TEACHING DIVERSITY AND TOLERANCE

IN THE CLASSROOM:

A THEMATIC STORYBOOK APPROACH

GuoFANG W A N , P H . D .
Associate Professor of Education
Dept. of Teacher Education
College of Education
Ohio University

This paper addresses the issue of diversity and tolerance in the

classroom hy using multicultural chiidren's literature with a the-
matic approach. With a review of the related studies on the topic,
it point.s out that the understanding, respect and appreciation of
various cultures are imperative for us to live peacefully as glob-
al citizens, and the importance of addressing tolerance and
diiferences in our schools. Since literature is a great resource for
us to study our various cultures, the article shows classroom
teachers how one specific model, the thematic approach, can be
used to enhance children's awareness of diversity and allow them
to see there are more similarities than differences among cul-
tures.

Multicultural Globe and Literature beliefs, values, behaviors, customs and tra-
Many Americans believe racial dispar- ditions becomes one important step for us
ities are a major problem in the nation to take towards peace atid harmony in the
(Whyy. 2000). Since our society is made world.
up with various cultures, religions, and eth- From the current terrorist activities,
nic groups, it is bound to be diverse and racial conflicts and gender differences to
multicultural. As globalization has sped schoolyard bullies, most of them arise
up by the fast growing technology, the because of misunderstandings and intol-
understanding, tolerance, respect and erance of differences and diversities atnong
appreciation of each other's culture become people. Thus, our global community in
an imperative for us to live peacefully as general and educators in particular are
global citizens. faced with the task of preparing the young-
Everyone has a culture and cultures are sters to live in today's diverse global
leamed. shared and adapted. Culture is a community with each other harmonious-
way of perceiving, believing, evaluating ly, successfully and productively. Our
and behaving (Goodnough, 1987). Culture classroom teachers, administrators of
is so much part of us that we do not real- schools, professional developtnent staff
ize that not everyone shares our culture, and teacher training institutions are faced
its attributes, or its manifestations. Thus, with the overwhelming challenges of work-
leaming about other cultures with their ing with students from extremely diverse

140
 Teaching Diversity.../141

cultural backgrounds. In multicultural dren's books have the potential to support

countries such as the Unites States, both diversity in the curriculum and raise con-
students and faculty populations in schools sciousness on cultural issues that are
are getting more and more diverse. Thus. ignored in schools (Harris, 1991; Reese,
it is even more important for us to under- 1996; Tatum. 1997). Sharing children's
stand, accept and appreciate each other in books with students can provide opportu-
school settings as well as in society. nities to make explicit and call into question
To face and meet the challenge and the traditional, prevailing beliefs and views
demand of enhancing teachers' and stu- people hold of themselves and of others.
dents' awareness of diversity, we need to In 1998. Abound proposed, after con-
develop programs with multicultural com- ducting a study, that the attitudes of
ponents. Literature is the essence of children towards diversity tend to remain
communication. Through it, we share our the same unless they are somehow altered
opinions, values, experiences, and what through life-changing events. Wham, Barn-
tnakes us happy and sad. We share the most hart, and Cook (1996) reaffirmed Aboud's
personal aspects of our culture and the (1998) findings and in addition found that
ways in which we identify with a particu- children in kindergarten, second and fourth
Uu'ethnicity, geographical region, religion, grades, who were exposed to tnulticultur-
or other cultural groups. Thus. literature al storybook reading in addition to school
becomes a great resource for us to study and home reading programs, seemed to
our various cultures. The study of literature develop the most positive attitudes towards
allows us to see that people of different ditferences.
cultures are more similar than different Cai and Sims-Bishop (1994) explained
from each other. that the term multicultural literature implies
Also the Advisory Board (Whyy. 2000) a goal to challenge the existing canon by
for "The President's Initiative on Race" expanding the curriculutn to include liter-
developed a list of actions to take that could ature by and about members of a wide
increase the momentutn toward making variety of cultural groups. This could com-
"One America." The ftrst action suggest- bat intolerance and foster a sense of
ed by the Advisory Board includes the use inclusion, possibly changing education and
of literature, "Make a commitment to classroom instruction. In these ways, chil-
become infortned about people from other dren's books potentially serve whatTakaki
races and cultures. Read a book, see a (1999) saw as the intentions of multicul-
movie, watch a play, or attend a cultural tural scholars to engender a pluralistic
event that will inform you and your fami- society in which all people aim to under-
ly about the history and current lives ofa stand and respect one another's cultures
group different than your own" (Whyy. while recognizing the shared histories and
2000). experiences that unite us. What makes a
book "multicultural" depends largely on
Related Studies how it is used with children and perceived
Perini (2002) stresses multicultural chil- by children - two conditions that teachere
142/Education Vol. 127 No. 1

are in a position to influence, why and how each culture behaves,

Mathis (2001) presented a study which believes or does certain things. We hope
discussed the important roles of teachers children will realize that differences among
of multicultural literature, the purpose of people are only skin deep and we iire more
a literature discussion group and ways for similar than different from each other.
teachers to encourage critical thinking and The model suggested here involves
reading of multicultural literature in the using children's storybooks with common
classroom. Educators' insights and under- themes to address differences and simi-
standings of different ethnic groups have larities among people and cultures. Books
been greatly enhanced by exploring the from different cultures, which represent
richly authentic multicultural literature for the same themes, can be used together to
children. teach diversity to children. The consider-
The reviewed studies show that reading ations about using thematic approach may
multicultural storybooks to children does include the selection of themes, selection
significantly improve their tolerance for of reading materials and procedures of
differences and development of positive teaching.
attitudes towards our diverse culture. Mul-
ticultural literature tends to foster more • Selection of Themes:
positive self-perception and more positive Themes relevant to all human being
view of schools, which allow better edu- experiences, no matter what cultures, such
cation and more employment opportunities as family traditions, major holiday cele-
for children. These studies also emphasize brations, religious ceremonies, nursery
the responsibility placed on educators to rhymes, folktales, emotions that people
make multicultural education an essential share and ways of life, will work well for
ingredient of every classroom and also the purpose. Teachers may select a theme
point out the importance of professional first, and then collect books from several
development for teachers on how to address different cultures that deal with the same
diversity issues with children's literature. topic to analyze, compare and contrast.
The current study will provide teachers — Books about family traditions and
with ideas on a thematic approach of using beliefs such as wedding ceremony, birth-
children's storybooks to teach multicul- days, welcome of new babies (baby
tural education in the classroom. shower), family gatherings, work ethics
and respect of elderly, etc. can be used to
The Thematic Approach teach about cultural specific practices on
Over the years, the author has been these occasions and subjects.
using multicultural storybooks to teach — Books depicting major holiday cele-
children about diverse cultures and help brations such as Chinese New Year,
them understand the differences and sim- Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving for Amer-
ilarities among cultures. Multicultural icans, National Days, Hanukkah with
storybooks are used to enhance children's candle lighting for Jewish, Deepavali, or
self-esteem, and to help them understand Festival of Light for Hindu Indians, and
 Teaching Diversity.../143

Hari Raya Puasa for Muslim Malays are vicariously or directly obtain new cultur-
all good resources to study traditions, cus- al knowledge and increase understanding.
toms, and cultures. — The materials should allow students
— Books aboul emotions or ways of life to learn to appreciate and accept cultures
such as loss of loved ones or pets, school other than their own. The descriptions of
life, children's responsibilities at home, cultures should be positive, non-stereo-
friendship, and growing up. etc. are good typical, and authentic.
choices for thematic approach. — The illustrations in the books should
— Nursery rhymes from different cul- reflect authentic portrayals of physical fea-
tures that share similar themes such as tures of people and depict details of
lullabies, skipping songs, and tongue cultures.
twisters are all good choices for cultural -- The materials should also provide
studies. possibilities for students to do hands-on
— Folklore lends itself best to the study activities or projects, such as building nuxi-
of cultures because it has its roots in, orig- els, cooking food, making costumes,
inates from, and depicts culture. There are drawing or painting, dramatization, cre-
many folktales that share common themes. ative writing, character analysis, etc.
For example. Little Red Riding Hood has
many cultural variations. Snow-white has • Guideline for Thematic Approach:
more than 100 different versions, and Cin- After careful selections of themes and
derella is the same. materials, it is time to start teaching and
reading.
• Criteria for Book Selection: — First, teachers need to motivate stu-
Once the theme is selected, it is time to dents with introductory activities. If
collect books. To ensure desired results of learning cultures from holiday celebra-
sludy, the criteria listed below should be tions, you may start by inviting students to
bom in mind when selecting reading mate- share experiences of family celebrations,
rials for children. traditions, foods, etc. You may also ask
— First, books chosen should have lit- students to bring from home dresses they
erary merit—a poorly written novel with wear for their major holidays to class to
stereotyped characters and simplistic share.
answers to complex questions is probably — After the introductory activity, pro-
worse than not reading anything at all and vide ample time lor reading. Reading can
can even leave children or young people be done as a class, in small groups, or as
with a negative view of literature. individuals.
-- Reading materials should be age- — Allow incubation time, Provide mate-
appropriate, and up-to-date in information. rials, strategies that help with reading
— Books should create a lot of possi- comprehension to students to work on
bilities for class or group discussions. while reading. Strategies such as Story-
— Books should contain enough cul- maps, or Venn Diagram can be used for
tural elements to enable students to comparing and contrasting the ways of
144/Education Vol. 127 No. 1

dealing with the same theme by different 1993.

cultures. For examples of Story-map and It is a familiar version. Cinderella is
Venn Diagram, please see Appedix 1 and helped by a fairy godmother and
Appendix 2. wins the heart of the prince.
— Provide follow-up discussion time.
Ask questions that will lead students from The Golden Slipper, retold by Darrell
literal recall of information to interpreta- Lum and illustrated by Makiko Nagano.
tion, application, analysis, synthesis, and Troll Associates, 1994.
evaluation of information. Compare how This is a Vietnamese legend.
different cultures deal with the same situ-
ations. Talk about the similarities and The Korean Cinderella, by Shirley
differences. Climo and illustrated by Ruth Heller.
— Follow up with extended activities, HarperCollins, 1993.
such as further re.search on the theme to In Korea, Pear Blossom, with the
find out more about it, or write a poem help of three magical animals,
about the theme or conduct culture study. accomplishes three tasks that no
human could possibly do alone and
Demonstration of Using Thematic attends the festival and becomes a
Approach nobleman's wife.
The example presented here shows
how the thematic approach can be used Lily and the Wooden Bowl, by Alan
in teaching diversity and tolerance in the Schroeder and illustrated by Yoriko Ito.
classroom. The theme chosen is Cinderella Bantam Doubleday Dell Books, 1994.
from different cultures. The rationale for This is a Japanese Cinderella story.
using Cinderella is tbat there is a Cinderella Lily's grandmother placed a lac-
tale or story in almost every culture. As a quered bowl on her head before her
matter of fact, it is believed that there are death and made Lily promise never
347 known versions of this popular story to remove it. True love from her
(Polette, 1997). Learning about cultures groom releases the bowl from Lily's
and customs of nations throughout the head and reveals the beauty and rich-
world can be exciting when using Cin- es.
derella tales selected from various countries
as a starting point. Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters. Written
• Theme: Cinderella Stories and illustrated by John Steptoe. Scholas-
• Reading Material Selection: Eight tic, 1987.
Cinderella stories are recommended and This is an African story. Mufaro and
listed here with short summaries. Among his two beautiful daughters live in a
them are versions of African. Native Amer- small African viilage. Nyasha is car-
ican. Chinese. English. Japanese, Korean, ing and agreeable while Manyara is
Hawaii and Vietnamese. disagreeable, selfish and demand-
Cinderella by John Patience. Landoll ing. When the king wants to choose
 Teaching Diversity.../145

a wife, the girls go to see him. virtual tour to these countries. Ask stu-
dents if they know anything about the
The Rough-Face Girl by Rate Martin. cultures.
Illustrated by David Shannon. Putnam's,
1992. Teacber read aloud Cinderella by John
This is an Algonquin Indian folk- Patience to students. Pass out copies of
lore. To tiiany the powertui Invisible story-map to students to work on while
Being, women have to be able to see read the story the second lime. For an
him and describe him. Rough-Face example of Story-map for Yeh-Shen. a Cin-
Girl proves to be able to see him and derella Story from China, please see
describe his bow and arrows. Appendix 1.
To work on the Story-map, encourage
Yeb-Shen: A Cinderella Story from students to think about:
China, retold by Ai-Ling Louie and illus- • CHARACTERS: Wbat are their
trated by EdYoung. Philomel Books, 1982. names? How old are they? Who are girls
Yeh-Shen lives in southem China. and who are boys? Who are the main char-
Her oniy friend is a fish, whose spir- acters and who are the supporting
it dresses her for the festival with characters?
golden slippers. • SETTING: Where does the story take
place? Which year? What time of the
Sumorella: A Hawaii Cinderella Story, year? What season? What time of day?
by Sandi Takayama. Illustrated by Esther What else can you tell about the where and
Szegedy. The Bess Press, 1997. when ofthe story?
Mango boy lives on the islands of • PROBLEM: What events or problems
Hawaii with his parents and two big happen in the story to make it interesting
brothers, and dreams of becoming a to readers?
sumo (Japanese sport) champion. • RESOLUTION: How are the events
Wbile his brothers go off to sumo or problems solved in the story? Does the
practice, he has to pick. peel, and story end "Happily Ever After"? If it does,
slice mangoes. He proves himself how does that happen?
eventually with the help of a mana- • LESSONS: What is the message to
pua (Hawaii snack) man, his fairy the listener about life? Does the story end
godfather. This is a Cinderella story "Happily Ever After"? If it does, how and
with a Hawaii twist. why does that happen?
Is there a Good versus Bad lesson?
• Procedures ofthe Approach: What is it?
1. Introductory activity: Teacher may 2. Ask students to break into small groups
show a video depicting the cultures or and each group works on one of the
countries under study; or show some Cinderella variations: The Golden Slip-
pictures or postcards of the people or per, retold by Darrell Lum. The Korean
cultures; or take students on an intemet Cinderella, by Shirley Climo, Lily and
146/Education Voi. 127 No. 1

lhe Wooden Bowl, by Alan Schroeder, 4. Students remain in small groups. Pass
The Rough-Face Girl, by Rafe Martin. out posters of Venn Diagram to stu-
Yeh-Shen: A Cinderella Story frotn dents. Ask them to compare and contrast
China, by Ai-Ling Louie. Mufaro's the first Cinderella story they heard with
Beautiful Daughters, by John Steptoe. the second one they read in small
and Suttiorelki: A Hawaii Cinderella groups. Take notes and fill in the Venn
Story, by Sandi Takayama. Diagrams with the differences and sim-
ilarities of the two Cinderella stories.
3. Ask each group of students to prepare Pay special attention to:
a book talk or a reader's theatre script
on their story and share it with the rest • The setting, the place, the time, the
of the class. Here is an example of a homes, the traditions, and the customs,
book talk. • The main Cinder character, clothes,
The Rough-Face Girl: In a wigwam appearance, and personality.
hy the shores of Lake Ontario lived • The Cinder character's job in the story
a rich, powerful Invisible Being. All (the role in the family or village),
of the young women wanted to • Who are the other characters in the
marry him because he was suppos- story?
edly very powerful and handsome. • How is the Cinder character treated by
But to marry the Invisible Being the other people, other animals, or outsiders?
women had to prove to his sister that • Is magic involved? Who helps the Cin-
they had seen him by describing how der character?
he looked like. Everyone failed to • How does the story end?
see that his bow and arrows formed Complete and hang the Venn Diagrams
a rainbow and his sled runners made (Appendix 2) up in the classroom for every-
up the Milky Way. one to see.
Until one day the ugly Rough-Face 5. Class discussion on cultural elements
Girl with scars and burns, and they notice from the variations of Cin-
charred hair from working by the derella stories. Ask questions such as:
fire appeared. Could she succeed
where her beautiful, cruel sisters had • What cultural specific information do
failed? They had costly clothes while you get from the story?
she could adorn herself only in bro- • What do you learn about Chinese/
ken shells, tree bark and cracked Japanese/ Korean/ Vietnamese/ Native
moccasins. American/African cultures from the sto-
The Rough-Face GirL a Native ries?
American Cinderella story told by • In what ways is your story like Cin-
several tribes ofthe Northeast, is one derella by John Patience?
of the most haunting and powerful • In what ways is your story different
versions ofthe Cinderella tale ever from Citiderella by John Patience?
told. • Think about "Are various cultures
 Teaching Diversity.../147

more different or more similar as human Intemet and any books as references. Write
beings?" a sbort report and share with the class. The
' Anything else about the culture in your report may include information on:
story that interests you and you still want
to know? • A brief description of the country -
area, population, capital, crops and major
E.g. Cultural Elements Found in Korean products and industries.
Cinderella by Climo: • Traditions, costumes and major holi-
— Food important for the culture: rice days celebrated.
growing, dried fish, and pickled cabbage. • Interesting facts about the culture, peo-
— Common magical creatures - ani- ple and country (e.g. Japanese in Hawaii
mals such as frog, sparrows and ox. and World War II).
— Dress: father wears a horsehair hat. • A typical day for a child living in the
a symbol of Korean gentleman. Women country or a day in the life of a real
wear Hanbok. a traditional women's dress princess.
with 2 pieces. A skirt tied high underarms • Famous places, buildings, construc-
by long ribbons and a short jacket. No but- tions in the country (e.g. Great Wall,
tons or hooks are used in dress. Buckingham Palace, famous castle in Eng-
-Straw sandals for poor girls and silk land).
slippers for the rich. • Things people enjoy doing in the coun-
— Wedding ducks are symbols of fideli- try or region (e.g. traditional musical
ty- instmments, and sumo).
— Nobleman sits in palanquin as vehi- • A typical meal for the people (e.g.
cle. It is a wooden chair with bars carried Korean meal or Japanese meal).
by 4 men. • Animals found in the land (e.g. giant
— White ribbon attached to performers' panda, dolphins, and sea turtles).
hats. In traditional fanner dance, when men • Living in the country (e.g. the Algo-
toss their heads, ribbons will flow in pat- nquin Indian village/African village).
tems. • How something cultural specific and
— Illustration: with pattems and designs interesting (e.g. Moccasins, bamboo reads
inspired by "Tanchong" which symbolizes fumiture, or pickled mangoes) is made?
good luck, protection and cycle of rein-
camation. It is often painted on eaves of Examples of descriptions of countries:
Korean temples.
Korea
6. Extension activities: country and cul- Korea is a peninsula that juts out into
ture study activity. the Sea of Japan. Since the Korean War of
Ask students lo work as small groups 1953. the peninsula is now two countries.
to conduct country research, the setting of North Korea and South Korea. Many Kore-
their stories. They may use the library, the ans still live as their ancestors lived
148/Education Vol. 127 No. 1

hundreds of years ago. They live in small Mark the map with the titles ofthe Cin-
houses with thatched roofs and farm the derella stories at the locations of the
land with cmde tools. Four out of five Kore- countries of origin. Also, add the names
ans are farmers. They grow rice as their ofthe country and the main characters.
main crop Hang the map up in the classroom when
finished.
China
China is the largest country in eastern 8. Ask students to think about why there
Asia. More than one fifth of all the people are so many variations of Cinderella in
in the world live in china. China has 56 the world; what are the origins of folk-
ethnic groups with Han as the majority. tales with similar themes. Discuss oral
Beijing, the capital of China, is the fman- storytelling and ask which of the theo-
cial and political center of the nation with ries they identify with better:
a population of 9.3 million people. The
Chinese grow many crops including cot- • Travelers and storytellers may have
ton, rice, tea and wheat. They produce taken the stories they heard in other lands
many items including cotton cloth, silk and back to their homes, and then changed
porcelain. One of the nature's gifts to the them a little to fit their own culture.
Chinese people is the bamboo plant, which • Folktales of similar themes have
grows wild in China. The Chinese eat bam- resulted from similar human life experi-
boo sprouts and use bamboo reads to make ence, emotions and feelings with variations
furniture, to build houses and boats, to of cultural differences.
weave sandals and hats. Water buffalo are
common in China and are used to plow Conclusion:
rice paddies. Giant panda live in China. The above model provides teachers with
China has one of the two buildings that some guidelines in addressing multicul-
can be seen from the moon, the Great Wall. tural issues with children's literature in the
In ancient times the Chinese invented print- classroom. Many teachers have attended
ing, gunpowder, paper and compass.... educational preparation programs that
value literature as a significant curriculum
Students may present their research to component for reading. Others completed
the class using any visual aids they prefer, their preparation to teach before tbe pre-
e.g. costumes of the culture under study, sent body of multiculuiral literature existed.
bring food of their culture, bring music, Since it is not the literature alone but the
photos and videos, etc. Teachers may invite experiences created in response to the lit-
parents and students from other classes to erature that determine the power of the
come and celebrate children's work. stories, teachers' participation in a litera-
ture discussion group can intensify their
7. The class makes a Cinderella World reading experiences (Hill. Johnson, Noe,
Map. First, look at a Map of the World. 1998; Short, 1999). Teachers not only need
Then, draw one simplified World Map. to be familiar with literature that provides
 Teaching Diversity.../149

Finazzo, D. (1997). All for the Children: Multi-

cultural insights in the classroom, but also cttltural Essentials of Literature. Albany. N.Y.:
Delmar Publishing (ITP).
need to be able to present texts in mean-
ingful, insightful ways. Such engagement Hatris. V.J. (1991). Multicultural curriculum:
African American children's literature. Young
goes beyond using a book as a reading
Childreiu 46, 37-44.
assignment, when followed by compre-
Hill, B.C., N. J. Johnson, and K.L. Noe, (1998).
hension questions and answers or Literature Circles and Response. Boston:
constmction of predesigned multicultural Christopher-Gordon.
activities. Framing the social-political con- Mathis. J. B. (2001). Respond to stories with sto-
texts of a story by drawing on readers' prior ries: Teachers discuss multiculiural children's'
knowledge, responding through one's own literature. Social Studie.\. Jul/Aug. 92 (4): 155-
161.
experiences, and providing information
about the author's background and pur- McGuire-Raskin, L, (1996). Multiculturalism in
children's picture books: An analysis of insid-
pose are but three important strategies to er vs. outsider texts. Journal of Children's
enhance sharing multicultural literature. It Literature. 22(1): 22-27.
also helps when teachers experience per- Owens. W.T. (2001). An examinaiion of picture
sonal connections themselves to realize story books that teach children about
Appalachia. Southern Social Studies Journal.
the empowering nature of such literature. 27(1): 3-19.
Perini. R.L. (2002). The pearl in the shell: Author's
notes in multicultural children's literalure.
Reference: Reading Teacher. 55(5): 428-432,
Reese, D. (1996). Teaching young children about
Abound. F. (1998). Children and Prejudice. Lon- Native Americans (Report No. EDO-PS-96-3).
don: Basil Blackwell. Champaign. IL: University of Illinois Chil-
Brown D. (1997), C'mderelki Stories. On The Chil- dren's Research Center. (ERIC: No.ED
dren's Literature Web Guide. Available online: 394744).
September 15, 2005. http://www.ucalgary. Short. K.G. (1999). The search for "balance" in a
ca/-dkbrown/index.html literature-rich classroom. Theory into Practice.
38(3):I30-37.
Cai. M. & Sims-Bishop. R. (1994). Multicultural
literature for children: Towards a clarification Sipe, L.R. (2001) A palimpsest of stories: Young
of the concept. In A.H. Dyson& C. Genishi children's construction of intertextual links
(Eds.). The Need for Story: Cultural Diversity among fairytale variants. Reading Research &
in Clas.sroom and Community, (pp.57-71). Instruction. 40(4):333-52.
tJrbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of
English. Strickland. J. (2001). Multicultural literature in
rural schools: A social studies unit thai pro-
Cullinan. B.E. and Galda, L. (2002). Literature motes cultural awareness. Southern Social
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Thomson Leaming.
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Fang, Z,, D. Fu. and L. Lamme. (2000). Rethink- tion with Ronald Takaki. Educational
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Tatum. B.D. (1997). -Why are all the black kids

sitting together in the cafeteria?" and other
conversation about race. New York: Basic
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Wham. M.A.. Barnhart. J. & Cook. G. (1996).
Enhancing multicultural awareness through
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(1), 1-9.
Whyy. RTL (2000). Ten Things You Can Do lo
Promote Racial Harmony. Available online.
September 15, 2005. http://whyy.org/educa-
tion/rtl/RTL. htm l#i dent ity.
 Teaching Diversity.../151

Appendix LStory-map

Main Chataclers

Supporting Characters

Problem

Solution

Lessons for Life

152 / Education Vol. 127 No. 1

Example of Story-Map for Yeh-Shen: a Cinderella

Story from China

Main Characters: Setting:

Yeh-shen Southerti China
The King

Supporting Characters:

Stepmother. Stepsister
An old sage
A fish with golden eyes

Problem:
Yeh-Shen's stepmother kills
Solution: and eat.s her only friend, a
When Yeh-Shen returns home from tish with golden eyes. Yeh-
the festival, the bones are silent. She does not Shen learns that the bones of
realize that at that very moment, the King is her friend contain a powerful
searching for the owner of the slipper. He has spirit. Yeh-Shen wishes for a
vowed that he will not rest until he makes her beautiful garment and golden
his wife. Lives happily ever after. slippers to wear to the
festival. The bones warn her
not to lose the slippers, but in
her haste to hide from her
stepmother, she loses one of
them.

Lesson for Life

Be kind to others.
God rewards and punishes.
 Teaching Diversity.../153

Appendix 2: Venn Diagram

Read and compare the cultural variations nf Cinderella story with the traditional
version using the diagram.

Variation Similarities Traditional version

154/Education Vol. 127 No. 1

Example of Venn Diagram Comparison

Korean Cinderella by Shirley Climo and Cinderetia by John Patience

Korean Cinderella^ Similarities Tradit'l Cinderella

-Father mamed stepmom. -Dressed in rags; -Helped by fairy God

-Omoni tries to get rid of -Beautiful, kind and Mother.
her: dependent on magic -Scrub floor, make bed.
-Boil water and cook -Mistreated by steps dinner, and dress steps.
noodles, dried fish and -Lose one shoe and -Go to Ball in horse
pickled cabbages, weed married by someone drawn ciirriage.
rice paddies and pick - Wear ballroom gown
rice. and glass slippers.
-Helped by magical frog -12 o'clock leave Ball &
sparrows and ox. Prince
-Dressed in Hohbok & - Married by Prince in
straw sandals. Kingdom
-Walk to village Tesiivat
-Meet nobleman in
Palanquin on the way.
-Married by Magistrate
of village