A Legend and a Folk Tale - Read Alouds

Legends and folk tales are fun to share with children.  Last week, we took a few days and read two.  The first was Tikta'Liktak: An Inuit-Eskimo Legend, retold by James Houston.  Tikta'Liktak leaves home one day in search of food.  Through a series of events, he finds himself adrift on ice at sea.  He successfully makes it to an unihabitated island and survives for many months.  At one point, Tikta'Liktak succumbs to despair.  This part may need to be altered slightly for younger listeners.  Eventually, through creative ingenuity, Tikta'Liktak leaves this island and returns home.  This version is illustrated with black and white drawings.

The second story we read was Rip Van Winkle, by Washington Irving. We read both the original, unabridged version published by Dover, and a retelling picture book version using modern English called Rip Van Winkle's Return, retold by Eric A. Kimmel.  Both captivated the children.  They loved the tale of Rip falling asleep in the Kaatskill mountains after a game of nine pin.  Only to awake, seemingly 'the next day,' but truly twenty years later.  The picture book by Kimmel strayed only slightly from the original by adding a 'lesson learned' by Rip.  

Out of the two, I believe the children found the comedic affect of Rip Van Winkle more enjoyable than the suspense and drama of Tikta'Liktak.  However, both read alouds offered us a chance to talk about different cultures, time periods, and beliefs.

To find more read aloud selections, visit Amy at Hope Is the Word
for this week's Read-Aloud Thursday link up.