Pourquoi
Stories
Introduction
Grade 4
Raise your hand if you have every
asked your parents “WHY?”
 Why
do cat’s purr?
 Why is the sky blue?
 Why does the moon change shape?
 Why does it snow during the winter?
In Today’s Lesson…
 we
will review different kinds of
folktales you have learned about in
the past or may discuss in the future.
 you will learn what a Pourquoi tale
is.
 you will read a Pourquoi folktale
and identify the main elements.
What is a Pouquoi story?
 Pourquoi
means “why” in french.
 This is a type of folktale that was made up
to tell why something happened or exists.
 It usually tells about animals or a natural
occurance.
 The main characters can be humans or
animals.
What is a Folktale?
A story that has been passed down from
person to person for many, many years.

Examples






Fairy Tales
Legends
Myths
Trixter Tales (You
learned about this in
2nd grade, “Anansi and
the Talking Melon”)
Tall Tales
So What IS IT?



It has been changed
so many times that
there are different
versions of it.
No one know who
wrote the original.
Folktales come from
everywhere in the
world.
Read “Why Dogs Chase Cats”
At your table discuss the following
questions. Be ready to answer them out
loud.
 Where does this tale come from?
 What happens in the beginning?
 What is the problem?
 How does the story end? (This is the
answer to the “why”)
In summary, What
is a Pourquoi Tale?