1. Ballads, Legends, Folktales
What we want to know: What is a folktale? A legend?A ballad? How are they different?
Does the region you live in have an effect on what legends, ballads, or folktales you know?
Do different cultures have different folktales, legends, and ballads?
http://americanfolklore.net/folklore/myths-legends/
http://lessons.atozteacherstuff.com/344/folktale-unit/
https://sites.google.com/site/americanfolktales/teacher-resources
www.slideshare.net
http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0194035.html
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/americanhistory.html
https://sites.google.com/site/americanfolktales/teacher-resources
http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/lesson-docs/FolkTaleBookList.pdf
http://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/mff/folktale_allfolktale.htm
http://www.statesymbolsusa.org/Lists/state_songs.htm
http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/Arts/Folktales.html
http://library.thinkquest.org/3721/poems/forms/ballad.html
http://www.americanfolklore.net/ss.html
http://www.aaronshep.com/
http://pbskids.org/lions/stories/
What is a ballad?https://learningplace.com.au/sc/online/eng_6/EY4_poetry_SLR_ballad.pdf
A ballad is a narrative poem that often retells the story of an heroic deed, a legend or a
recent event.
The structure of a ballad
Ballads:

2. •• have an orientation, complication and resolution
•• often have an ending that is tragic or sad
•• are traditionally shared orally (passed on by word of mouth), so they can change over time
and sometimes have an anonymous author
•• may contain verses or stanzas of four lines (known as quatrains)
•• may contain repetition of stanzas (a chorus) or repeated lines where a certain word is
changed
•• can have a question and answer format – one stanza presents the question and the next
one answers the question.
The language in a ballad
Ballads:
•• include language that focuses on actions and dialogue
•• include language that indirectly conveys information about the characters, relationships,
events, time period and setting (i.e. so the audience has to infer meanings)
•• are often written in third or first person
•• usually have a rhyming pattern of either abac, aabb or abcb
•• have a regular beat (metrical) structure
•• are often written in complete sentences
•• include language that is selected to convey a particular mood or evoke an emotional
response.
Examples of ballads
Traditional ballads
Gypsy rover, The Highwayman,
Scarborough fair
Australian/bush ballads

3. Waltzing Matilda, Botany Bay, The
wild colonial boy
Modern ballads
The ballad of Billy the Kid (Billy
Joel), I was only 19 (Redgum,
John Schumann)
What are legends?
A legend is a semi-true story, which has been passed on from person-to-person and has important
meaning or symbolism for the culture in which it originates. A legend usually includes an element of
truth, or is based on historic facts, but with 'mythical qualities'. Legends usually involve heroic characters
or fantastic places and often encompass the spiritual beliefs of the culture in which they originate.
Legends are the “superheroes” of literature: King Arthur and Robin Hood are two examples of legends,
based on real people who lived in a different time and place. Johnny Appleseed is a good example of an
American legend. So is John Brown. Although these people really lived, the stature they’ve been given in
books is something no mortal person could ever live up to.
What are folktales?
A folktale is a popular story that was passed on in spoken form, from one generation to the next. Usually
the author is unknown and there are often many versions of the tale. Folktales comprise fables, fairy
tales, old legends and even 'urban legends'. Again, some tales may have been based on a partial truth
that has been lost or hidden over time. It is difficult to categorize folktales precisely because they fit into
many categories.
http://www.pitara.com/talespin/folktales.asp
http://www.americanfolklore.net/sindex.html
http://learningtogive.org/lessons/unit226/lesson12.html

4. What is the difference between legends, myths and folktales?
Myths, legends and folktales are hard to classify and often overlap. Imagine a line (or continuum) as
illustrated below, with an historical account based on facts at one end and myths or cultural folktales at
the other; as you progress towards the mythical/folktale end of the line, what an event symbolises to
people, or what they feel about it, becomes of greater historical significance than the facts, which
become less important. By the time you reach the far end of the spectrum, the story has taken on a life
of its own and the facts of the original event, if there ever were any, have become almost irrelevant. It is
the message that is important
Many people have asked me on my travels, what is the difference between a myth, legend,
fable and folk tales?
Myths, legends and fables are old stories written for adults and children. Folk or fairy tales
were written specially for children.
MYTHS
Myths are made up stories that try to explain how our world works and how we should treat
each other. The stories are usually set in times long ago, before history as we know it was
written.
People have always asked questions like “How did our world come to be?” or “Why do
tornadoes happen?”Some myths answered these questions.
In other myths, gods or “super-beings” used their powers to make
events happen. Or the stories were the adventures of gods, goddesses,
men and women.
These myths described the big things that happened to people and the
choices they made. They might be about triumph (achieving something),
tragedy (losing something), honour (doing the right thing), being brave
even when you are frightened, or being foolish and making mistakes.
People might be heroes in these stories and gods and goddesses could
use their powers to help them or make things more difficult for them.
Around the world, myths were shared by groups of people and became part of their culture.
Storytellers have passed the stories on from generation to generation and through families.
Some myths are told in many cultures, but with variations in the events or characters. For
example, most cultures, tribes or groups of people have their version of how our world came
to be.
For early people, myths were like science because they explained how natural events work.
Today we don‟t always know if myths are true or not. Some of the stories or characters may
seem impossible, and science gives us different explanations for some of our questions. But
people all over the world still like to read myths and we all like to think about what they might

5. mean.
“Myth” comes from the Greek word “mythos” which means “word of mouth”.
LEGENDS
Legends are also stories that have been made up, but they are different
from myths. Myths answer questions about how the natural world works,
and are set in a time long-ago, before history was written.
Legends are about people and their actions or deeds. The people lived in
more recent times and are mentioned in history. The stories are told for a
purpose and are based on facts, but they are not completely true.
Either the person never really did what the story says, or the historical
events were changed. The purpose was to make the story more interesting or convincing, or
to teach a lesson, like knowing right from wrong.
Examples of people in English legends are King Arthur, Robin Hood and Queen Boadicea. A
man who may have been King Arthur is known to have lived in the 5th or 6th century. But the
stories about the Knights of the Round Table and Merlin the Magician may not be true. The
point of the story was that the knights and their king defended their people and helped them.
The character and deeds of Robin Hood may have been based on someone else. Robin of
Loxley lived in Nottinghamshire around the time of the story, and he did help the poor. But did
he live in Nottingham forest with a band of robbers? Probably not, but helping other people is
important and the legend hasn‟t been forgotten.
Boadicea was first female queen in Britain. History tells us she lived in the 1st century and led
her people in their fight against the Romans when they invaded. The Romans won and
conquered Britain. Boadicea was captured and died in prison, but legends say that she
escaped and fought on. This story was intended to encourage people in countries invaded by
the Romans, to resist and fight.
Like myths, legends are passed down from generation to generation.
How we use the word 'legend' today
Today people use the word„legend‟ in a different way when they talk about people and their
deeds. They may describe a basketball player, football player or runner as a “sporting
legend”, or an actor as a “film legend”. What they mean is the person is famous because of
their skills or things they have done. This is similar to the earlier use of the word, and the
legend stories.
FABLES
A fable is another type of story, also passed down from generation to
generation and told to teach a lesson about something.
Fables are about animals that can talk and act like people, or plants or
forces of nature like thunder or wind. The plants may be able to move and
also talk and the natural forces cause things to happen in the story

6. because of their strength.
The most famous fables were written by a man called Aesop. We know them as Aesop‟s
Fables, and he wrote more than 600 of them.
FOLK AND FAIRY STORIES
Folk and fairy tales are stories written specially for children, often about
magical characters such as elves, fairies, goblins and giants. Sometimes the
characters are animals.
Hans Christian Andersen is famous for writing fairy tales. He was born in
Denmark in 1805. Examples of his stories are “The Little Mermaid”,
“Thumbelina” and “The Red Shoes”.
In Copenhagen there is a statue of the little mermaid, sitting on a rock on the beach at the
harbour, in memory of the writer.
Jakob and Wilhelm Grimm were brothers, born in Germany in 1785 and 1786. They are
famous because they collected together many old fairy tales from different parts of Germany
and wrote them down for people to read. We know them as the Brothers Grimm and their
collection includes “Cinderella” and “The Frog Prince”.
Note! Fairy Tales often involve “magic”whereas Folk Tales may not.
What are Myths, Legends, Fables, Folk and Fairy Tales
Read the description of myths, legends, fables, folk and fairy tales above and fill out the table
below.
Time Type of Intended Include Purpose
Period Characters audience Magic? of the
Story
Myths
Red
Legends
Blue
Fables
Yellow

7. Folk Tales
Light Green
Fairy Tales
Green
On your matrix outline in the correct color the stories you read based on the descriptions
above.
Sign in|ReportAbuse|PrintPage|RemoveAccess|Powered ByGoogle Sites
https://sites.google.com/a/ismonterey.org/sixth-grade-mrs-shephard/what-is-a-myth-legend-fable-folk-
tale-or-fairy-tale
Venn diagram comparing all legends, folk tales, and ballads (Using Kidspiration or some other
program)
Wordle using descriptive words for each genre (or some other technology)
Divide the class into regions of the US (depending on number of students) and do research on the
states in the region and include ballads, folk tales, and legends. (Each person in a region will choose
one state to research. They will make a brochure, either using Microsoft publisher or doing their
own). The brochure will be used for persuasive writing component. The brochure will have a section
about the region including ballads, folktales, and legends and then a section featuring each state in
the region.
Choose to write a ballad, folk tale, or legend. Rubric for each-must have all the components

8. The Fifty States
1. What is the name of the state?
2. What is the region?
3. What is the capital of this state?
4. What are the state bird, state flower, and state tree?
5. Are there any national parks or monuments and if so what are
they and where are they?
6. What are at least 2 other things you would like others to know
about this state?

9. My Own Tall Tale
1. Plan
a. Characters- Decide on your main character or
characters. Think about what makes them fit into
a tall tale. Describe them using colorful
language.
b. Plot- What is going to happen in your story that
is exaggerated or superhuman? How does this
begin? What happens next? How will your tall
tale end?
2. Wrtie
Use your plan as a guide as you write your tall
tale. Make sure you read it aloud to a partner.
Make any changes. Make sure you edit your work for
capital letters, punctuation, and spelling.
3. Share
Read aloud to your classmates!