The Value of Storytelling in Primary Education.

“Storytelling is the oldest form of education. People around the world have always told tales…stories are at the core of all that makes use human” (Hamilton & Weiss, 1990. pp1). When it comes to storytelling there are many forms to enhance the experience. If we look at the multimodal chart we can see that the experience of storytelling can be enhanced through five modes of the communication (Lumen, 2019). Techniques such as the way the teller moves their body, to the way the control their voice (pitch, volume, accent, etc.) are just two of the way that can improve the way a teller tells their story (Bearne & Wolstencroft, 2007).

An example of using multimodal techniques to enhance a story telling experience is when I used a story sack to tell a story about the Muslim religion through a book called ‘The Baby Birds’.

Aural, Spatial and Gesture. All three of these came into effect when telling the story as I had to spatial place the puppets between different people as well as the nest they all ended up in. I also was aware to spatial place the book up near my face and angled towards to audience. This would also come under gesture as my body position was open and friendly towards the audience. Another way that in which the mode of gestures were used was when the puppets were moved around in the action that was being described in the book. This action brought the book to life, helping the audience to visualise the story in depth. Lastly, the mode of aural was used when I would change my voice to match the mother bird or the baby birds. I also used birds noises, again to bring the book to life and help bring the imagination to life. All of the actions were so simple to use, yet they are effective when it comes to storytelling.

All of the multimodal techniques help the audience enter the world of imagination. “Children’s imaginations are the most powerful and energetic learning tools” (Egan, 1990. p 2). Unfortunately, the imagination of a child is not seen to be important, especially not compared to the lessons within the national curriculum. However, as once said by Einstein “Imagination is more important than knowledge”. The development of a child’s imagination is vital, it teaches them how to express themselves verbally and non-verbally, it is how they learn about the world. During imaginative play children can be seen to manipulate different materials, create stories of their own, building friendships through communication and emotional connection and it is these kinds of social-emotional development that can boost a child’s confidence (Bright Horizons Education Team, 2019).

Another benefit to storytelling is the fact that it can help broaden a child’s vocabulary. Research has shown that it is not uncommon people to speak with a less sophisticated vocabulary compared the vocabulary used in written forms such as books, this includes highly educated individuals (Department of Education, 2016). Therefore by reading to the children through stories, they have a greater chance at coming to terms with hearing and understanding a wider range of vocabulary compared to what they would if teachers just taught by speaking at them.

In a speech given by Nick Gibb, Minister of State at the Department for Education, he uses an incredibly example of how storytelling sticks with people, and how it is a certain type of imaginative storyline that can teach people lessons for centuries to come. “Would the teachings of the Bible have been so powerful had Jesus never told the story of the Good Samaritan, but simply instructed his followers to care for all humankind? Would children the world over know that ‘slow and steady wins the race’, had the ancient Greek slave Aesop not parcelled that message in his fable ‘The Hare and the Tortoise’?” (Department of Education, 2016). Comparing Jesus and Aesop to those of expert cognitive psychologist as well as storytellers, Gibb outlines just how much value stories hold in the human mind, so much so that it is described as psychologically privileged part of the mind that allows us to remember stories so well.

Overall, storytelling has many benefits some of which I have spoken about in this post. From using imagination to help develop children socially and emotionally, as well as being able to broaden their knowledge of vocabulary. Storytelling is most importantly there to help teach lessons, whether it be something simple as being kind to humankind or whether it be teaching religion through a book about birds, the benefits and value of storytelling should not go unmistaken. It is a vital part of an education and a child’s development.

Bibliography

Bearne, E. & Wolstencroft, H., 2007. Visual Approaches to Teaching Writing Multimodal Literacy 5-11. London: Paul Chapman Publishing.

Bright Horizons Education Team, 2019. Nurturing Creativity & Imagination for Child Development. [Online]
Available at: https://www.brighthorizons.com/family-resources/nurturing-creativity-and-imagination-for-child-development
[Accessed 1 May 2019].

Department of Education, 2016. The Importance of Storytelling. [Online]
Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/the-importance-of-storytelling
[Accessed 1 May 2019].

Egan, K., 1990. Teaching as Storytelling. London: Routledge.

Hamilton, M. & Weiss, M., 1990. Children Tell Stories: A Teaching Guide. New York: RC Owen Publishers.

Lumen, 2019. Module: Multimodality. [Online]
Available at: https://courses.lumenlearning.com/olemiss-writing100/chapter/what-is-a-mode/#return-footnote-857-1
[Accessed 1 May 2019].