Literature Genres
Realistic fiction – Realistic
books have plots, characters, and settings that might be found in real
life. They are stories that are
make-believe, but they could have been true. An example might be The Boxcar Children.
Historical fiction – Stories
that are written to portray a time period or convey information about a
specific time period or an historical event.
Usually the event or time period is about 30 years in the past. An example might be Laura Ingalls Wilder.
Mystery – Something that is
unknown or yet unexplained. At the third
grade level it could be a detective story for example. An example might be Nate the Great or Cam
Jansen, Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys.
Folk Tale – A tale circulated
by word of mouth among the common folk such as Paul Bunyan, Johnny Appleseed.
Fairy Tale – A fanciful tale
of legendary deeds and creatures, usually intended for children. Cinderella would be a good example.
Modern Fantasy – A
make believe story set in today’s generation.
Harry Potter is an example.
Science Fiction – fiction
about science; typically based on speculative scientific discoveries or
developments, environmental changes, space travel, or life on other planets
Information – Science or Information – Social
Studies – Non-fiction dealing with the topic of either
science or social studies.
Information – Literature that
is non-fiction written to inform
Biography – An account of a
person’s life written, composed, or produced by another. There are lots of versions of Helen Keller.
Autobiography
– An account of a person’s life written by the
person
Plays – a literary work written
for performance on the stage; a drama
Poetry – A piece of literature
written in meter; verse. Shel
Silverstein and Jack Prelutsky, Dr. Seuss also, are good examples.
Directions – Giving guidance,
management or supervision of an action or operation