Fables and Morals

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

• Do you think the crow in the picture looks like it is doing something intentionally (doing something with a purpose)?

• How carefully do you think animals consider their actions?

The picture above is an illustration from the fable "The Crow and the Pitcher."

Fables are old stories that often use animals as the main characters. These animals can talk and use reason and judgment, just like humans.

When an author gives an animal or other non-human thing human traits in a story, it's called personification.

The authors of the fables chose particular animals based on their unique traits. For example, hares (rabbits) are fast runners, while tortoises (turtles) are slow.

Some other animals with distinct characteristics are the fox, known as sly and cunning; the lion, known for being ferocious and brave; the owl, known for being wise; and the ox, known for being strong.

The combination of personification and the unique animal traits allows the authors of fables to craft short stories that entertain children while teaching important lessons about life.

This life lesson is called the moral of the story. The story's moral is usually at the end and points out how the animal's behavior caused — or could have avoided — a problem.

No one knows when the first fables were written, but fables were originally handed down through storytelling from one generation to the next, just like a myth, tales, and legends.

However, it is believed that Aesop, who lived in Ancient Greece during the 5th century B.C., was the first to write fables.

Use the Fables and Morals Worksheet, found in Downloadable Resources in the right-hand sidebar, to help guide you through the lesson.

As you watch the video below, follow along on your worksheet.

Continue to answer those worksheet questions as you watch another video.

Move on to the Got It? section to look at some other fables and the morals they teach!