Story
telling
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Storytelling is a natural activity to entertain children and provide them to encounter with literature. Since stories are very important in their lives, children should hear stories everyday. Reading aloud or telling stories is an effective way of adults or teachers to motivate their children. Children themselves also enjoy telling stories which they learn from their parents or any storytellers and then share their favorite books and authors. In the classroom, if teachers give them many opportunities to respond to literature through four English skills, speaking, listening, reading, and writing, and the fine arts, they can learn English more effectively. Guiding discussions and creating a community of readers and writers in the classroom can provide more literature experiences.
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There are various techniques of storytelling used in class or outside class. To become effective storytellers, it is useful to know the technique of storytelling. Aaron Shepard (1996) mentioned that storytellers learn their stories in many different ways. Some read or listen to a story over and over. Some type or write out the story. some draw charts. Some begin stories at once. These following steps guided by Aaron Shepard may be useful for storytellers. 1. Finding an interesting story is important, especially from folktales because they are plain, straight, lively, and easy to memorize. Short tales should be started to record with clear action, strong characters, and simple structure. The story chosen should be suitable for purposive listeners. Modern retellings are easiest to work from, because they are already refined and adapted for listeners in each culture. However storytellers can change a story to suit themselves or their audience. If only one version of the story is relied on, it will be polite to mention the source of the story. 2. Preparing the story chosen to practice is used for getting the storyline. The version of a storyteller should convey enough to make sense. Repetition in a folktale can help listeners stick with the story by providing familiar landmarks. Gestures, various tones, pitches and volume of voice, speed, rhythms, smooth or sharp articulation, and pauses can be used in telling a story with about three times of repetition. Pay attention to beginnings and endings of the story and practice an introduction along with the story. But giving away the plot should be avoided. 3. Telling the story first to friends in a small group can make the storyteller feel confident. It is suitable to face audience squarely and aim the voice at the back row. Storytelling is personal because it is just talking to audience, with audience, but not at audience. Telling a story is interactive. Listeners can respond to the story and storytellers can let the story respond to their listeners. 4. Some ways to go further with storytelling should be considered. If storytellers see and hear more stories told by other good storytellers, they will pick up performance techniques, new stories, and general storytelling magic. They can read folktale collections and develop a feel for what makes a folktale and alter a story or create a new one. Taking a class is a safe way to begin storytelling with useful comments. Many storytellers join a local storytelling group to try out stories or organize performances.
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Please join this web to create more fun with children. You can search on this following storynet for more details:
http://www.storynet.org/resources/links.htm
http://www.calgarychildfest.org/new2002/events/hansel.htm
http://www.bookpage.com/9909bp/david_wiesner.html
http://www.eflclub.com/3stories/stories.html
Here are stories for parents to tell your children at home or for teachers to motivate your students in class:
There Was an Old Woman Who Swallowed a Fly
There was an old woman who swallowed a fly.
I don't know why she swallowed a fly --
Perhaps she'll die!
There was an old woman who swallowed a spider
That wriggled and wriggled and jiggled inside her
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly,
I don't know why she swallowed a fly --
Perhaps she'll die!
There was an old woman who swallowed a bird--
How absurd to swallow a bird!
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider
That wriggled and wriggled and jiggled inside her.
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly,
I don't know why she swallowed a fly --
Perhaps she'll die!
There was an old woman who swallowed a cat
Imagine that! She swallowed a cat.
She swallowed the cat to catch the bird--
How absurd to swallow a bird!
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider
That wriggled and wriggled and jiggled inside her.
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly,
I don't know why she swallowed a fly --
Perhaps she'll die!
There was an old woman who swallowed a dog
Oh, what a hog to swallow a dog!
She swallowed the dog to catch the cat
Imagine that! She swallowed a cat.
She swallowed the cat to catch the bird
How absurd to swallow a bird
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider
That wriggled and wriggled and jiggled inside her.
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly,
I don't know why she swallowed a fly --
Perhaps she'll die!
There was an old woman who swallowed a goat.
She opened her mouth and it went down her throat.
She swallowed the goat to catch the dog--
Oh, what a hog to swallow a dog!
She swallowed the dog to catch the cat.
Imagine that! She swallowed a cat.
She swallowed the cat to catch the bird--
How absurd to swallow a bird!
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider
That wriggled and wriggled and jiggled inside her.
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly,
I don't know why she swallowed a fly --
Perhaps she'll die!
There was an old woman who swallowed a cow--
I don't know how she swallowed a cow!
She swallowed a cow to catch the goat.
She opened her mouth and it went down her throat.
She swallowed the goat to catch the dog--
Oh, what a hog to swallow a dog!
She swallowed the dog to catch the cat.
Imagine that! She swallowed a cat.
She swallowed the cat to catch the bird--
How absurd to swallow a bird!
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider
That wriggled and wriggled and jiggled inside her.
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly,
I don't know why she swallowed a fly --
Perhaps she'll die!
There was an old woman who swallowed a horse...
She died, of course!http://members.tripod.com/~ESL4Kids/songs/fly.html
The Girl Who Wore Too Much
(Retold by Margaret Read Macdonald)
They showered that girl with gifts.
“Aree, those golden earrings would look so attractive on your dainty ear. We must buy it for you!”“Aree, that silver bracelet would look
so attractive on your little arm. We must buy it for you!”“Aree, that ruby ring would look
so attractive on your dainty finger. We must buy it for you!”And whenever they saw an especially beautiful silk they would cry,
“Oh, Aree, you would look so lovely in that color! We must buy it for you!”
Aree’s room was stuffed with boxes of jewels and chests full of silk. Then she heard of a dance…in the village beyond the mountains.
“Now I can show off my fine clothes!
But which color shall I wear? The pink, the fuchsia, the scarlet? The sky blue or aquamarine? Maybe violet? Deep purple? Magenta? Maybe chartreuse? Or emerald green? I think Ill wear… the pink.” She put on a basin of bright pink silk.But there was a green the color of emeralds.
“This green is so elegant.
Perhaps I could wear them both!” So she quickly put the green right on top of the pink!“Now I can show off two of my silks!
Still, this fuchsia is brightest of all. I think I’ll wear it too!” And putting the fuchsia on top of the green she twirled around and around. “I’m going to be…the most beautiful girl at the dance! This chartreuse is especially gorgeous. And look at this bright blue…..No one has silk as expensive as mine.Why not? I’ll wear them too!
The aquamarine? The violet? And this purple with threads of pure gold. With all of my dresses I’m certain to be the most beautiful girl at the dance!”And putting dress over dress over dress,
that vain girl soon had chosen them all. Wearing all of those heavy dress, Aree could hardly move.“They are a bit heavy,
but look at me! The most beautiful girl at the dance! Now which bracelet shall I wear?The gold? Yes. The silver? Of course.
The jade? My favorite. And my ring---- The ruby? The sapphire? The emerald? The pearl? The opal? Oh, yes!’’ Soon she was wearing every piece of jewelry she owned! Just then her friends arrived.“Aree! You look …” They didn’t know what to say.
Aree stumbled from her house wearing silks, silks, rings, bracelets, earrings. She could hardly walk. But she was proud. “Just look at my beautiful clothes. Just look at my gold and jewels. I am certain to be . . .the most beautiful girl at the dance!”Aree looked so silly. Her friends tried to laugh.
They stared off for the dance. But Aree could not keep up. Soon she was huffing and puffing. “Wait for me! Wait for me! I can’t get up the hill” Her friends came back to help to help.“ We could push you up the hill.”
“Don’t push! You will wrinkle my dresses!”“We could pull you up the hill!”
“Don’t pull! You will soil my silk clothes!”So the girls left Aree and went on.
Aree stumbled along for a while but soon …“Wait for me! Wait for me! I can’t get up the hill!”Her friend came back once more. “Aree, take off your bracelets.
Take off your heavy rings. Take off some of those dresses. Then you can climb the hill.”“You are just jealous of my fine clothing.
Then I won’t be the most beautiful girl at the dance.”Aree refused to take off anything at all.
So her friends left her there. They went on to the dance without her. All day, in the hot sun, Aree trudged up the hill.By nightfall she had just reached the top.
There she stopped, stuck in her heavy clothes, too exhausted to take another step.When her friends returned from the dance,
Aree was still too tired to move. By the time they had fetched her parents, Aree was vain no more.“Mother, Father, I wore too much.
I don’t need all of these clothes!” “Then take off some of your dresses. Take off those heavy jewels. We have taught you to want too much. You must learn to be happy with less. So jewel by jewel, dress by dress, Aree gave away all of her things.And the next time she went to a dance,
she was lovely in one simple dress.
The Lazy Boy
[Retold by Margaret Read Macdonald from a translation by Supaporn Vattanaprida, Thailand: Storytelling Workshop
(Wajuppa Tossa: 1997)]
This boy was so lazy.
He just stayed under his house all day. Leaned against the house pole too long he had worn a groove right into it. Everyone in the village called him "Lazy Boy".One afternoon, Lazy Boy was sitting there. Long, hot afternoon...he fell asleep. He began to dream.
Lazy Boy dreamt that he walked out of town and went into the forest. In his dream he came onto an old deserted wat (temple). He walked all around that wat and found a termite mound. In his dream he dug in the termite mound. He dug and he dug and he dug... And there was a big pot. It was full of gold! In his dream he picked up that heavy pot and carried it all the way home. Carried that HEAVY pot in the HOT HOT sun ! It was so hot and heavy... It was so hot and heavy....It was so hot and heavy.
Then he woke up. "WOOOA! What a NIGHTMARE! I was walking in that hot sun. I was digging and digging. that was work! Then I carried that HEAVY pot all the way home. what a nightmare!" Lazy Boy didn't even give a thought to the gold. all he thought about was all that work.
Next day some rascally boys were passing by. "Hey Lazy Boy! What have you been doing?"
"Had a dream."
"What about?"
"Dreamed about gold. Out in the forest. Old temple. Termite mound. Pot of gold."
"Wow! Did you go to see if it was true?"
"Too much WORK." And Lazy Boy went back to sleep.
Those boys thought there might be something to his dream. They went out and looked around the old temple. There was a termite mound all right. The boys dug. And sure enough, they found a big pot. but when they pulled it out and opened it, it was full of FILTH!
"Yuck! Lazy Boy's dream is just GARBAGE!" Let's take it back and show him his dream." They lugged the heavy pot back to the village.
"Hey Lazy Boy! Here's your DREAM, GARBAGE!" They threw the pot down beside Lazy Boy, ran off, and disappeared.
Lazy boy looked at the pot. He leaned over and lifted the lid. (Now sometimes in these old tales, it happens that when mean, nasty persons took into a pot they see just filth. But when a kind hearted person looks into that same pot...)
Lazy Boy saw GOLD!
"WHOAA! Pot of gold!" Lazy Boy went back to sleep.The next day a man was passing by with an elephant. "Hey Lazy Boy! What have you been doing?"
"Had a dream. Got gold."
"You've got gold?" The man came over to look. "Say..Lazy Boy...you don't have any use for gold. Too much trouble to take that all to town. I could help you out. I'll tell you what I'll do...I'll trade you my elephant for your gold. You can sit on its back and ride wherever you want to go. You'll never have to walk again. How about that?"
Lazy boy looked at the huge elephant. "WHOOAA! O.K.!"
The man tied the elephant to the house post, took the gold, and disappeared. Next day along came a man with a cow.
"Hey, Lazy Boy! What have you been doing?"
"Had a dream. Got gold."
"I don't see any gold."
"Traded for an elephant. There it is."
The man saw at once that this boy was so lazy. "Say Lazy Boy. You don't want to look after an elephant.
An elephant can be a lot of trouble. You have to water it. You have to feed it. You have to clean up the poop. I'll tell you what I'll do. I'll trade you my cow for your your elephant. The cow will stand right beside you and you can reach up and milk it. You'd like that I bet."
Lazy Boy look at the cow. "WHOOOA! O.K.!"
So the man tied the cow to the house post, took the elephant, and disappeared. Next day here came a man with a fighting cock.
"Hey Lazy Boy! What have you been doing?"
"Had a dream. Got gold."
"I don't see any gold."
"Traded for an elephant."
I don't see any elephant."
"Traded for a COW. There it is."
The man could see right away this boy was so lazy.
"Say Lazy Boy. You don't want to keep a cow. A cow can be a lot of trouble. You have to feed it. You have to water it. You have to milk it. You have to clean up the poop.
"I'll tell you what I'll do. I'll trade you my fighting cock for your cow. Everyone can come to see it fight. You can sit right here and maybe make a lot money." Lazy Boy looked at the fighting cock.
"WHOOOA! All right!"
The man tied the fighting cock to the house post. He took the cow and disappeared. Next day a little boy came down the road playing with his whirlygig.
"Hey Lazy Boy! what have you been doing?"
"Had a dream. got gold."
"I don't see any gold."
"Traded for an elephant."
"Traded for a cow."
"I don't see any cow."
"Traded for a FIGHTING COCK! And there it is!"
Even the little boy could see that this boy was so lazy.
"Say Lazy Boy. You don't want a fighting cock. Those birds cause a lot of trouble. You have to feed them. You have to water them. You have to look after them. Look what I've got here...a WHIRLYGIG!"
"WHOOOA! O.K.!"
So the little boy put the WHIRLYGIG in Lazy Boy's hand, took the fighting cock and disappeared.
Lazy Boy sat there with the whirlygig in his hand. He sat there, and sat there. It didn't move. Then a little breeze came up and the whirlygig turned. "WHOOOA!"
Now in this same village there lived a rich man whose daughter would not smile. She would not laugh. She would not even speak. The rich man promised a big pile of gold to anyone who could make his daughter smile or laugh or speak. All the young men in the village had tried. Some turned somersaults and made funny gestures. some told jokes. Some sang songs and danced. she just sat there. None of those boys pleased her one bit.
Finally the rich man said, "Has EVERY young man in the village tried? Is there ANYONE left who could try?" They told him. "Everybody has tried except for Lazy Boy. He just sits under his house all day and never goes anywhere."
"Bring him here."
So they sent a cart to haul Lazy Boy to the rich man's house.
They escorted him into the room where the rich man's daughter was sitting. He said, "Lazy Boy, if you can make my daughter smile, or laugh, or talk, that big pile of gold is yours."
Lazy Boy just stood there and looked. That girl was so pretty. He really liked the way she looked.
"WHOOOA! O.K.!"
Then that Lazy Boy came to life for the first time. He stepped up to that girl and began.
"Tell you a story! Had a dream. Got gold. Traded for an ELEPHANT! Yes I DID! Traded for a COW! Better yet! Traded for a Fighting Cock! How about THAT! Traded for a WHIRLYGIG! And, HERE IT IS! And when I blow it, you are going to LAUGH!"
Then Lazy Boy leaned forward and BLEW that whirlygig twirling so fast right in front of that girl's face.
She couldn't help it. she burst out laughing. "Oh! You made me LAUGH!"
"You made her smile! You made her laugh! You made her speak!" said the rich man. "Lazy Boy, this gold is yours."
And he noticed how his daughter was looking at the boy.
"And maybe my daughter is yours too, if she thinks so."
"What do you think, my daughter?"
The girl just smiled and said, "WHOOOA!"
So Lazy Boy and the rich girl were married. And from then on he was so wealthy, he had a servant to fan him. And a servant to blow his whirlygig.
"WHOOOA...! That's FUN."
