The Talking Eggs
A folktale from the American South
Author: San Souci, Robert D.
Illustrator: Pinkney, Jerry
Grade Level: k- 3
Lexile Level: 870
Genre: Folk Tale
ISBN: 9780803706194
Awards: Caldecott Honor Book (1989)
Summary:
A
Southern folktale in which kind Blanche, following the instructions of
an old witch, gains riches, while her greedy sister makes fun of the old
woman and is accordingly rewarded.
The Talking Eggs
is adapted from a Creole folktale from the American South. Many believe
it came from French settlers long ago. It is a counterfeit of
Cinderella story in a similar way it rewards humbleness and hard work. I
also liked the multiple idioms and expressions that were present
throughout the story, like “the tail end of bad luck” and “didn’t know
beans from bird’s eggs”. The story is told in old fashioned English,
using expressions such as “don’t be so contrary” and “spirit of do right
in your soul”.
This
book doesn’t have a prince in it, like most Cinderella stories do, so
that was a big difference: a little of feminism, I guess. The Common Sense Media review gave 4 out of 5 stars for this folktale with a comment: A lesson in humanity laced with humor and magic.
In
the beginning of a story, there is a mother and her two daughters. I
was surprised that it wasn’t the stepmom but actually mom who was mean
to her daughter, which was unusual. The two daughters’ names were Rose
and Blanche. Blanche is a kind hearted one who was made to do all the
work around the house. Rose was the mean one who would sit all day with
her mom on the porch talking about getting rich. Needless to say, Rose
was mother’s favorite.
One
day when Blanche was sent to fetch some water for the family, she meets
an old woman who asked her for a drink since she was very thirsty.
Being as kind as she was, Blanche gave the old woman some water, then
filled her own bucket and headed home. When she got there, the mother
scolded her for taking so long and for water being hot, not cold. (Read the passage)
the mother and Rose hit Blanche, so she runs off into the woods for
fear of further torment. That’s where she met the same old woman again.
The woman listened to her and told her that she can come live with her,
but promise not to laugh at anything she sees, no matter how strange it
might be. Blanche gladly promised she will not laugh and the old woman
took her to her house.
The
first thing Blanche saw at the woman’s house was a two headed cow that
brayed like a mule, then colorful chickens who hopped on three legs and
whistled like mockingbirds, rabbits dancing in party clothes and the
strangest thing: the old woman can take off her own head and put it back
on after braiding it! But Blanche kept her promise through all those
happenings and did not laugh. She also was very helpful to the woman at
making supper and milking her cow. The next day, when Blanche was
supposed to leave for home, the old woman decided to reward her. She
told her to go to the barn and collect some eggs for herself. The
interesting thing about the eggs is that they could talk. Blanche was
instructed to take only the ones that screamed: “Take me!” And leave
alone the ones that screamed “Don’t take me!” Being an obedient girl,
Blanche did as she was told and on her way back home, tossed the eggs
over her left shoulder, just like the old woman instructed her. She
ended up with a lot of jewels, diamonds, rubies, gold and silver coins
and even a grand chariot driven by a brown and white pony.
When
Blanche’s mom and sister saw her with all the riches, they became
jealous and asked her where she got it all. When Blanche was asleep, the
mother told Rose to go find the same woman and bring more riches, so
they can chase off Blanche and live happily and richly. Reluctantly,
Rose agreed to go to the woods to find the woman. She soon saw her and
inquired about her sister and all the nice things that she wants to get
as well. The old woman told her the same instructions as Blanche and
Rose promised not to laugh. But as soon as she saw all those strange
things at the old woman’s house, she laughed and laughed. She was also
disrespectful to the old woman and even didn’t want to get her head back
to her when the old woman took it off. When it was her time to go home,
she picked the eggs that cried” Don’t take me!” because she was greedy.
On her way back home, when she started tossing them over her right
shoulder, there came out snakes, toads, wasps and even a wolf and all of
them were chasing her all the way to the house. When her mother saw
her, she tried to chase off the creatures wouldn’t be chased off. So
Rose and her mother fled to the woods and later came back very tired,
with dirty and torn clothes, only to find out Blanche has moved to the
city and lived a rich and happy life.
Lesson for 3rd grade
Standards:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.1
Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons.
Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.2.B
Develop the topic with facts, definitions, and details.
Develop the topic with facts, definitions, and details.
Goal: The students will be working on reading comprehension and expressing opinions.
Objectives:
- Given the book, and the ready-made paper flaps, the students will write and illustrate the appropriate information for each character of the book.
- Students will express their own opinions on the actions of each character, in a form of a letter to each character, commenting on their actions. Students will use complete sentences and polite demeanor.
Outcomes: students will be able to express their opinions in a polite, cohesive manner.
Activity:
Before class:
Create four-door books by folding a sheet of paper in half “hamburger"
(width) style. Open the paper and fold each side to the center to make
two flaps. Cut each one in thirds to make six flaps.
During class: On the top two flaps, students should write, “Who Am I?"
Under the left-hand flap, they write Blanche’s name and, using the web
created earlier, list several character traits associated with the girl.
They also add supporting evidence from the story to “prove" their
assertion. Under the right flap, they do the same to describe Rose.
Students now label the middle two flaps, “What Happened Before I Got the Eggs?"
Under the left flap, they write and illustrate what happened when
Blanche went to the house, while the right gets the same about when Rose
was there.
Finally, the students write, “What Happened After I Got the Eggs?"
on the last two flaps. They write and illustrate what happened when
Blanche and Rose broke the talking eggs they took from the hen house.
Follow up:
Ask the students to write a letter to each of the sisters and their
mom, explaining how they feel about each of their actions. Extend the
writing experience by allowing them to tell what they would have done if
offered magic, talking eggs.
Works Cited
San Souci, Robert D. The Talking Eggs. Dial Books for Young Readers: New York. 1989. Print.
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