Old photos of Snow White and one of her dwarfs—Hungry, maybe?

While searching for ideas for this month’s Picture Book Marathon, I’ve been reading more fairy tales and folktales than I normally do. And I’ve been loving every minute of it!
Imagine my surprise when I discovered the February 26th is National Fairy Tale Day! I can’t find an official source for that, but other people seem to celebrate it, so why not? I’ll take any excuse to share some of my newly discovered favorites with the kids at bedtime tonight, or maybe I’ll even read them some of the retellings I’ve written this month. 🙂
Looking for more fairy tale facts or fun? Here are some resources I’ve found:

• SurLaLune is THE place to start researching fairy tales on the web. It features 49 annotated fairy tales, including their histories, similar tales across cultures, modern interpretations and over 1,500 illustrations. Wow!
• Here’s a great old post written by Hannah Boyd about Why Fairy Tales Matter.

“[Fairy tales] work through so many personal and cultural anxieties, yet they do it in a safe, ‘once upon a time’ way,” says Maria Tatar, a professor at Harvard College who writes about, and teaches classes on, fairy tales. “Fairy tales have a real role in liberating the imagination of children. No matter how violent they are, the protagonist always survives.”

• There are some great resources for Teaching with Fairy Tales and a huge list of links at K‑3 Learning Pages, plus Scholastic has a Myths, Folktales & Fairy Tales Internet Project for teachers. EDSITEment has a lesson plan about comparing fairy tales from around the world, and abcteach has some free printables. Alabama learning exchange provides a lesson plan for teaching the elements of short story using Little Red Riding Hood, and EducationWorld offers one on Using Fairy Tales to Debate Ethics.

I’d rather just read and enjoy (and write!) them, though. Two of my favorites have always been The Ugly Duckling and Puss in Boots. I guess I’ve always been a sucker for a good underdog story.
What are your favorites, and why?

p.s. February is also National Love Your Library Month. Why not head to your local library and pick up some fairy tales to enjoy with someone special tonight?