Too Risqué for 1st Grade!
Last spring, my child’s first grade teacher requested that the parents send their child into school with a cultural folktale. I was totally at a loss. I didn’t grow up with anything except for 1001 Nights. So I grabbed my super-thick copy off my shelf and skimmed the stories for one that was appropriate and could stand alone. Alas, it was not written at an elementary school level and had a few inappropriate chapters.
I then fruitlessly scoured the internet for a G-rated version of 1001 Nights for first graders. Ultimately, I ended up pasting together an image and something random about Sinbad the cartoon character and his side kicks.
At some point, I stumbled upon this book. It’s the Little Mangy One: A Lebanese Folktale Retold by Forrest Davidson and gorgeously illustrated by Ruth Meharg. It’s a darling story about a little goat who lives in the mountains of Lebanon and has big dreams. She is underestimated by her siblings, whose lives she ultimately ends up saving. My girls loved it and I recently read it to a group of 12 kindergarten and first graders and they were hooked to the story from beginning to end!
They have three others: one Syrian folktale and two Egyptian ones which are lovely, too! You can purchase them from the author here: https://www.facebook.com/pg/ruthmehargart/shop/
I absolutely adore Sitti and the Cats by Palestinian-American writer Sally Bahous. It’s a very fun tale about a mysterious cave of talking cats and the sweet lady who stumbles upon them. With a lesson about generosity.
For a collection of folktales, check out Ghaddar and the Ghoul by Sonia Nimr. This has a number of (at times not so progressive) classic folktales from Palestine.
And my daughter loves the Magic Palm by Dina Elabd , an Egyptian author. This is a story about hard work and ethics.
And I am collecting books with Arab characters here for all ages. You can find the ever-growing list here.
Hope this saves you time on your search! And if you know of other Arab folktales written for school-age kids or younger, please share them in the comments! Thanks!!
http://worldstories.org.uk/stories/joha-and-his-donkey/
Hello Mrs. Taji. Wonderful website and blog. Thanks for adding this beautiful content to those looking to connect with their Arabic language and roots. There is a huge lack of digital content in Arabic, especially Arabic language for non-Arab kids in a non-religious context. That’s why I also started my free Arabic learning resources blog: http://www.learningarabicwithangela.com
Joha is a famous Arabic folktale charachter with many stories that we grew up with.
You could also google نوادر جحاenglish for lots more results.
Fantastic. Thank you for the recommendation! And I’ve been following you on Twitter – thank you for your posts and for your website!