Explore different methods of telling stories to your kids
How can you tell stories to your children and engage them in the activity?
Here are some fun ways of storytelling.
Videos as a medium
Have you considered telling a story in video format for your child to watch as an effective way to get them excited? If possible, make it a DIY project by involving them in the narration, defining the characters, and adding a moral or a nugget of wisdom.
Then sit with your child and watch the video while discussing improving it. You will achieve more than storytelling; you will involve them in a creative process, including feedback for improvement!
Interactive storytelling
Do your kids have a favourite story? Do they like to hear it repeatedly? Every time you tell it to them, stop at a certain point and ask your child to fill in the rest.
If it’s a new story, you can stop the narration at some point and ask your child to make up the story from that point and continue it in the way they prefer.
This can help them be creative and give them the confidence to state their opinion and defend it if necessary!
Watch a Play
Watching a play with your family is an experience you ought to have. Plays or Theater is a natural form of self-expression, and children will learn to experience the actors’ emotions. The theatre focuses more on facial expressions, gestures and building the characters played by the actors. The experience is intense if played by seasoned artists.
Storytelling Games
String-along a Tale
Storytelling, when you are in a group, can be fun. You can involve their friends or your family. Start a story with a sentence like this: “Once upon a time, there lived a girl in China.”
Ask your kid or other group members to continue the story; each adds a sentence. Interesting how the story will shape up. This exercise will remove any inhibitions your child may have and help them have fun too.
Twist in the Tale
Ask your kid to combine any two of their favourite stories to form a new story. Ask them to retell a classic with a modern twist. Ask them how they would rewrite it.
Picture-based storytelling
Show your child pictures or even billboards, and ask them to come up with a story around it. They can also form a continuous story based on a bunch of pictures.
Another way to do this storytelling is by asking your kid to draw out a sequence of events and form a story.
Storytelling based on an object
Ask your kid to pick an object they can spin a story around. It could be a book, a tool around the house or even their favourite stuffed toy!
It’s a great way to keep kids occupied during a holiday! Storytelling is a skill that will help them in their education and going forward in their careers.