Recommended Website:
National Geographic: Grimm’s Fairy Tales
Don’t let the term “Fairy Tales” fool you into thinking they are just for little kids. The tales collected by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm in the early 19th century are not the same warm, fuzzy, moralistic stories that are spoon-fed to young children today. The Germanic folktales of the Grimm’s were often harsh and cruel. Nevertheless, they fascinated listeners and readers of all ages. At today’s website you can read 12 original Grimm’s tales. The website is set-up in a fun format that allows the visitor to choose a story based on preferred characters and storylines. The stories include:
- The Bremen Town-Musicians (with audio)
- Brother and Sister
- Cinderella (with audio)
- The Frog King (with audio)
- Hansel and Grethel
- Little Briar-Rose
- Little Red-Cap
- Little Snow-White
- Mother Holle
- Rapunzel
- The Seven Ravens (with audio)
- The Wolf and the Seven Little Kids
When you get to the site you will see an introduction. A new page will open with some text — you can go right to the fairy tales by clicking on the words “Tell Me A Story.” A new page opens. You can begin to make your story selections, or click on the icon of a box with a key that says “Open Me” to find a menu that includes:
- About the Grimms – A brief history and timeline of the lives of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
- A Map — Depicts the areas in Europe where the Grimms traveled and collected their stories.
- Resources and Links — Find further information including a site that contains ALL of the Grimm’s Fairy Tales online.
- Kids’ Activity — Print out wonderful illustrations of characters from the stories to create mobiles, popsicle stick puppets, and more.
When you are through reading the fairy tales, you can test your knowledge of not only Grimm’s tales, but those of Hans Christian Anderson and others by taking a challenging test.
It might just serve as a springboard to learn more about fairy tales and the people who wrote them.
