FOLKTALES FROM NORTH AMERICA

The  American people  love many kinds of  folktales.

Some of those folktales are like the folktales from other countries around
the world.

This is because  the families of many  Americans lived in other countries
before they came (IMMIGRATED) to the United States.

 When people  immigrated to the United States,  they  brought
 their stories with them.

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The Native Americans, were the first people born in America.

The  Native Americans  tell special stories  which explain why
 things happen on earth.

Many of their stories explain how natural events, such as the creation of
the earth came about.

These are called "EXPLANATORY TALES ."

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       The best known American Folktales  are called  Tall Tales. 

Other countries in the world have Tall Tales too, but the American Tall Tales are the most famous.

      We say these  stories are “exaggerated.”

What does it mean when a story is exaggerated?

Let's see!

Think of a balloon?

 Before you  blow up the balloon, it is small.
 

 Next  you blow air into the balloon.

As you blow the air into the balloon, it gets bigger and
bigger and bigger. 

      That  is what happens in a Tall Tale.   

Over time, as  people told the story. the events in the story got "bigger and bigger'
The events were "exaggerated."

One of the most popular  heroes in an  
American Tall Tale   is Paul Bunyan.

GET YOUR BALLOON READY !

Let’s exaggerate and expand  Paul Bunyan.

 No one knows whether there ever was a real person like Paul Bunyan.
 

In the stories, Paul Bunyan is very tall.

He is so tall, that he is higher than the tallest trees.

Can you see the balloon getting bigger?

Paul Bunyan could eat so much, that he ate hundreds
of pancakes each morning .

The syrup was brought in by trucks.

NOW THAT BALLOON IS REALLY, VERY BIG!

The balloon will get bigger an bigger.

HOLD YOUR EARS!

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SOME OTHER AMERICAN  TALL TALE HEROES ARE:

PECOS BILL,  OLD STORMALONG,   FEBOLD FEBOLDSON, JOHN HENRY

JOHNNY APPLESEED,  DAVY CROCKETT. There are many other Tall Tale heroes and heroines.

Some of these Tall Tale heroes were real people.

Johnny Appleseed's real name was John Chapman.
 He really did plant a lot of apple seeds.
 Perhaps you have  eaten an apple from one of Johnny Appleseed's tree!

Davy Crockett was a real person who was born in Tennessee.
He was a Senator in Congress.
He was a soldier at the Alamo in Texas.

Some people think that there really was a person named John Henry.
They saiy that he did  have a race against a steam engine.
There is a famous folksong about John Henry.

 

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PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN CANADA  HAVE THEIR OWN STORIES.

THOUGH MEXICO IS PART OF NORTH AMERICA WE THINK OF MEXICAN FOLKTALES AS HISPANIC OR LATINO FOLKTALES.