The importance of fairy tales for children

Fairy tales are the stories that adults, especially parents, tell young children. In view of their name, it is surprising that hardly any of them are actually about fairies. (1) _____ most fairy tales have happy endings, the stories usually deal with very (2) _____ situations – children abandoned in the forest, terrifying giants, cruel stepmothers. However, despite being scared when they are told the stories, the children will often ask to them over and over again.

Many psychologists believe that what fairies tales do, in addition to (3) _____ children’s imagination, is to show that there are problems in the world and that they can be overcome. Just like adults, children have fears and worries; theirs are of things such as abandonment, loss, injures, witches. Fairy tales present real problems in a fantasy form (4) _____ children are able to understand. This, it is claimed, allows them to (5) _____ their fears and to realise, if ever in their unconscious mins, that no matter how difficult the circumstances, there are always of coping. (Adapted from “Richmon Practise Tests for Cambridge English: Advanced”)