Why Storytelling in the Classroom Matters

What is ‘storytelling’?

Telling stories, of course. In 2016, there are so many diverse, wonderful and sometimes overwhelming ways to do this. What I want to explore is traditional, oral storytelling, which has been a part of human life since we first left Africa 200,000 or more years ago. Perhaps storytelling was the reason language developed in the first place, as our minds began to inquire, wonder, think.

Why do we tell stories?

Whether in caves or in cities, storytelling remains the most innate and important form of communication. All of us tell stories. The story of your day, the story of your life, workplace gossip, the horrors on the news. Our brains are hard-wired to think and express in a beginning, middle and end. It’s how we understand the world.

Storytelling is the oldest form of teaching. It bonded the early human communities, giving children the answers to the biggest questions of creation, life and the afterlife. Stories define us, shape us, control us and make us. Not every human culture in the world is literate, but every single culture tells stories. This short film, narrated by the actor Ian Mckellen, nicely develops this idea.

Can you be a storyteller and a teacher?

You already are. Teachers are storytellers, and storytellers have been teachers for millennia. In reality, teachers don’t see themselves as storytellers. Or rather, they see the occasional storyteller and think it’s a theatrical, exaggerated show more akin to acting. Hang on a minute – being a teacher definitely involves acting and theatrics.

It is important at this stage that I describe my particular style. I don’t rely just on ‘speaking’ the story. I don’t sit still in a chair. I talk slowly, with alternating rhythm; I walk around, I use my hands a lot. And, most importantly, children from the audience act out the story as I tell it. They dress up in funny hats and other props and follow the instructions in the story and repeat the dialogue I say. I stop and start the story a lot, asking the audience to contribute sound effects, to answer questions, to make suggestions.

The many benefits to storytelling

When you tell your first story there is a magical moment. The children sit enthralled, mouths opening, eyes wide. If that isn’t enough reason, then consider that storytelling:

• inspires purposeful talking, not just about the story but also there are many games you can play
• raises the enthusiasm for reading of texts to find stories, reread them, etc
• initiates writing because children will quickly want to write stories and tell them
• enhances the community in the room
• improves listening skills
• really engages the boys who love the acting
• is enjoyed by children from Kindergarten to the end of Elementary school
• gives a motivating reason for English Language Learners to want to talk and write English.

That last point has really proven powerful and I will expand upon it later.

So how do you become a storyteller?

I recommend the following:

1. Read as many different world folktales, fables, myths and legends as you can.
2. Watch professional storytellers and take notes about how they do it. Every storyteller is different and you can learn something from them all.
3. Build your confidence up by reading picture books or chapter books with an interesting voice. Stop to ask questions. Make the book reading interactive. It will help you create a shared event with a story.
4. Pick stories with small numbers of characters and repeating events, as these are easiest to remember. Having said that, pick any story you like no, LOVE! If you are captivated by it, so will the younger ones.
5. Write the stories down in a notebook. Writing helps you remember it and it models the same to the children.
6. When you start ‘telling’ your story, it’s OK to have the story nearby and to take a look at it if you forget a part. Don’t be too hard on yourself. You are a student again.
7. Get yourself a ‘prop box’ made of old bits of linen, hats from charity shops, random objects. I got a lot of my materials from recycling centres.

Inspiring English learning

Another great reason to engage with storytelling in education is about it inspires children to learn English. The proof for this came from my recent experience gained teaching in an international school in China that has a 97% cohort of students for whom English is an additional language. In a Grade 3 class I taught I had four students join with no English and as many again with very basic language skills. As normal, I started telling stories in my normal manner. However, I quickly adapted my style for my new class. These adaptions were:

• I spoke slower, putting more dramatic emphasis into my voice.
• I used more physical actions and sound effects to help associate universally recognised body actions (running, sleeping, etc) with new English words.
• I frequently asked the audience to repeat key words and actions.
• I used more physical humour. Laughter was essential to breaking down the barrier of language.

The best surprise of all

After a few months of this I started receiving some of the biggest surprises of my career. Firstly, a German student who was in the ‘Listening Phase’ of language acquisition began spontaneously writing her own fairy tales and requested to tell them – the first student storyteller. A Japanese student who had been enjoying himself as an actor in the stories but was always nervous to speak English, quickly followed. Now he started telling short but lively stories he had written. Several Korean students then started sharing stories, overcoming shyness and worries about publicly making mistakes.

Within a month I had a list of students wanting to tell stories and this continued for the rest of the year, right up to the very last day of term. Those EAL first storytellers went on to make rapid progress in the wider curriculum, with fiction writing and telling remaining their favourite activity.

Reflecting on how storytelling inspires English

Over the summer, I reflected on why storytelling had been such a powerful tool. I concluded:

1. Storytelling is the one commonality between all world cultures, regardless of rates of literacy.
2. Children naturally inhabit fantasy worlds and stories are a natural way for them to express language and emotion.
3. With a beginning, middle and end, stories have a structure that creates a sense of achievement.
4. When peers appreciate your story it is a big boost to confidence.
5. It’s great fun seeing your friends act your story and dress up, using props and costumes. ‘Fun’ is the best motivation.
6. Storytelling doesn’t require complex, technical vocabulary. Think of ‘silent films’ and comics. Sophisticated narrative can be understood with few words.
7. I don’t worry about the student’s spelling, grammar and handwriting at this stage. A focus on these areas can easily demotivate and inhibit creativity. There must be freedom to take risks and make mistakes.

Adapting my storytelling style

 In terms of working with students new to English, I have adapted my technique in the following ways:

1. I am ready to support shy students and help them when they get suddenly stuck on a word. Any student who stands up to tell a story in English has made an incredible breakthrough.
2. I set my classroom up in a large inverted U shape, which creates a stage space in the centre and means everybody can see each other and have open, dialogic-style discussions. I am often asked, “how do you do group work if the tables are not grouped together”. Easy. Students move their chairs or sit anywhere they like.
3. Most of my students write their own stories, but some work together, which is wonderful for developing confidence in creativity. Some love to use postcards as imagination prompts or sequence aids.
4. Most students draw inspiration from their reading, so a varied Book Corner is essential. Two German students worked together Reader’s Theatre style to tell a story in English which they translated together from a German book.
5. I play lots of language games that I either make up or gain from other storytellers and literacy workshops. They make talking (and laughing) the forefront of language learning.

So what’s next?                                                                                   

Sure, it takes effort and inclination on your behalf, but with so many benefits, isn’t it worth trying? You might surprise yourself. You will certainly surprise your students. In relatively little time, you can be telling stories, running storytelling clubs, capturing the attention of the whole school assembly, contributing to school events and PD training schedules, and inspiring your students in new and wonderful ways. I never thought I would be doing any of this when I started my teacher training seven years ago. So what’s stopping you?

The next story starts with you…

Written by Matthew Friday