Cinderella is a girl who has lived through quite a bit of tragedy when you think about it. First her mother died. Then her father married a horrid woman with mean daughters. Then the father died leaving her in the care of this horrid woman and her daughters who treat Cinderella like a slave (maid if I were inclined to be nice but I think slave fits better). Cinderella lived in a time when young women did not move out until they married. In fact I think it was rather odd to find a home like Cinderella's where a woman lived alone only with daughters - no men I mean. That's the way things were then. Cinderella cooks and cleans and waits on her step-mother and step-sisters night and day and yet she has a sunny and warm personality. She has been in indentured servitude for as long as she can remember and yet she still dreams. She apparently knows how to sew. She has the kindness and poise to attract and KEEP the attention of the prince. She has the courage and survival skills to get herself (with a little help from her mice friends) out of that attic and demand her turn to try on the glass slipper. She has the brains to carry the one remaining slipper with her so that she can pull it out when she needs it. So what can my daughter learn from Cinderella? She can learn the importance of persevering. Most children who have lived through as much tragedy as Cinderella would not handle it as well as she does. It would not matter what her step-mother did in a lot of cases children who have lived through that kind of tragedy are anything but kind and hopeful and warm spirited. They are angry - and who can blame them? Yet, Cinderella shows our daughters that life is worth living. That no matter how much bad has come your way if you look for it there is always good around you. You can always find some good in your day - something to smile about and someone to love - even if it is a chubby little mouse. Sort of the perfect example of when life hands you lemons make lemonade.
My daughter can learn that dreaming is powerful. That no matter what your life looks today if you watch for it there will always be something good coming in the not too distant future. As a matter of fact there is always good things in your life right now. It can be hard to see the good in life when things are difficult but it really is a wonderful quality to have. Cinderella teaches my daughter that quality. She teaches my daughter the importance of seeing the good. Cinderella can teach my daughter to have hope. The Fairy Godmother tells Cinderella that if she had no hope left she would not be able to be there. Hope, like dreaming and seeing the good, is very powerful. Hope and faith can be what keeps a person going. Hope and faith do not mean you do not work hard they simply mean you put all of your positive energy into something (a lesson Tiana learns but we will get to her later).
Cinderella can teach my daughter the handiness of skills like sewing. It is barely addressed in the movie but Cinderella is really quite the seamstress. She has big plans for her mother's dress (admittedly those plans are carried out by some pretty amazing mice but the fact that Cinderella knows just what to do is impressive enough). She does some work, although we don't see exactly how much, on her step-sisters dresses. Sewing and other skills of that nature seem to be forgotten these days but whether you sew clothing (like I do) or simply repair things here and there sewing is actually a handy skill to have - and one that many people do not have.
Cinderella can teach my daughter the importance of being kind to others. Sure, it may have been her pretty face and her well put together outfit that made the prince notice Cinderella in the first place but there is no way she was the only pretty girl at that ball. Cinderella had to be nice and kind and engaging for the prince to want to continue to dance with her. She must have been more than a pretty face for him to refuse to marry anyone but her.
Lastly Cinderella can teach my daughter the importance of keeping your wits about you and managing in a crisis. Cinderella is locked in that attic and her chance at a better life is about to whisk itself out her front door and completely out of her reach. It would be easy to panic or simply give up. Cinderella looks to her friends for help and comes racing down the stairs just in time to try on that glass slipper. Her step-mother who, clearly, has no intention of allowing Cinderella to better herself, trips the royal footman and breaks the glass slipper. In the movie it seems like a crazy coincidence that she has the other one in her pocket but the truth is it is wise. Cinderella has just learned exactly how ruthless and horrid her step-mother is (remember Cinderella ASKED to go to the ball. Until this incident she had no knowledge that her step-mother intended to keep her locked up and serving for the rest of her life). She is smart enough to not take any chances. She keeps that slipper hidden until it is needed. Cinderella can teach my daughter to allows think about what you might need and be sure to have it where you can get it. 
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