Tuesday, March 1, 2016

4th Grade - Folk Monsters

I love this project.  It's so much fun from beginning to end, and the ideas the 4th graders come up with are unique, creative, and often hilarious.

I first introduce the kids to a handful of monsters from ancient japanese folk tales.  These monsters have a variety of functions in the stories:  some explain some science about the world (earthquakes or monsoons), some teach a valuable lesson (take care of your shoes, clean your bathroom), and some are just plain strange (one monster creeps around and cuts your hair for no apparent reason).  After the introduction, the fourth graders are free to come up with their own monster, and, in their picture, give clues about what the monster does.  See if you can guess in the pictures below.