Storytelling: A Powerful Learning Tool in the Home

Reading aloud to children is an enjoyable experience for many families. However, storytelling represents an even more powerful, though diminishing, experience in homes across the country. Children love it when adults can summon from within themselves a good story and tell it with verve and gusto. To prepare yourself for storytelling, follow these simple steps.

• Read the story over to yourself thoroughly, or, if you are making it up, go over each of the details in your mind, so that you know it cold.

• Practice telling the story in front of a mirror or use a tape recorder. If you can get feedback from another adult, do that as well.

• Tell the story to your kids. Use gestures, facial expressions, and as much dramatic flair as you can muster in delivering the storyline. If possible, engage the kids in the story as well, providing dialogue they can repeat or gestures they can imitate that are important to the plot.

  Storytelling is a fading art in our culture, but an important element in nurturing the imagination and a vital tool in transmitting joy and wisdom from one generation to another.

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