Week 12, Storytelling: Diary of The Three Little Pigs

Monday:
Today is the best day ever!!! A little old lady named Miss Henny purchased Betty, Curly and I today from the market. Now we no longer have to worry about being turning into someone’s breakfast. Miss Henny is coming to pick us up tomorrow. I am so excited to see what our new farm looks like (I really hope we have a mud Jacuzzi or a big patch of hay to sunbathe on). It is going to be hard to get sleep tonight with all of this excitement!

Three Little Pigs

Tuesday:
Today was Curly, Betty and I’s first day on the new farm. Although it is cute, I will admit that it’s a little different then how I expected it to be. There is one medium-sized barn at the very back of the land. It has old red shutters and a navy blue door. Curly, Betty and I have a small haystack near the chicken coops. There isn’t much room to roam, but at least the cows don’t seem to be as annoying as the last ones we lived with. I am excited to make new friends and to pull more pranks on the other animals.

Wednesday:
Oh! Miss Henny went to the store yesterday to buy materials to make us houses. I don’t know if she has ever owned pigs before… because we are perfectly fine with sleeping on our haystack (or even the dirt.) Anyways, I am so excited to have my own house. I hope mine is painted pink… that’s always been my favorite color. I am going to go search the chicken coop to find some loose feathers for decorations. Maybe the sheep will even loan me some fur for a warm blanket…. Tomorrow can’t come fast enough!

Thursday:
I think I am Miss Henny’s favorite because she gave me the house made of brick! Curly’s house is made of straw and Betty’s is made of furze. I might be a little biased… but I think mine is the best! I can’t write long today because I have to go tidy up my brand new place. 

Pig's Brick House

Friday:
THE WORST THING HAPPENED YESTERDAY! I was minding my own business in my beautiful new home and all of the sudden I hear squealing coming from Curly’s house. I jumped on my haystack and peered out my window to see a massive, ugly wolf eating Curly!!! He must have come from the other side of the woods. The cows warned us to stay far away from there, but of course I thought they were just being dramatic. Anyways, the wolf blew down the house of straw and treated my friend as if he were a piece of bacon!

Saturday:
THE WOLF ATTACKED AGAIN! I tried to warn Betty last night, but she being the suborn ham she is, she would not listen. The wolf blew down Betty’s house and ate her too. Miss Henny and her husband are on a vacation. They are going to be so devastated to see what happened to Betty and Curly when they return. I must stand my ground and survive. Miss Henny would be devastated if she lost all three of her new pigs!

Sunday:
Guess what I had for dinner tonight? Wolf meat! Yeah that’s right… I defeated the wolf. He tried to pull his stunt on me but I outsmarted him! The bricks were too strong for him to blow down. When he tried to climb down my chimney, there was a nice big pot of boiling hot water waiting for his arrival. Oh, Miss Henny will be so happy to see that I am okay! I miss Curly and Betty so much already. I guess I will have to make a trip down to the “meet market” soon to make some new friends.

Bibliography: The original story comes from "The Three Little Pigs" in English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs. 

Author's Note: I got my idea from the classic story of "The Three Little Pigs." I decided to write my version in a "dairy format" to show my audience the scene from the pig's perspective. The original story is about a wolf that blows down pigs houses and eats them for dinner. At the end, one brave pig kills the wolf by putting a pot of hot water under his chimney. I wanted to keep most of the same elements from the original source because it is so wonderful and classic. I wanted my audience to see  the story in a new light and give background details that they have never thought about. Overall, I had so much fun coming up with this weeks story! 

Week 12, Reading Diary Continued: English Fairy Tale Unit

The second half of the English Fairy Tale Unit by Joseph Jacobs was just as entertaining as the first half. All of the stories were so unique and engaging.

One story that I loved was called Henny-Penny. I remembered hearing about this story as a child, but I am not sure if I ever actually read it or not. This story reminded me a lot of the story "The Old Woman and Her Pig." It reminded me of that story because it had a very similar story format. Here is an example from Henny-Penny:

"Where are you going, Henny-penny, Cocky-locky, Ducky-daddles, and Goosey-poosey?' says Turkey-turkey. 'Oh! we're going to tell the king the sky's a-falling,' said Henny-penny, Cocky-locky, Duckydaddies, and Goosey-poosey. 'May I come with you, Henny-penny, Cocky-locky, Ducky-daddles, and Goosey-poosey?' said Turkey-lurkey."

In Henny-Penny, the story included characters with rhyming names. Every paragraph, a new character would join the search to find the King. In the end, the fox ended up eating all of the characters except for Henny-Penny! Henny-Penny never completed her task of telling the King that the sky was falling! 

Henny-Penny

One other story that caught my attention was called Molly Whuppie. This story included a very clever girl and a huge giant. Molly, the clever young girl, had to accomplish certain tasks for the King. If Molly accomplished the tasks, her sisters would marry into the royal family. In the end, Molly tricked the giant and her and her two sisters were able to marry the King's sons!

My favorite part of this story was the famous lines: "Fee, fie, fo, fum"

I never knew a giant was the one who first said these words. For my story this week, I would love to incorporate a character that resembled a giant! I also think it would be fun to write a story about why Henny-Penny thought the sky was falling. I am excited for this week's storytelling! 

Reading Diary, Week 12: English Fairy Tales Unit

For week 12, I decided to read the English Fairy Tale Unit by Joseph Jacobs.

Reading these stories was so much fun! Every single story I read was very different from the other. This unit reminded me a lot of my childhood. I never knew the stories behind some of these tales, so it was entertaining going back and rereading them as an adult.

One of the stories that I absolutely loved was called The Old Woman and her Pig. This story was about a woman's pig that would not jump over "a stile." Since the pig would not jump, the old woman could not get home. In order to get the pig to move, she kept asking different people and/or animals to help her. No one would help her; therefore, it created a ripple effect! Here is a short example from the story:

"She went a little further, and she met an ox. So she said: 'Ox! ox! drink water; water won't quench fire; fire won't burn stick; stick won't beat dog; dog won't bite pig; piggy won't get over the stile; and I shan't get home tonight.' But the ox wouldn't."

The story both started and ended in this sort of fashion. I thought it was hilarious because I have never seen anything like it before! I think it would be interesting to write a story like this... but I also think it would be very difficult. 

My other favorite story I read was The Story of the Three Little Pigs. It was wonderful to go back and read this story in a whole new perspective! Since I have not read this story in a long time, I forgot what happened in the end. When I went back and reread it today, I found myself cracking up. In the end, the wolf tries to climb down the pig's chimney but gets trapped in a boiling pot of water.

This week, I think it would be fun to rewrite the ending of the "Three Little Pigs." I am excited to see where my creativity takes me this week. 

The Three Little Pigs

Matty's Portfolio: The Woman and the Fox

A legendary Native American tale that has been passed down throughout the Inuit tribe for centuries: 

Once upon a time there was an old widowed woman named Sue. The elderly woman lived in a small cottage in the woods all by herself. Her husband and only son had passed away from a hunting accident almost twenty years ago. 

In order to keep herself occupied, Sue would take long walks around the forest every afternoon. During her walks, she would sing with the birds, swim laps in the river and gather berries and nuts to eat for her meals.

After Sue’s walk one afternoon, she turned the corner to head home and saw a small fox running from her house.

Sue's Cottage

“Hmmmm… that’s strange,” thought Sue. “I have never seen any foxes in these woods before.”

Not thinking much about it, Sue went home and fell asleep.

The next morning, she practiced her exact routine and entered the woods once again. When she returned home, the fox was asleep in her living room.

“What a cute little creature!” thought Sue. “I could use a friend in these lonesome woods.”

That night, Sue made a bed out of leaves for her new friend and went to bed.

The next morning, Sue woke up and her house looked completely different! All of the dishes were sparkling clean, the floor had been vacuumed, the toilet scrubbed, the light bulbs had been replaced and there was even fresh deer meat sitting on the table! Sue stood staring at her tiny cottage confused and in awe.

“Do you like what I did with the place?” asked a small voice from behind her. 

The Mysterious Fox

In shock, Sue slowly turned around and saw the small fox staring directly at her. Convinced she was sleep walking, the old woman gave herself a big pinch and realized it was not a dream.

“Who are you and how can you talk?” asked Sue.

“I am your son,” said the fox. “When I was killed by the hunters many years ago, a fox saved me and nurtured me back to life.”

The next moment, there was a huge bolt of light and the fox transformed into a small child. After a few seconds, the woman noticed that the little boy was wearing an old gray t-shirt, light blue jeans and a red baseball cap. Sue immediately recognized the little boy because he was wearing the exact same outfit her son had on the day he was killed in a hunting accident.

“Danny! It really is you!” screamed Sue.

“Yes, it is! I am here to protect you and promise to never go into the woods without you again, Mom,” said Danny.

Bibliography: My story idea came from "The Fox-Woman" in the Native American Marriage Tale Unit by Stith Thompson in 1929. 

Author's Note: I created my story after the original version of "The Fox Woman" by Stith Thompson. This story is a part of the traditional "Native American Marriage Tales" from the Inuit people. The original story was about a man who would leave his house to hunt every day. When he returned, his house was always cleaned and prepared for the evening. One day, the man saw a fox enter his house. When the man looked inside his window, the fox had transformed into a beautiful woman. The man and "woman" ended up staying together for a long time. For my story, I wanted to incorporate a fox that could transform into a human. I loved the idea of animals being able to do human actions and activities. Instead of making a man the main character, I decided to use an elderly woman who needed a friend. I decided to create a “plot-twist” by making the fox her son who had passed away in a hunting accident many years ago. I got this idea from the original story because the main character was a serious hunter. In the end, I wanted the fox to stay with the woman so she would never be alone and could catch up on lost time spent with her son.

Week 11, Storytelling: The Man in the Moon

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK.

Johnny immediately awoke from his deep summer sleep and thought, “did I hear someone knocking or was I just dreaming?”

Without thinking he twice, he closed his eyes and fell back asleep.

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK.

He heard the mysterious noise again! This time Johnny was certain he was not dreaming.

Slowly and suspiciously, Johnny turned in his bed and opened his eyes.

“AHHHHHHH!” Johnny screamed.

There was a tall, lanky man standing on the tree-branch outside of his window.

“Don’t just lay there!” said the shadowy man. “It’s freezing out here.”

Carefully, Johnny got up from his bed and opened his bedroom window. The man came tumbling in and landed straight on top of Mr. Whiskers (Johnny’s pet cat).

“Who are you?” asked the little boy.

“Don’t you recognize me?” asked the man. “I am Norbert, the man on the moon of course!”

“What are you doing here?” asked Johnny.

“I am on my way to Norwich,” said Norbert. “Norwich is the moon in the Whirlpool Galaxy. My lovely wife resides there and I haven’t seen her in light years!”

Lost and confused, the little boy simply stared at the stranger without blinking.

“Well we can’t just stay here! You have to help me find Norwich,” begged Norbert.

Immediately, Johnny got out his map of the solar system he had made in class earlier that week.

“I am sorry to upset you, but I do not see the Whirlpool Galaxy on my map sir,” said the boy.

“Let me see that silly thing!” said Norbert.

The man took the map flipped it upside down and shouted, “It is right here!”

Johnny looked to where his finger was pointing and noticed that the map looked completely different now. All of the colors were sparkling, shooting stars were flying across the page, there were eight new planets that he had never seen before and there were two moons right in the middle of the map!

“Which moon is it?” asked Johnny.

“See the one on the left with the lovely craters shaped as a woman? That’s Norwich!” said the man.

“Then why is there a second one?” Asked the boy.

“That is my other home!” said Norbert. “That is where I need to go. Will you please show me how to get there?”

Immediately, the boy pulled out his campus and directed towards the two moons on Whirlpool Galaxy. He had studied directions in his class last week, so he was excited to test out his new skills.

“Okay, the direction says that you need to go south!” Said Johnny as he pointed left outside of his window.

“Thank you so much!” Screamed Norbert.

Before the man left, Johnny packed him a bag for his journey.

“I am sorry I can’t go with you.” Said Johnny. “I have my own family here that needs me.”

“It’s okay,” said Norbert. “You have helped me more than you will ever know!”

Johnny handed Norbert a backpack that had the solar system map, his campus and a few snacks in case he got hungry on his journey.

Norbert pulled one of the snacks and asked, “What is this?”

“That is cold pease-porridge,” explained Johnny.

Norbert took a huge bite and yelped “OUCH!” He then turned, opened the window and said “Goodbye earthling! Your helpfulness will be rewarded one day.”

Johnny crawled back in bed, closed his eyes and fell back asleep.

The Man in the Moon

Author’s Note: My original story came from The Nursery Rhyme Book edited by Andrew Lang. The story I based mine off of was “The Man in the Moon.” The original nursery rhyme goes:

“THE man in the moon,

Came tumbling down,

And ask'd his way to Norwich;

He went by the south,

And burnt his mouth

With supping cold pease-porridge."

For my story this week, I wanted to make the man in the moon come alive. I wanted my readers to take a step back into their childhood days and relive this wonderful bedtime story. Throughout my story, I incorporated ideas from the original source. I was interested to see if the readers could pick up on the classic nursery rhyme that I based my story off of. In the end, I wanted the main character to fall back asleep. I wanted to do this to allow my readers to decide if it was all a dream or reality. Overall, I had so much fun with this type of story and loved being able to relive my childhood imagination.

Bibliography: My original story came from the Nursery Rhyme The Man in the Moon. I found this classic story in The Nursery Rhyme Book edited by Andrew Lang in 1897. 

Reading Diary, Week 11 Continued: Nursery Rhymes Unit

The second half of the Nursery Rhyme Unit by Andrew Lang was just as wonderful as the first half!

In the second half of the readings, I loved the section called "Love and Matrimony." These were short tales composed of rhymes about love. Most of these stories dealt with a boy and girl who had a crush with one another. These stories were very unique because you could get an image of the characters and/or their relationship with one another with only a few small sentences!

One of my favorite stories of this unit was "Jack Sprat"

JACK SPRAT could eat no fat,
His wife could eat no lean:
They lick'd the platter clean
And so, betwixt them both, you see,
They lick'd the platter clean.

Jack Sprat

I loved this little story because it is witty, clever and descriptive! I can picture the couple and what they must love about each other by only reading five sentences. 

The other section I absolutely loved in this section was called "Riddles." I was intrigued by the riddles section because all the stories had a distinct tone and musical feel to them. The stories used a lot of repetitive sounds and words that made the story come to life! 

For my story this week, I want to incorporate a character that speaks in riddles. I feel like this week's writing could be a challenge because I have never written riddles or rhymes before. In contrast, I am excited to try a new writing style and to see what I can come up with in the near future! 

Reading Diary, Week 11: Nursery Rhymes

For this week's reading dairy, I decided to read the Nursery Rhymes Unit. The stories in this unit came from "The Nursery Rhyme Book" edited by Andrew Lang.

Growing up, my mother would always read me nursery rhymes before bed. I was so excited to read the stories in this unit to relive some of my very favorite childhood memories.

One thing that I absolutely loved about the Nursery Rhymes Tales section was the unique rhymes and vocal patterns. I found myself being drawn to the artistic flow of the words and sounds. The rhymes throughout each tale kept me engaged in the story. For my story this week, I think it would be fun (and challenging) to make my story rhyme! I think authors who can do this have a very unique talent and way with words.

Another aspect I loved about the Nursery Rhymes Tales unit was that the "mini stories" didn't always make sense. I think I love this detail because it reminds me of childhood innocence and imagination. I think it would be fun to write a story that forced the readers to use their imagination to conclude the story.

Overall, my favorite part about the first section of readings was the musical tone and rhythm embedded within each tale. I loved reading the story and seeing it come alive in my head. This week, I would love to challenge myself by creating a story that rhymed. In addition, I want to my story to be told as a "bedtime story" for a little kid. I think it would be fun to make the characters actually come alive and visit the children in their room. I feel like I am going to have a lot of fun with this unit this week!

Man on the Moon