LITERARY CONTENTS

IN THE ELEMENTARY
GRADES
ELE15- Teaching English in
Grades Through Literature
Presented By: Group 1
 LITERARY
•From Oxford Dictionary
•Literature means concerning with the
writing study, or content of literature
especially the kind valued for quality
of form.
 Literary Contents
•The Literary content refers to the message,
story, theme, setting and/or characters. For
example, if you are looking at a novel, the
content refers to the plot, characters, theme,
and setting of that novel. Similarly, if you are
looking at a poem, it expresses the ideas of
the poem.
A Brief History of the Literary
Contents in the Elementary
Grades
•Children's literature in the Philippines traces
it's roots to oral tradition before Spain
colonized the archipelago. Mothers sung
lullabies for their babies. Each region had its
own lullaby: Ili-iliaTulogAnay from the
Visayas, Paghehele of the Tagalogs, and
Duoayya of the Ilocaos. Proverbs and riddles
reflected the people's philosophy and way of
life.
• Traditionally, children's literature includes
pictures books, poems, short stories, plays, or
novels written for children. The development of
other media such as film, comic books, radio,
television, and computer multi-media software
and their popularity with children has expanded
this original definition. Today, children's
literature refers to anything written and
produced to suit the particular needs of a child
audience.
•The Picture Book used to be the
only category of children's
literature that was exclusive to
the game, although in recent
times, picture books (and even
pop-ups books) for adult readers
gave come into vogue.
•Contrary to popular belief, folklores was
not originally meant to be exclusively for
children. Through the years, however,
children's literature, folktales and
legends have been retold in their
retelling.
•The children's story is often an oral
experience.
• The contemporary situation of a father telling a
story to his son or daughter and that of the
storyteller reciting tales to his tribal audience?
Among Indigenous Filipinos, when people
gathered around a storyteller, it was a mixed
audience of children and adults.
• The coming of the Spaniards and a formal
educational system did little to change this
Reading was taught through a syllabary, the
canton, which also contained illustrated
senterices, prayers and catechism.
• Most reading material for children was imported
from Europe. One book popular then was
entitled El Amigo de Los Niños.
• Rizal himself retold stories for children between
the years 1885-1890, while in Europe to study
medicine and while writing the Noli Me Tangere.
• In October 1886, he.completed the translation
into Tagalog of five fairy tales by Hans Christian
Andersen.
• In May 1889, "Specimens of Tagalog Folklore
containing samples of Tagalog proverbs, puzzles
and verses in both Tagalog and English was
published in Trubner's Onental Record, a London
journal.
• In July of the same year, a retelling of the folktale
of the Monkey and the Tortoise, with illustrations
by Rizal.
• The first decade of the new century brought a
commitment of the USA, the new colonizer, to a more
democratic system of primary instruction. The textbooks
used in the classroom, the Baldwin Readers were
brought in from American and taught Filipinos that "A
is for Apple". It was replaced by the Insular Readers
written for Filipinos with Filipino characters and
settings, but used to transmit American values of
Filipino children.
• Pepe and Pilar (1930s) was a more successful attempt at
"filipinizing" the content of beginning reading
textbook ,Eàr1922-1934)with illustrations by Fernando
Amorsolo. Like Pepe and Pilar,the Osias Readers were
popular in schools all over the country. Stil,t hey were
textbooks, whose primary purpose was instruction rather
then enjoyment, and they had ler,Camilo Osias adapted
stories from all over the world and collected them in The
Philippines Readers Series (little life outside the classroom.
• The prevailing idea of children's literature at the time
seems to have been as a vehicle for teaching or
transmission of concepts,knowledge,and values.This
conception of the children's story may be the root of
much of the didacticism that is associated with
children's literature,Luckily,a break from this
traditional conception occured in the early part of the
century,with a series in a popular magazine called
"Ang Mga Kwento Ni Lola Basyang."

•.
• On May 25,1925,Severino Reyes published his
first story for children in Liwayway magazine
under the pen name "Lola Basyang".It was the
first of about 400 stories written for each issue of
the magazine, many of them retelling folktales or
classics from other parts of the world. As a series
title implied, many of the stories were familiar in
tone, similar to the kind a child would hear from
his grandmother.
Many of the stories and books published for children in the
years that followed.
From post-war years to the 1960s.
The decade of the 60s marks the beginning of a conscious
effort to create and produce a distinct body of literature for
Filipino children.
Ceres Alabado began the decade with the publication of The
Little Lizard and Other Stories (1960). With a group of civic
community leaders, she formed Pamana.
• The Pamana collection displays a variety of theme sand
concerns. It includes such stories as:
• Makisig, the Little Hero of Mactan (1964) by Gemma
Cruz, a story of a boy who warns his village of the arrival
of the Spanish galleons and participates in Lapu-Lapu's
victory over Magellan.
• Horgle and the King's Soup (1965) by Gilda Cordero
Fernando is a fantasy in which a flying horse helps change
a king's evil ways by having him meet a kind lady monster.
• Once Upon A Hilltop (1968) by Isabel
Taylor Escoda is based on archeological
diggings at Santa Ana Church and tells
about a friendship between a child and a
dog that lasts until death.
• Even as she was encouraging the
development of stories for children, Ceres
• Alabadao continued to write and publish
her own books,
• Once Upon A Hilltop (1968) by Isabel
Taylor Escoda is based on archeological
diggings at Santa Ana Church and tells
about a friendship between a child and a
dog that lasts until death.
• Even as she was encouraging the
development of stories for children, Ceres
• Alabadao continued to write and publish
her own books,
• On the initiative of Mrs. Alabado, who
believed that every Filipino child should
have access to books about his own culture
written for him by his own countrymen,
and that the main stumbling block to
children's book publishing was
distribution, the CLAPI Children's
Literature Association of the Philippines,
Inc. (CLAPI) was organized in 1966.
•CLAPI has since then remained
active in the promotion and
propagation of Philippine
children's literature with its
various conference-workshops in
the regions and with the launching
of Project.
• In the early 1970’s opened awareness of
the buying public forced the
discontinuance stories that played up
Filipino values and traditions in 1974 the
Philippine Alliance corporation sponsored
the publication of a book series called The
Young People’s Library. Its list of titles
include Filipino Rites and rituals, Filipino
Myths and Legends , Games Filipino
children play and etc.
• Also in the early 1970’s New day
publishers began in line of small
affordable books for children . Titles
includes My friends and the haunted
Cave by T.M Zuniega a five book series
called tales of a Japanese grandmother
by Jean Edades and Yakuso Hashimoto ,
Philippine folk fiction and Tales by
Terisita Veloso Pil and Mandaya .
•In 1976 Playwright Amelia Lapena
Bonifacio published AnimaDulang
Pilipino para sa mga Bata. With
illustration by her old daughter.
The plays were influenced by
observation of traditional Asian
theater.
 AKLAT
ADARNA
• A Children's book being developed by the Nutrition
Center of the Philippines in year 1977 as a part of
their mental feeding program. Headed by a poet,
critic named Virgilio Almario, The said mental
feeding program aimed to develop a Filipino
consciousness in producing an inexpensive books
books Filipino children. Luckily, within a year, it
produces 15 titles already.
•Adarna differs in other recent program
because it studies the needs of readership,
and adapting suggestions from the study on
plots, themes and illustrations. Luckily, it has
been helped by the government network
that’s why on the year 1980, it already acts as
a resource, developer and production center
of children's materials. Added to it, it
prompted the establishment.
• The Childrens Communication Center had
published 150 titles targeting aged 3 to 10
years of its audiences and readers. 
• It has 8 subseries namely: Aklat ng
Karanasan, Aklat ng Tahanan, Aklat ng Aliw,
Aklat ng Lahi, Aklat ng Kasaysayan, Aklat ng
Bayani, Aklat ng Karunungan and Aklat ng
Salin.
 Aklat Adarna
• series provided exposure to writers and illustrators
who would later become notable personalities in
the field. Board on Books for Young People was
established in 1983 to encourage the development
of books for children.
• Calle Sesame was a clone of its U.S. counterpart,
with only minor changes and concessions to its
Filipino child audience.
• Batibot was a Filipino version of the
popular American children's television
show Sesame Street.
• Batibot and other children's TV shows
helped to develop a market for children's
literature. They also promoted the idea
that education is not confined to the
classroom but can take place at home.
• Even academe had to take notice of
the children’s literature. The Creative
Writing Center at the University of
the Philippines, Diliman, sponsored its
first summer workshop on writing for
children in 1993. Another workshop
was held in 1989.
•The latter half of the 1980s marks the
beginning of the legitimacy for
children’s literature in the Philippines.
Writing awards and writing
workshops encourage many to
produce more work for children.
Perhaps more importantly, leading
publishers began children’s book lines
for folk or original stories for children.
• The culture Center of the Philippines also
support the production of literature for
children and to do continues to do so until
today. It hosts and co-sponsors the PBBY
Awards and in 1989 devoted an issue of
Ani, its literary journal, to children’s
literature. The issue was edited by Rene
Villanueva and Karina Bolasco. The CCP
has also established a children literature
category in its Creative Writing Grants
Program.
• In 1989, the Palanca Foundation
opened a new category in its highly
prestigious annual literary competition:
the Short Story for Children, in both
English and Filipino. Early winner of
the Palanca Awards in this category
include Rene Villanueva, Ramon
Sunico, Maria Elena Paterno, Jaime An
Lim, Alfred Yuson and among others.
• The new decade promised much
development in the field of children
literature, with a conscious effort at
integration of the knowledge gained
in all areas of the book production –
writing, design, illustration, and
marketing.
• November of 1989 the Goethe Institut,
in cooperation with the Children’s
Communication Center, The winner in a
competition among the workshop
participants was published in an
impressive volume entitled
ManikBuangsi with story by Virgilio
Almario and illustrations by Albert
Gamos.
• In 1990, Bookmark launched its
Filipino Folktale series with three titles
by Marla YotokoChorengel, The First
Cashew Nut (ill. by Beth Parrocha),
Why the Sky is High (ill. by Bernie
Solina), and Bathala and the Gift of
Rice (ill. by Ibarra Crisostomo).
• The Filipino Folktale series is
Bookmark’s flagship series for
children’s literature, planned in
response to a general complaint from
parents and educators that there was
no Filipino children’s book that could
compare with western counterparts.
• Cacho Publishing House Inc. began
its children’s book line with a
cooperative effort with Batibot, the
children’s television show. In 1990, it
launched six titles that had the
advantage of recall by parents and
recognition by children since these
stories first appeared in the story
segment of the televisions show.
Aklat Batibot
• n 1990, the Trampoline series also launched
by Cacho Publishing House.
• Modern children’s Idiom was illustrated;
• The first 4 titles are:
• The Boy Who Ate Stars ( by A. Yuson, ill.
By B. Paroccha)
• Two Friends One World (by R. Sunico, ill.
By J. de Leon)
•Kung Bakit Umuulan (by R.
Villanueva, ill by R. Alejandro), and
Ang Unang Baboy sa Langit (by R
Villanueva, ill. By I. Crisostomo )
•Addition to the series include:
Sampaguita (by R. Sunico, ill. By J. de
Leon)
• Cacho Publishing House is also experimenting
with small books with limited text and full-
color illustrations that can be sold for less than
the price of fast-food items.
• In 1993, it launched the first four titles in an
environmental series, and more books of this
type are being considered for production. The
aim of such an experiment is to reach out to
readers who have been unable to include
children’s books in their normal budget.
• In 1991 came another significant development for
children's book industry the first book store of
offer only children's book and children's
educational materials, both local and foreign,
opened in the second floor of the Quad II Mall in
Makati Called Young Minds, this book store has
established by Rita J Atienza who had begun to sell
imported titles from her home as early as 1987.
• This book store has since promoted
literacy and love for books quite
aggressively. Some of its marketing
initiatives have included: storytelling
session of philippine legends(1993),
participation in school book fairs.
• Reading Mileage discount for voracious readers,
and most importantly, the I'm an Author
competition. This competition encourage
elementary school children to write and illustrate
their own books ( in Filipino or English) winning
entries are exhibited in well visited malls. In 1992,
another publisher with a strong children's book
program entered the market, Tahanan Books for
Young Readers was founded by the husband and
wife team of Reno Roxas and Marc Singer.
• The couple move from the USA to start a
publishing company which has as its aim. to
publish quality trade books for the Filipino
family and supplementary curriculum
materials for Filipino schools and libraries. In
September of the same year, they linked up
with bookmarks and launched its first list of
eight titles.
• Volcanoes of the Philippines ( by M. Paterno)
Super Boboy and the Great Villian Hunt (by R.
Santos) and the great live series which features
biographies of national heroes for young people.
Emilio Aguinaldo, Andres Bonifacio, Juan Luna,
Apolinario Mabini, Jose Rizal and Gabriela
Silang, where the first heroes to be included in
this series. Since then, Tahanan books has added
title which include an alphabet book.
 Children books
Publishing has become a variable concern today a feat
in itself if one remembers that when to use other
children's books did not survive in the market,
Several Factors:
1. Their market centeredness.
2. The development of new generation of buyers.
3. The growing awareness of the crust and the
building of professionalism in the areas of writing.
• The participant of this book had been writers
illustrators book designers publishers teachers
and a new generation of parent and book
buyers. Where do we go from here?
• It seems that children's book publishing in the
Philippines against all odds has finally found its
voice, as the various professionals involved in
the creation of children's book hone their talents
and refine their vision.