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GENDER BIAS IN FAIRY TALES - Teacher Page

Project Description

Most children have heard or will hear at least five to ten fairy tales throughout their childhood. These stories and characters in the stories make lasting impressions even into adulthood. Are these stories sending out dangerous messages to our girls and boys about the way women are perceived?

Many of the fairy tales our children have heard portray women and girls as passive, and males as active and saviors. Are these portrayals limiting their views of themselves?

Realizing the powerful effect literature might have on children’s values, we as educators should be more aware of a story’s overt and covert messages.

With this in mind I will attempt to confront the issue of sexism and at the same time sharpen students’ critical thinking skills by having them use these stories as models for their own writing.

PROJECT GOALS

ESSENTIAL QUESTION:

Are the roles of women in fairy tales stereotypical?

SPECIFIC QUESTION

Are women discriminated against in fairy tales?
Do you think men’s and women’s roles & opportunities today are the same as they were in the Grimms’ time in Germany?
Should people be treated equally no matter what they appear to be?
What information do you think would be important to write about the Brothers’ Grimm?

Illinois and CPS Learning Standards

State Goal	CAS	CFS
2	A	1
	B

Unit Prerequisites

Read two fairy tales written by the Brothers’ Grimm
Knowledge of basic terms used in fairy tales
Basic writing skills
Powerpoint/Word familiarity

Performance Tasks

Access:	Research the Internet for information about the Brothers’Grimm. Read two fairytales written by the Brothers’ Grimm.
Interpret:	List the important facts about the lives of the Brothers Grimm. Interpret the roles of women in these stories. Compare/contrast the women in Grimms’ roles’ of tales with those of the women in today’s stories.
Produce:	Write your own fairytale. Create a story that requires your characters to cooperate with and complement one another. Depict your characters with unique but equal superpowers.
Communicate:	Convince your readers that your story has no stereotypical gender role. Portray your characters as equal partners. Present your story complete with illustrations.
Evaluate:	Test your story by a read-aloud. Critique the values implied in your story.

Performance Assessment Plan

Performance Indicators	Assessment Tool
LANGUAGE ARTS
2/A-B/1	RUBRIC

Teacher Resources

http://www.google.com/search?q=fairytales&btnG=Google+Search

http://iabramson.web.wesleyan.edu/project.htm

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/grimm/index2.html

http://info-center.ccit.arizona.edu/~ws/ws200/fall97/grp17/fairy.html

http://ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/

Additional Resources: Hardcover book: The Complete Fairytales of the Brothers’ Grimm.