Every now and then I love sharing a folktale with my students. It is so important to expose them to a wide variety of genres. I love using folktales in the classroom because they are a great way to teach important life lessons. This week we are spotlighting one of my favorite folktales, The Empty Pot because it is a wonderful story to use in the classroom. The book is engaging for students while allowing teachers to demonstrate an important life lesson. - Jodi and the Starts With a Story Team
SUMMARY
The story The Empty Pot is about a boy named Ping. Ping loves flowers and everything that he plants blooms beautifully. One day, the Emperor announces that the person who will succeed him to the throne will be the one who blooms the best flower out of seeds that the Emperor gives them. All of the children in the land go to the palace to get their seeds, and set off to plant them in hopes of becoming the next Emperor. Ping plants his seed, and is surprised when nothing blooms. After a year’s time, still nothing has bloomed and he has to present his empty pot to the Emperor. Ping is ashamed when he sees that all the other boys and girls have beautiful flowers. However, the Emperor announces that Ping will be the next Emperor! He says that the seeds he gave all the boys and girls were cooked and unable to grow flowers. Ping was the only one who was honest. Students will learn a lesson about honesty as they read this book.
USE THIS BOOK TO TEACH:
Reading a folktale with students doesn’t just introduce them to a different type of genre. It gives them the opportunity to practice their skills and strategies with a different kind of text. Here are so important skills that we think teachers can use when reading The Empty Pot with their students.
- Explore the genre of folktales and discuss the characteristics of this type of genre.
- Discuss the cause and effect of characters’ actions throughout the book.
- Encourage students to research and write about a new topic explored in the book.
- Teach students about “how-to” writing as they explain how to do or complete something.
- Explore contractions and compound words.
- Introduce new action verbs.
- Discuss the importance of honesty and perseverance.
NO-PREP PRINTABLE ACTIVITIES:
If you are looking for “ready to go” activities for the first day of school, be sure to check out the book companion. With it you’ll receive all of the following resources to align with this specific book:
- comprehension questions
- 30 writing prompts with themed paper
- vocabulary activities
- word study print & go activities
- ideas for grammar lessons with focus sentence printables
- social emotional learning discussion topics
- graphic organizers to target specific comprehension skills and strategies
This resource is so comprehensive you can even use it across a few days!
GET THE PRINTABLE ACTIVITIES
ADDITIONAL BOOK SUGGESTIONS
You and your students will also love these similar books:
- Stone Soup by Marcia Brown
- A Chair For My Mother by Vera B. Williams
- Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey
- Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña
TRY OUT A SAMPLE COMPANION
It's hard to explain how amazing the Starts with a Story book companions are because there is just so much goodness included in each one. It's best if you experience using one for yourself. Sign up below & we'll send you an entire book companion to try out for FREE!
