The Application of Fairy Tales Entitled “The Gingerbread Man’s”

Theoretical Assumptions

A. Literature

Literature is one of the richest gifts of people’s culture that brings them together.
Furthermore, contextualizing language through literature provides English learners with a
win-win situation as they delve into themes that enlighten life and language (Frey as cited in
Koushki, 2019).

Use of literature in English classroom makes the learners focus on meaning (Murao, 2009). In
this sense language becomes a means for its own real function. It is not just a means for
practice. Language becomes a means in the hands of learners and manipulated by them to use
their background knowledge to understand authentic texts.

B. Fairy Tales

According to Tomlinson (1986) traditional fairy tales are characterized by the following
traits, which apparently are favorable to language education aiming at graders 5-6. shorter
plots than in other genres of literature, concentrated action, characters with only one
outstanding quality, language full of rhythm and melody, stock beginnings and endings,
recurring features, repetition of refrains or chants, and a happy ending.

According to Černoušek as cited in Mikesoa (2002), the optimistic spirit of the fairy tales and
the guaranteed happy end are essential for child’s mental development. Children need to see a
triumph of justice so that they can also hope for the just measurement for themselves.
Furthermore, the typical happy end of the fairy tales is something children know they can
always rely on and thus, brings the feeling of certainty and safety to their lives.

When introduced and optimally utilized, fairy tales can provide a glimpse into the values, life
styles, customs and historical traditions of the target language group. Children can examine
how a given group has dressed, how and what they ate, and what they held dear in their day-
to-day lives (Haulman, 1985).
Rationale

- The story of the Gingerbread Man’s has been told for ages to teach young learners
basic moral values. Using a cookie, animals, and human for the characters makes it
interesting and fun for children, and stimulates their imaginations as they learn some
important life lessons: be careful what you wish for, be careful who you trust, little characters
can do big things, do not automatically trust a stranger, never run away from your family and
people who love you, bragging, teasing, and taunting will not make you friends, do not
believe everything you are told, especially by a stranger.
- The story provides frequent repetition and predictability and thus enhance
comprehension (Haulman, 1985)
- This story also highlights the usefulness of fairy tales for focusing on specific
linguistic structures (tenses or questions with “who”) (Haulman, 1985)

LESSON PLAN

Lesson topic: Gingerbread Man’s

Class: Children
Level: 5
Date: 26th March 2020
Length: 90 minutes
Teacher: Rynda
Aims:
Students are able to mention characters’ names
Students are able to infer the moral value
Students are able to change certain words from the story
Students are able to narrate story
Grammar focus: simple present tense
Key vocabularies: family and animal
Technique: Listen Read Predict Discuss and Share
Media: Flannel board, cards, and papers
Pre Activity

- Greet the students

- Engage students in a conversation and ask them what snack they have eaten or even
made.
- Write down or draw the information that the students give.
- Ask the students what will they think or respond if a cookie can talk and run
- Ask them if they have ever heard a story about cookie that becomes alive.

Main Activity

- Students listen to the short version of the story that is being told by the teacher using
flannel board.
- Post a clue on the board along with a question ‘who am I’ and ask students to guess the
characters based on the clue that are given.
- Give copies of the story to the students and ask them to read it first.
- Give cards of character and their roles and personalities to the students
- Make students discuss the task in pair.
- Ask them to predict the characters and their roles (ex: Grandma>>Family,
wolf>>enemy) along with their personalities (ex: Grandma>> Kind) (Wolf>>> A liar)
- Ask the students to change certain words (marked with red ink) for example
(run>>walk) from the story after they have comprehended the meaning first.
- Ask them to display their works on a board while another students can check their own
work.
- Ask the students to rewrite the story of Gingerbread Man’s by changing the characters,
roles, or even certain words from the story. (Grandma>>Grandpa)
- Students take turn telling the story with their own version.

Post Activity

- Teacher and students together take turn telling the funniest events from story to ease the
tension.
- Ask the students to share their opinion about the moral value that they can learn from it.