Cinderella in the Classroom

Storytelling

Have students sit in a circle of three to five people. Have one student begin the story of Cinderella. Each student in turn contributes one sentence until the group has reached a "happily ever after" ending. The idea is not to finish quickly, but to give as many details as possible while telling the story.

Interviewing

Imagine that you are preparing a radio show about Cinderella, exploring how a poor girl who once cleaned fireplaces became a princess. Working in a small group, prepare interviews with people who know Cinderella:

Her father
Her stepsisters
Her Fairy Godmother
The Prince

You might also get some background information on the story by interviewing"

Some neighbors
People who work in the castle
The King or Queen
Cinderella's friends
People who went to the ball

You might ask about:

Cinderella's life with the wicked stepsisters
Her adventures with the Fairy Godmother
The Ball
The glass slipper episode

Have each person in the group choose a character and pretend to be that character in an interview. The interviews could be tape recorded and played back like a radio show.

Role Playing

Conduct an interview with Cinderella. You have heard that she is living happily ever after and you want to find out about her marriage to the prince and her life at the palace. Ask a partner to play the role of Cinderella. Here are some questions you might ask:

What does she do from day to day to keep herself busy?
Did she punish her stepsisters?
Does she ever see her Fairy Godmother>
Does she still have the glass slipper?

After you have interviewed your partner, switch roles, so that you are Cinderella. How are your answers different from the ones your partner gave? How are they the same?

Cinderella Around the World

There are many different versions of the Cinderella story from differnt countries around the world. Find several versions of Cinderella(see bibliography below) and create a chart noting similarities and differences.

Suggestions for Comparisons:

Title of Story
Name of Country
Name for Cinderella
Good Characters
Wishes
How Wishes Are Granted
Bad Characters
Cinderella's Tasks
Ending

Language Arts Ideas

Working with a small group, make puppets (stick, hand, sock, or any other kind) of the characters in your favorite version of Cinderella. Practice using the puppets and rehearsing the parts-you may want to write out a script. Present your puppet show to another class in the school.

If you could write a letter to Cinderella, what would you say? Could you offer her any advice about, for example:

The treatment she received from ger stepsisters?
Her life with Prince Charming?
The Fairy Godmother?
The Ball?

Imagine you are a character in Cinderella. Write three entries in your diary. Your diary might describe your feelings and problems, and it might discuss the other people in your life. For example, if you were Cinderella, your diary might include:

Complaints abot housework
Your desire to go to the ball
Meeting Your Fairy Godmother
Events at the ball
Life at the castle

Imagine that there was a catastrophe in the Cinderella story. Write a story explaining what might happen if:

The Fairy Godmother lost her wand
The glass slipper broke
One of the coach horses ran away
The slipper also fit one of the wicked stepsisters

Retell the Cinderella story so that it is set 2,000 years into the future.

Cinderella Links

• The Princess and the Golden Shoes
  Scottish version

  Grimm Version of Cinderella

  Cap 'o Rushes

  Disney Animation: Cinderella

  DisneyMania: Cinderella

  Tatter Coats

  The Names of Cinderella in Other Languages

  Cinderella StoriesCinderella Online Texts

  The Cinderella Project

  A text and image archive containing a dozen English versions of the fairy tale. The Cinderellas presented here represent some of the more common varieties of the tale from the English-speaking world in the eighteenth, nineteenth, and early twentieth centuries.

  Cinderella in Perrault's Histories: 1729 Illustrated

Suggested Literature for Cinderella