when all three circles meet? You can also demonstrate this concept by using a light source (like a flashlight or overhead projector) and various sheets of colored cellophane. THE MOLLOCK S BACK The salamander did a very poor job of painting the mollock s back Your class can do much better. At the end of this study guide you ll find a mollock coloring sheet have your class design a beautiful back for the mollock lizard.
XizNpolfztMjwfjoUsfft The tortoise borrowed money from the monkey, and promised to repay her in six months. At that time, the monkey tried to collect her money while the tortoise avoided her he turned over on his back and pretended to be a grinding stone. The monkey was so angry that she threw the grinding stone into a bush. The tortoise entered and told the monkey that her money was in the grinding stone, so she went out searching for the grinding stone from the trees. Which is why monkeys live in trees they re all still looking for that grinding stone. EJTDVTTJPO; The tortoise broke his promise to repay his debt to the monkey. Discuss the importance of keeping promises. Why should you always keep promises? Has anyone ever broken a promise to your students? How did that make them feel? Have your students ever broken a promise themselves? Why? How do they think it made the other person feel? ANIMAL HABITATSMonkeys live in trees and so do lots of other animals Have your class brainstorm a list of other animals that live in trees: birds, squirrels, etc. What other habitats do other animals live in? For example: in the sea, on a farm, in the forest, etc. You may wish to split your class into work groups, and assign each a different habitat for brainstorming. What characteristics do these animals have that make their given locale perfect for them (for example, gills enable fish to live underwater, and polar bears have thick fur to protect themselves against cold weather. Groups can draw their animals in their habitat, or find pictures in magazines to paste together. CpezQbsut An old woman planted a mysterious packet of seeds, which grew to become various body parts: feet, a mouth, arms, and the stomach all growing out of the ground. While the woman was away one day, all the body parts started fighting all except the stomach. When she returned, she discovered her ruined garden and to teach the body parts a lesson, she stuck them all in one package, forcing them all to work together. And since the stomach was the only one who didn t fight, it would be the master of the body. For this reason, we work hard to feed our stomachs. EJTDVTTJPO; The old woman in this story decided that the stomach would rule the body. How do our ruler stomachs tell us that we need food? What happens, though, when we eat too much food? What sorts of food do your stomachs like best? FOOD LOG Have your students keep a food log. For one day, they should write down every single thing they eat (down to the smallest M&M). Older students may keep their log for a longer time. Explain the concept of the USDA food pyramid (see Resourses, below, for a link). How does their food fit into this chart? Did they eat enough of each sort of food? Did they eat too much of another? Discuss the concepts of good nutrition. SEEDS Discuss with your class how to grow seeds. For a plant to grow, it needs dirt, sunshine, and water. What happens if a plant is deprived of one of these elements? To demonstrate, set up four stations around the classroom: one control group (that will get dirt, sun, and water), and three experimental groups that deprive the plants of one of these critical elements (see chart on next page). What does your class think will happen with these groups (hypothesis)? Chart the plants growth over the next few weeks. What are the results? Is your class surprised?
SFTPVSDFT; USDA Food Pyramid: http://www.mypyramid.gov/ (general information) http://www.mypyramid.gov/kids/ (links to activities appropriate for ages 6 to 11) IPXUIF[FCSBHPUIFSTUSJQFT A baboon (with hair all over his body, unlike the baboons you see today) decided to drink the river s water all by himself and set up camp with a fire nearby. So when a white horse wanted to share the water, the two animals fought and wrestled until the fire, which singed the horse s white coat (giving her stripes) and burning the fur off the baboon s head, chest and bottom, leaving him partially bald. EJTDVTTJPO; Can your class think of other animals that have unique markings or characteristics? For example, the elephant s trunk, the camel s hump, the frog s funny voice and long tongue, the leopard s spots. How do these markings and characteristics help these animals survive? (For example, as camouflage or to help them capture food.) Can your class come up with stories about how these animals came to be the way they are? For inspiration, you may wish to share Rudyard Kipling s Just So Stories with your students. SFTPVSDFT; Just So Stories website:http://www.boop.org/jan/justso/ There are also many great children s books based on these tales check your local library. QPTTVNBOETOBLF The busybody possum noticed a snake in a pit with a brick on his back. The slimy snake promised not to bite her if she rescued him, so she used her walking stick to toss him into the bushes. Then he coerced her to rescue him from the bushes, promising not to bite her. Then he asked her to put him on her shoulders and walk him home, promising not to bite her. And then he bit her. The moral is: never trust a snake. EJTDVTTJPO; Talk with your class about the concept of trust. What does this word mean to your students? Should the possum have helped the snake? Why or why not? What would your students have done in a similar situation? Who are some people your students trust? Why do they trust these people? Are there any people your students do not trust? Why do they feel this way? Talk about other snakes people or situations you shouldn t trust. Why shouldn t you trust them?
NAME: UIFNPMMPDL TCBDL The salamander did a very poor job of coloring the mollock s back. You can color the lizard s back so that it s beautiful If you wish, you can also draw the branch that the mollock is sitting on.
NAME: PQQPTJUFT Below you see a list of words. Can you think of an opposite for each? 1. GOOD: 2. SMART: 3. STRONG: 4. DARK: 5. ASLEEP: 6. CLEAN: 7. DELICIOUS: 8. NICE: 9. SOFT: 10. WET: 11. EASY: