Stopford Brooke once said that literature is a pleasure which arises not only from the things said, but from the way in which they are said and that… [310932]

Themes, [anonimizat] – Assessment Process

“ Literature is a [anonimizat]; and that pleasure is only given when the words are carefully or beautifully put together into sentences.”- [anonimizat] a wider scale, ([anonimizat]) imposes a reevaluation of didactic methods and a new approach for the classes from language and communication area.

My Motivation in Choosing the Topic

I have always been fascinated by fantastical events and magic; folk tales have long served to entertain children or convey moral lessons to people throughout history. [anonimizat], real event or person. [anonimizat], adding exaggerations to make it more interesting or sensational. [anonimizat]-fetched from the original event that inspired it.

[anonimizat], the major objectives of my paper are: to increase students’ confidence when approaching literary texts; [anonimizat]-solving; to encourage them to use their creative imagination; to think independently.

I feel that it will be benefical to take advantage of the fact that many students are inspired by visual and electronic resources and respond to such materials.

In my paper I [anonimizat], [anonimizat], aiming at integrating language and literature accompanied by cultural enrichment and personal discovery.

Certainly, teachers have the possibility to choose between a [anonimizat] a [anonimizat]’ level of language proficiency. Once the students’ [anonimizat], [anonimizat], will be more or less easily “deciphered” and worked on in an efficient and challenging manner.

The question that arises now is why I have chosen folktales and especially Oscar Wilde’s “The Nightingale and the Rose”. [anonimizat], [anonimizat] a fairly accessible manner. [anonimizat]’s actions may seem familiar to many students as teenagers may sometimes feel the critical moments of their age when it comes to love.

As a consequence, [anonimizat]-story in their own way.

Also, Oscar Wilde’s [anonimizat]. [anonimizat], aspirations in a lifelike context in which characters from various social backgrounds are depicted.

This short-story enables the learners to feel close to the characters and also share their emotional responses.

The actual purpose of this process is to help students realize that we should always be flexible, adaptable and “prepared to be amazed”.

PRESENTATION

The paper itself is divided into two parts: the theoretical part and the practical one. The theoretical part consists of …main chapters.

For the practical part, I have decided to create a wonderful and magical world, by the analysis of Oscar Wilde’s fairy tale, “The Nightingale and the Rose”. The creation of such a world aims at enabling students to learn a foreign language in a pleasant manner and to discover new ways of approaching literature as well as grammar. For this purpose, I have also included a CD containing a video with the movie of this fairy tale.

To conclude, the general purpose of my paper is to provide a material for teaching English with the help of fairy tales in highschool. This material will help students enrich their vocabulary, develop their reading, writing, speaking and listening skills and provide topics for discussion in a foreign language.

My paper is based on the Communicative approach mainly, because communication is important not only at school, but also in real life. The idea occured to me after I had talked to a number of students who were complaining about the difficulty of some textbooks.

Students always claim that the language used in literary texts is too difficult, compared to the language used in everyday life. According to the Communicative approach to language teaching, it is not worth teaching literature, if it does not have a practical use.

H.G. Widdowson considers that “literature should educate the youth and not just train them in a certain field.” He says that even if people study a foreign language for many years, it does not guarantee normal language communication.

What is Communicative Approach?

Communicative language teaching is a theory which states that language is a mean of communication, therefore it should be taught in this way. This method of teaching points out the need to teach communicative competence. It means that students will develop communication skills in order to use the language effectively in communication.

Some of the principles of this approach are:

Classroom activities should be based on meaningful communication;

It should involve the learner in communication;

The use of the language skills: reading, writing, speaking and listening;

During the learning process, students should not be afraid of making some mistakes;

The involvement of the teacher is on practical activities;

Teaching should be centered on students and interaction should be student- student;

Students are given the opportunity to practise the language with the teacher intervening when it is necessary.

The activities used with this method are: games, role-play, information gaps and so on. The teacher’s role in this process is of a guide, a motivator, an analyst and a researcher. It depends on the teacher’s ability to motivate his/her students to take part in class discussions. Teachers should guide their students to use the language spontaneously, whether they ask for directions or order food in a restaurant.

Before we start teaching , we should follow some fundamental points of this Communicative Approach:

Natural, but clear speech from the students

When we start teaching the language, we will find out that our language may change: we sometimes start talking like our students. What we really want is to speak naturally to our students. We should not change the language so that our students will understand us, or the accent so that it will be easier for students to comprehend it. This is something inappropriate with this Communicative Approach. We should speak the language naturally, but clearly.

Having confidence in speaking

When we address to students, we should slow it down a little bit, because if we speak too fast, students may not understand what we say. So, they lose their confidence in speaking.

The language can be too complex

The idea is that students find the language challenging, but enjoyable. It means that we should find an appropriate level of teaching, according to students’ age or level of education. So, the activities should be not too difficult, but not too easy, either. If the students get bored, or find the activity too difficult, we should do something about it. Having fun is also important because students love to have a good time during the classes.

Dynamic activities

The following dynamic activities are required: working in pairs or in groups, sharing feelings and opinions and, of course, competitions.

The Communicative Syllabus

The communicative Syllabus favours function over form. When we think about function, we think about the use of the language and when we think of form, we think of grammar: modal verbs or tenses. An example of function could be the phrase: “When and how to use the language?” Therefore, the Communicative Approach focuses on function when the students will learn how to talk about their last vacation. Whe students learn the Simple Past, this is form.

Focused practice

Lessons present grammatical structures and new vocabulary in communicative activities that give students focused practice. That means, if I teach students how to order in a restaurant, I will focus my practice stage on that: “How to order in a restaurant?” At the end of the lesson, I will evaluate if I have accomplished that goal, to see if students will be able to talk about that.

Repetition

Repetition is only used if we want to stress pronunciation. We ask students to repeat some unknown words. The teacher is an example because he/she pronounces the words correctly and the students will do the same, so that they will use the right intonation or rhythm.

Discovering grammar through examples

Students will discover grammar on their own through examples. There is still a debate if we should teach our students a lot of grammar or not. I am in favour of using both: a little bit of grammar and a lot of using the language in the classroom. Even so, we don’t want to overload our students with grammar.

Errors

Errors are viewed as a natural process of a language development. Students will always make mistakes, it’s part of every language learning process, so we should expect them to make errors. But we need to be patient and correct them.

Self-confidence and control

The more students get confident in using the language, the better they will be at this. Learning a foreign language is a very difficult task for anyone. The more we build that motivation, the more we build their confidence. We should praize our students by saying: “Good job!” or “That was really good!”, so as they want to continue to learn more.

Listening comprehension

This is required because the more students understand, the more they will be interested in continuing to learn the language. I think that all the four skills: reading, writing, speaking and listening are important as they are seen as interrelated skills. We can choose to teach ‘listening’ and ‘speaking’ at the same time, or ‘reading’ and’writing’ at the same time.

Pairwork

Finally, pairwork is important to facilitate interaction among students. So, the activities should be based on pair work or group work. If we work with the students individually, it takes a lot of time, and the other students will get bored. As a result, it is important to simultaneously get the students to work together, we give them the activity and they will complete it simultaneously.

All in all, this method focuses on the importance of students using English to exchange information which is integral to events and experiences relevant to their daily lives. So, even if we teach students to memorize some information, it should be useful for their daily lives.

To conclude, the Communicative Approach is a modern method of teaching and it is adopted all over the world today due to its efficient results.

Teaching grammar

We can distinguish two ways of teaching grammar with the help of fairy tales: by using the narrative and the dialogue. A narrative text deals with a series of events which take place at different times, so the students make use of tenses to tell the story. Therefore, the teacher can point out past tenses for stories and present tenses for dialogues, but he/she can use some adjectives, or other grammatical features like irregular verbs.

Stories always include information that answers questions like:

– the participants ( Who?)

– the time/place (When? Where?)

– the situation ( What were the people doing?)

– the events (What happened?)

– the result ( What happened in the end?)

The teacher can design some charts and ask students to complete the missing information:

Dialogues contain a lot of punctuation marks and the students can learn how to use questions in an interrogative sentence.

Teaching vocabulary

Fairy tales contain the language of the fairy world, a colloquial language used by the protagonists along with many metaphors. It is very useful for students to learn some words or phrases during this language learning process. If students are confronted with unknown words, we can use pictures or synonyms to explain them. There is also a specific vocabulary in fairy tales such as: ancient words, specific beginnings and endings or weird names of the characters and locations.

Since literature is nowadays considered a good way to develop intercultural learning, students should get involved in communicative tasks. Therefore, these fairy tales can help students to acquire a number of skills to interpret the texts in their own ways. If the teacher can select the literary texts properly, students will like to interact with each other, seeing that the themes are relevant to their own lives. In this way, they will not be afraid to talk about their feelings and they will use their imagination completely.

In order to develop these skills, I will prepare some oral and written activities for my students, and I will encourage them to have a discussion on certain topics. It is necessary to take into account the students’ interest in reading and also, their involvement in this process. Moreover, teachers should think about an appropriate language level so that many students would get involved in reading.

One of the main objectives of reading fairy tales is that they can make people more emphatic: students can become more tolerant towards other cultures, minorities or people. If they put themselves in the characters’ shoes, they will stop judging people so easily and they will become better persons.

In language teaching, it is important to use authentic materials because they show the reality of the language, they involve students in authentic communication.

There are several types of reading, and I would like to start by presenting the first two types: intensive and extensive.

Intensive reading means classroom reading: students read some texts in order to acquire a lot of details; they do this over and over again to make sure that they have understood it.

Extensive reading refers to reading for pleasure and a general understanding of a text. This type of reading can be applied to fairy tales. For example, the teacher asks students to read different novels or short stories and then to share their opinions during the next lesson. If the texts are too complicated, students will lose their interest in reading. Regarding this type of reading, we can have a different organization of the class: the teacher reads the text aloud and the students pay attention to pronunciation and intonation.

Literature in the English Classroom:

General Considerations:

Why do we have to use literature?

Making students want to read is a very difficult task. By carefully selecting works we can show our pupils how enjoyable reading literature can be.

Firstly, in order to build reading skills, students must practise reading regularly. Texts give the reader the possibility to experience a genuine language context and the motivation to want to use it themselves in speech. By this I mean that it involves them on a personal level which contributes to their personal development.

Secondly, reading can create connections between students and the surrounding world. Students have the opportunity to put themselves in others’ shoes, giving them the chance to see how people are connected and better understand human relationships.

Finally, by seeing how actions of others can affect characters within literature, readers can develop their abilities to be empathetic. This is done by engaging students in discussion of literary works, highlighting the emotional aspects of the books in question.Moreover, they also develop a creative thinking, an increased awareness of humanity and conflicts.

How to use literature?

In our country, teaching literature is reduced to language development rather than to the students’ literary development. The textbooks contain extracts from novels and short stories but they focus on the language. Therefore, typical exercises used in highschools are the following:

Rephrasing exercises

Vocabulary exercises

Grammar exercises

Plot, character exercises

Open exercises.

There are three main approaches to teaching literature:

The development of students’ knowledge by working with familiar grammar, lexical and discourse categories. It focuses on the way language is used in literary texts and it deals with the acquisition of information related to the text. The techniques used here are: jumbled sentences,summaries,role-play, and so on.

The Cultural Model encourages students to deal with a literary work in relation to the target language. It focuses not only on the language acquisition, but also on the knowledge of a country’s culture and ideologies. Students are asked to explore and interpret the social, political and historical context of a text.

To create a link between the language and the culture is important because in this way students develop their knowledge about literature. Therefore, a few things should be taken into account: texts should be interesting and appropriate for the students’ age; they should facilitate students’ personal discovery; lessons should be student centred.

Fairy Tales in the Classroom

Storytelling has the power to communicate ideas in a wonderful and magical way. It allows students to see English in an imaginative manner and to acquire various vocabulary sets such as: food, clothes or parts of the body.In this way students will understand that literature is influenced by cultural events.

These stories are usually simplistic, but they have a great significance to our lives. Even if they have simple structures, they reveal a complex and emotional content, which makes them ideal for analysis, reflection and commentary.

Each student will draw out different ideas and meanings from these tales. Though they were created before modern times, they still contain the same problems with which we are confronted these days.

Children do not understand the world of adults because they are less experienced and less educated in this way. So, here comes the gap between generations as they perceive the adult’s world differently. As a result, these fairy tales can be seen as ‘bridges’ over this gap. Literature is considered to be a literary device which brings people together.

To conclude, I would say that fairy tales represent an instrument used to explain the complicated world in which we all live.

2. Practical Activities

It is essential for the teacher to draw the students’ attention on the text, so that they find it interesting and wish to continue reading it. They need to be convinced that the text is worth reading. The teacher can ask students to express their feelings on certain issues.

Warm-up activities can be designed to set the mood, create interest or exploit highlights focusing on important aspects in the novel.

In order to do this, the teacher makes use of all the four skills: reading, speaking, writing and listening.

Reading

The reading skill refers to the ability to understand a written text or to make judgements about a book. The development of this skill is vital for students’ development as a key to their future success.

By practising reading activities students will increase their vocabulary and will be able to apply skimming skills to understand the main ideas of a text, or to apply scanning skills to comprehend specific details.

One of the most important activities is reading aloud where the teacher can see the language difficulties students may have and also their pronunciation and intonation when reading. During this activity the class is divided into groups and asked to read different sections from the story. They can develop their awareness of stress, intonation and rhythm.

Another important activity is reading silently whose aim is to understand the core of the story. Students are taught to select information for overall comprehension and to forget about unimportant details. They can work with the help of dictionaries.

Speaking

Among the other foreign language skills, speaking seems to be a skill which deserves much attention and the classroom is the place where spoken language enables students to communicate with each other. It helps students to demonstrate such skills as intonation and fluency and makes them use appropriate grammar, language and vocabulary to describe ideas from the books. They will be able to talk about different topics, ask and answer questions, follow simple directions or respond to comprehensive questions.

Speaking is a demanding skill, because students do not find it easy to do this task. They are asked to have a look at the fairy tale and take out some parts they really like. Afterwards, they are instructed to give their own opinions on particular extracts. Their presentation is performed in front of the class.

Writing

Writing is a form of communication which allows students to put their feelings and emotions on paper, to organize their knowledge and to elaborate stories and essays. Students can develop successful writing by improving their spelling, vocabulary and grammar all the time.

Even if writing has many difficulties, it is still an essential part of the foreign language. Students should keep a ‘copying book’ where they can write the new vocabulary, short dialogues or quotations from the fairy tale. Spelling can be improved if they rewrite the text or a part of it.

‘Dictation’ is an important activity which improves students’ writing and also listening. The teacher reads or dictates a part from the story and the students write it down. Then, they change their notes in pairs and check them with the whole class.

Listening

Listening skills represent the ability to pay attention to what you are listening to and effectively interpret what other people are saying. These skills are vital for interpersonal communication, but listening does not only mean paying attention to a story, but also to the way it is told. It is a process which should possess knowledge of phonology, syntax, semantics and text understanding.

An activity which involves the listening skill is called ‘mime stories’. The teacher reads the fairy tale and the students imitate the actions. Teachers should allow students to listen to what they like, from time to time, because it helps them create their own world of fantasy. (a video)

There are three important activities in teaching a short story:

Pre-reading

While-reading

Post-reading

These activities will help students develop their language skills, critical thinking skills and creativity. Moreover, they will become familiar with the major features of short stories as a literary form.

Pre-reading Activities : Purposes:

To provide background information to comprehend the story;

To provide cultural information and make students aware of it;

To familiarise students with characteristics of the genre type.

Procedures: students are told the title of the story and asked to guess what the story is about. It is important for the teacher to involve the students in the stories as much as possible. They will be engaged if the teacher tells them the importance of the new material in their lives. They always ask questions like: “Why is it important to learn this?” or “How will I benefit out of it?”

Teachers should find the best practices in instructing students literature. At this age, students will shape their mentality and develop themselves as people, so they are influenced by their teachers at all times. Therefore, they should be encouraged to express their own feelings after they have read a story. Additionally, students need to have a strong motivation before agreeing to read a book, and, in this way, they will respond better in class when they feel that their response is important.

As students are unique persons with different personalities, teachers should provide a variety of learning experiences in order to challenge them. Also, it is imperative for the teacher to create an effective learning environment.

While-reading Activities

These activities will help students to interact with the story and learn how to ask questions as they read.

Procedures: the teacher clearly explains that all stories have three basic story elements:

-character

– setting

– plot

Students will work in small groups, then the answers are discussed with the whole class.

At the beginning of the class I will use a you tube video of the story to define the plot, setting, character and conflict. This implies asking questions which invite students to take part in class discussions and then to complete various tasks that help them understand the theme.

Post-reading Activities:

Here, students will be able to understand, describe and name the main characters of the story;

They will know how to interpret, summarise, paraphrase or compare the characters’ behaviour;

They can retell the story to demonstrate that they have understood it.

Procedures: the teacher ask the students to draw a picture of their favourite character;

to act out a scene from the story in which to use a correct language, grammatically speaking, an appropriate vocabulary and to analyze facts from their points of view;

to recall the most important events from the story.

Then, the teacher will distribute some worksheets and explain what the students have to do. The answers will be checked with the whole class.

To begin with

The teacher sets the scene and tries to make students curious by showing them the title of the story and asking them to speculate about the story and its message. Working with the whole class, the teacher asks them to share their feelings and opinions.

What do you think the text is about?

What words are related to “love”

What is the message of the text?

Can we live without love?

What does the rose symbolise?

Using the theme

The teacher may take one of the major themes from the novel and explore it with the group of students. Thus, students are invited to imagine that one day they are betrayed by their partners. How would they feel? Where would they go? What would they try to do?

The teacher asks each student to write down a note containing at least three adjectives describing their state of mind, their feelings and thoughts and one idea regarding their way of seeing love. This is followed by a discussion about how everyone felt when they were writing.

Character portrayal

The main aim in this part is to encourage students to stimulate their contribution by presenting them with a series of questions which demand discussion, critical analysis, decision-making and evaluation on their part. In this way, I will promote independent learning. Students will be encouraged to build up a first image of the central character, his personality, way of being and reacting.

The main characters of the story represent those characters that make the story happen or to whom important things happen.

“Who are the main characters?”

The main characters in the story are : the Nightingale, the Student and the Professor’s daughter. “Identify the plot of the story”: the Student wants to dance with the Professor’s daughter but she will not do it until he finds a red rose to give her. But he couldn’t find any red rose, so the Nightingale helps him by dripping his blood on the rose to make it red.

Students should also pay attention to the setting. It refers to where the story takes place as well as to when it happens: the story takes place in the garden where the Student is presented. He is sad because he can not find a red rose.

To continue with

What happens next

Prediction is a reading strategy in which the readers are invited to predict, “what happens next” being withhold. These prediction exercises are generally enjoyable. Prediction can be: short-term or long-term. In the former case, students are asked to predict what answer is given by a certain character or how a character may react. Long-term prediction is used to project an action into the future, after a certain turn of events.

After having read the whole story , students are asked to imagine possible continuations for the story. They work in pairs or in groups, then the teacher checks their answers with the whole class.

For example, in the second section of the tale “The Nightingale and the Rose”, the tree told the bird that if she wanted a red rose, she had to build it out of music by moonlight and stain it with her own heart’s blood. The students are asked what decision the nightingale would make, in their opinion.

The aim is to make students want to read the continuation of the tale and to check their predictions.

What have we found out?

The teacher should devise comprehension questions in order to show aspects that are important for the whole tale: setting, character, themes, motifs, symbols. The aim is to teach students valuable skills, including problem-solving as well as to encourage them to use their creative imagination or to think independently. Also they should be prepared to give evidence for what they think or predict. For instance:

What is the conclusion of the story?

What did you like best in this tale?

What makes “The Nightingale and the Rose” a fairy-tale?

Do you like all the characters to the same extent? Why(not)?

Reading Comprehension: multiple choice-practice

The purpose of comprehension passages is:

To judge the level of grasping the content;

To test the ability of the students to express what they have grasped.

When students are asked to read a text and then to answer some questions, they should take the following into account:

Read the passage quickly for a complete sense;

Give a second reading to grasp its complete meaning;

Underline the key sentence with words related to the questions;

Read each question carefully and locate the answer;

Write the answer in their own words;

Answers must be relevant and to the point.

As an organizational form, it requires the whole group of students or pairwork. The aim of this activity is to improve students’ vocabulary and spelling. Also, if students are asked to read aloud, they can improve their pronunciation.

Read the short story and answer the questions that follow:

“ She said that she would dance with me if I brought her red roses,” cried the young Student; “but in all my garden there is no red rose.”

From her nest in the holm-oak tree the Nightingale heard him, and she looked out through the leaves, and wondered.

“No red rose in all my garden!” he cried, and his beautiful eyes filled with tears. “Ah, on what little things does happiness depend! I have read all that the wise men have written, and all the secrets of philosophy are mine, yet for want of a red rose is my life made wretched.”(1)

“Here at last is a true lover,” said the Nightingale. “Night after night have I sung of him, though I knew him not: night after night have I told his story to the stars, and now I see him. His hair is dark as the hyacinth-blossom, and his lips are red as the rose of his desire; but passion has made his face like pale ivory, and sorrow has set her seal upon his brow.”

“The Prince gives a ball tomorrow night,” murmured the young Student, “and my love will be of the company. If I bring her a red rose she will dance with me till dawn. If I bring her a red rose, I shall hold her in my arms, and she will lean her head upon my shoulder, and her hand will be clasped in mine. But there is no red rose in my garden, so I shall sit lonely, and she will pass me by. She will have no heed(2) of me, and my heart will break.”

“The musicians will sit in their gallery,” said the young Student, “and play upon their stringed instruments, and my love will dance to the sound of the harp and the violin. She will dance so lightly that her feet will not touch the floor, and the courtiers in their festive dresses will throng(3) round her. But with me she will not dance, for I have no red rose to give her”; and he flung himself down on the grass, and buried his face in his hands, and wept.

“Why is he weeping?” asked a little Green Lizard, as he ran past him with his tail in the air.

“Why, indeed?” said a Butterfly, who was fluttering about after a sunbeam.

“Why, indeed?” whispered a Daisy to his neighbour, in a soft, low voice.

“He is weeping for a red rose,” said the Nightingale.

“For a red rose?” they cried; “how very ridiculous!” and the little Lizard, who was something of a cynic (4),laughed outright.

“My roses are yellow,” it answered; “as yellow as the hair of the mermaiden who sits upon an amber throne, and yellower than the daffodil that blooms in the meadow before the mower comes with his scythe.(5) But go to my brother who grows beneath the Student’s window, and perhaps he will give you what you want.”

Vocabulary

Wretched: very miserable

Heed: to mind; to regard with care; to take notice of

Throng: to crowd; to congregate

Cynic: one whose outlook is scornfully negative

Scythe: a tool with a long curving blade used for cutting grain.

“Death is a great price to pay for a red rose,” cried the Nightingale, “and Life is very dear to all. It is pleasant to sit in the green wood, and to watch the Sun in his chariot of gold, and the Moon in her chariot of pearl. Sweet is the scent of the hawthorn (6) and sweet are the bluebells that hide in the valley, and the heather (7) that blows on the hill. Yet Love is better than Life, and what is the heart of a bird compared to the heart of a man?”

“Be happy,” cried the Nightingale, “be happy; you shall have your red rose. I will build it out of music by moonlight, and stain it with my own heart’s-blood. All that I ask of you in return is that you will be a true lover, for Love is wiser than Philosophy, though she is wise, and mightier than Power, though he is mighty. Flame-coloured are his wings, and coloured like flame is his body. His lips are sweet as honey, and his breath is like frankincense (8).

The Student looked up from the grass, and listened, but he could not understand what the Nightingale was saying to him, for he only knew the things that are written down in books. But the Oak-tree understood, and felt sad, for he was very fond (9) of the little Nightingale who had built her nest in his branches.

Vocabulary

Hawthorn: companions or associates

Heather: an evergreen plant

Frankincense: a sweet smelling incense

Fond: to like or regard something or someone with affection.

A delicate flush of pink came into the leaves of the rose, like the flush in the face of the bridegroom when he kisses the lips of the bride. But the thorn had not yet reached her heart, so the rose’s heart remained white, for only a Nightingale’s heart’s-blood can crimson(10) the heart of a rose.

The Nightingale pressed closer against the thorn, and the thorn touched her heart, and a fierce pang of pain shot through her. Bitter, bitter was the pain, and wilder and wilder grew her song, for she sang of the Love that is perfected by Death, of the Love that dies not in the tomb.

And the marvelous rose became crimson, like the rose of the eastern sky. Crimson was the girdle(11) of petals, and crimson as a ruby was the heart.

But the Nightingale’s voice grew fainter, and her little wings began to beat, and a film came over her eyes. Fainter and fainter grew her song, and she felt something choking her in her throat.

Then she gave one last burst of music. The white Moon heard it, and she forgot the dawn, and lingered on in the sky. The red rose heard it, and it trembled all over with ecstasy(12), and opened its petals to the cold morning air.

“Look, look!” cried the Tree, “the rose is finished now”; but the Nightingale made no answer, for she was lying dead in the long grass, with the thorn in her heart. And at noon the Student opened his window and looked out.

“What a wonderful piece of luck!” he cried. “Here is a red rose! I have never seen any rose like it in all my life. It is so beautiful that I am sure it has a long Latin name”; and he leaned down and plucked it. Then he put on his hat, and ran up to the Professor’s house with the rose in his hand.

The daughter of the Professor was sitting in the doorway winding blue silk on a reel, and her little dog was lying at her feet.

“You said that you would dance with me if I brought you a red rose,” cried the Student. “Here is the reddest rose in all the world. You will wear it tonight next to your heart, and as we dance together it will tell you how I love you.” But the girl frowned.

“I am afraid it will not go with my dress,” she answered; “and, besides, the Chamberlain’s (13) nephew has sent me some real jewels, and everybody knows that jewels cost far more than flowers.”

“Well, upon my word, you are very ungrateful,” said the Student angrily; and he threw the rose into the street, where it fell into the gutter, and a cart-wheel went over it.

“Ungrateful!” said the girl. “I tell you what, you are very rude; and, after all, who are you? Only a Student.”

“What a silly thing Love is,” said the Student as he walked away.

Vocabulary

Crimson: deep, slightly bluish red

Girdle: that which encircles, or encloses

Ecstasy: intense pleasure

Chamberlain: a high officer of state.

Questions:

Which character trait does NOT apply to the Nightingale?

Selfish

Naive

Concerned

Idealistic.

How do the other animals (besides the Nightingale) respond to the Student’s grief?

They are uninterested in his feelings

They think that he is foolish

They weep with him.

They have suffered similar pains in their lives.

Why does the Student want a red rose so badly?

His mother is sick and only the petals from a red rose can heal her

He is going to a dance and he thinks that he will get noticed if he wears a red rose

A witch cast a spell on his lover and he needs a red rose to break the curse

The girl whom he likes says that she will dance with him for a red rose.

What does it cost the Nightingale to make a red rose?

His colours

His song

His life

His wings.

Which statement about the Student is TRUE?

He behaves ungratefully

He understands the Nightingale

He honours the Nightingale’s sacrifice

He knows the cost of the red rose.

Which is the correct order of events?

The Oak-tree asks for one more song; the Nightingale makes a rose; the Lizard laughs at the Student

The Lizard laughs at the Student; the Oak-tree asks for one more song; the Nightingale makes a rose

The Nightingale looks for a rose; the Nightingale hears the Student’s problem; the Student argues with the girl

The Student argues with the girl; the Student criticizes the Nightingale’s song; the Nightingale looks for a rose.

Which figurative language technique is used in the following sentence?

“ The white Moon heard it, and she forgot the dawn, and lingered on in the sky”.

Simile

Metaphor

Hyperbole

Personification.

Why does the Professor’s daughter reject the rose?

It does not go with her dress

She is allergic to roses

She wanted a white rose

There was a bee in the flower.

Which idiom best applies to when the Student tells the girl that she is “ungrateful”?

The devil is in the details

It’s best to hear it straight from the horse’s mouth

The pot calls the kettle black

Cross that bridge when you come to it.

Which statement best expresses a theme of this text?

Money can’t buy everything

True love can overcome all obstacles and bounds

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line

Don’t give your all to someone who won’t appreciate it.

Extended Response: On a separate sheet of paper, answer the following question using at least two quotes.

What lesson does this text teach readers and how does it teach this lesson?

This activity requires an element of intellectual challenge as it develops students’ logical thinking and it keeps them engaged. It is a group work method which gives students the opportunity to be competitive.

Vocabulary

Teaching vocabulary is a good way to expand students’ knowledge. Students will learn new vocabulary words, use them correctly in sentences and understand their meaning in the story.

Prefixes are placed in front of the words to convey the idea of negation.

Replace the words in italics with prefixes in order to form some phrases which express comparison:

The Student was not happy, because he could not find a red rose.

The figures about literate men and women in this village are not accurate.

You are speaking so softly that you are not audible.

It is not possible to sing like a Nightingale.

It is not pleasant to go for a walk on a foggy morning.

Some rocks are not perishable.

She could not go to office as she was not well.

The officer was dismissed because he was not competent.

It is not wise to put all your eggs in one basket.

(answers: unhappy; inaccurate; inaudible; impossible; unpleasant; imperishable; unwell; incompetent; unwise.)

Grids and Charts

Charts represent some graphic organizers which help students discover some key components in the story and organize information before, during and after a unit or a lesson.In this way they will be able to give information about the characters in the story and their actions. Therefore, a chart can be made in which students list the facts that they find out about the main characters. Teachers can also monitor their students’ learning process.

List the following features of characters in the story which can be marked as ‘true’ or ‘false’:

Summary with incomplete words

The students are required to fill in the gaps with only one word:

– The bird does so and grows a beautiful red……………(1)………. by sacrificing her life.

– Then the Student plucks it and goes to the girl’s ………….(2)…………where she refuses and says that she is gifted real………….(3)………..by a rich man.

– She says, “everybody knows that ………….(4)…….. cost far more than flowers.”

– He threw the rose into the street, where it fell into the……(5)………… , and a cart-wheel went over it.

– He says, “ what a silly………(6)………. Love is, It is not half as useful as Logic.

The teacher writes a key word on the blackboard and the students write down all the words connected with it. Then, they share their ideas and make a summary of the story.

Main ideas in paragraphs

A body paragraph is a paragraph which contains the main points of a story. Body paragraphs usually come after the introduction and before the conclusion. Each body paragraph begins with a topic sentence which gives a supporting idea for the story and tells the reader what the paragraph is about. Supporting sentences should be added to explain or to give examples. The aim of this activity is to help students follow the writer’s thoughts throughout a text.

Draw out the main ideas in the following paragraphs:

Paragraph One:

“ The Student looked up from the grass and listened, but he could not understand what the Nightingale was saying, for he only knew the things that are written in books. But the oak tree understood, and felt sad, for he was very fond of the little Nightingale who had built her nest in his branches.

“Sing me one last song,” he whispered. “I’ll be lonely when you’re gone.” So the Nightingale sang to the oak tree, and her voice was like water bubbling from a silver jar.

Paragraph Two:

“ Look!” cried the tree. “ The rose is finished now.” But the Nightingale made no answer, for she was lying dead in the long grass, with the thorn in her heart. And at noon, the Student opened his window and looked out. “What a wonderful piece of luck,” he cried. “Here is a red rose! I’ve never seen a rose like this in all my life. It’s so beautiful!” And he leaned down and plucked it. Then he put on his hat, and ran up to his professor’s house with the rose in his hand.

Paragraph Three:

“You said that you would dance with me if I brought you a red rose,” cried the Student. “Here’s the reddest rose in all the world. You’ll wear it tonight next to your heart, and as we dance together, it will tell you how much I love you.” But the girl frowned. “I’m afraid it won’t go with my dress,” she answered. “And the prince’s nephew has sent me some jewels, which cost far more than flowers.”

To End with

Once a text has been completely read and discussed, the teacher may want to involve the students into a short analysis of it. When you read a text twice, you will be surprised to find out that there are some elements of which you were not completely aware, as well as hidden aspects or other connections underlying the narrative.

Jumbled events

In order to make sure that the students have understood the plot of the story, the teacher may design an activity meant to overview the main sequence of events. Thus, students may be given a worksheet containing a list of jumbled events and be asked to rearrange them in the right order that they occurred.

After putting them into a possible order, students read the text to see if their ideas are right. Ordering jumbled sentences is an excellent way to raise students’ awareness to features of discourse.

Order the following events:

a). The student angrily threw the rose into the street, where it fell into the gutter.

b). The young student said she would dance with him if he brought her a red rose.

c). Then he ran to the professor’s house with the rose in his hand.

d). At noon, the student opened the window, leaned down and plucked the rose.

e). The girl said that the flower didn’t go with her dress and that the chamberlain’s nephew had sent her some real jewels.

Put the events in the correct order:

One Rose-tree told the Nightingale that she must build the red rose out of music by moonlight.

The girl didn’t want to take the rose and go to the ball with the Student.

The girl told the Student that she would dance with him if he brought her a red rose.

The Nightingale decided to help him as she thought he was a true lover.

The red rose was built and the Nightingale died.

The Student lay on the grass crying in the garden.

The Student plucked the rose and went to the girl he loved.

The young man was disappointed in love.

Two Rose-trees couldn’t give a red rose to the Nightingale.

Once there lived a Student who was in love with a beautiful girl.

Gapped-text

This is an activity which means to put information into blank spaces, to provide the missing information.

It can be done in pairs or with the whole class and it helps students cooperate with each other. The students read a part of the story and the check the results by reading their choices.

Fill in the missing parts of the summary:

“ No red rose in all my garden!” he cried, and his beautiful eyes filled with tears. “ Ah, on what little things does happiness depend! I have read all that the wise men have written, and all the secrets of philosophy are mine, yet for want of a red rose is my life made wretched”. “ Here at last is a true lover,” said the Nightingale.

“ Night after night have I sung of him, though I knew him not; night after night have I told his story to the stars, and now I see him. His hair is dark as the hyacinth-blossom, and his lips are red as the rose of his desire; but passion has made his face like pale ivory, and sorrow has set her seal upon his brow.”

“ The Prince gives a ball tomorrow night,” murmured the young Student,”, “ and my love will be of the company. If I bring her a red rose she will dance with me till dawn. If I bring her a red rose, I shall hold her in my arms, and she will lean her head upon my shoulder, and her hand will be clasped in mine. But there is no red rose in my garden, so I shall sit lonely, and she will pass me by. She will have no need of me, and my heart will break.” (….1….)

“ Why is he weeping?”, asked a little Green Lizard, as he ran past him with his tail in the air.

“ Why, indeed?” said a Butterfly, who was fluttering about after a sunbeam.

“Why, indeed?” whispered a Daisy to his neighbour, in a soft, low voice.

“ He is weeping for a red rose”, said the Nightingale.

“ For a red rose!” they cried; “ how very ridiculous!” and the little Lizard, who was something of a cynic, laughed outright.

But the Nightingale understood the secret of the Student’s sorrow, and she sat silent in the oak-tree, and thought about the mystery of Love.

Suddenly she spread her brown wings for flight, and soared into the air. She passed through the grove like a shadow, and like a shadow she sailed across the garden.

In the centre of the grass-plot was standing a beautiful Rose-tree, and when she saw it, she flew over to it, and lit upon a spray. (…..2……)

“ Give me a red rose”, she cried, “and I will sing you my sweetest song.” But the Tree shook its head.

“ My roses are yellow”, it answered; “as yellow as the hair of the mermaiden who sits upon an amber throne and yellower than the daffodil that blooms in the meadow before the mower comes with his scythe. But go to my brother who grows beneath the Student’s window, and perhaps he will give you what you want”.

So, the Nightingale flew over to the Rose-tree that was growing beneath the Student’s window.

“ Give me a red rose,” she cried, “and I will sing you my sweetest song.” But the Tree shook its head. (….3….)

You must sing to me with your breast against a thorn. All night long you must sing to me and the thorn must pierce your heart, and your life-blood must flow into my veins, and become mine.” “ Death is a great price to pay for a red rose”, cried the Nightingale, “ and Life is very dear to all. It is pleasant to sit in the green wood, and to watch the Sun in his chariot of gold, and the Moon in her chariot of pearl. Sweet is the scent of the hawthorn, and sweet are the bluebells that hide in the valley, and the heather that blows on the hill.

The young Student was still lying on the grass, where she had left him, and the tears were not yet dry on his beautiful eyes.

“ Be happy”, cried the Nightingale, “ be happy; you shall have your red rose. I will build it out of music by moonlight, and stain it with my own heart’s-blood. (….4…..)

But the Oak-tree understood, and felt sad, for he was very fond of the little nightingale who had built her nest in his branches.

“ Sing me one last song”, he whispered; I shall feel very lonely when you are gone.”

So the Nightingale sang to the Oak-tree, and her voice was like water bubbling from a silver jar. And when the Moon shone in the heavens the Nightingale flew to the Rosetree and set her breast against the thorn. All night long she sang with her breast against the thorn, and the cold, crystal Moon leaned down and listened. All night long she sang, and the thorn went deeper and deeper into her breast, and her lifeblood ebbed away from her. (….5…..)

But the Tree cried to the Nightingale to press closer against the thorn. “ Press closer, little Nightingale”, cried the Tree , “or the Day will come before the rose is finished.” So the Nightingale pressed closer against the thorn, and louder and louder grew her song, for she sang of the birth of passion in the soul of a man and a maid.

“ My roses are red,” it answered; “ as red as the feet of the dove, and redder than the great fans of coral that wave and wave in the ocean cavern. But the winter has chilled my veins, and the frost has nipped my buds, and the storm has broken my branches, and I shall have no roses at all this year.” “ One red rose is all I want,” cried the Nightingale. “ Only one red rose! Is there any way by which I can get it?” “ There is a way,” answered the Tree; “but it is so terrible that I dare not tell it to you.” “ Tell it to me,” said the Nightingale, “ I am not afraid.” “ If you want a red rose,” said the Tree, “you must build it out of music by moonlight, and stain it with your own heart’s-blood.

She sang first of the birth of love in the heart of a boy and a girl. And on the topmost spray of the Rose-tree there blossomed a marvellous rose, petal followed petal, as song followed song. Pale was it, as first, as the mist that hangs over the river- pale as the feet of the morning, and silver as the wings of the dawn. As the shadow of a rose in a mirror of silver, as the shadow of a rose in a water-pool, so was the rose that blossomed on the topmost spray of the Tree.

“ Give me a red rose,” she cried, “and I will sing you my sweetest song.” But the Tree shook its head.

“ My roses are white,” it answered; “as white as the foam of the sea, and whiter than the snow upon the mountain. But go to my brother who grows round the old sun-dial, and perhaps he will give you what you want.” So the Nightingale flew over to the Rose-tree that was growing round the old sun-dial.

All that I ask of you in return is that you will be a true lover, for Love is wiser than Philosophy, though she is wise, and mightier than Power, though he is mighty. Flame-coloured are his wings, and coloured like flame is his body. His lips are sweet as honey, and his breath is like frankincense.” The Student looked up from the grass, and listened, but he could not understand what the Nightingale was saying to him, for he only knew the things that are written down in books.

“Here indeed is the true lover,” said the Nightingale. “What I sing of, he suffers: what is joy to me, to him is pain. Surely, Love is a wonderful thing. It is more precious than emeralds, and dearer than fine opals. Pearls and pomegranates can not buy it, nor is it set forth in the market-place. It may not be purchased of the merchants, nor can it be weighed out in the balance for gold.” “ The musicians will sit in their gallery,” said the young Student, “and play upon their stringed instruments, and my love will dance to the sound of the harp and the violin. She will dance so lightly that her feet will not touch the floor, and the courtiers in their gay dresses will throng around her. But with me she will not dance, for I have no red rose to give her;” and he flung himself down on the grass, and buried his face in his hands, and wept.

Worksheet (tenses)

Supply the correct tense of the verbs in the following extract:

A.

“Once upon a time, in a wonderful and huge garden with many varieties of coloured flowers, a poor Student (to shed) tears of love… He (to fall) in love with the Professor’s daughter and (to be) to go to a ball with her. During the ball, he ( to dance) with her and would tell her that he ( to love) her. “

“He will tell her that he loves her, but if he (to want) his love to dance with him, he (to have) to give her a red rose. Yet, as there are no red roses in the beautiful garden, the Student (to cry) his eyes out for a red rose…”

“He had a lot of friends in the garden: a little Green Lizard who (to ask) him why he (to cry) and laughed at him when the Student told him… The Butterfly and the Daisy were equally indifferent to the Student’s tears. On the contrary, the Nightingale, who (to know) what Love (to be), understood the Student’s sorrow. She (to fly) away to try to find a red rose for him. But finally, she realised that the winter and the storms (to kill) all the buds and that he (to have) no roses at all that year.

(answers: was shedding; had fallen; was; would dance; loved; wants; will have; is crying; asked; was crying; knew; was; flew; had killed; would have.)

B.

“The gentle Nightingale should sing her sweetest song all night long. She (to have to) press her breast against one of the thorns till it (to pierce)her heart. If she stopped singing before the necessary time, because of her pain, the rose (not to become) red, but light pink. At that point, she faced a terrible dilemma: either the Student (to be able to) dance with the girl, or he could, but she would sacrifice her life for that.”

“Was it worth it? Life was sweet and pleasant in the huge garden, like Paradise… Yet, she (not to hesitate) for a long time…”

“Leaning on the thorn, she (to start) singing the story of a new, beginning Love. Finally, a little before daybreak, she still (to sing) about Love: a Love stronger than death, and which (to outlive) death itself… The following morning, the Student caught sight of the reddest rose he ever (to see).

(answers: had to; pierced; wouldn’t become; wouldn’t be able to; didn’t hesitate; started; was still singing; would outlive; had ever seen.)

Fill-in practice

Fill in the blanks with the given words:

In a nest, in a tree, in a garden a……..1………was singing. Her song was beautiful: she was singing of love and happiness. One day she saw a …….2………student in the garden.

“She says she will dance with me if I give her a red rose,” said the Student, “but in my ….3….. there is no red rose.” And when he said this his eyes …..4…..with tears. “Every day I study ………5……and I read all the things that …..6…..men say about happiness. Now my happiness depends…..7….. a red rose!”

The Nightingale heard this and said …..8….. herself: “Finally, here is a …..9….. lover. Every night I sing of love and this young man …..10…..for love.”

True; wise; suffers; filled; nightingale; philosophy; to; garden; young; on.

(answers: nightingale; young; garden; filled; philosophy; wise; on; to; true; suffers.)

“The Nightingale saw the rose and flew over to see it more clearly. When she looked at the rose, the Nightingale fell into ……1….. at its beauty. The little bird…..2….. its breast against the flower and began to sing. As it sang it ….3…. to feel the thorns that tore its breast and …….4…..its heart. The blood ran down from the heart and …..5…..the rose crimson red.”

Pierced; pressed; stained; ecstasy; ceased.

(answers: ecstasy; pressed; ceased; pierced; stained.)

Put in the correct preposition:

a. She will take no notice …me.

b. His beautiful eyes were filled…tears.

c. Death is a great price to pay…a red rose.

d. Life is dearer… all.

e. He threw the rose…the street.

Jumbled pictures

In order to make sure that students have a good grasp of the plot in the short-story, the teacher may design an activity meant to overview the main sequence of events. Thus, the students may be given some pictures to be described and to be ordered as they occurred. This task can draw students’ attention to important details in the short-story and also be fun.

The teacher puts the students into groups. Then, they are asked to write down what the pictures tell them about each character. The students will write down a description of each character regarding their appearance and personality.

A different activity here could be to give each group a different picture to write a dialogue about what they see in the picture.Then, the groups will act out their dialogues in front of the class.

Pairwork activity is important because it deals with speaking skills and grammar practice. After being given the pictures, students are asked to find the differences between them. When they finish their descriptions, the whole group will decide on the correct order of the story.

Quote discussion

Another activity which students may enjoy is isolating significant passages from the story and quoting them in class for debating and discussion. The students may also be asked if they have their favourite ‘quotes’ to be brought under discussion. This activity is a good opportunity for students to improve their vocabulary and speaking.

Examples: Express your opinions on the following quotes:

“Ah, on what little things does happiness depend! I have read all that the wise men have written, and all the secrets of philosophy are mine, yet for want of a red rose is my life made wretched.”

“Surely Love is a wonderful thing. It is more precious than emeralds, and dearer than fine opals. Pearls and pomegranates can not buy it, nor is it set forth in the market-place. It may not be purchased of the merchants, nor can it be weighed out in the balance for gold.”

The purpose of this activity is to make students respond to what they have read without the need for a critical vocabulary. Also, it is benefical for students to look closely at the language of the text while giving different interpretations to the quotes.

Discussion and debate

Here students are asked to choose between the following moral values of the story and give some arguments about their choices.

There is no fairness in love.

Give up everything in the name of love.

Love is wiser than Philosophy.

There are no winners when there is no risk.

No pain, no gain.

True love involves sacrifice and selflessness.

Don’t waste your life being sacrificial for people who don’t deserve it.

Love makes you vulnerable, so be careful to whom you give your love.

The teacher may ask students to write an 200-word essay based on these moral values in order to justify their choices.

This method is effective because students have the possibility to debate on a subject and have a real discussion with each other rather than to listen to what the teacher has to say. For example, by participating in a class discussion, and by talking about their own life experiences, students play an important part in the comprehensive process, and this will lead them to a deeper understanding of the topics. This is an exercise which implies reflective thinking while the students are supposed to find a solution to certain problems. Also, the discussion may have a leader who prepares the questions about the topic.

Direct- Indirect Speech

The aim of this task is to help students produce reported sentences and answer some questions about the story. They will also be able to practice indirect speech in communicating with each other.

Turn the following sentences into Indirect Speech:

“Not a single red rose in all my garden!” cried the Student.

“Happiness depends so much on such little things!”

“I have read all that the wise men have written”.

“Night after night I have told his story to the stars and now I see him”.

“The Prince is giving a ball tomorrow night, and my love will be there.”

“If I bring her a red rose, I will hold her in my arms and she will put her head upon my shoulder.”

“Why is he crying?” asked a little green lizard.”

“The winter has frozen my buds, and the storm has broken my branches, and I shall have no roses this year,” said the rose-tree.

“Is there no way how to get a red rose?”-asked the bird.

“You will wear the rose next to your heart and when we dance together it will tell you how I love you,” said the man.

Plot development worksheet

Students are invited to work together and build up the plot of the story by placing some important sentences in the following boxes. They should write two or three sentences in each box.

Worksheet

In order to guide students to read, the teacher will design some language worksheets but the notes about the fairy tale do not have to be too complicated.

Title _____________________________________

Author___________________________________

Content

Setting: Where does this story take place?___________________________________

Plot: This short story is about_____________________________________________

Characters: Write down the names of the main characters and 3 adjectives which describe them__________________________________________________

Moral message: What message does this story transmit?_______________________

Language

Write down 5 words, phrases or expressions you can remember from the story.

Opinion

Choose one of the following adjectives to describe this short story:

Funny, difficult, amusing, boring, childish, interesting.

Explain your choice_________________________________________

Comprehension questions:

1. How did the Nightingale understand the secret of the Student’s sorrow?

2. Why did the Nightingale agree to pay such a great price?

3. Could the Student understand the Nightingale? What did he think of her?

4. Did the Professor’s daughter appreciate the flower?

5. What did the Student think of love?

Paraphrase or explain the meaning:

– He flung himself down on the grass.

– He buried his face in his hands.

– Her life-blood ebbed away from her.

– She felt somewhat choking her in her throat.

– The moon lingered on in the sky.

– I’m afraid it will not go with my dress.

This assessment can be done by using a quiz as well.

What if…?

This is a useful activity in which students are asked to imagine the moment before the point of no return and ask themselves:

What if the circumstances had been different?

What other decisions could have the student made?

-What other choices would the bird have had?

‘Book reviews’ are good both for teachers and students. It is important for the teacher to find out what students think about a story, after they have finished reading it. By doing this, the teacher can discover if the students have made some progress or not. Writing a book review gives the students the possibility to develop their critical thinking and to feel important when they see that their responses matter.

Assignment

Role play: it is an oral practice in which students are supposed to learn small parts of dialogues and then to perform in front of the class. In this way, they will improve their pronunciation and vocabulary. They are suggested to use movements and gestures. (the dialogue from the book)

Design your own book cover: take into account:

The title

The author

The illustrator

Folktales (Fairy Tales)

Folktales are stories that grew out of the lives and imaginations of the people , or folk. They have always been children’s favourite type of folk literature. Their popularity springs from their imaginative characters, their supernatural elements, their focus on action, their simple sense of justice, their happy endings and the fundamental wisdom they contain.

The most prevalent kinds of folktales are:

Animal tales are perhaps the oldest of all folktales.They are part myth, part fable and part fairy tales.They play significant roles in early stories and legends. Talking animals appear in many European folktales. For example, “The Three Little Pigs” and “Little Red Riding Hood”.

Wonder tales (fairy tales) are the best known of the traditional folktales. They are stories of supernatural wonders typically depicting the conflict between good and evil. Most conclude with the triumph of virtue and a happy marriage. In fairy tales, the supernatural wonder is derived from either a magical person ( a fairy godmother, a wicked witch), a magical object (a talking mirror, a magic lamp) or an enchantment ( a miraculous sleep that lasts until love’s first kiss). For example, “ Cinderella”, “ Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”, “Sleeping Beauty”and “ Jack and the Beanstalk”.

Cumulative tales are the ones in which successive additions are made to a repetitive plot line. They are generally very simple in plot, the entire sequence is repeated. For example, “ The Gingerbread Man”and “ Goldilocks and the Three Bears”.

Pourquoi tales (“pourquoi” means “why” in French) seeks to explain natural phenomena. They provide primitive explanations for the many “why” questions early humans asked. There is a strong connection between pourquoi tales and myths. For example, “Why the Sun and the Moon Live in the Sky”, “ Where Stories Come From” and “ Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears”.

Noodlehead tales are light- hearted tales about silly people doing silly things. These tales are popular because of their pure nonsense and jocularity, and sometimes we enjoy the triumph of the good- hearted simpleton over the craftier evil characters of the story. For example, “ Hans in Luck” by the Grimm brothers and “ The Three Wishes” by Joseph Jacobs.

To conclude, a folktale represents a story which was told orally between common people. In folktales we can discover a variety of genres: adventure, suspense, mystery, crime and comedy. They first appeared by word of mouth and all transmit a moral lesson. Usually, the protagonists are animals or people who are supposed to go through impossible tests.

By reading fairy tales, students will be able to describe important features of them, such as: setting, action, conflict or characters. They were created to teach cultural values and beliefs.

The Difference between folk tales and fairy tales

There is not much difference between folk tales and fairy tales.

To be a true folk tale, a story must have its origins in what it is called the oral tradition. This means the story was first passed down orally by storytellers. Along the way it may have had things added or subtracted as each storyteller made it his or her own. It eventually was written down.

Folk tales are instructive. They caution readers about the consequences of certain kinds of behaviours or attitudes.

Characters are not complex. Instead, they are stereotypes: the thief, the liar, the clever youth, the evil stepmother and so on.The structure may be repetitive. Things that happen in threes are common.

Fairy tales often do not have any fairies in them at all. Some fairy tales have roots in the oral tradition, but others, called literary fairy tales, were made up and written down so technically that these are not folk tales. Like folk tales, fairy tales in their original forms often have less than happy endings. As the stories were invented to be instructive and cautionary, they often feature a main character who suffers for his\her failure to do things the “right” way.

In Irish folklore, fairies are not like Tinkerbell. They have a dark and dangerous side and can make you very sorry if you cross them.

Themes in Irish Folk Tales

Believing in the supernatural has always been an important characteristic of the Irish people for centuries. Even today there are many who have found this element in their daily lives. So, it is not surprising that the mythological tradition and the other legends have been preserved over time.

Irish folk tales are very different from the fairytales of mainland Europe which were gathered together in collections by Hans Christian Anderson and the brothers Grimm. Irish folk stories centre on a very different group of characters – heroic warriors, deadly goddesses and mischievous supernatural creatures, rather than the fairy godmothers, talking animals and wicked stepmothers of European folk tales.

Irish folk tales can be divided into the following main themes:

Ancient warrior myths

Romance and tragedies

Ghost stories

Local folk tales of supernatural beings.

Ancient Warrior Myths

Celtic Irish society revolved around the cult of warrior heroes. The most important people in early Irish society equal even to the kings, were the storytellers. A major part of these bards’duties was to compose poems in praise of the daring deeds of kings and warriors, hence they were held in such high esteem in a warrior society.

Irish wars at this time consisted mainly of targeted raids aimed at stealing cattle (the measurement of wealth in Irish society before coins were introduced by the Vikings), and individual contests of strength.

The two great heroes of Irish warrior myths are Finn MacUail, leader of a band of warriors known as the Fianna and hero of the Fenian cycle of legends, and Cu Chulain a warrior of supernatural strength and abilities the hero of the Ulster cycle of myths. Although the tales surrounding these two figures are warrior stories and may even be based on real historical figures, they also have many fantastical elements which allow them to be classified as fairy tales.

Both heroes use enchanted weapons and magical abilities as part of their success. And both must contend with hostile supernatural beings such as the Morrigan, the Irish Goddess of death and destruction who wants to claim them for her own. These warrior heroes face not only human enemies but an array of supernatural forces- from druids to mythical gods and goddesses.

Romances and Tragedies

The other major theme of early Irish legends is romance. Even the most hardened of warrior heroes, had a single true love, a woman who could bring them to their knees.

These early romances offer an intriguing insight to the position of women in Irish culture at the time. The women are often powerful figures who do not tolerate any betrayal or slight to their honour such as Emer.

Some are out-and-out sexual predators like Queen Maeve, who use their wiles to gain political power and economic status – and who lose their temper when a man refuses to play their game.

Others are beautiful but ultimately tragic figures like Deirdre who are victims of a society where young girls were offered in marriage to powerful but old and unattractive men.

Soul-mates are common in Irish stories. One is the story of Midir and Aideen where even magic cannot break apart their love. Other famous soul-mate pairings are Deirdre and Naisi, Emer and Cu Chulain and Diarmuid and Grainne.

Sadly, many Irish romances end in tragedy such as the story of the Sons of Uisneach which centres on the heroine Deirdre and which is one of the ‘Three Sorrows of Irish Storytelling’. Emer is widowed when Cu Chulain dies in a heroic battle and the flight of Diarmuid and Grainne ends in a tragedy to equal Romeo and Juliet.

The other two ‘sorrows of Irish storytelling’ concern children- the Children of Tuirean and the famous story the Children of Lir. There are heart-wrenching tales but beautiful also, and a powerful warning about the cost of human greed and envy.

Ghost Stories and Tales of Darkness

Ghost stories have only become common later in Irish history. In early Celtic times it was believed that the dead passed onto eternal life in the Otherworld- they did not come back to haunt the living. It is most likely that ghost tales became more popular in the late Medieval and Early-Modern period, in line with the rest of Europe. Writing at this time Shakespeare often used ghosts, such as that of Hamlet’s father, as a key plot device- suggesting the great influence the idea ghosts had on people’s imagination at this time.

Ghost stories have also had a great influence on Irish literary figures. For example, Oscar Wilde and WB Yeats have written ghost stories as well.

Irish ghost stories are very much rooted in particular places. There is no ruined castle, no ancient building that does not have at least one tale of a ghost that haunts its walls. Often they are also morality tales- the tragedy which led to the haunting is a result of some sin or crime committed, and these tales offer a stark warning against such acts.

There are also Irish folklore tales dating from the Medieval period and beyond which there are the so-called ‘bringers of death’ (dark fairies). The legend of the Banshee is the most famous. This dark fairy woman is said to give a heart- stopping scream when someone is about to die- if you hear that cry then the person who is going to die soon is you.

The Banshee is a classic example of how Irish fairy tales have grown and changed over the years. This legend is rooted in the Celtic goddesses of death and destruction, such as Magda or the Morrigan who would appear as an old crone in stories just before the warrior hero was about to die.

Another dark figure of Irish folklore is the Dullahan, a headless horseman who rode the countryside on certain nights of the year bringing death in his wake. These tales may have been a mythological interpretation of the highway men who were very real and who haunted the roads of Ireland in the 17th and 18th century, making journeys hazardous and sometimes deadly.

Local Folklore Tales

The little people, such as Leprechauns, Pookas , and changelings and also the sea people such as the merrows and selkies populate local legends the length and breadth of Ireland. This folklore was gathered together by the likes of WB Yeats and Lady Gregory at the end of the nineteenth century, and reveal that the Irish mindset, despite centuries of Christianity, had not lost its fascination with nature spirits.

There are countless tales of leprechauns who gave tricky riddles, pookas who upended water pails and turned milk sour, local people who fell asleep near a fairy mound and were transported to the otherworld for a thousand years, and peaceful babies who were stolen by the fairies and swapped for a changeling who did nothing but fuss and cry. These tales of local folklore helped Irish people to explain phenomenon in a supernatural way, before the advent of modern science. They remain fascinating and lively tales, full of wit, wisdom and supernatural surprises.

The world of fantasy is not isolated from the real world, so it is necessary to have some pictures about this world as well. Children use their imagination not only by reading a fairy tale, but also by seeing some pictures of their heroes. They give visual support to children and sometimes they are more interesting than words. When they read fairy tales, children keep away from the troubles of the real world.

Many important people have been inspired by folklore, or have contributed to the development of this type of story. For example, in the past, even Shakespeare was influenced by this when he created stories which contained witches, spirits and ghosts.

Each person who reads a story is placed in the middle of it, feeling as if they belonged to another time or location. Even in modern times, people will be fascinated by the experiences through which the main characters went in the stories.

Characteristics and Characters in Folk Tales:

This chapter deals with typical characteristics of fairy tales. The most common opening phrase we find in such stories is “Once upon a time…”, which can be used as a door for children to enter a magical world.

Another important feature is the battle between ‘the good’ and ‘the bad’ and the fact that ‘good’ always wins, no matter how difficult it seems. If we ask students to make their own decisions, we will develop their critical judgement and will make them see the difference between ‘good’ and ‘evil’.

Moral messages can be detected in fairy tales, so they are perceived as ‘good educators’ when it comes to moral principles and values. Therefore, they are of utmost importance in developing children’s character not only as readers, but also as individuals.

1. The Banshee

2. St. Patrick

3. The Shamrock

4. Finn MacCool

5. Leprechauns

The Banshee (bean si)

Man’s nature makes him fear what he does not understand and can not control. People’s primary response to death is avoidance. It is not a pleasant topic of conversation and it is rarely discussed.

The Banshee is related to ‘death’ and it is widespread all over Ireland or the offshore islands. The literary meaning of it is ‘woman- fairy’ or ‘the otherworld lady’. She is a lonely female character who is usually attached to Irish families with a Gaelic surname. She is believed to come to announce the forthcoming death of member of the family, whether he lives in the area or abroad. She can not be seen, except for a few people who describe her as an ugly old woman wearing a shroud and combing her long grey hair while she is mourning for the impending deceased. The announcement of the imminent death is conveyed by three piercing cries, which tend to be terrifying for the person who hears them.

In a tale entitled “The Banshee cries for the Boyles”, comprised in Henry Glassie’s Irish Folktales, the son relates his terrifying experience of the Banshee, who came to announce the death of his mother:

“ I saw the Banshee when old Boyle’s mother died. I was coming home in the dusk with a load of sods, and the old grey horse and me mother with me.”

And she says to me: “ Some poor woman has lost her man or maybe a son.” And the thing wore a shroud as if it had come from a coffin, and its hair was streaming in the wind. We both saw it.

And me mother, she says a prayer or maybe two. “ That’s the Banshee “, says she.

“ Aye, it cried for many an old family here, and some say it’s one that had gone before. Be that as it may, no human heart could utter such grief, so, mind ye, I doubt it”.

In the folk tradition of south-eastern Ireland, the Banshee bears names which are all derived from the name of the Irish goddess mentioned in the literary texts: Badb or Bodb.She does not actually come to kill but to foretell and to weep for the dead. She actually reflects the professional keening women, whose function is to mourn at wakes and funerals in Ireland.

Saint Patrick

Celtic folk tales have always seemed more magical to me because they successfully combine the everyday life with the mystery of it. Our belief in magic and supernatural beings makes us understand the inexplicable better, so the stories are more entertaining. Moreover, we are closer to our children in their wish to know more about this Irish tradition.

Saint Patrick was a fifth-century Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland. Known as the “ Apostle of Ireland”, he is the primary patron saint of Ireland, along with saints Brigit of Kildare and Columba. He is also venerated in the Anglican Communion, the Old Catholic Church and in the Eastern Orthodox Church.

The dates of Patrick’s life can not be fixed with certainty, but there is broad agreement that he was active as a missionary in Ireland during the second half of the 5th century. Early medieval tradition credits him with being the first bishop of Armagh and Primate of Ireland, and they regard him as the founder of Christianity in Ireland.

According to the Confessio of Patrick, when he was about 16, he was captured by Irish pirates from his home in Britain and taken as a slave to Ireland, looking after animals; he lived there for six years before escaping and returning to his family. After becoming a cleric, he returned to northern and western Ireland. In later life, he served as a bishop. By the 7th century, he had already come to be revered as the patron saint of Ireland.

Saint Patrick’s Day is observed on 17 March, the supposed date of his death. It is celebrated inside and outside Ireland as a religious and cultural holiday.

The Shamrock

Traditionally, the shamrock is said to have been used by Saint Patrick to illustrate the Christian doctrine of the Holy Trinity when Christianising Ireland in the 5th century. The first evidence of a link between St. Patrick and the shamrock appears in 1675 on the St. Patrick’s Coppers or Halpennies. These appear to show a figure of St. Patrick preaching to a crowd while holding a shamrock, presumably to explain the doctrine of the Holy Trinity.

As St. Patrick is Ireland’s patron saint, shamrock has been used as a symbol of Ireland, in a similar way to how a rose is used for England, thistle for Scotland and daffodil for Wales. This plant is worn by the people in their hats upon the 17. Day of March yearly.

The shamrock first began to change from a symbol purely associated with St. Patrick to an Irish national symbol when it was taken up as an emblem by rival militias, during the turbulent politics of the late 18th century.

On one side, there were the Volunteers (the Irish Volunteers), who were local militias in late 18th century Ireland; they were chosen to defend Ireland from the threat of French and Spanish invasion when regular British soldiers were withdrawn from Ireland to fight during the American Revolutionary War. On the other side, there were revolutionary nationalist groups, such as the United Irishmen.

“ The drowning of the shamrock” is a traditional custom which implies that it is necessary to drink to accomplish this habit. At the end of the day the shamrock, which has been worn in the coat or the hat, is removed and put into the final glass of grog or tumbler of punch; and when the health has been drunk or the toast honoured, the shamrock should be picked out from the bottom of the glass and thrown over the left shoulder.

The Legend of Finn MacCool

Finn MacCool, or as he is known in Old Irish as Fionn mac Cumhaill, is a mythical magical giant from Irish folklore.

Myths are stories that have been passed down through history. They are often told through an oral tradition and handed down to each new generation.They try to explain how things came into being from an ancient culture’s point of view. Many myths are stories concerning heroes who experience great adventures. The characters are gods and godesses and these characters are immortal. They often interact with human mortals sometimes helping them, sometimes hurting them to demonstrate their power. The story of Finn MacCool is such an example.

Finn is thought to have been a kind and compassionate giant whose heroic deeds are often attributed today to the development of many geographical features of Ireland. Legend has it that The Giant’s Causeway in Ireland was created from the epic battle challenge of Finn MacCool to another giant from Scotland.

This is a story about a legendary giant who built the Giant’s Causeway. The giant was 54 foot tall and he was called Finn MacCool. The Causeway story tells us that Finn lived happily on the Antrim coast with his wife Oonagh until he discovered that he had a rival in Scotland known as Benandonner. Finn was frequently taunted by Benandonner from afar and on one occasion Finn scooped up a clod of earth and hurled it across the sea at him but missed. The huge clod of earth landed in the middle of the Irish Sea making the Isle of Man and the depression formed from scooping up the earth filled up with water to become Lough Neagh.

Finn finally challenged Benandonner to a proper fight and decided to build a causeway of enormous stepping stones across the sea to Scotland, so that he could walk across without getting his feet wet. But as he approached and caught sight of the great bulk of Benandonner, Finn became afraid and fled back home, with Benandonner hot on his trail. In his haste, Finn lost one of his great boots and today it can be seen sitting on the foreshore in Port Noffer where it fell to the ground.

The story takes a humorous twist when Finn asks his wife Oonagh to help him hide. Clever Oonagh disguised Finn as a baby and pushed him into a huge cradle, so when Benandonner saw the size of the sleeping ‘child’, he assumed the father must be gigantic. Benandonner fled home in terror, ripping up the Causeway as he went in case he was followed.

The story concludes that this is the reason why the Giant’s Causeway exists in north Antrim, with similar columns at Fingal’s Cave on the Scottish island of Staffa.

The Legend of the Irish Leprechaun

The Leprechaun is one of Ireland’s most famous characters from Irish folklore who have become renowned all over the world.

According to fables, Leprechauns are tiny entities that normally take the form of an old man in a red or green coat. They are known to be mischievous little creatures that like to make shoes and store their gold coins in a pot of gold that is hidden at the end of a rainbow. If you happen to capture a Leprechaun, he will give you three wishes provided you let him go.

Most Leprechaun legends can be traced back to the 8th century tales of water spirits which were known as “luchorpan” which means ‘small body’. It is said that these spirits merged with a household fairy and developed a penchant for heavy drinking so no cellar was safe. According to other researchers, the term Leprechaun actually comes from the Irish term ‘leath brogan’ which means shoemaker.

The Leprechaun can only be found in Ireland, in rural areas away from the general population. He lived in underground caves with entrances hidden as rabbit holes. This small creature is well known for his love of Irish music and traditional dance. They are expert musicians when it comes to playing the tin whistle, the Bodhran and even the Irish harp.

Many Irish people are irritated by the ethnic stereotypes perpetuated by Leprechauns but there is a tale of morality that can be taken from the fable of the Leprechaun. The fact that they often trick people who seek the pot of gold can be taken as a warning to people not to be invested in ‘get rich quick’ schemes. Anyway, the tales of the Leprechaun are not to be taken seriously and should only serve to amuse and delight us.

Oscar Wilde and his writing style

I would like to reveal Oscar Wilde’s style by paraphrasing his quotation:

“You can never be overdressed or overeducated”.

This quotation may refer to the fact that ‘being overdressed’ puts boundaries on fashion. By this I mean that people can be ‘under’ or ‘over’ dressed based on the occasion. There are no boundaries when it comes to fashion, people should be creative and follow their own style.

On the other hand, being overeducated is impossible because there will always be new things to learn, therefore there should never be a point in life when you stop learning. People will always learn from other people, books articles, studies and so on.

Oscar Wilde’s favourite companion is sarcasm. He looks down on those people who would overdress so as to look better than the others, and he looks up to those people who overeducate themselves to be more educated than those who are not.

Known for his urbane nonfiction, Oscar Wilde was a master of fairy tale. Even if his main feature is irony, he was able to create lovely tales filled with princes and nightingales, giants and kings. All of his fairy tales are written in an aesthetic voice. He used a more charming language in his stories, making use of rhetoric means and ironic humour to convey its theme, such as love or art and the spirit of self-sacrifice as presented in “ The Nightingale and the Rose”.

My main objectives of studying this story are:

-to understand the stylistic devices which the author used to create meaning in context;

-to be able to use the important words and phrases in the text;

– to find out the moral of the story which can be applied to real life;

-to acquire some background knowledge about Oscar Wilde.

The plot of the story is very simple: it is a story about a brave nightingale which sacrificed her life for a student’s love. A nightingale sees a student one day. He is crying for a red rose which he needs to bring to his loved girl so as to dance with her at a ball.

Unfortunately, no red rose grows in his garden and he is hopeless. The good nightingale wants to help him to fulfil his love and decides to find a red rose herself. She flies from one tree to another until she finally comes to a red rose tree. Nevertheless, it does not have any red roses. The only way to get one is to sing and to sacrifice her life.

‘If you want a red rose’, said the Tree, ‘ you must build it out of music by moonlight, and stain it with your own heart’s- blood. You must sing to me with your breast against a thorn. All night long you must sing to me, and the thorn must pierce your heart, and your life-blood must flow into my veins, and become mine.’

The brave nightingale agrees on it. “ Death is a great price to pay for a red rose”, cried the nightingale. Yet Love is better than Life, and what is the heart of a bird compared to the heart of a man”. That night, a beautiful rose grows up and the poor nightingale dies. The student finds the rose in the morning and is very happy about it. He runs to the professor’s daughter right away. Unfortunately, she turns him down as she prefers the Chamberlain’s nephew who gave her jewels. She does not appreciate the student’s rose and it ends up on the ground and is damaged because the professor’s daughter really wanted was ascendancy and wealth. The student goes back home and turns to his books and studying again.

Oscar Wilde has great passion for love and has been pursuing it for his whole short life. In this story he resemblances the nightingale as he would do everything in the name of love. The nightingale sang to death with a thorn against her heart for the passion which she thought to be the most precious thing in the world. Her passion is pure and the only thing she wants for the student is true love. This passion reflects the theme of the story, which is love. However, all she did was in vain, because the girl was not interested , being a materialistic girl. And the red rose, which symbolizes the fruit of passion, was thrown away into the gutter for something unworthy. The student shows ungratefulness in his lack of appreciation for the sacrifice made on his behalf. Even if the theme is love, sacrifice and materialism, the student realizes that the young girl does not truly love him. So, he says: “ What a silly thing Love is”.

The character of the young girl demonstrates her materialism, which is said to be pointed as an ‘ ugly and worthless attribute’ by the author. At first, she is interested in being offered a red rose, but then she turns her attention to the jewels offered by the Chamberlain’s nephew.

The turning point of the story is when the professor’s daughter rejects the red rose and, in turn, he throws it away in the gutter, with a passing cart running over it. We expect this great sacrifice to be equally rewarded by the undying love of the main couple. Yet, in a dramatic twist, the exact opposite happens: the girl finds the red rose almost insulting, since she prefers jewels. Moreover, the boy proves to be ungrateful himself by not appreciating what the bird did for him and declaring that logic is greater than love.

Oscar Wilde also used metaphor to point out that the blood of the night symbolically coloured the rose red.Personification is obvious in the characteristics that the nightingale portrays, since it is given human and emotional qualities although it is a bird.

The moral of the story is that true love involves sacrifice. To reinforce it, the author contrasts true love with the love between the student and the young girl. This form of love is based on materialism and is not long- lasting. As soon as the girl is offered jewels, her attention turns to a new suitor and she loses all her interest in the student. This prompts the student to turn his back on love and concern himself only with his studies.

I would like to end this short analysis with a well-known saying:

“ Don’t waste your life being sacrificial for people who don’t deserve it”.

The Importance of Folk Tales in People’s Lives

I have come to the conclusion that people can be influenced by folk tales as they represent some traditional oral narratives such aslegends, proverbs or stories which belong to a certain culture or social group. Therefore, most people find themselves in these stories especially when they transmit some values to them. For example, laziness, greed or selfishness are said to be negative features and people who are characterized by them usually project an unwise behaviour.

On the other hand, goodness, honesty, hard working are described as important features which the heroes or heroines always use to get over some problems.

Third, when animals are used as human characters it means that they highlight attitudes and behaviours of people in such a way as to create fun. In addition, the use of animals makes it possible for children to easily understand the meaning of the stories as it is simplified by the character of an animal.

Folklore is used in order to educate children regarding their cultural values in society as well as to motivate them to read more. The children will learn important things and no matter how different or inexperienced they may be, they will be able to accomplish their dreams.

Fourth, folk tales have certain themes. Goodness is always rewarded, heroes and heroines live happily ever after, while villains are properly punished. Even if times change, the story has the same message to transmit. We, teachers and parents, can just tell stories to our children in order to educate them on how to behave in society. We can do that by presenting them valuable examples with these stories.

Fifth, by reading folk tales, children experience adventures which can not be lived in real life. For example, when good heroes are facing monsters or other evil forces, they are brave enough to defeat them, so the stories impart courage and wisdom in overcoming problems.

Finally, folk stories convey moral and historical issues which affect everybody in the community. They play an important role in people’s lives because they bring them together and preserve their culture.

“Psychologists believe that children need stories, legends and fairy tales when they grow up. They are a part of children’s intellectual life. They provoke their fantasy and give them answers to important questions of a child’s life. They are meaningful and effective items of their socialization. Myths and legends give material of which children make their concept of origin and purpose of the world and of ideals, which they may follow.” (Krashen, 1983)

Conclusions

“The Nightingale and the Rose” is a fairy-tale which presents modern issues that affect young people nowadays. People have different perceptions of love, as depicted in this story.

The author tries to use the main characters in order to inform the reader about the fact that there are two types of love: true love and a crush. In this cruel world, people don’t care too much about love, they misinterpret it and the reason why it happens is materialism.

The theme of sacrifice is represented by the Nightingale who decides to give up her life in the name of love. Some people will do everything in order to make sacrifices for their fellow beings. It appears that the Nightingale was the only one who understood the true meaning of love. The Student and the girl don’t know the real meaning of natural beauty represented by flowers.

This fairy-tale is an emotional tale of two people who can not appreciate the sacrifices made by the others for them. It’s just like in real life.

Oscar Wilde’s fairy-tale is an appropriate means in making students aware of important human attitudes and values which offers a solid language practice. It also seems to have an adequate approach to life pointing out such themes as “sacrifice”, “love” and “materialism”. As students nowadays are in need of meaningful role models and veritable life lessons, I think that reading literature may be appropriate for them.

People all over the world value literature and the beauty of linguistic expression that comes from it. When a person is studying a foreign language, appreciating literature in that language can be a seemingly impossible task. It is very important for teachers to understand that literature is a very sensitive subject in a digitized era. Less and less students read out of pleasure and most of them don’t read at all. Digital summaries have replaced printed books, therefore teachers should change their approach to literature. Students should be taught to be creative thinkers and not mere reproducers.

The study of literature in high schools and universities is essential for the acquisition of linguistic and cultural knowledge of a foreign language. Thus, I have done a research on how much students read nowadays and what kind of books they are interested in.

“Fairy tales are more than true; not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.” G.K. Chesterton

Approaches to Reading

The purpose of my research is to show students that reading can play an important role in their education and also to find out the reasons why people don’t read anymore as we used to. By studying literature, students can develop themselves as individuals as well as commanders of the language.

In learning a foreign language, we should take into account four skills: reading, writing, speaking and listening. Reading is an active process in which readers improve their knowledge and express their feelings and emotions.

Reading can provide opportunities to use such skills as critical thinking. From having a phone conversation to writing a business plan, people need to make comparisons, draw conclusions or make inferences. Also, students should be aware not only of the usefulness of reading, but also of the pleasure of it. So, reading for enjoyment is another important aim.

The development of the Internet has had a great impact on students’ way of dealing with reading. Reading books allows students to get involved in their traditional culture and facilitates learning. Research studies show that most students today have a surface approach to reading and learning. This usually occurs because some teachers lecture the texts and evaluate students on their memorizing the facts and principles conveyed in the lectures.

If children do not like reading when they are young, they will not read much when they get older. At school, young students, and not only, should be challenged to read books and, at the end of a period, they should be rewarded.

This being said, here comes the question: “Why don’t students read anymore?” To answer this question, I have conducted a research project to assess the approach towards reading among a group of my senior highschool students. The objective of this research is to evaluate whether my students took a deep or a surface approach to reading, as well as to find out students’ preferences when it comes to reading. This is analyzed in terms of gender and age. There is a number of 25 students who participated in this research voluntarily.

The study addressed the following questions:

“How important are books in your life?”

“What kind of books do you prefer?” “Why?”

“Do you read for pleasure or just because you are asked to?”

“Give other reasons why you don’t read.”

Data Collection

It is very important to collect data regarding reading among students because it provides useful information about this problem, and it gives teachers and students the possibility to improve their teaching and learning.

My research consists of 15 male and 10 female students aged between 18 and 19 at “Mihai Eminescu Highschool in Petrosani.

Procedure

Data were collected by using the questionnaire method, the class discussion method and the interview approach. The questionnaire is an instrument for collecting data, usually in written form. It consisted of 10 questions (Yes/ No questions) and the most important answers will be presented below. During the class discussions I tried to collect data from the students’ attitude towards reading. My students expressed their opinions about the selection of books, about learning literature and about some teaching methods used by teachers during their classes.

Another instrument was the’ interview’ method in which my students were encouraged to take an interview to some students even from other countries. The first thing I did for the analysis of the interview was to transcribe the audio records. The main themes were: students’ opinions on reading and the reasons why they are not so much interested in it. Before reaching a certain conclusion, I compared the students’ answers on this topic.

Findings and Interpretations

The first question refers to the reasons for not reading books. Based on the responses given by my students, I will present the following : “Digital distractions”, “Too much else to do” and “The lack of time.”

It has become fashionable for students to use the Internet rather than to grab a book. This is because they are distracted by computer games and social networking. They also say that it is very difficult for someone to read if they have a million things to do, or if there is too much pressure on them.

Questionnaire on students’ reading

Frequency distribution

Reasons students do not read

The second question refers to the students’ perception of reading. The answers are presented in the charts below and reveal that 40% have a positive attitude towards reading while 60% have a negative attitude. Also, 35% think that reading literature is a challenging task, 15% think that it is useless, 40% consider it difficult and 10% – boring.

The Interview Method

It contains not only negative, but also positive aspects towards reading.

Positive Aspects:

After having listened to what students said in the interviews, here are my questions and their answers to them:

“Do you find reading books useful?”

-“Yes, because it improves our vocabulary and we can find common points of interests with other people.”

2. “What do you prefer: reading books or watching movies?”

-“I prefer books to movies because you can have your own image of all the things that are happening in a book, while in movies you can watch someone else’s view of the action.”

3. “Do you prefer e-books or printed books? Why?”

-“Printed books are preferred to e-books because people want to feel the smell of a real book.”

4. “Do you find ‘reading’ exhausting?”

-“No, I don’t; it relaxes me and improves my vocabulary”.

Negative Aspects:

For the question “Why don’t teenagers read anymore?”, I will write down the following answers:

Students don’t think books are interesting because of the reading list which contains the books they are forced to read at school;

It is very difficult for students to deal with analytical thought;

When they get 13, children usually stop reading because they become interested in computer games;

They hide themselves behind facebook pages and instagram profiles;

They have not been educated in this way, they do not understand the necessity of reading itself.

However, in the end, 70% of my students understood the importance of reading in their lives, and now we have some reading sessions at the end of each semester. They are followed by discussions on the books and students are rewarded for their work.

I will conclude by saying that:the more you read, the more you perceive the world around you.