Description

LIRA is a listening log. This log is aneffective way for language learners to keep a record of theirlistening responses to the short stories that are selected. Talesthat contain positive or negative values were purposely selectedfor this activity. It offers them a chance to respond personally,to ask questions, wonder, predict, or reflect on the plot, setting,characters, events, themes or language of the text etc. Learnersshould listen to the selected tale completely before writing theentries. There are 15 stories in this ‘LIRA Tales & Chat’ app.Upon listening to a particular story, learners can write theirreflection on the ‘Note’. Learners may also chat with othersregarding the tales that they have listened to. This is an avenuefor language learners to interact and reflect on the tales thatthey have listened to with other learners. The tales includestories written by famous authors like The Grimm Brothers, HansChristian Andersen and Oscar Wilde.

The List of stories included in this ‘LIRA TALES & CHAT’ appare:

THE HAPPY PRINCE AND OTHER TALES
THE NIGHTINGALE AND THE ROSE
THE SELFISH GIANT
THE ELVES AND THE SHOEMAKER
THE FROG PRINCE
PRINCESS BELL-ETOILE
THE DIAMOND NECKLACE
ALLADDIN AND THE WONDERFUL LAMP
THE LAST LEAF
THE EMPEROR’S NEW CLOTHES
THE RED SHOES
VALIANT LITTLE TAILOR
THE LITTLE MATCH GIRL
RAPUNZEL
KING GRISLY BEARD

After listening to the LIRA tales, one can write notes & chator discuss with other learners regarding the tales.


A critical analysis and summary of all the tales that one can whiteis as follow:
THE RED SHOES
A peasant girl named Karen is adopted by a rich old lady after hermother's death and grows up vain and spoiled. Before her adoption,Karen had a rough pair of red shoes; now she has her adoptivemother buy her a pair of red shoes fit for a princess. After Karenrepeatedly wears them to church, they begin to move by themselves,but she is able to get them off. One day, when her adoptive motherbecomes ill, Karen goes to attend a party in her red shoes. Amysterious soldier appears and makes strange remarks about whatbeautiful dancing shoes Karen has. Soon after, Karen's shoes beginto move by themselves again, but this time they can't come off. Theshoes continue to dance, night and day, rain or shine, throughfields and meadows, and through brambles and briers that tear atKaren's limbs. She can't even attend her adoptive mother's funeral.An angel appears to her, bearing a sword, and condemns her to danceeven after she dies, as a warning to vain children everywhere.Karen begs for mercy but the red shoes take her away before shehears the angel's reply. Karen finds an executioner and asks him tochop off her feet. He does so but the shoes continue to dance, evenwith Karen's amputated feet inside them. The executioner gives hera pair of wooden feet and crutches, and teaches her the criminals'psalm. Thinking that she has suffered enough for the red shoes,Karen decides to go to church so people can see her. Yet heramputated feet, still in the red shoes, dance before her, barringthe way. The following Sunday she tries again, thinking she is atleast as good as the others in church, but again the dancing redshoes bar the way. Karen gets a job as a maid in the parsonage, butwhen Sunday comes she dares not go to church. Instead she sitsalone at home and prays to God for help. The angel reappears, nowbearing a spray of roses, and gives Karen the mercy she asked for:her heart becomes so filled with sunshine, peace, and joy that itbursts. Her soul flies on sunshine to Heaven, where no one mentionsthe red shoes.