Story Time

Story TIME

Create warm, loving memories of storytelling

together that will comfort and last a lifetime

If your haven’t yet discovered how wonderful it can be to make up a story with your young child, you have a real treat in store! Storytelling is a great way to foster your child’s creativity and love of reading. If your parents told you stories, then you already know that storytelling is one of the very best ways to create lasting memories. And it’s never to early to start. You can start as early as when your child is a little baby. He may not yet understand every word but you are starting him off on a journey of discovery. Anytime can be story time for your child. While waiting in the car, while going for a walk, at mealtimes, bed-time or just about anytime you feel like spinning a tale. You don’t have to be an expert all you have to do is set your imagination free.

Storytelling is a universal, traditional art form that has featured strongly in all cultures as an effective communication tool. “The story is an imaginative and powerful instrument for culture-linking, and our best writers are the creators of this magic”. The practice of making up stories to explain things goes back to the beginnings of human history (think of the creation of myths from ancient cultures). Here are some tips to help make story time more fun for both your little one and you:

· Start with a familiar story and let it led you to a new direction. For instance, the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears doesn’t have to end with her running out of the house and never coming back. Change it around may be baby bear and Goldilocks can even become friends!

· Tell stories about things that happened in your own childhood. Every child is fascinated by the thought that his mother or father were once little and had to deal with the same difficulties that all youngsters face.

· Be sure to include lots of magic! A kiss can transform the ugly frog into a handsome prince. For small children, it is important for stories to convey magic as well as fantasy.

· When you read to him you could follow a gentle sing-song narration and let him watch your fingers as they follow the text you are reading from.

· The main character of the story could be a person who is like your child in some ways, but not necessarily exactly the same.

A Teaching Tool

Important messages can be skillfully conveyed through storytelling, as the listener is entranced by the magic images that the storyteller paints before these eyes.

We, as educators of young children, can promote their learning through such simple stories. At the heart of each story is a problem that has to be solved. So, any story in which a person confronts a problem and solves it is immediately relevant to a young child’s life, because it teaches him to view problems optimistically, as things that can be solved. Often, I tell my son a story to convey a message. For instance, when he was two years old, he annoyingly always left his toys out, so I made up a story about how toys that are not taken given to children who appreciate them. I couldn’t believe how well it worked. All I have to do is mention Toyland and his toys are magically put away.

Researchers have noted that a two-year-old is interested in stories that contain a lot of action, with characters who get themselves in trouble and back out again. Perhaps that is the way he perceives himself to be. Psychologists suggest that because he is in the midst of fighting for his own independence, he will be more interested in strong willed characters. However, there is a change as he nears his third birthday. His growing maturity, according to experts, manifests itself in a longer attention span, and the ability to understand a story with a plot. He may also prefer stories in which characters display emotions. The possibilities are endless!

Choosing Story Books

· Books with plenty of visuals with different colours, shapes and textures would interest your baby. The bigger and brighter the pictures, the easier it is to draw attention.

· Interactive books, with sound effects, pop-up pictures and squeaky push-bottons are usually great fun to explore.

· You could try picking up books whose stories have a good message, like sharing, co-operation etc. Initially, it may be best to avoid books that are very complex with many characters, as this would only confuse the child and put him off.

· Books, which have parts of the story as a refrain, as in “He huffed and he puffed and he blew the house down’ in The Three Little Pigs will have your little one huffing and puffing along with wold.

Stories and Reality

Young children are unable to distinguish between the real and the imaginary, and for this reason, it is important to make a clear distinction of entering another world before the storytelling begins. When we adults read or listen to a story. Children don’t do that; instead, the characters are much more real to them. That is one reason why exposure to violence on television can have such a damaging effect on their young minds.

Parents should gently help their young children sort out reality from make-believe. Once your story is finished, it is important to bring the children back to reality. You can complete the circle by taking the children back along the same path that took them into the world of stories.