Making Time for Stories

Listening to stories is an essential aspect of learning. It improves language and critical thinking skills, oral communication, attention span, and promotes understanding of sequence, concepts, role characteristics, feelings and human nature. It also has an effect on the ability to cooperate and follow instructions, besides being a pleasurable activity for both the teller and the listener. Here you will find articles, tips, story and extension activity suggestions to help you along the way.  

Unfotunately, in the structure of school and among all the curricular demands, very little time, if any, is dedicated to pleasurable reading and storytelling.  As a teacher, who have taken a leave to raise my children, I have sadly observed that children are not exposed to stories at school with the frequency I would like. In defense of teachers, I also know that the curricular demands leave little space for pleasurable reading or stories.  My six year old only goes to the library once every two weeks.  Yeah, I guess that is better than nothing, but it is not enough.  As parents, though, this is a place where we can easily jump in.  

At home, if we make the time, we can channel into this important aspect of learning.  The love of reading comes from the love of stories; listening to family stories and family history; reading for pleasure;  reading about what one likes; allowing ones´ imagination to let loose and make connections. Stories are all around us, waiting to be told.  Pick up a book to read aloud or create one from scratch, but tell your children stories everyday.  Incorporate it into different parts of your routine. Below is a picture of our Teatime storytime pic-nic that was so thoroughly enjoyable that we had to refill the teapot a couple of times. 

  

Anyway, all that being said, this is a place where I hope to put to use both my teacher and my parent skills.  One aspect I hope to explore is reading and stories.  The other is bilingualism.  But we´ll get into that in another post. Thanks for stopping by.