Fairy Tale Friends

As students grow into responsible citizens. they need to realize that the quality of their lives is affected by the quality of the relationships in their lives. This Community Service learning Unit - Fairy Tale Friends - was designed as part of the language Arts, English and Reading, curriculum. Middle School students will work on a Fairy Tale Unit. They will learn characteristics of Fairy Tales and fiction, using strategies of the writing/reading process. and cooperative learning. After the completion of the unit, they will work with elementary students, helping them write Fairy Tales. Part two of their instruction will be life Skills - how to interact with younger students as mentors and academic coaches. The purpose of Fairy Tale Friends is to establish a friend/coach relationship. Too often, because of TV, the fast pace of our society, working parents, etc., young children today feel isolated and alone and do not develop the skill of conversation. They need people in their lives who are role models in on academic and social sense. This Community Service Learning Unit was designed to provide these role models. Although a specific Language Arts skill - writing Fairy Tales - is used as the vehicle to create these relationships, any academic or specialty subject curriculum could be used. This unit was also designed for at-risk Middle school students. However, it could be used with any heterogeneous grouping. Developing quality relationships is not limited to any special group. It is a worthy life-long goal of every individual