Week 14 Reading Diary continued: Brothers Grimm Hunt Unit

This week I decided to read the Brothers Grimm (Hunt) Unit! It was taken from Fairy Tales by the Brothers Grimm.

Bearskin - This is the beauty and the beast story, but just very different. The devil had put him in bearskin after he was not a nice man. He helped a poor father and his daughters did not want him. The youngest daughter gave him a chance. The man turned back into a handsome man and they were married while the other two sisters were left with nothing.

Hans the Hedgehog - It was a boy who was born as half hedgehog and half man. He had a lot of troubles in life but was taken to the kingdom. He was betrothed to the princess and he shed his hedgehog skin. Later on his father learned of his change and they all lived happily ever after in the kingdom. 

Snow-White and Rose-Red - This story of snow white is very different and very interesting. First, she has a sister who is her best friend and a loving mother. They take in this bear that needed warmth. They became friends. The dwarf that lived nearby was not nice at all and would trick the girls. He had actually turned the prince into the bear, which they found out later. Snow white was married to the prince and red-rose to his brother and they lived happily ever after. 

Snow-White and Red-Rose

Week 14 Reading Diary: Brothers Grimm Hunt Unit

This week I decided to read the Brothers Grimm (Hunt) Unit! It was taken from Fairy Tales by the Brothers Grimm.

Hansel and Grethel - The parents tried to get rid of them by bringing them into the forest. Hansel had grabbed white pebbles and threw them to make a trail so that they could find their way back to the house. The second time it happened he couldn't get pebbles but he threw crumbs instead, which the birds ate. They found the witch's house that was made of food. The witch was evil and tried to eat them but they killed the witch and got away. They brought presents from the house back to the father and they all lived happily ever after.

Thumbling - He was a child that was grown as small as a thumb. He would help his father and people found out about him. It was a long journey of tricking others and going through animals to come back home. He is smart, cunning, and just a boy who wants to get back home to his family.

Allerleirauh - It was a girl whose father gave her three beautiful dresses and lots of fur. She ran away from him and ended up working at this other palace. She would go and dance in her pretty dresses during the ball but then return to be the cook and give a gift to the king. This happened three times and on the last time he finally figured out it was her and they were married.

Allerleirauh

Week 13 Tech Tips: Twitter

I actually have a Twitter but I do not use it very often. I like to read others comments more than I like to post myself. Honestly, I think I just keep it around for updates on sports and funny videos. It is a great tool though. You can find out what is happening in the world so easily and it is even possible to directly contact an important figure. It is a way for the public and the people in charge to communicate and receive feedback. Sure, I do not use it as a search tool but it is very helpful. Some people are just hilarious too. The amount of wit and comedic relief that is on Twitter is just amazing. Someone could really spend just hours looking at everything. Technology is crazy these days and I can't even imagine what is coming next in the future. 

Twitter (pixabay)

Week 13 Learning Challenges: Health

This week I decided to work on health for my learning challenge. Recently, I have been studying a ton and have been neglecting a healthy lifestyle. I am not finding myself staying active and getting the amount of activity in one day as I should be. I also have been at the library so much that I have not been able to eat healthy either. I have even been having problems sleeping recently from all the stress that just keeps on building. I decided to take initiative and make time for my health. I made sure that I was eating healthy and if I didn't have time to work out then I would at least take the long walk to wherever I was going instead of the short cut. It has been nice to feel the sun and take a this small kind of break this week. I have been sleeping better and I just feel more rested. We should always pay attention to our health no matter how busy we are in life.

Health (youtube)

Week 13 Growth Mindset: Grow by Watching Others

This past week I have worked on my growth mindset. I have been watching others as my growth mindset approach. I have done this by just watching others and their daily activities. For example, when I walk to class now I put up my phone and observe every one else. You would be amazed at the amount of people that do not use eye contact when walking past a person. I would smile or nod my head and the amount of people that became uncomfortable was amazing. I also watched people study in the library and saw their little habits. I saw one kid who just would stop tapping his finger and another girl who would stretch her arms every twenty or so minutes. I learn people's quirks without even really knowing them. It made me think about if someone were watching me, what would they know about me? It is interesting to think about and I have had a lot of fun with it. It has been a fun growth mindset to try out and it has made me think more about my life as well.

Grow by Watching Others (flickr)

Week 13 Reading Diary continued: Brothers Grimm (LibriVox) Unit

This week I decided to read the Brothers Grimm (LibriVox) Unit! It was taken from Fairy Tales by the Brothers Grimm.

The Queen Bee - The dwarf had two older brothers. The brothers were selfish but the dwarf was kind. In the end he won all of the riddles and battles because all of those who he helped along the way helped him. 

The Twelve Huntsmen - A prince had offered this woman his hand in marriage but then left to see his dying father. He promised to marry this other woman for his father. The first woman and 12 other women disguised as men became the king's huntsmen. They had tests given to them and they passed. She fainted, however, when the new bride was to come. The king realized his mistake and told the other one to leave for he already had a wife. 

Jorinda and Jorindel - They were in love but she was turned into a nightingale by the witch. He had his flower and picked the right one to turn her back into a woman. He also changed back all the other birds. 

The Fox and the Horse - This old horse was cast away from his owner because he wasn't useful anymore. The fox tricked the lion into laying still so that the horse could drag him back to the owner. The owner was pleased and kept him there until he died. 

The Twelve Dancing Princesses - The princesses would dance all night and the king wanted to know where. One came and didn't drink the wine and had an invisible cloak and watched the princesses for three nights. He then told the king and chose the eldest as his wife. 

The Turnip - There was a poor brother and a rich brother. The poor brother grew turnips and one grew to be enormous. He gave it to the king as a sign of respect and was given riches in return. The rich brother was jealous and tried to kill his brother. Then there was something with him being in a sack in a tree.

The Willow-Wren and the Bear - The bear mistreated and insulted the children of the wren king and queen. They started a war and cheated against the bear's army. Then the bear had to go apologize in the end. 

Week 13 Reading Diary: Brothers Grimm (LibriVox) Unit

This week I decided to read the Brothers Grimm (LibriVox) Unit! It was taken from Fairy Tales by the Brothers Grimm.

The Frog Prince - The girl lost her golden ball. The frog got it for her only if he could sleep and eat from her plate for three nights. They did so and then she awoke to him being a handsome prince. It was a curse cast upon him and now it was broken.

Rapunzel - She was born and taken by an enchantress. She lived in this tower and would use her hair to let the enchantress climb up. A prince had heard her and they fell in love. The enchantress cast her out to the desert and he roamed blind until he found her. He could see again and she married him.

The Straw, the Coal, and the Bean - They all escaped from the fire. They ventured but the coal and the straw were killed trying to cross the stream. The bean burst from laughing so hard, but a tailer came and stitched it up with black thread, hence why beans have a black lining.

The Mouse, the Bird, and the Sausage - They all used to live in harmony where they would get wood, water, and make the meal. One day the bird didn't think it was fair and then all turned for the worse. The sausage was killed by a dog, the mouse burned itself in the pot trying to do the sausage's job and the bird drowned in the water.

The Traveling Musicians - The ass, the dog, the cat, and the rooster all fled their deaths and became a band of musicians. They found this house to sleep in and made the robbers leave. They then scared them once again when they tried to come back. They still live there today.

Clever Elsie - She was going to marry Hans and cared for his safety. She was in charge of some task but slept instead. He played a trick on her and she has been missing ever since.

Briar Rose - This is the sleeping beauty story. The kingdom fell asleep when she turned 15 and for 100 years they all slept while briar rose formed all around the castle. A prince had come on the 100th year and kissed the princess. They married.

Portfolio

Hey everyone! I decided to do a portfolio and choose some of my best stories that I have written. Please comment on them with suggestions to help me make them better. Enjoy!

My first story, Small Gesture, Big Impact, reminds readers that even the smallest, gentlest people in life can help in a tough situation.

My second story, Who Would You Choose?, gives the readers the personalities of three different men running after the heart of one woman. You get to choose who you think should win her heart!

My third story, Little Friends, reminds the readers that even the most unlikely people can make a huge impact in someone's life for the better.

My fourth story, What Comes Around Goes Around, shows the readers that being nice to a complete stranger may positively change his or her life tremendously.

My fifth story, Best of Friends, introduces an old man and his beloved dog to remind the readers to enjoy the little things in life and the importance of having people around you that you care about.

Week 12 Storytelling: Henny-Penny

"Ouch!" I heard from down the field. 

I peeked out from the opening of my fox-hole home and saw a little hen staring up at the sky. She hen started to panic and run around. I laughed to myself watching this bird freak out about how it thought the sky was falling, when really an acorn had hit its head. This is the perfect opportunity to have this situation work in my favor, so I continued to watch and follow the hen. 

The hen had run into a rooster and told him of what was happening. I watched as the hen and the rooster both started to panic together and they went on their way. I heard that they were headed to tell the king (the eagle) at the top of the mountain. 

The hen and the rooster ran into a mouse and told it that the sky was falling. The mouse believed them and continued on their journey to the eagle with them. Later on down the road the hen, the rooster, and the mouse ran into squirrel. The squirrel listened to their story, believed them, and then continued on their journey with them. 

I stalked after them for quite a while until I decided it was time to set my plan into action. I ran up ahead to where they could not see me and had them walk straight into me. The hen, the rooster, the mouse, and the squirrel all warned me that the sky was falling and that they were headed to the king to tell him. I listened to them and then stopped them by saying,

"Why, this is the wrong direction to the king. I know a faster way to the top of the mountain. We don't have much time so you should follow me!"

Since they were all so panicked, they did just that and fell into my sly plan. I led them straight to my fox-hole and told them to come in one by one and that I would send them up a large stairwell that led straight to the king. 

The squirrel came in first and right as she came far enough in to where the others could not see I devoured her. She was so delicious! The perfect amount of muscle and fat to keep my stomach happy. I called out for the mouse to come in next. The mouse came in without any suspicion and then again I devoured her. She was delicious as well. Her tail I could've lived without, but still perfect for my hungry tummy. Then I called in the rooster and he came just as willing. I went to go bite his neck and accidentally missed. The rooster gave out a large yell and screamed for the hen to run away. After devouring the rooster I ran out of my fox-hole in search of the hen. The hen was nowhere in sight and I had missed out on another meal. Maybe next time I will drop the acorn myself on the hen's head. This situation worked out so well for me the first time! 

Sky (pexels)

Author's Note: This week I read the stories from the English Fairy Tales Unit. I have grown up hearing a lot of these tales and thought it would be nice to either hear them again or learn some more. I've always really liked the "Sky is Falling" storyline. Lots of different authors have used this tale in their stories. The movie, Chicken Little, is about this tale and I once read a children's book about a chacalaka bird instead of a hen. In my story, I decided to make the story in the thought process of the fox. He is the one that distracts the animals from reaching the king. He uses this scenario of the sky is falling to get yet another meal for himself. 

Bibliography: English Fairy Tales Unit written by Joseph Jacobs and published in 1890.

Week 12 Reading Diary continued: English Fairy Tales

This week I decided to read from the English Fairy Tales Unit written by Joseph Jacobs and published in 1890.

Henny-Penny - It is the sky is falling story. This time, however, the fox is the one that changes the direction instead of going to the king. Henny-Penny was warned by the rooster and she ran home safe. 

Molly Whuppie - She and her sisters were left to the forest by her parents. They found themselves at a giant's house and she was clever enough to escape from the giant once. They had accidentally made it to the king's palace. To marry off her sisters to the princes she had to return to the giant's twice to steal things from him. The last time she went he caught her and then put her in a sack. She was clever again and put the wife in there instead and she safely got home. 

Mr. Fox - Mr. Fox was engaged to this beautiful woman. She went one day to see his house behind his back and found out that he is a serial killer. She then showed proof and he was killed by her brothers. 

Johnny Cake - He ran away from the man, woman, and child then also outrun all of everyone else. He was too cocky and then a fox had tricked him. The fox "couldn't hear him" and ended up tricking him and ate him. 

Mr. Miacca - He was a bad boy and was caught by Mr. Miacca. He tricked him twice and was able to get home and never be a bad boy again. 

The Laidly Worm of Spindleston Heugh - The stepmother had turned the daughter into a dragon. Her brother found the truth and kissed her three times to bring her back to normal. The stepmother was then turned into a toad.

The Ass, the Table, and the Stick - This boy was tricked with both the ass and the table having them stolen from him. Lastly, he got the stick and used it to get back his ass and his table. She then used the stick and found the love of his life in which he married her and they lived happily ever after.

Fairy Ointment - The man had called for this nurse to help his family. She had accidentally used the fairy ointment on her eye and could see him the whole next day. He then blinded her so that she couldn't. 

Fairy Ointment

Week 12 Reading Diary: English Fairy Tales

This week I decided to read from the English Fairy Tales Unit written by Joseph Jacobs and published in 1890.

Tom Tit Tot - This girl had eaten her mother's five pies. The mother had accidentally told the king that she could spin five skeins a night. A black creature helped her spin them and would continue to if she could guess his name. The king had heard his name and had told her the story about the black creature. She guessed his name right and he was never seen again so she was safe.

The Rose-Tree - A stepmother had killed her step daughter in vain. She then was buried by her step brother who mourned for her. She sang her song as a bird and got red shoes, a gold chain, and a stone from workers. The two gifts were given to the father and step brother, and the stone fell from the sky and killed the stepmother.

The Old Woman and Her Pig - It is a waterfall story. It took all the way till the cat to agree to her plan. From then on all followed through from what was happening to them and the lady finally got home.

Binnorie - One elder sister had married a knight. He started to fall for her younger sister. The elder sister took her sister to the river and drowned her. The mill's daughter had found her and a harper/singer had also been near. He made a harp out of her hair and bones. He went to the kingdom and let the harp sing for the first time. After singing what happened to her the harp broke and never played again.

Mouse and Mouser - The mouse had come to confront the mouse about eating its pudding then the cat confessed then ate the mouse as well.

Cap O' Rushes - Her father had asked how much she loved him and she said that she loved him as much as meat likes salt. He saw this as nothing and sent her away. She got a job at the kingdom and did a cinderella story and fell in love with the master's son. Her father was invited and made his meat not salted. He realized her love and she was there to hug him in the end.

The Story of the Three Little Pigs - The first two pigs were not smart enough to choose bricks for their houses. The pig then fooled the wolf many times because he was smart. Later the wolf was so desperate that he wasn't cunning enough to win.

The Master and His Pupil - The pupil always wanted to know what was in the master's book. One day the master was going on a journey and forgot to close the book. The demon came out and was going to drown the whole city because of the pupil. The master remembered, however, and returned home to make things right.

The Master and His Pupil

Week 11 Storytelling: Best of Friends

I had a neighbor named Hank. He was the old man that lived across the street. I would see him sitting on his porch every afternoon petting his old corgi, Harry. Both Hank and Harry were lethargic and overweight. They even almost looked like each other. They would sit on the porch all afternoon and watch the world go by. When I was little he would just watch us play and smile. We always liked going up to him because he would always try to trick us with some riddles. He knew millions of them and most of the time we would never get them right. Where he learned all of these I will never know.

Hank (Pixabay)

Hank would say with a twinkle in his eye, 

"I went to the wood and got it; 

I sat me sown and looked at it; 

The more I looked at it the less I liked it; 

And I brought it home because I couldn't help it."

My friends and I would sit there stumped. Then Hank would laugh after us giving up and say, "A thorn!"

We would yell and ask for another one and Hank would always agree. 

"Long legs, crooked thighs,

Little head, and no eyes." 

And there again, we would all be stumped.

Hank would laugh and say, "A pair of tongs!"

Again Hank would start on his next riddle.

"There was a king met a king

In a narrow lane;

Says this king to that king, 

"Where have you been?"

"Oh I have been a hunting 

With my dog and my doe."

Pray lend him to me, 

That I may do so."

"There's the god take my dog."

"What's the dog's name?"

"I've told you already."

"Pray tell me again."

Hank would then ask, "What is the dog's name?"

After sitting there puzzled for a little while and after having him repeat it twice more, I finally yelled, "Take! The dog's name is Take!" 

Hank laughed while congratulating me and then said, "Now that you have gotten one right go on and play and I can tell you some more another time."

Over the course of my life I had heard hundreds of riddles from Hank. I would go and sit there and listen while petting Harry the entire time. I started writing down his riddles once when I noticed that he was getting older. I wanted to make sure that his legend lived on because he was always so much fun. The day he died the whole neighborhood mourned and all showed up to his funeral. Harry sat at the bottom of his casket the entire funeral. He was sad that he had lost his best friend. After the funeral I took Harry home and made him mine. He wasn't mine for long though. I only had Harry as a pet for three days before he died as well. I guess Harry died of a broken heart. I buried Harry right next to Hank at the gravesite and hoped them well. Now, I am the one that knows all of these riddles thanks to Hank and Harry, the best of friends. 

Harry (Wikipedia)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Author's Note: This week I decided to read the Nursery Rhymes Unit. I have always grown up reading and hearing nursery rhymes so I thought it would be nice to learn some more. When reading this unit, I discovered that I didn't want to just choose one nursery rhyme. I thought the riddles section was interesting and funny so I focused on them for my story. I decided to make this story about an old man and his dog. For me, I always think that older men and women have a lot of wisdom and have old phrases and sayings that they often use in daily conversation. I wanted to make this man a friendly fellow that had a best friend of a dog who loved to talk to people. Kids are always fascinated by older people so I thought that having the old man tell the kids riddles was going to be a good dynamic. I also wanted to show how close of a relationship the dog and the old man had together. I always love a man's best friend story as well. Lastly, I wanted the kid in the story to grow up to love the old man and have his riddles for the rest of his life. 

Bibliography: Nursery Rhymes Unit from the The Nursery Rhyme Book by Andrew Lang in 1897.

Week 11 Reading Diary continued: Nursery Rhymes

This week I decided to read the Nursery Rhymes Unit from the The Nursery Rhyme Book by Andrew Lang in 1897.

Jingles - cock-a-doodle-doo, hey diddle diddle, fat pig, rub a dub bub

Love and Matrimony - jack and jill, sylvia and simon, Canterbury, pippin hill, woman who loved swine, Willy

Natural History, Part 1 - pigeon, dog buffy, grey goose, pussy-cat, cuckoos, toad, robin,

Natural History, Part 2 - ladybird, Mary's bird, black sheep, little pony,

Accumulative Stories - the house that Jack built, key of the kingdom

Relics - little miss muffet, little boys, King Sutton, selling eggs, Daffy, Rain rain go away, little tommy tucker, wind in the mill

Love and Matrimony 

Week 11 Reading Diary: Nursery Rhymes

This week I decided to read the Nursery Rhymes Unit from the The Nursery Rhyme Book by Andrew Lang in 1897.

Tales:
- Babes in the Wood - Kids got lost and died then the birds cried over them.
- There was a Crooked Man - Everything in his life was crooked
- Simple Simon - Rhymes about different people in the town
- The Lion and the Unicorn - They were fighting over the crown.
- Tom, Tom, the Piper's Son - Different people in the town.
- Three Wise Men of Gotham - Story about cows
- Chaucer's Little Hugh - Goose and the boy who bought him
- Taffy was a Welshman - He is also a stealer
- Little Jack Horner - Little boy eating a pie
- Solomon Grundy - Life and death of this man by the week

Proverbs:
- St. Swithin's Day - Raining for 30 days
- If Wishes were Horses - luck, sneezing, sunshiny shower, early to bed/early to rise

Songs, Part 1 - story of the fox, selling everything of his father's, sheep, story about Johnny, London Bridge,

Songs, part 2 - story about the crow, three blind mice, fruit when dad comes home, frog and the cat, three birds, I'll sing you a song, queen of hearts, three ships,

Riddles - tongs, wind, sunshine, walnuts, egg, star, candle

Paradoxes - kids sliding on ice, guinea pig, sailing ship, jumping Joan, tobacco

Charms and Lullabies - peter piper, bunting, dancing with daddy, rock-a-bye baby, hiccup,

Games - hunters, Jack nimble, queen ann, bat, hickory dickory dock, little piggy, blackbirds

Games