Procedure
Introduction
Explain to students that you are going to read a folk story from Thailand
to the class. Show the map of Thailand on the smartboard to make sure
that students know the location of Thailand relative to New York. Explain
that Thailand is in Asia and is a tropical country. Point out the long
coastline and ask the class what Thai people might like to eat. Let the
students know that people living near the sea are probably able to catch
and eat fish.
The story
Read Ta-in and Ta-na to the class (Story will be on the smartboard), pausing
as necessary to make sure that students understand the story. Ask questions
for turn and talk opportunities.
Discussion
Ask students what Ta-in and Ta-na learned from their experience. Establish
that the story tells us that they learned that it is better to cooperate
and share. Students may be able to come up with similar examples from
their daily lives. Introduce the idea of a moral as something we can learn
from a story.
Making a class display
Ask each student to choose an event from the story, draw a picture of
it and respond to it. Encourage different drawings of events covering
the whole story. Help students to write their statements below each drawing.
Arrange the drawings in story order and display the work in the classroom.
Show an example by demonstrating it on the Smartboard. Involve students
in activity.
Extension Activites
Handout
Ta-in and Ta-na
Once upon a time there were two men who lived in the same coastal village
in Thailand. One was named Ta-in and the other was named Ta-na. They became
good friends and liked to do things together. Ta-in and Ta-na were very
good fishermen so they decided to fish together in the bay. They built
a small boat and caught lots of fish in the following days. They shared
their catches and cooked them for their evening meal. After many months,
their luck changed, and they caught fewer and fewer fish.
One day the two men had tried every place they knew to find fish but had
no luck. Finally, Ta-in caught one fish, which they brought home. Since
Ta-na had not caught a fish, Ta-in said that he would take the head and
middle part of the fish and Ta-na could have the tail part. Ta-na did
not like this: he also wanted the head and middle of the fish. But Ta-in
shouted that it was not fair as he was the real owner of the fish since
he caught it. He deserved the head and middle, and Ta-na should be happy
to take the tail. They could not agree. In fact, they became angrier and
angrier and finally started to fight with each other. Their swinging blows
at one another and their loud shouts brought the villagers running.
A village elder called Ta-yoo came by and also heard them fighting. He
pulled the men apart saying, `Stop fighting!' Ta-in and Ta-na calmed down
and agreed to let the elder solve their problem. They were afraid that
otherwise they might hurt each other seriously. Ta-yoo thought about the
problem for a long time. The villagers waited in silence for his decision.
Finally he spoke.
`Ta-in, you caught the fish so you take the head. Ta-na, you did not catch
any fish so you take the tail part. Because I have had to solve the problem
for you, I will take the middle part of the fish.'
The two men were stunned but could not think of any other solution, so
they agreed. Ta-in then took the head, Ta-na took the tail part and Ta-yoo
took the biggest and best part of the fish. The villagers thought that
it was a fair solution and walked away.
Both Ta-in and Ta-na were very sad. `How foolish we were', said Ta-in.
`I caught the fish, and Ta-yoo got the best part. I should not have been
so selfish.' `No, I was the selfish one', said Ta-na. `I didn't catch
a fish, so I should have been happy to take the tail part.' The two men
looked at each other. They finally realised that they had both been greedy.
Because of this, they were both losers that day, but they had learned
a valuable lesson.
From that day on, they worked together and helped one another. They shared
their catches, no matter who had caught the most fish. In time the fish
returned again in great numbers, and Ta-in and Ta-na caught so many fish
that they could sell most of them. They even hired other men to help them
with their fishing. They not only had become good friends again, they
had also become wealthy.