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Books and stories are so important. They transport us to other worlds. We explore these worlds through the characters we meet along the way. Stories help children to make sense of the world around them.
"Stories teach us about life, about ourselves and about others. Storytelling is a unique way for students to develop an understanding, respect and appreciation for other cultures, and can promote a positive attitude to people from different lands, races and religions." - Sherri Harvey, Storyteller and Writer
Empathy and problem solving skills
Reading stories can help children learn about other people, different cultures, and other ways of living. Through the characters children can experience challenges and encounter problems, thereby developing empathy and problem solving skills. All while learning about the world around them.
"Researchers have found that the brain activity that occurs when we read fiction is very similar to experiencing that situation in real life, so reading about a situation helps children work out how to solve it in reality." - BBC article
I see this played out by my 10-year-old niece, Ava. She recently read Enid Blyton’s Mallory Towers and I could see the influence on her own writing. She’d read about fun and adventure, but also the challenges and issues that come with attending boarding school and the friendship dynamics between girls.
Through her own writing she explored these themes; group dynamics, friends and foes. What can you do about bad behaviour? How can you help if someone’s in trouble? She showed compassion in writing about the lonely new girl with no friends, or a girl who has a mean trick played on her.
Through storytelling Ava comes to her own conclusions about what is wrong and what is right, developing her own point of view.
Role-play and Imagination
Role-play allows a child to practice playing at being someone else. How does a naughty child in class behave? What does it feel like to be an outsider? How would an annoying younger sibling behave? How would the Mum character react, and why?
"Role-play pedagogy has been shown to be effective in reaching learning outcomes in three major learning domains: affective, cognitive, and behavioral (Maier, 2002; Rao & Stupans, 2012). By making students take on the role of another person, they practice empathy and perspective taking."- Harvard University article
In storytelling, children can use their observational skills and reflect what they see in their own lives. They can practise seeing things from others’ point of view and use their empathy skills. They can also work their imaginations, conjuring up their own scenarios and imagining how a character might behave.
Reading amazing books can help further develop children’s imaginations. Great writers inspire us to picture things in our heads, things we’ve never dreamed of before. Think of Roald Dahl, with his BFG, or Matilda, the girl who can make things happen by concentrating really hard. Books can influence creative thinking, helping children to realise that in their imagination anything is possible.
Emotional development
Books bring up all sorts of emotions. Fear, sadness, joy, awe; a good book makes us feel. Storytelling can allow children to express themselves, explore their own curiosity and make sense of their own perceptions and feelings.
My niece’s most recent outpouring had quite an ‘angry at the world’ theme - it was almost teenage in tone, full of annoying teachers, arch rivals and getting people into trouble. It turns out that content wise and stylistically she was inspired by the Horrid Henry and Tom Gates books; I imagine mixed in with a bit of real school life experience. The writing is cheeky and humorous and full of slang.
Through storytelling Ava’s getting to grips with the world and the complex emotions we all feel. She’s learning how to express herself, showing frustration, empathy and compassion.
Communicating with confidence
Through reading, a young reader will acquire new words and therefore broaden and expand their vocabulary. I love reading Ava’s stories and seeing which new words she has picked up. Current favourites seem to be ‘gotten’ and ‘cranky’. It’s great to see how she is expanding her vocabulary and adding interest by trying out new words.
Reading can enable children to be more expressive in their own communication; reading dialogue in a book can influence their real-life conversations, and help them to express themselves clearly. Writing can also force children to clarify their thoughts. They learn how to set the tone or mood through description and internal dialogue. This can all lead to greater confidence in communicating effectively - skills which will carry on through adulthood.
"We need to raise children with the flexibility and creativity to do well in jobs we can’t yet imagine. When children develop the ability to orally share their stories with friends and teachers, they are building skills such as creativity, language development, communication skills, social skills and confidence. These key components underpin every area of the curriculum and set children up for academic success." - www.communityplaythings.co.uk
Behaviour
It’s interesting to consider how reading can influence our behaviour. Can relating to a character encourage us to adapt our behaviour?
Life experience will influence how we behave as adults - but what about children who have limited life experience? Could it be that reading can offer them a sort of life experience? Perhaps reading can help us prepare for the situations life throws at us, and inform how we’ll behave.
Through reading and storytelling children can learn about being brave, trusting in themselves, working as a team. Perhaps this subconsciously encourages bravery and leadership? Examples of teamwork in a book might influence how children work together in class, or with siblings.
What do you think? Have you noticed how soft skills are developed through storytelling? Let us know your thoughts.
