In Donna Norton's amazing book, Through the Eyes of a Child: An Introduction to Children's Literature, she gives wonderful hints and suggestions for what a teacher might do to compare different versions of the same folktale. She claims that over 900 versions of the Cinderella story have been found in the world. The type of questions that she recommends asking students to guide their understanding of similar motifs are as follows:

1. What caused [the Cinderella character] to have a lowly position in the family?
2. What shows that [the Cinderella character] has a lowly position in the household?
3. How is [the Cinderella character] related to other household members?
4. What happens to keep [the Cinderella character] away from the ball?
5. How does [the Cinderella character] receive her wishes or transformation?
6. Where does [the Cinderella character] meet the prince?
7. What is the test signifying the rightful [Cinderella character]?
8. What else happens to the stepsisters?"

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