Tikki Tikki Tembo

 Tikki Tikki Tembo

Written by Arlene Mosel

Illustrated by Blair Lent

Published in 1968

Grade Level: 2nd-3rd grade

Synopsis: Tikki Tikki Tembo is a story set in ancient China and based on Chinese folk lore.  The story claims that it was custom during this time period in ancient China for parents to honor their first-born son with long and intricate names.  People were supposed to call the first-born son by his given name and not allowed to give him a shorter nickname.  The second son on the other hand was usually given a shorter, less important name.  The sons in Tikki Tikki Tembo are named Tikki Tikki Tembo-no Sa Rembo-chari Bari Ruchi-pip Peri Pembo and Chang.  One day, the brothers are playing near a well, despite being warned not to.  Chang, the younger brother, falls into the well and his older brother runs to their mother for help and Chang is quickly rescued.   Obviously not learning anything from their previous experience with the well, the brothers play near the well a second tie.  This time the first-born son falls in the well and Chang runs to his mother for help.  He shouts, "Tikki Tikki Tembo-no Sa Rembo-chari Bari Ruchi-pip Peri Pembo has fallen into the well" over and over again because she cannot hear him.  Chang stops shouting for his mother and runs to get the Old Man with the Ladder.  He uses the ladder to get Tikki Tikki Tembo-no Sa Rembo-chari Bari Ruchi-pip Peri Pembo, first-born son, out of the well in the nick of time.  The lesson or moral that is intended to be taken from the story is that one reason current Chinese names are typically short and only one syllable long is because of the time it took for Chang to explain to people what happened to his older brother, Tikki Tikki Tembo-no Sa Rembo-chari Bari Ruchi-pip Peri Pembo as a result of his ridiculously long name.

Theme/Skill:  The story gives the message that every person is important. The story starts off with the view that the first born son being all important, while Chang, the second son is cast aside. Yet, after the heroic actions of the second-born son, Chang becomes appreciated and both children are loved and finally seen as important. However, in the end Chang is the hero and both children are important and loved. 

Pre-reading activity: Talk about names; why people are given names, how people are named, the benefits of long and short names.  Students can reflect on their own names (how they got them, what people call them (nickname), why they do or do not like their name.  This discussion will prepare students for what the story is about.  They can use their own feelings about the opinions of their peers to help them interpret the moral of the story of Chang and Tikki Tikki Tembo-no Sa Rembo-chari Bari Ruchi-pip Peri Pembo.

Post-reading activity: The teacher will use descriptive language and details to describe a hidden object to students without using the object's name.  The teacher could bring in a barrel or large bucket and put random objects, appropriate and familiar to students, in the barrel, which represents the well that Chang and his older brother fell into.  The teacher will model how to do this and the student who guesses correctly will be the next describer.  (Idea adapted from Scholastic).

Assessment: During the activity with the barrel (well) each student will be given a rubric to assess their peers.  They will assess their peers using smiley faces in which the surprised face represents the highest score (4), a smiley face (3), a confused face (2), and a sad face (1).  Students will assess their peers on presentation and effectiveness of descriptions.  They will also give them one positive comment and one thing that they could improve upon. 

Reflection: In 1997, Tikki Tikki Tembo was selected by The New York Times as a part of its list of the 50 best children's books of the previous 50 years.  This just shows how enduring the story is.  Since its publication in 1933, the story of the two Chinese brothers who fell in a well has been a classic.  Whether at home or at school, Tikki Tikki Tembo is a great story to read to children.  Recently a film version, narrated by Ming Na and B.D Wong, has been released.  "Tikki Tikki Tembo and More Stories to Celebrate Asian Heritage" is a wonderful media version to accompany and reinforce the text version.  I would suggest that both versions of the story be on the shelves of all elementary school teachers.