Lesson Plan - Cinderella

RATIONALE: This is important because this unit shows the different important elements of short stories.

OBJECTIVE:

·             To understand Freytag’s Pyramid

CONTENT:

·         Worksheets

·         Youtube clip of Cinderella

STATE STANDARDS:

·         State goal 2.A.5a (analyze complex literary devices)

·         State goal 2.B.5b (apply knowledge gained as means of understanding)

CONTENT OUTLINE:

·         Dramatic Structure/ Freytag’s Pyramid with Activity from Cinderella

·         (Exposition:

Initial incident:

Rising action:
Climax
Falling action
Denouement.)

INSTRUCTIONAL ACTIVITIES:

·         Ask if anybody in the class can tell you what each of the parts of the dramatic structure means.

 Freytag's Pyramid: The Breakdown

1. Exposition: setting the scene. The writer introduces the characters and setting, providing description and background.

2. Inciting Incident: something happens to begin the action. A single event usually signals the beginning of the main conflict. The inciting incident is sometimes called 'the complication'.

3. Rising Action: the story builds and gets more exciting.

4. Climax: the moment of greatest tension in a story. This is often the most exciting event. It is the event that the rising action builds up to and that the falling action follows.

5. Falling Action: events happen as a result of the climax and we know that the story will soon end.

6. Resolution: the character solves the main problem/conflict or someone solves it for him or her.

7. Dénouement: (a French term, pronounced: day-noo-moh) the ending. At this point, any remaining secrets, questions or mysteries which remain after the resolution are solved by the characters or explained by the author. Sometimes the author leaves us to think about the THEME or future possibilities for the characters. You can think of the dénouement as the opposite of the exposition: instead of getting ready to tell us the story by introducing the setting and characters, the author is getting ready to end it with a final explanation of what actually happened and how the characters think or feel about it. This can be the most difficult part of the plot to identify, as it is often very closely tied to the resolution.

*Discuss answers and make sure students understand what each part is. Make it known that sometimes these are arguable and there might be multiple different parts. (10 minutes)

·         Watch the Cinderella trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbqSEbALYno, then introduce the non-Disney, Grimm Brother’s version. (3 minutes)

·         Students will silently read the Grimm Brother version of Cinderella (10 minutes)

·         Students will be broken into groups to discuss and fill out a Freytag Pyramid diagram on Cinderella (10-15 minutes) (everyone one has to fill it out- will be helpful with possible homework)

·         Discussion as a class on what everyone came up with

·         (Exposition: Cinderella’s mother died and she lives with her Father, Stepmother and Stepsisters

Inciting incident: the King appointed a festival which was to last three days, and to which all the beautiful young girls in the country were invited, in order that his son might choose himself a bride Rising action: no matter what Cinderella does, she is still unable to go to the ball (even after she picked out the lentils that her stepmother told her both times within the time allotted). (OR that Cinderella keeps running away from the Prince at the close of the festival each day)
Climax: The prince fell in love with Cinderella at the festival and the third day of the festival she escapes again (but the prince rigged the staircase) leaving behind one golden slipper (OR the climax can be when the prince finds that the golden shoe actually fits Cinderella’s feet)
Falling action: the prince’s men goes door to door looking for who fits the glass slipper and (to her family’s dismay) they find out that the owner of the glass slipper is Cinderella (even after a few toes and heels are cut off in order to make the stepsister’s feet fit into the shoe.) (OR the falling action could actually be the wedding between the Prince and Cinderella)
Denouement: The stepsister’s eyes were picked out by pigeons…and the Prince and Cinderella live happily ever after. (10-15)

Homework:

(possibly- this is what I found online)

Freytag’s Pyramid Lesson

The LessonFor homework, I want you to watch one of your favorite television shows. That’s right, for homework you’re to watch TV! But there’s a catch (there always is)…you must also chart the key events that create the plot of the show.

Step 1
Answer the following questions (you may wish to do this as you watch the show):
1.) What did the author need to explain to viewers in the exposition section? What background information was given for this show?

2.) What inciting event causes the action to begin to “rise”?

3.) Where does the story peak? Is there a clear climax?

4.) Which events lead up to the conclusion?

5.) How is the story resolved?

Step 2
Fill in the Plot Diagram (as we did in class)