Primary Values

Zen Tails® is a ground-breaking collection of books based on stories drawn from great philosophical tales.  Beautifully illustrated and adapted for children, each story includes the original tale as well as a moral. Zen Tails® Primary Values is an educational program based on the Zen Tails® series of books and addresses fundamental questions which must be faced by each of us as we move through life. These questions are simple enough to be understood by young children, yet profound enough to warrant a lifetime of study, reflection and practice.

The Zen Tails®: Primary Values program is designed to encourage children to develop a curiosity about the books they read, to inquire into the meaning of the stories they hear, and to develop sensitivity towards the language used by the author.

By working through the Zen Tails®: Primary Values program, your students will develop and refine skills which will enrich their lives and aid them in other areas of study. These skills include:

Recalling a plot; Examining character traits; Interpreting stories and incidents within stories; Relating these stories to their own experience; Testing assertions in the light of experience; Listening to others and understanding their points of view; Modifying their own point of view in light of shared discussion; Defending and arguing in support of an interpretation; Responding to and assessing others’ arguments.

The Teachers’ Guide and the Student Workbook contain complete copies of the first four Zen Tails books. Students just tear out the A4 size perforated sheets and fold them in half.