Storytelling in Schools
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We've finished the first release of this web site. Please share your comments with us.
Jackie Baldwin jackie@story-lovers.com
Kate Dudding kate@katedudding.com
Resources: Books
These books are listed alphabetically by title. All are available through
amazon.com.
Children Tell Stories: Teaching and Using Storytelling in the Classroom by Martha Hamilton and Mitch Weiss The authors provide compelling rationales for the value of storytelling, links to state literacy learning standards, detailed storytelling unit tips, easy ideas for storytelling throughout the curriculum, and carefully selected and extensive bibliographies. Considered the classic in the field, this book is useful to both experienced and novice teachers and storytellers who work with students from preschool through college.
Cool Story Programs for the School-Age Crowd by Rob Reid A storyteller and librarian has written yet another book loaded with fresh programming ideas. Eighteen well-developed plans with wacky themes that kids love will bring literature to life with a minimum of stress for public librarians, teachers, and school media specialists.
Day of the Moon Shadow: Tales with Ancient Answers to Scientific Questions by Judy Gail and Linda A. Houlding. It is a hardcover ISBN 1-56308-348-5 by Librarians Unlimited, Inc. The book is not only full of stories and songs, but each story section also contains scientific information. For instance, there is a story from the Inuit of Central Aortic that tells about the aurora borealis and how it is made: sun and earth interact near the magnetic poles to form the aurora borealis. That section is followed by a story called Spirits of the Dancing Dead, a folktale from the Inuit people to explain the phenomenon. There is a lullaby, complete with music and lyrics that follows. The book contains stories from around the world.
An Imaginative Approach to Teaching by Kieran Egan Offers practical help for teachers who want to engage, stimulate, and develop the imaginative and learning processes of children between the ages of eight to fifteen.
The Power of Story: Teaching Through Storytelling by Rives Collins and Pamela Cooper Storytelling plays a central role in empowering educators and learners to synthesize and verbalize personal experiences, communicate feelings, and construct meaning, all of which are processes vital to effective learning.
Spinning Tales, Weaving Hope: Stories, Storytelling, and Activities for Peace, Justice and the Environment by Ed Brody (Editor), Jay Goldspinner (Editor), Katie Green (Editor), Rona Leventhal (Editor)and John Porcino (Editor) An incredible sourcebook for storytellers, teachers, parents and healers, each story is followed by suggested activities and exercises, storytelling tips, and resources, all designed to deepen the storytelling experience. Includes an Age Suitability Index, a Thematic Index, and a Directory of Contributors. A new introduction focuses on storytelling in education.
Storyteller, Storyteacher: Discovering the Power of Storytelling for Teaching and Living by Marni Gillard A committed teacher, storyteller, and listener presents a highly readable how-to about involving both adults and students in storytelling. Includes suggestions for developing personal stories, discovering family tellers and emulating them, and checking out resources in the library, as well as ideas about how to tell, how to coach others, and how not to be afraid of the power of a story to move us all to tears.
The Storytelling Classroom by Sherry Norfolk, Jane Stenson and Diane Williams An inspiring, practical and immediately applicable collection of pre-K through eighth grade lesson plans by and for teachers and media specialists who use storytelling in the classroom and storytellers who work in the classroom. Each lesson plan is linked to National Standards in Language Arts, Social Studies, Math or Science and is accompanied by an essay that provides a glimpse of the alchemy that occurs when students, teachers and story are brought together: student engagement, classrooms that are alive with thinking students, LEARNING!
Storytelling in Emergent Literacy: Fostering Multiple Intelligence by Susan Louise Trostle and Jeanne Donato Perfect for early childhood educators, providers and students alike, this book creatively integrates multiple intelligences and related activities with methods of effective storytelling. Based on recent brain research and multiple intelligence theory, it combines the art of storytelling with popular selections from children's literature.
Tales As Tools: The Power of Story in the Classroom by Sheila Daley through the National Storytelling Association A practical guide to the use of storytelling across the curriculum in schools.
Teachers' Voices: Storytelling and Possibility (Issues in Curriculum Theory, Policy, and Research) by Freema Elbaz (Editor) This book draws on ideas about the nature of teaching and teacher knowledge, teacher development and school reform, and narrative as methodology for understanding the lives and work of teachers. These ideas have been elaborated over the past 20 years or so by many researchers who see storytelling as the interactive process, which constitutes the site of the production of teachers knowledge.
Teaching as Story Telling: An Alternative Approach to Teaching and Curriculum in the Elementary School by Kieran Egan A practical introduction to the use of story-forms in curriculum for young children. His model presents various possibilities in a range of fields for many kinds of teachers.
The Way of the Storyteller by Ruth Sawyer First published in 1942, this classic work is unique in its blend of literary history, criticism, analysis, personal anecdote, and how-to instructions. Sawyer examines storytelling as a folk art and a still-living art, tracing its evolution from the earliest narrative impulses that developed as stories were written down.
The World of Storytelling by Anne Pellowski Both a practical guide and a background reference for those who want to tell stories to children in libraries or schools. Reviews the practice of the art in many lands and historical periods.
Write Right!: Creative Writing Using Storytelling Techniques by Kendall Haven A breakthrough approach to creative writing uses storytelling techniques to enhance the creative writing process. This practical guide offers directions for 38 writing exercises that will show students how to create powerful and dynamic fiction. All the steps are included, from finding inspiration and creating believable characters to the final edit.
Two storytelling colleagues generously shared bibliographies of books and journal articles with us:
| Kendall Haven | Dr. Joseph Sobol |