One of the basic elements of plot in a story or novel is the conflict or difficulty the main character faces and the choices made to attempt to resolve or overcome it. As educator Kieran Egan, author of Teaching as Story Telling, said, the parts of narratives that are most understandable and engaging are those involving moral choices. He gives the example of The Lord of the Rings, wherein he says the narrative derives its meaning, action, and interest from conflicts between such moral qualities as loyalty and betrayal, courage and cowardice, honor and selfishness.
Stories have the added bonus of being emotionally evocative; they enter not only the mind but the heart. Thus they foster affective as well as cognitive responses.
The choice of stories is important in moral teaching. In the first four books of the Discovering the Real Me series, classic fables and fairy tales were selected for their moral content.
Imagine sharing with a child this timeless story:
The North Wind and the Sun
One day all the animals in the meadow were listening to a big argument between the North Wind and the Sun.
The North Wind was bragging, "I am stronger than you. You are the weakest."
The Sun said politely, "No, that is not true."
They continued to talk in this manner, and the North Wind began to get louder and louder until the animals had to cover their ears!
Finally, the Sun said in a quiet voice, "Let's put this to a test. See that man over there walking down the road? Let's say that whoever can make him take off his coat first is the stronger one. Do you agree?"
The Wind agreed, and at once he began to howl and blow at the man, almost knocking him over! The blast was so strong that it almost pulled the coat right off him. But the man grabbed his coat and wrapped himself up in it even more tightly than before. The North Wind didn’t give up for a long time, but finally he ran out of breath.
The Sun began to shine. As the man walked down the road, the heat of the sun warmed him and then made him sweat. He undid the top button of his coat. The North Wind groaned. The Sun shone down more on the man. The man unbuttoned all the buttons on his coat, and the coat hung loosely around his shoulders.
"Oh, no!" whined the North Wind.
After about a mile, the man sat down in the shade of a tree and took off his coat! The North Wind retreated in a huff, and the Sun smiled down at the man.