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“Happily Ever Aer?” A Fairy Tale Unit [1st grade]
Audrey Tan
Trinity University
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EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF TRINTIY UNIVERSITY
Understanding by Design Curriculum Units
“Happily Ever After?” A Fairy Tale Unit
Audrey Tan
2009
UNDERSTANDING BY DESIGN
Unit Cover Page
Unit Title: “Happily Ever After?” A Fairy Tale Unit
Grade Level: 1
Subject/Topic Area: Language Arts
Designed By: Audrey Tan
Time Frame: 15 days
School District: North East Independent School District
School: Hardy Oak Elementary
Brief Summary of Unit (Including curricular context and unit goals)
This unit is designed as a mid-year unit for 1
st
grade language arts. Students will have had some
exposure to story elements and will have written a few stories independently.
The unit is designed around fairy tales. In this unit, students will explore the features that define
fairy tales. They will learn how to recognize fairy tales. Students will understand that fairy tales are
fantasy. The students will listen, compare, and analyze the characters of fairy tales.
Throughout the unit students will develop their idea of happiness. Their understanding will
deepen through exposure and discussions. Students will also connect to the characters and think about
their own happiness. Students will broaden their understanding of happiness by comparing fairy tales
to real life.
Students will be asked at the end of the unit to rewrite a traditional fairy tale. Students will
choose one of three fairytales and change events and characters. Students will use the features of fairy
tales in the writing along with their understanding of happiness to demonstrate their learning. Their
goal is with their new understanding of fairytales and happiness, they will be able to create a more
realistic fairy tale, true to themselves.
Unit: “Happily Ever After?”A Fairy Tale Unit
Grade: 1
st
Grade
Stage 1: Desired Results
Understandings
Students will understand that…
• Fairy tales have common features such as royalty, magic, happy endings, ect.
• Fairy tales are fantasy and unrealistic.
• Traditional happiness is not the only way to be happy.
Essential Questions
1. What makes a fairy tale a fairy tale?
2. How would the characters feel in real life?
3. What does it mean to live “happily ever after”?
4. How do I live happily?
Knowledge
Students will know…
Definition of happiness
Common features of fairy tales
Skills
Students will be able to…
13D. connect ideas and themes across texts
14D. recognize the distinguishing features of familiar genres,
including stories, poems, and traditional texts
14G. analyze characters, including their traits, feelings,
relationships, and changes
18F. write in different forms for different purposes such as lists to
record, letters to invite or thank, and stories or poems to entertain
Stage 2: Assessment Evidence
Performance Task:
Students will choose one of three fairy tales after conferencing with the teacher. Students will then rewrite
the fairy tale to demonstrate their understanding of the features of fairy tales and the idea of happiness.
Students will be assessed using a rubric.
Other evidence:
6 boxes pre-assessment, fairy tale feature chart, character map, reader’s response
Stage 3: Learning Activities
Day 1: Cinderella
• Pre-assessment-6 boxes activity
Tell me
everything you
know about
fairy tales.
Ask me 1
question about
fairy tales.
Draw a picture
of a fairy tale.
Tell me
everything you
know about
happiness.
Ask me 1
question about
happiness.
Draw a picture
of happiness.
• Students will brainstorm and create a class list of fairy tales.
• Read: Cinderella
Day 2: Snow White
• Students will retell Cinderella
in their words
• Discussion: “What makes a fairy tale different from other stories?” “What makes a fairy
tale a fairy tale?”
Title
of
Fairy
Tale
Special
Words/Numbers
Once upon,
Happily ever, 3,7
Good
Character
Evil
Character
Royalt
y
Magic Happines
s
What
made the
characters
happy?
o Create list of features and introduce chart-only write in the features they have
named
• Discussion: “Look at our fairy tale features list. What fairy tale features does Cinderella
have?”
• Teacher will read Snow White
• Discussion: “Look at our fairy tale features list. What fairy tale features does Snow White
have?” Lead students to add other features on the list.
• What is a fairy tale? Students will create a working definition of a fairy tale and write down
their definition on vocabulary worksheet.
Day 3: Sleeping Beaut
y
• Student will retell Snow White
• Teacher will read Sleeping Beauty
• Discussion: “Look at our fairy tale features list. What fairy tale features does Sleeping
Beauty have?” Lead students to add other features on the list.
o Look over chart and discuss similarities between all three tales
o “Could Sleeping Beauty
ever happen? Why or why not?” Think-Pair-Share
Fairy tales are fantasy-it could never happen because of magic and
unrealistic animals
Day 4: Rapunzel
• Students will retell Sleeping Beauty
• Teacher will read Rapunzel
• Assessment-pass out paper copy of chart and students will fill in chart independently
• Bring students back to carpet and fill in class chart together
o “Could Rapunzel
ever happen?”
Fairy tales are fantasy-it could never happen because of magic and
unrealistic animals
Day 5: Jack and the Beanstalk
• Students will retell Rapunzel
• Teacher will read Jack and the Beanstalk
• Discussion: “Is Jack and the Beanstalk
a fairy tale? Why or why not?”
o Fairy tales do not have to have all the features to be a fairy tale.
• Discussion: “Look at our fairy tale features list. What fairy tale features does Jack and the
Beanstalk have?”
• “What makes Jack happy in the end?”
Day 6: “Happily Ever After”
• Discussion: “How do most fairy tales end?”
o Happily ever after-“What does it mean to live “happily ever after?”
o Who is happy at the end of the tale? How do you know that they are happy? What
makes them happy?
o “What are some things that make you happy? Unhappy?”
Students will write and draw about things that make them happy and
unhappy-use worksheet.
Students will create a working definition of happiness and write down their
definition on their vocabulary worksheet.
• Teacher will show students Cinder Edna
.
o Students will make predictions about the story using the cover.
o Teac her will read Cinder Edna.
• Discussion: “How does the story end?”
o “Who do you think is happy in the end? Why?”
o “Why is Cinder Ella not happy in the end? How can you tell?”
“Cinderella is happy in most fairy tales. Do you think she’d be happy in
real life? Explain.”
“What makes Cinder Edna happy?”
Fill in chart-emphasize happiness box
Day 7: The Paperbag Princess
• Discussion: “Tell me about the characters in the story Cinder Edna
from yesterday.”
o Venn Diagram-compare and contrast Cinder Edna and Cinder Ella
• Teacher will read The Paperbag Princess
o “Is this story a fairy tale? Why or why not?
o “Was Elizabeth happy at the end of the fairy tale? How do you know?”
o Fill in chart-emphasize happiness box
Day 8: Princess Smartypants
• Teacher will read Princess Smartypants
o “What kind of princess is Princess Smartypants? Let’s think about her character.”
Fill out character map
•
• Discussion: “Did this story have a happy ending?” “What made Princess Smartypants happy
in the end?”
o Fill in fairy tale features chart
o “How are Cinder Edna, Elizabeth, and Princess Smarty Pants different from
Cinderella, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty?
They are all princesses but what makes them truly happy in the end?
Is there only one way to be happy?
Day 9: Real Princess? Fake Princess
• “We’ve been studying fairy tales for the past 2 weeks. Who can tell me what a fairy tale is?
How are fairy tales different from fiction stories? Who are usually the characters in a fairy
tale?”
• “I want you to draw me a picture of a royal character (king, queen, prince, princess)”
o Teacher will give students 10 minutes to draw picture
o Allow 5 minutes for a gallery walk (students will leave their drawing on desk and
will walk around to look at peers’ work)
• Students will return to carpet
o Tell me what you saw on your gallery walk. What did your friends’ drawings have in
common? What were some differences?
o “Does royalty (king, queen, prince, princess) exist in real life? Yes, I want you to
meet some real life royalty.”
o Powerpoint presentation
Point out differences from fairy tale characters and drawings
Students will redraw character for real life
• How did you change your drawing?
Day 10: The Little Mermaid
• Introduce the story and encourage students to help re-tell the story. May use a book as a
guide.
• Play ending scene from Disney movie-King Triton sacrificing for Ariel, Prince Eric saving
Ariel-Happy ending
o “What about the ending was not realistic?”
o “Does the prince always have to save the princess? What could Ariel have done to
save herself?”
o “What makes Ariel happy in the end? What else could make Ariel happy?”
• “I want you to rewrite the ending to the Little Mermaid.”
o Make sure Ariel is happy in the end
o Teacher will give students 15 minutes to write a new ending.
Day 11: Performance Task
• “We have been studying about fairy tales and happiness for 2 weeks now. This week I want
you to show me all that you’ve learned by writing a new ending to an old fairy tale.”
• Today we’re going to review our fairy tales and you will get to pick 3 that you’d like to
change the ending to. (Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Rapunzel, Jack and the
Beanstalk)
o Review fairy tale plots and use books as a reminder to help students retell
o Fairy tales are fantasy-change it so it’s more like real life.
o Are the characters really living happily ever after? Would you be happy if you were
the character?
• “On your worksheet choose the 3 fairy tales you would be the most excited to change.
Make sure you think about what you might want to change in each fairy tale. Pick 3 that you
think you could really show me what you’ve learned.”
• Teacher will conference with students to help choose one for their performance task.
o Use conference as a way to differentiate performance task for students
Day 12: Performance Task
• Teacher will finish student conferences.
• Pass out rubric and discuss elements with students.
o Remind students to make sure characters would be happy in real life
o “Think about what you would want to change. You are the author and your are in
charge!”
• Pass out changes worksheet to help students organize changes.
• When students finish they may begin filling out fairy tale map worksheet to help organize
thoughts.
Day 13: Writin
g
• Students will begin writing new fairy tale using fairy tale .map as a guide.
• Teacher will conference with students as they write.
Day 14: Writing
• Students will continue to write and edit their fairy tale.
• Teacher will continue to conference with students.
Day 15: Illustrating
• Students will finish up writing and editing their fairy tale.
• Students will create illustrations for their fairy tale if finished.
• Students can share fairy tales with each other.
Worksheets
Tell me everything you know about
fairy tales.
Ask me 1 question about fairy
tales.
Draw a picture of a fairy tale.
Tell me everything you know about
happiness.
Ask me 1 question about
happiness.
Draw a picture of happiness.
Fairy Tale Features Chart
Title of
Fairy Tale
Special
Words/Numbers
Once upon,
Happily ever, 3,7
Good
Character
Evil
Character
Royalty
Magic Happiness
What made
the
characters
happy?
Important Vocabulary
Fairy Tale:__________________________________________
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
Happiness:__________________________________________
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
Happy Unhappy
List
1. _________________________
2. _________________________
3. _________________________
4. _________________________
5. _________________________
Picture
List
1. _________________________
2. _________________________
3. _________________________
4. _________________________
5. _________________________
Picture
Actions
_________________
_________________
_________________
_________________
_________________
_________________
_________________
_________________
_________________
_________________
Feelings
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
Says
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
__________________
Appearance (Looks)
________________
________________
________________
________________
________________
________________
________________
________________
________________
________________
Powerpoint Presentation
GET READY TO MEET REAL LIFE
KINGS
Meet the Royals!
QUEENS
PRINCES
AND PRINCESSES!
Double click to play Powerpoint presentation.
Name:____________ Date:_____________
Fairy Tale Choices
Title of Fairy
Tale
What I want to
change
Ranking (1
st
,2
nd
3
rd
)
Fairy Tale Changes
Old Fairy Tale
My Fairy Tale
1
2
3
4
Name:______________________________ Date:______________________________
Fairy Tale Map
Characters
1.________________________
2.________________________
3.________________________
4.________________________
S
etting
My fairy tale takes place:
Where:______________________
_____________________________
When:______________________
Problem and Solution
Problem:__________________
___________________________
___________________________
Solution:__________________
____________________________
____________________________
Beginning
In the beginning___________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
Middle
In the middle_______________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
End
In the end___________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
Name:________________________ Title:____________________
Fairy Tale Rubric
Fairy Tale Features Happiness Editing
3
4-5 fairy tale
features are included:
o Magic
o good character,
o evil character,
o special
words/numbers
o Royalty
Author changes
story so Characters
are truly happy in
the end (real life
happy)
Word wall words are
spelled correctly
Sentences begin
capital letters
Sentences end in
correct punctuation
2
2-3 fairy tale features
are included
Author makes a
few changes so
Characters are
happy in the end
Some word wall
words are spelled
correctly
Some sentences
begin with capital
letters
Some sentences end
in correct
punctuation
1
0-1 fairy tale features
are included
Author makes no
changes to story
Few word wall words
are spelled correctly
Few sentences begin
with capital letters
Few sentenced end
in correct
punctuation
Comments:____________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
