Week 7 Story: How People First Learned to Study

Long ago, there were these students at OU who never knew how to study, or what studying even was for that matter. The only way to pass a test or a class was to pay attention in class. A particular group of students (two brothers and two sisters) hardly paid attention in class, and therefore failed all of their tests. Eventually, getting tired of seeing terrible grades on their assignments, these four students decided to switch universities and go to the University of Texas in Austin. After only two days there, the students realized that was not their home. Despite their terrible grades, OU was always more fun and they all fit in at OU. So, they came back. 

Their grades did not improve, but they had a new tactic in mind. The next time they failed a test, they blamed it on the group or organization that they hung out with last. They said it was their fault they were distracted in class and therefore they should fail the next test. 

First, the group blamed it on the engineering students since they had gone to the Engineers club meeting the previous night. They told them all their grades would be transferred to them. The engineering students tried extra hard to pass their next test, but ended up failing due to the amount of stress put on them. They, in turn, blamed the law students, as they had all met up for dinner the night before. The law students were told that all the bad grades would be transferred to them now.

On their way home the night before the next test, the law students got in a minor car accident. Someone from the International Studies department had hit their car as they were looking at their phone while driving. The law students ended up failing their test, and then told the international studies students that all of the grades would be transferred to them. 

The International Studies students were quite worried and tried paying extra attention in class in order to pass. They held the burden of three other groups of students, so naturally, they were under a lot of stress. They ended up failing their test as well. However, they remembered that on the previous day, one of the students in the Philosophy department bumped into a student from the International Studies department during lunchtime. The international studies students blamed the philosophy students and told them all of their grades would be passed on to them. 

The philosophy students, being very wise and thoughtful, had a meeting to decide what best way to get a good score on their next test. They ended up with a few solutions, but ended up choosing one: they were going to review the material that the professor went over in class, but at home. They were going to quiz one another to see if the others knew what the material was about. They ended up passing their test with flying colors! One by one, they taught all the groups on campus how to review material at home after it has already been stated in class. They helped everyone pass their next test and eventually everybody had good grades on their reports. When students nowadays think of this process, they call it "studying" and it is something college students have to do everyday in order to stay on top of things.

Source: An accurate description of today's "studying." :-)

Bibliography: West African Folktales Unit; How Mushrooms First Grew. 

Author's Note:

This story was inspired by the West African Folktales Unit, namely the story How Mushrooms First Grew. In the story, two brothers were in a lot of debt, so they became robbers. Then, they were embarrassed and guilty of their evil deeds, and went back to building a farm. However, a bushfowl came along and ate all the crops, thus ruining their harvests. The brothers caught the bushfowl and transferred all their debts to the bushfowl. The bushfowl decided to lay eggs and sell them to gain money and repay debts, but a hurricane swept a branch off of the tree where the eggs lay, therefore destroying the eggs. The bushfowl now blamed the tree and transferred all debts to it. This went on and throughout the story, an elephant, hunter, tree-stump, and ants got blamed. Finally, the ants held a council to figure out the best way to repay all the debts. They decided to weave pure linen thread and sell it to make profits. They spread out the linen in the ground and as it got sunlight, they grew into what we now call mushrooms. I changed the story by placing it in a more modern setting, such as OU. I had four students start off the debt with bad grades, and pass it on until it got to the philosophy students, who represented the ants and figured out a way to get back on track. Hope you all liked the story :)

Reading Notes: West African Folktales, Part B

Most of these stories include a theme which centers around a character in the story not listening to directions given by another character. These all end in "told you so" or "should have listened" moments. If I were to rewrite one of these stories, I would try to come up with a story that could incorporate that same theme. 

How the Tortoise Got Its Shell

• I thought this was an interesting story because once again, I LOVE origin stories! I didn't even know where this one was going until the end, but I loved it regardless. 
• If I were to rewrite this, I would either talk about another drug or just something else that people are greedy with. 

The Ungrateful Man 

• This story was weird just because I was thinking to myself: Would someone actually do that?? Get helped by a hunter and then turn around and become jealous?? Would someone would ever think of it or try it...? 
• Hopefully not, but that's a serious question because I feel like everybody could use a little more gratefulness in their lives. 

How Mushrooms First Grew

• This story was funny because it kept passing on the responsibility of paying debts to another person or group. I liked the idea of that because that kind of stuff will never happen nowadays. You can't just transfer your debt to someone, because they will most likely not take on that responsibility. 
• If I were to rewrite this, I would think of another thing that people don't like, and make that the thing that people pass on to one another. 
• I could make it in a school setting, and have someone fail a test, and then think of who they talked to last, and blamed them. That person failed the next test, and blamed it on someone else or a particular group. This would keep happening until they blamed NHS (National Honors Society), who decided to actually study instead of blaming someone else for their failed test.

Source: How Mushrooms First Grew.

Bibliography: West African Folktales, Part B.

Reading Notes: West African Folktales, Part A

His Wisdom Became the Property of the Human Race

• I could write about how something else became a part of the Human race
• Ex. How Driving Became the Property of the Human Race
• This is something practiced by humans, but not other animals or insects

Anansi and Nothing

• This story exemplifies the theme of "don't judge a book by its cover"
• I could do a re-tell of this story in modern times
• A college boy with old, raggedy clothes who seems to be poor vs. a boy with a lot of money; later on we find out that the boy who seems to be poor only wears low maintenance clothes because they are more comfortable and he doesn't want to get them dirty. The boy who seems to be rich could go bankrupt, as he spends all his money on alcohol.

Why White Ants Always Harm Man's Property

• This story's theme of not trusting anyone is very relatable today
• Sometimes when you expect help, you get the opposite and that can be very disturbing and change your outlook on life, just as it did for the white ant in the story 

Source: A picture from the West African Folktales.

Many of these stories seem to involve the spider outsmarting the rest of the animals, so I could write a story in which the spider is the victim all the time. The story could contain many scenarios in which the spider was the one being outsmarted and conned repeatedly.

Bibliography: Barker's and Sinclair's West African Folktales, Part A.

Reading Notes: Folktales of Bengal, Part B

The Story of a Brahmadaitya
This story was really cool and I wasn't expecting it to end on a great note! I'm glad it did, but I was expecting something bad to happen, such as the Brahmadaitya not helping the Brahman at the end or the ghosts doing something to mess up the Brahman's plans. I'm glad it ended nicely, but if I rewrite it, I could end the story at a cliffhanger or with an unhappy ending. I love happy endings, but just to mix things up a little I could change it around!

The Ghost who was Afraid of Being Bagged
I really liked this story! However, I didn't like that the wife treated the poor Brahman as she did. She complained about everything and made the Brahman feel terrible about himself; a spouse should never make their significant other feel like that. If I were to rewrite this story, I think I would change it to where the Brahman left the wife or made her apologize for everything before accepting her again, because he should not have been treated that way! I could also set this story into present day, such as in a college or high school. 

The Bald Wife
I liked this story because it portrayed the life of someone who was loved very much, and one who wasn't. The one who was loved did not try to console the other; instead, she was rude and treated the other like a maid. When the loving one went to get help and was transformed into a beautiful woman with lots of gold, jewelry, and other riches. When she went back, she treated the other woman with kindness, even though the woman was mean to her. When the meaner woman got jealous and wanted to get as beautiful as the other, she didn't listen to the instructions and ended up staying the same. I like this theme of patience and obedience, so I may incorporate that into a story if I decide to rewrite this. 

Source: The ghost from The Ghost who was Afraid of Being Bagged.

Bibliography: Bengali Folktales, Part B. 

Reading Notes: Folktales of Bengal, Part A

The Boy whom Seven Mothers Suckled
This story was really interesting because it reminded me of the Indian Epic, the Ramayana, a little bit. The new queen demanded something ridiculous of the king, and he did it. Another similarity between the two is that the son of the king came back and straightened things out near the end. If I rewrite this story, I think I will tell it in the point of view of the son. Usually stories like these were third person omniscient, but I think it would be cool to do one in the first person to see the journey and the thoughts of the "boy whom seven mothers suckled." I could also retell this story in modern times, and have the boy find his mother through a computer system to see who his real mom actually is. There are many ways I could retell this, so we'll see which one works out best.

The Origin of Opium
Like I mentioned in Week 2, I love origin stories! This one was specifically about the drug opium. It reminded me of the Origin of the Moon stories, where the blacksmith wanted to be numerous things. The moon was the last one that he requested before the wise man got annoyed and made sure he stayed as the moon. In this case, the Rishi never got annoyed at the person that started off as a mouse and wanted to be like ten different things. That showed patience and kindness. If I were to rewrite this story, I may add a moral of the story at the end, just to recap a life lesson. I could create another origin story with how other drugs got started or just pick another object and create the origin story of that, while keeping the same theme of a person wanting to change themselves until they become the thing.

Source: The bird who contains the boy's mother's life in The Boy whom Seven Mothers Suckled.

Bibliography: Bengali Folktales, Part A. 

Week 5 Story: The Doctor Meets Sinbad

The Doctor was ready for a new adventure. Although he missed his latest companion, he decided it was much safer if he traveled alone for a while. He hadn't really accepted any companions since his last regeneration, and since he usually relies on them to pick a time and place to travel to, the Doctor was not sure where to go. He closes his eyes and pulls the lever of the TARDIS, hoping he ends up somewhere with good food. 

When the doctor lands, he steps out onto a beautiful island, but with no people! Immediately he knows something is wrong... He goes to explore the area and comes across little creatures, about two feet tall, with reddish fur. They all seem to be running away, while quickly gathering pieces of fruit for their boats. He goes in the direction they came from, to see why they were running. In the distance, he sees a magnificent castle. When he enters, he is standing in what would be a beautiful garden.. if there were not piles of bones covering all of the grass. As he walks around a corner, he then sees hundreds of men tied to a long stick, above a fire pit. It looks like they are in the process of being roasted to eat! But who has done this? And how? 

Suddenly, the doctor hears a roar of thunder. Wait, no. Not thunder. It's footsteps. The Doctor quickly hides behind a bush, pulls out his sonic screwdriver, and aims it in the direction of the sound. He begins to see a shadow of the creature, and soon realizes that he is in the home of a giant. The giant was as tall as a palm tree, had one eye which flamed like a burning coal in the middle of his forehead, had long and sharp teeth, and had nails as sharp as knives. 

The giant hadn't seen the Doctor yet, so he also didn't see that the Doctor was slowly recharging his sonic screwdriver with the power to knockout any creature he came across. As the giant turned his back to the Doctor and began to lower the stick with the men tied to it, in order to roast them, the Doctor slowly creeped up behind the giant. If he even stepped on one bone or made even the slightest of sounds, the giant would immediately turn around and snatch him up for lunch. 

In one swift move, he jumped out to where he had a clear shot at the giant's back, and pressed his sonic screwdriver. A green light shined into the giant's back like a laser, and made him fall to the ground, unconscious. He quickly untied a few men, who untied a few more men, until everybody was free. Everybody was talking at once, astonished at their good luck. The Doctor led them to the TARDIS, and one by one, everybody went inside. 

Their faces lit up as they explored the police box that was bigger on the inside. They couldn't believe it! What sort of magic was this? Where did the Doctor obtain this? How did he get on the island? They were all asking these questions frantically; they had never seen such a thing!

The Doctor simply smiled. "Take me to your home. I'll tell you everything."

Source: The inside of the TARDIS (it's bigger on the inside!)

Source: The outside of the TARDIS.

Bibliography: Andrew Lang's The Voyages of Sinbad [The Giant].

Author's Note:
This story is a mix of a Doctor Who theme and one of the stories in the Voyages of Sinbad. In the Voyages of Sinbad, Sinbad the sailor goes on many adventures and experiences near-death encounters. In this particular story, he ends up on an island with his sailors and realizes that the castle they stepped into is the home of a giant. They see human bones everywhere, so they lay down and pretend to be dead. The giant eats the fattest one first, then every day after that he eats another sailor. Suddenly, Sinbad has a plan to escape. He tells the others, and they spend the day building rafts. At night, they lodged a stick into the giant's eye, so that they could escape. They run away on their rafts and escape the giant. I incorporated the Doctor Who aspect into it because the Doctor goes and saves people on different planets, different countries, etc. I figured I would put him in the story by saving the sailors, instead of Sinbad being the main character. I didn't change much, and I got the description of the giant from the story. Hope you all liked this version! :)

Reading Notes: The Voyages of Sinbad, Part B

The seven voyages ended and started the same way; Sinbad would go on an adventure, he would live through a near-death experience, he would collect money and become rich, go to distribute his wealth among the poor, stay at his home in Baghdad for a while, and then decide that home is too boring and would go on another adventure. If I rewrote this, I could perhaps change up the role of each character, or even have Sinbad be a sort of lifeguard for the oceans he travels. Since he has been on so many adventures, he is familiar with many islands and the dangers that come with them. He could be a sort of ocean god, who can direct sailors in the right direction if they seem like they are sailing towards the island with the Giant, the Old Man, or any other evil creatures.

I could also make the main character a girl if I wanted to, such as in the Disney movie Moana. She sailed across the oceans to restore the peace and balance in the world. She set out by herself to complete this task, although she had help in the middle. There could be a female who ends up seeing all of these islands and their different inhabitants. Or, I could tell the story in first person of one of the female characters already in the stories (such as Sinbad's wife in the fourth story or his mom and how she has to cope with Sinbad leaving on an adventure every year).

Another idea I had was making a companion for Sinbad the Sailor. He could have a person with him at all times, who doesn't get killed like the other merchants that Sinbad sails with normally. This would kind of give the story a "Doctor Who" vibe, as the Doctor in that show always has a companion with him. I could even make this whole story a Doctor Who themed story, in which the Doctor comes and rescues Sinbad from his near-death experiences every year. 

Source: A scene from Moana, as she is about to sail.

Bibliography: Andrew Lang's The Voyages of Sinbad, Part B.

Learning Challenge: Soonerthon and the #12

Hey everyone! I don't know if you have heard of Soonerthon, but it is a 12 hour dance marathon coming up on March 3rd! Basically, the purpose of Soonerthon is to raise money for our local Children's Miracle Network, and all proceeds to DIRECTLY towards treatment for kids with life-threatening illnesses. At the event, we stand for 12 hours for the kids who can't, while also getting to play with the Miracle Kids, talk to their families, make them all feel very loved, ALL alongside celebrating with your friends! I am very passionate about this event, and my goal this year is to raise $1000; as of right now, I am at $922! My first goal was to raise $500, but once I reached that goal, I changed my goal to $1000. If I reach $1000, I will most likely keep raising my goal until the day of Soonerthon itself. 

This event means so much to the kids, more than we will ever know. I have done an internship at the OKC Children's Hospital a few years ago, and I am currently shadowing a physician there as well. I have seen patients that have gone through so many treatments and surgeries, and it's one of the best feelings in the world when they realize they're done with treatment, or done with doctor's appointments for a long time. Whether you are participating in Soonerthon, raising money for it, or simply raising awareness by talking about it to others, we are all making a difference in these kids' lives. 

The number 12 is incorporated into the event in multiple ways. 12 hours stands for the 12 hour shifts that nurses have to endure. 12 hours stands for the 12 different types of pediatric cancer. The number 12 has many different meanings in this one event, and I would like to learn them all. I am very inspired by Soonerthon and what it stands for, so that is my learning challenge. I want to learn the "why" behind Soonerthon and be able to raise awareness for it in the future, even after the event is over for this year. 

As I mentioned earlier, I really want to be able to raise $1000 for the kids! I would really appreciate any contribution to my donor drive if you all would like to help out! ANTYHING, even $10 helps! Even if you cannot donate, I would appreciate if you could just share my link with anyone you know :) Thank you all for taking the time to read this!

As always, 
#FTK. (For The Kids)

 The top picture is from my freshman year, with the Miracle family we adopted through PCS. The bottom picture depicts how much we raised that year!

This picture is from last year's Soonerthon at the final reveal of how much we all raised!

Reading Notes: The Voyages of Sinbad, Part A

I like how each story in this unit, which Sinbad is describing, gets more ridiculous with each voyage. 

First Voyage - The Island
Sinbad is talking in the first person, which I really like, since it draws me in immediately. I may do more first person stories in the future, since they are very engaging. I also liked how much detail he had while describing objects, animals, places, etc. The vocabulary in this unit was advanced and the story flowed really well!

Second Voyage - Valley of Diamonds
This story was a bit confusing, but I was surprised at the honesty and morality of the merchants. Sinbad describes how one merchant contented himself on simply one diamond, even though he was offered many. What if the merchants were greedy? Would Sinbad have ever been rescued? So many questions! It reminds me of Lord of the Flies, where the kids were trapped on an island and became more savage as the time went on.

Third Voyage - The Giant
This part reminded me of the Pirates of the Caribbean scene where the main characters are about to get roasted and eaten by little creatures. Perhaps I could write a story in which the main characters are the characters from the Pirates of the Caribbean series. There are many conflicts in that movie, including conflicts between ship captains, friends, etc. I could write about one of those, and expand on it in my story.

Fourth Voyage - The Wife
This story was definitely the weirdest, but also very interesting. If one person in a marriage passed away, the spouse HAD to be buried alive. What Sinbad did after his wife died, which was kill the other spouses as they went down, was extremely difficult and out of character for him (in my opinion). I'm glad that he stayed with his family after this one and didn't immediately get bored after!

Source: Part of Sinbad's first voyage.

Bibliography: Andrew Lang's The Voyages of Sinbad, Part A.

Comment Wall

Hey friends! Here is the link to my storybook for any of you that wanna read my stories. Hope you enjoy a new fantastic point of view :)

Source: Aladdin and Jasmine experiencing a whole new world!

Week 4 Story: Jasmine and the Wonderful Jewel

Young Jasmine had heard of a wealthy prince near her home, but never gave much thought towards it. One day, however, she heard a commotion in the streets below. It was the prince, Aladdin, riding in a carriage, throwing out money, jewels, and food to the poor people surrounding him. Jasmine immediately fell in love. She could not believe her eyes! Before her was the most handsome man she had ever seen, draped in colorful and silky robes.

She longed to meet Aladdin ever since then. She would turn and toss in bed, aching to see him one more time. Aladdin would come to the streets to hand out money, jewels, and food every month, so the next time he came, Jasmine was one of the first people downstairs to greet him. She waited and waited to hear the elephants pulling the carriage and for Aladdin to appear. Finally, she heard the thumping of the elephants and once they got closer, Aladdin stepped out of his carriage and began throwing out loaves of bread, bags of coins, and jewels into the crowd. Jasmine caught one of each, but the thing she wanted most was  she was delighted! However, once Aladdin left, she was sad once again. When would she be able to meet her prince? When would he acknowledge her?

She went back to being anxious and sullen, and wore the necklace she caught from Aladdin everyday. One day, she was missing Aladdin more than usual, and when she took off her necklace, she began stroking it as she daydreamed about meeting her prince. Suddenly, the room filled with pink smoke and a creature emerged from the necklace that Jasmine was holding in her hand! 

The creature was a genie, and she looked so elegant and powerful that Jasmine was paralyzed in fear. The genie looked at Jasmine and spoke. "I am the slave of the necklace, and I shall obey thee in all things." Jasmine only wanted one thing, and that was to meet Aladdin. She then ordered, "Deliver me to Aladdin!" And the genie took her to Aladdin. 

Meanwhile, Aladdin laid in his chambers. He suddenly saw huge puffs of pink smoke rising out of nowhere. When the smoke cleared, he saw the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life. She stood in front of him, staring back with the same amount of love. Aladdin could not believe it! Who was this woman, and how did she appear inside his room all alone? He immediately ran to her and caught her in his arms. There they met, there they fell in love together, and there they got married a few months later.

Source: Illustration of Aladdin's and Jasmine's wedding.

Bibliography: Arabian Nights.

Author's Note: This week, I read the Aladdin stories from the Arabian Nights unit. In the original story, Aladdin gets trapped by his uncle in a cave, who left him a ring. Aladdin began rubbing the ring, and a genie appeared who said he will obey him in all things. He asked him to get him out of the cave, and then went home. One day, he saw a beautiful princess, who was the Sultan's daughter, but since he was poor, he would have no way of marrying her. He asked the genie to make him look like a wealthy man and build a castle for him and the princess. Eventually, they got married and they lived happily until Aladdin's uncle came back and realized he was using the genie to make him appear wealthy. The story continues, but for my story I only used that part. I switched it around to where the princess (Jasmine) was in love with Aladdin from afar, and made the necklace the object with the genie in it. I made up the ending, where she gets transported into Aladdin's room and everything. I hope you all liked my version :)

Reading Notes: Arabian Nights, Part B

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp
These six stories were fun to read because I have always loved the Disney Aladdin movies! There were some differences between this story in Arabian Nights and the Disney movies, but I loved it nevertheless. I like that there was a magic lamp and a magic ring in this story. If I were to retell it, I might make the princess have the magic object, and it could be a jewel, such as a necklace or hair jewel. The roles could be switched, to where the girl sees a prince and asks a genie to help her build a palace or something so that the prince acknowledges her and marries her.

Another way I could retell this story is set it in a different time. It could be set in the future or on OU's campus. If it were on OU's campus, I could make a boy wanting to be Homecoming King find a magical object (such as a magic football or magic pen) and have President Boren appear out of it, as sort of a genie who can grant wishes. The boy could gain popularity by doing things the genie/President Boren said, and eventually win the vote. The antagonists could be the runner up Homecoming King, another random boy that is jealous of the new popularity of the main character, etc. 

If I wanted to write this story in the future, it could be all technology based. The magic lamp could be a sort of computer in the form of a magic sphere that floats around. There could be numerous companies trying to get ahold of this magic sphere, but it falls in the hands of a poor businessman or something and he could rise to fame with it and the wishes he is granted with it.

Source: The ring genie in Aladdin.

Bibliography: Arabian Nights, Part B. 

Reading Notes: Arabian Nights, Part A

I was really engrossed in these stories, and almost lost track of who was telling what story to whom!

The Story of the Second Old Man
This was an interesting story of the three brothers, and I may do a retell of this one because it outlines the good and bad choices that the characters took and their respective fates. It also incorporated the fairy, which was an interesting plot twist as well. This reminded me of the Tiger's Curse book series by Kate DiCamillo because in that story, there are two tigers that are men who are cursed. A girl is sent on a mission to cure them, and she does. I could write up a story that incorporated both stories into it. 

The Story of the Fisherman
I like the idea of this story, but I was thinking maybe I could incorporate a girl genie instead! Instead of having the genie be very angry that no one had let him/her out, I could make it the opposite, to where he/she was delighted to finally be let out! He/she could decide to grant a number of boons, or wishes, to the fisherman (kind of like Aladdin). 

The Story of the Greek King/Physician's Revenge
I liked these stories because it involved a lot of cunning tricks and inception-like stories (there were like five people telling a story at one point). I liked the ending because it was one of those kinds in which the person knew exactly how something was going to play out. The physician knew the king would lick his fingers to turn the pages and eventually inhale enough poison to die. He played it very well when he knew he had no other choice. If I were to redo this story, it would include that same cunning twist to it!

Source: Scheherazade, her sister, and the Sultan.

Bibliography: Arabian Nights, Part A. 

Feedback Strategies

Be a Mirror: Give Readers Feedback That Fosters a Growth Mindset
I like that this article mentioned focusing more on the reader while giving feedback. Instead of trying to please the reader, it may be more beneficial to simply focus on the things the reader did. In this class, we can substitute "reader" for "writer" since we will be giving feedback to the people that are writing stories. I also liked when the article said to focus on the process and the work the author put in, because that goes a long way in understanding what the writer was trying to say.

Presence, not Praise: How to Cultivate a Healthy Relationship with Achievement 
This article was particularly interesting because it mentioned a study that tested which form of feedback improved students' abilities to solve problems. It was found that praising someone for their effort and hard work was more beneficial than praising them on their qualities (such as intelligence). I also agree with the article on the part where it said that if you praise someone for their qualities or tell them their creation is "the best," they won't ever try to improve. They will think they have created the best possible version of something, rather than trying to make it better. There is always room for improvement, so wherever we see fit, we should try to provide others with useful feedback :)

Some things I like to do when giving feedback is stating one thing I like, and that they should keep doing, and one thing that I believe they could change to make their story better. Sometimes I will ask a question if I am confused, but many times the suggestion can simply be a grammar mistake. 

Source: A quote from The Office; never apologize for trying to improve!

Topic Research

I am leaning more towards the "power" theme I had last week. I would like to base my overall project about that theme, while also incorporating the other themes into it at the same time. 

One story I could do is a backstory; some background information about why the two gods (or animals, or groups of people) are fighting each other. I could tell this story from a 3rd person omniscient view, where I overlook the entire scene, or I could tell this story from a first person point of view. If I were to do first person, I would have to split up the story between the two sides and have the main character from each side be the person telling the story, so that the people reading my story will have both sides of the background story before reading the rest of it. I could add in the creation story theme idea with some background information about why the two groups are fighting each other. For example, I could tell a short story about how a certain body of water was made, then say that two groups of animals are fighting over that body of water and who should be allowed to drink from it. A resource I could use is about Varuna, the God of the Oceans.

The second story I do could be about the actual fight, and what happened during it. I could have each side fighting for days, and could incorporate the Arabian Nights/Aladdin theme ideas by introducing a genie into the war. There could be a magic lamp that the groups are fighting for, or it could simply be another character into the mix of things, ready to help out wherever needed. I could even have one genie for each side of the war. When I thought of this, it reminded me a bit of the Mahabharata scene when Arjuna and Karna are about to fight and Krishna appears before Arjuna to guide him through his thoughts. The genies could be like Krishna, and help each side gain their strength back to fight. 

The third story I could do is a final recap and aftermath of the war. I could write about if the groups decided to end on good terms, or if one of the groups completely demolished the other, etc. If I wrote about the two groups ending on good terms, it could end on a tie, or a truce. Then, the two groups could merge and form their own city with everyone included. Here, I could incorporate the food theme idea I had last week by having the two sides taste and adapt to each other's main dishes. I could go into more detail about the type of food and what it consists of, while also showing how the two sides hated each other before, and now have come together and started trusting each other and eating each other's food.

Source: The genie from Aladdin; I could use the same one or incorporate a girl genie into the mix!