Writing Inspired by Aesop

I like Aesop's Fables. I like the length (short) and the palpability of the message. So many of the fables are still completely viable in our modern society. I have used Aesop's Fables in my parenting and today decided to use it in our home school.

This is the version we own:

It's paintings are beautiful and old fashioned, but there aren't so many pictures that the children aren't allowed to use their imaginations.

I chose several of the most well-known parables and read them aloud to the children.

• The North Wind and the Sun



• The Ants and the Grasshopper



• The Lion and the Mouse



• The Shepherd Boy and the Wolf



• The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse



• The Crow and the Pitcher



• The Goose and the Golden Egg

We discussed each story, it's moral lesson and it's modern application. Then came the assignment: Write an updated version of one of the parables we discussed.

One story told of a child who played instead of cleaning her room. She then bore the consequence of playing while it was time to work.

One was about a big sister with a wonderful racing bike and a toddler with a tricycle.

Another piece told about a man, deeply in debt, who lost it all through his incessant greed.
Not only did we read, discuss and learn from Aesop's timeless fables, we also integrated their lessons into our lives.

And it got the children writing.