Genre: Fantasy vs. Reality

⭐ Concept Guide & Warm-Up

Grade 4 • English

Page 1 of 4 • Concept Guide

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🦁 Fantasy

A story that could NOT happen in the real world. It has imaginary, magical, or impossible elements.

Characters have magical powers or abilities
Talking animals or objects
Mythical creatures (dragons, unicorns, fairies)
Magic spells, enchanted places, or special artifacts
Events that break the laws of nature
Imaginary worlds, kingdoms, or realms

Example: "Mia waved her wand and turned the pumpkin into a golden carriage."

🏫 Realistic Fiction

A story that could happen in the real world, even if it is invented. The characters, places, and events seem true-to-life.

Characters are ordinary people or animals
Events follow the laws of nature
Problems are real-life situations (school, family, friendship)
Settings are real places (a school, a park, a house)
No magic, impossible powers, or mythical creatures
Characters act the way real people do

Example: "Carlos practiced his free throws every afternoon to prepare for the big game."

Fantasy vs. Reality concept illustration: a magical dragon world on the left, a real school scene on the right

Part A — Warm-Up: Quick Classify | Read each sentence. Write F for Fantasy or R for Reality on the blank. (1 point each)

1. _____ The princess rode a purple unicorn to the silver castle in the sky.
2. _____ Ana forgot her lunch box at home and had to share with her classmate.
3. _____ The old wizard turned the villain into a frog using a glowing emerald stone.
4. _____ Marco borrowed his father's bicycle to race with his friends at the plaza.
5. _____ The forest animals held a secret meeting and elected a talking owl as their king.

Genre: Fantasy vs. Reality

🦁 Fantasy Passage — Reading & Comprehension

Grade 4 • English

Page 2 of 4 • Fantasy Passage

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🦁 Fantasy

The Girl Who Could Speak to Stars

Every night, twelve-year-old Lira climbed to the top of the Silver Tower and whispered her worries to the stars. And every night, the stars whispered back. "Courage," said the Brightest Star, blinking in morse-code flashes only Lira could understand.

One evening, a shadow dragon circled the kingdom of Luminos, swallowing the light of every lantern in the city. The townsfolk trembled. The king called his soldiers, but their swords were useless against something made of pure darkness.

Lira climbed to the Silver Tower once more. She cupped her hands to her mouth and spoke — not in whispers, but in a shout. The stars answered with a shower of golden light. The beams struck the shadow dragon and scattered it into a thousand harmless fireflies that drifted away into the night sky.

The king bowed before the girl. "How did you do it?" he asked. Lira looked up at the twinkling sky. "I just remembered," she said, "that darkness is afraid of anyone brave enough to make a little light."

Part B — Fantasy Comprehension | Answer the following questions based on the passage above. (1 point each)

6. What is the special ability of Lira in the story?
7. What problem did the shadow dragon cause in the kingdom?
8. What happened to the shadow dragon when the stars answered Lira?
9. Which of the following BEST proves this story is Fantasy? Circle the letter.
A. A girl is twelve years old. B. The king called his soldiers. C. A girl speaks to stars and a shadow dragon attacks the kingdom. D. The city had lanterns.
10. What lesson did Lira share at the end of the story? Write it in your own words.

Genre: Fantasy vs. Reality

🏫 Realistic Passage + Genre Sorting

Grade 4 • English

Page 3 of 4 • Realistic Passage

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🏫 Realistic Fiction

The Science Fair Champion

Ben had been working on his science fair project for three weeks. His idea was simple: to prove that plants grow faster when you play music to them. He set up two identical pots of mongo seeds on the windowsill — one near a small speaker, one in silence.

Every day, Ben watered both pots equally. He measured the stems with a ruler and wrote the numbers carefully in his notebook. His younger sister kept asking to help, so he gave her the job of turning on the music every morning.

On the day of the Science Fair, Ben carried his poster board and plants to school by jeepney. When the judges examined his data chart, they were impressed. "Your method was very systematic," said Teacher Rosa. Ben's plant near the speaker had grown 2.3 centimeters taller than the silent one.

Ben did not win first place — that went to a classmate who tested water filtration. But his teacher pulled him aside afterward. "Your curiosity is your greatest tool," she said. Ben smiled and started thinking about next year's project.

Part C — Realistic Fiction Comprehension | Answer based on the passage. (1 point each)

11. What was Ben's science fair experiment about?
12. How do you know this story is Realistic Fiction and NOT Fantasy? Give TWO reasons.
13. What result did Ben's experiment show?
14. What advice did Teacher Rosa give Ben? What does it mean?

Part D — Genre Sorting | Read the items in the Word Bank. Write each item in the correct column of the table. (1 point each)

📦 Word Bank

Flying carpet School project Dragon breathing fire Family quarrel Invisible cloak Playing basketball

🦁 FANTASY	🏫 REALITY

Genre: Fantasy vs. Reality

🔍 Venn Diagram & Story Maker

Grade 4 • English

Page 4 of 4 • Activities

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Part E — Venn Diagram | Compare the two passages from pages 2 and 3. Write at least 2 ideas in each section of the Venn Diagram. (2 points each section)

🦁 FANTASY ONLY

BOTH

🏫 REALITY ONLY

Part F — Story Maker | Choose ONE genre (Fantasy or Reality). Write a short story (3–5 sentences) that clearly shows your chosen genre. Underline the clue words that reveal the genre. (5 points)

🦁 I chose: FANTASY 🏫 I chose: REALITY ← Circle your chosen genre

My Story Title:

Part G — Critical Thinking | Answer the question below in complete sentences. (3 points)

Why is it important for a reader to identify whether a story is Fantasy or Reality? How does knowing the genre change the way you read or enjoy a story?

✓ Answer Key

Genre: Fantasy vs. Reality

✓ ANSWER KEY — For Teacher / Parent Use Only

Answer Key

Grade 4 • English

Part A — Warm-Up: Quick Classify (1 pt each • Total: 5 pts)

1.F — Fantasy: unicorns and castles in the sky are impossible/magical.

2.R — Reality: forgetting a lunch box is a real, everyday event.

3.F — Fantasy: wizards and magical transformations are imaginary.

4.R — Reality: riding a bicycle and racing at the plaza can happen in real life.

5.F — Fantasy: animals cannot hold meetings or talk.

Part B — Fantasy Comprehension (1 pt each • Total: 5 pts)

6.Lira can speak to stars and understand their whispered replies.

7.The shadow dragon swallowed all the light in the kingdom, leaving it in total darkness.

8.Golden beams from the stars struck the shadow dragon, scattering it into harmless fireflies.

9.C — A girl speaking to stars and a shadow dragon are impossible/magical events.

10.Accept any paraphrase: Being brave enough to make a small light can drive away darkness/fear.

Part C — Realistic Fiction Comprehension (1 pt each • Total: 4 pts)

11.Ben tested whether plants grow faster when music is played to them.

12.Any two: Ordinary people; real settings (home, school); science experiment; no magic or fantasy creatures; traveling by jeepney.

13.The plant near the speaker grew 2.3 cm taller than the silent plant.

14.Teacher Rosa said Ben's curiosity is his greatest tool — his desire to ask questions and explore will lead him to success.

Part D — Genre Sorting (1 pt each • Total: 6 pts)

🦁 FANTASY

Flying carpet
Dragon breathing fire
Invisible cloak

🏫 REALITY

School project
Family quarrel
Playing basketball

Part E — Venn Diagram (2 pts per section • Total: 6 pts)

Fantasy Only: magical girl who speaks to stars, shadow dragon, kingdom of Luminos, fireflies from scattered dragon, stars answer with golden light | Both: a young main character, a challenge/problem to overcome, a lesson/theme at the end, descriptive setting | Reality Only: science experiment, measuring with a ruler, notebook/data chart, school setting, Teacher Rosa, riding a jeepney

Part F — Story Maker (5 pts) & Part G — Critical Thinking (3 pts)

Part F Rubric: 5 pts — Story clearly belongs to chosen genre (3–5 sentences, clue words underlined). 3–4 pts — Genre identifiable, minor issues. 1–2 pts — Partial genre evidence. 0 pts — No genre clues.
Part G Rubric: 3 pts — Thoughtful complete response (genre helps set expectations, understand characters, appreciate story elements). 2 pts — Partial explanation. 1 pt — Minimal response.