EFL ESL Fairy Tales teaching resources | Everything you need

EFL ESL fairy tales teaching resources

I use fairy tales and stories a lot in my classes. They are stories that are familiar to most children in lots of different cultures. They contain universal and well known themes and imagery. Red Riding Hood, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Jack and the Beanstalk, Cinderella or the Sleeping Beauty. All these stories can be used and adapted. You can make a fun and valuable lesson for your EFL ESL kids classes using this collection of EFL ESL fairy tales teaching resources. The general theme of fairy tales can also be useful for older children and teenagers. It helps them to learn about the structure of stories and help them write their own stories.

Whether you’re storytelling or looking for a new theme for a lesson plan, you will find something useful here. I have found EFL ESL fairy tales teaching resources that are suitable for all age groups and all levels of English. They are also fun and engaging for everyone. If you have anything that would be useful to add to this collection, let me know and I will add it to this post.

EFL ESL fairy tales songs

Let’s start with some general songs about fairy tales and their different elements.

Fairy Tale Song by Moonbug Kids – this introduces lots of different fairy tale characters. How many do the children in your class recognize?
A Fairy Tale Song by Flaming Lips and Yo Gabba Gabba – Let the kids pretend to be all the different creatures as you song along with this song. They could invent their own stories with some of these.
Hip Hop Fairytales by Jon Brooks – You can use this song as a base for storytelling with your class. Let them pick one of the questions in the song and invent a story to answer it.

If you want songs about individual fairy tales, I would encourage you to look at Debbie and Friends on YouTube. She has a story told via a song for most of the most well known stories. They are all really good fun and suitable for all ages. I particularly like her Three Little Pigs song and also Goldilocks and the three Bears. A special mention also to Pinkfong and their story songs. I like the Gingerbread Man in particular.

Fairy tales flashcards

Flashcards for fairy tales by The British Council – free flashcards to teach basic fairy tales characters and elements. Very useful for an introduction to the theme.
Story telling cards by Education.com – use these cards to create your own stories in class

EFL ESL fairy tales worksheets

Worksheet about fairy tales by The British Council – a general worksheet practicing vocabulary from different stories.
Fairy Tales Story Sequence worksheet by All Kids Network – You’ll have to create a free account to use this. This is a great way of teaching story sequences if you’re creating your own fairy tales in class.

EFL ESL games and activities about fairy tales

Goldilocks and the Three Bears activities by Speech Room News – lots of material if you’re working on the story of the Three Bears. Includes work on possessives and pronouns, comparatives and superlatives and lots more.
Little Red Riding Hood Crafts and Activities by Easy Peasy and Fun – A huge list of Red Riding Hood themed art and craft activities to do in class.
How to use stories in EFL ESL kids classes – a creative guide if you’re not sure about how to use stories in your classes. Ideas for fun storytelling games and activities.

EFL ESL fairy tales lesson plans

The Gingerbread Man lesson plan – Build a gingerbread house and learn about food in this fun lesson plan for elementary aged kids.
Goldilocks and the Three Bears lesson plan – Have fun learning about size and opposites with this lesson plan for preschoolers.
Little Red Riding Hood lesson plan – Food likes and dislikes and lots of games and art for younger children to learn about the characters in the story and the five senses.
Jack and the Beanstalk lesson plan – A lesson for preschoolers and elementary classes practicing counting with beans and teaching lots about plants and how they grow.
Three Little Pigs lesson plan – Learn about houses and shapes with this lesson plan for smaller children.
Once Upon a Time – Teaching ESL with Fairytales by Busy Teacher – A general lesson plan about fairy stories. It encourages lots of creativity and invention and has lots of fun ideas for a lesson.
ELL Fairytales Lesson Plan by Brainpop Educators – This is a great lesson plan for older kids and teenagers with a higher level of English. They can look at different versions of stories and then create their own. It even includes a simple script to act out a story in class.

Fairy tales books for children – my favorites

There are many, many general fairy tales collections that you can use in your classes. I use this Usborne book of Fairy Tales for Little Children. There are lots of other fairy tale books by Usborne and other publishers though. Most of them have lovely illustrations and are reasonably simple and not too scary either for smaller children. If you’re looking for something different though, here are some great books to start your collection.

Mixed Up Fairy Tales by Hilary Robinson and Nick Sharrett – Choose your own story line. You could use this fun book as a starting point for a story writing lesson. Use it to give the kids some ideas to write their own stories. Have a look at it in the video here.
The Jolly Postman by Janet and Allen Ahlberg – find a video of the story here. My own kids loved this book when they were little and I use it a lot in my classes. Meet all the different characters and read their funny letters.

Modern Fairy Tales

The Princess and The Giant by Caryl Hart, illustrated by Sarah Warburton – Watch a video storytelling here. This modern fairy story has lots of fairy tale elements. The kids in your class will love it.
LillyBelle: A Damsel Not in Distress by Joana Pastro, illustrated by Jhon Ortiz – Such a fun book! You can see how it was illustrated in this video. A non traditional fairy tale where the heroine has no need of anyone to save her but herself.
Red by Jed Alexander – This picture book verson of Little Red Riding Hood has no words. You can make it as simple or as complicated as you want. Or get your children to retell the story in their own words. Find a video of it here.
Goldy Luck and the Three Pandas by Natasha Yim, illustrated by Grace Zong – Find a video retelling here. A Chinese New Year version of the Three Bears, this is a lot of fun.
Hansel and Gretel by Rachel Isadora – A retelling of the story in an African setting with lovely illustrations. Find a video of the story here by Literacy Connection.

Happily ever after…

So, you should have everything you need now to plan a lesson on fairy tales. If you’ve enjoyed this Fairy Tales EFL ESL teaching resources collection, you can find more teaching resources here. To stay up to date with new posts and teaching ideas, you can follow the GoogooEnglish Facebook page. Alternatively, sign up for email updates by filling in the form below.