Bibliography
Teacher bibliography
Abrahams, Roger. Afro-American Folktales. New York: Pantheon Books, 1985. The
author gives a thorough explanation of the diffusion of tales originating in Africa
along with a collection of tales meant to be told.
Ashliman, D. Folk and Fairy Tales. Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 2004. This work
is an excellent handbook and starting point for researching folk and fairy tales. It contains examples of story texts. The glossary is cross-referenced. An extensive bibliography is complemented with up-to-date web resources.
Hempel , Carlene. "The Man: Facts, Fiction and Themes" at
http://www.ibiblio.org/john_henry accessed on July 10, 2006. This website offers wonderful resources for understanding John Henry, the man and the legend.
Hughes, Langston, and Bontemps, Arna Eds. The Book of Negro Folklore. New York:
Dodd, Mead and Company, 1958. The introduction to this book provides background for understanding the role of tales and the issues of language during times of slavery.
Propp, Vladimir, Wagner, Louis and Scott, Lawrence. Morphology of the Folk Tale. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1968. This work was originally published in Russia in 1928 and first translated in 1958. It was published for the American Folklore Society. This groundbreaking work examines story structure and story grammar. These functions can be used as staring points or prompts for student writing.
Thompson, Stith. The Folktale. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1977. This
work helps the researcher unders6tand the classifications of types and motifs.
Schmit, Dan. Kidcast: Podcasting in the Classroom. FTP Publishing: Illinois: 2005.
This book provides a guide to planning, organizing and publishing a podcast s
with students.
Smith, Carl. "Helping Children Understand Literary Genres" accessed on June 30, 2006 athttp://www.ericdigests.org/1994/genres.htm>. This article suggests that folktales make an excellent starting point providing children with a schema for understanding literary genres.
Yolen, Jane. Favorite Folktales from around the World. New York: Pantheon Books,
1986. This volume contains a collection of stories intended for telling orally. It is organized by type with an index of titles and countries of origins.
Web Resources
Grade 3 Social Studies: This website offers an activity guide for studying culture as
Reflected in folktales. Accessed on July 19, 2006 at http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca/docs/elemsoc/g3u22ess.html#time>.
The American Folklore Society. The link, "What is Folklore?" makes a good starting point for studying folklore. Accessed on July 14, 2006 at
http://www.afsnet.org/aboutfolklore/aboutFL.cfm>.
Student Bibliography
Hamilton, Virginia. Her Stories. New York: Blue Sky Press, 1995.
This collection of stories brings together African American folktales, fairytales and true tales with female protagonists. The author's notes after each tale provide information for the origins and diffusions of the tale.
Lester, Julius. John Henry. New York: Dial Books, 1995. The gifts of this author and
Illustrator, Jerry Pinkney make this an engaging story with rich language and beautiful illustrations as a great African American hero comes to life before you eyes and ears.
Lester, Julius. The Tales of Uncle Remus: The Adventures of Briar Rabbit. New York:
Dial Books, 1987. The author skillfully retells these tales in keeping with the African-American folktale tradition. The complete collection includes four volumes.
Lottridge, Celia Barker. The Name of the Tree: A Bantu Folktale\. New York: Margaret K. McElderry Books: April 1990. This lovely book is a retelling of an African folktale, "The Bojabi Tree." The rich language and repetitive patterns unfold as a small animal says the day for the others in obtaining food from the highest part of the tree.
Mandela, Nelson. Favorite African Folktales. New York: W.W. Norton and Company 2002. This is a collection of traditional folktales from different parts of Africa. The stories include some familiar characters, and introduce the reader to some newer ones. A map of African is included to give the reader a sense of the geographic location of the origins of the stories.
Rickert, Edith. The Bojabi Tree. New York: Doubleday and
Company, Inc., 1958. This African folk tale tells the story of animal cooperation in obtaining food after a period of drought. This makes a companion piece to the book, The Name of the Tree.
Washington, Donna. A Pride of African Tales. New York: Harpers Collins Publishers,
2004. The author organizes this collection of African folktales is by the types of tales: trickster, pourquoi, and cautionary.
Web Resources
"How Spider Obtained the Sky God's Stories" and folktales at Tales of People from Sub-
Saharan Africa website. Accessed on July 22, 2006 at
http://enargea.org/tales/black_African/sanidion.html>.
"Why the Hippopotamus Lives in the Water" at Folktales from Southern Nigeria website. Accessed on July 22, 2006 at http://www.sacred-texts.com/afr/fssn/index.htm>.
World on your Street from BBC Radio is a fun interactive sight for background on
Countries of the world, including Nigeria, Accessed on July 21, 2006 at
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/worldmusic/index.shtml>.
Abadjia Rhythm: Music of Ghana. This site allows students to explore African rhythms
with percussion instruments. Accessed on July 21, 2006 at
http://www.aviarts.com/demos/flash/abadjarhythm/index.html>
"How Spider Obtained the Sky God's Stories" and folktales at Tales of People from Sub-
Saharan Africa website. Accessed on July 22, 2006 at
http://enargea.org/tales/black_African/sanidion.html>.
"Why the Hippopotamus Lives in the Water" at Folktales from Southern Nigeria website. Accessed on July22, 2006 at http://www.sacred-texts.com/afr/fssn/index.htm>.
World on your Street from BBC Radio is a fun interactive sight for background on
Countries of the world, including Nigeria, Accessed on July 21, 2006 at
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/worldmusic/index.shtml>.
Abadjia Rhythm: Music of Ghana. This site allows students to explore African rhythms
with percussion instruments. Accessed on July 21, 2006 at
http://www.aviarts.com/demos/flash/abadjarhythm/index.html>
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