The course of human history is determined, not by what happens in the skies, but by what takes place in our hearts.
Sir Arthur Kent
Parents spend an entire evening with your children
showing them photographs that were taken when the children were little.
The children might ask the following questions:
• Where and when was the picture taken?
• How old was I when that picture was taken?
• What was important about
the day that you took the picture?
• What was I like when I was that age?
• Who are the other people in the photograph?
• Why are they there?
•
What do you remember about the day it was taken?
• What else of significance
should I notice about the picture?
Parents should show children old report
cards, favorite objects, or previous work saved. From this "life history"
the children should select two or three incidents to tell about.
Storytelling Journal
Keep a journal of events in your lives or the lives
of others around you that might make good telling stories. Record unusual
characters you see or meet, vivid descriptions you read or hear, unusual
or catchy phrases, and feelings you have experienced. The following is an
example:
My Yesterday The happenings of yesterday and today may be important material
for storytelling. Remember three things or three scenes from your yesterday.
Organize and write those to include in your storytelling journal. Later,
review your journal and shape the recorded incidents into telling stories.
A teacher, Marilyn Simpson from Watford City, North Dakota, told her students
about the "olden days" - the days before microwave ovens, VCRs, and paperback
books. The students were fascinated and asked for more stories of the old
days. Today's reality is tomorrow's history. (Kinghorn and Pelton, Every
Child a Storyteller, Pg. 53-55. Pub. Teacher Ideas Press, 1991.)
