First Road to Learning: Language through Stories
Myrtis Mixon and Philomena Temu
All learners, from babies to grandmothers, learn better with stories. Stories are energizers. When someone says, Let me tell you a story, listeners perk up their ears and smile. Even hard truths can be taught easily through story.
Stories told and read at home and school both entertain and educate young learners. Using stories in the classroom is fun, but the activity should not be considered trivial or frivolous. Indeed, there is strong support for storytelling in pedagogical theory. Cortazzi (1994) points out that storytelling is fundamental to education and specifically to language teaching. Zipes (1995) and Morgan and Rinvolucri (1992) find stories a basic part of the whole language approach to learning, reaching the whole person and appealing to the subconscious. According to Brumfit and Johnson (1979), reading or telling stories in class is a natural way to learn a new language.
Storieswhether they are fairy tales, folktales, legends, fables, or are based on real-life incidents experienced by students themselvescan help learners appreciate and respect the culture and the values of various groups. These stories foster the transformative powers of education. According to Ada (2004), stories can also lead to harmony, understanding, and peaceful resolution of conflict.
Stories from around the world are excellent to use in the classroom, but teachers also need to use stories from the students own culture and heritage. Using local or national stories insures that the students know the background culture and may already know the story. This familiarity lowers the young learners stress and reduces anxiety in the classroom. According to Krashen (1982), stories lower the young learners affective filter, allowing them to learn more easily.
Joseph Campbell (1987) points out that the themes of folk stories and myths are universal; people everywhere appreciate tales from other groups, even if they arent from the listeners own culture. But students are especially pleasedand their self esteem is likely to be enhancedwhen they learn that a story comes from their own part of the world.
Stories as culture bearers
In 2004 we were privileged to work in Tanzania with teacher trainers at the elementary and secondary school level. In our workshops, we used stories to promote all four skills, showing the benefits of using stories as culture bearers. In traditional African societies, oral literature has been both a form of entertainment and a way of passing on the knowledge, traditions, and customs of the community from one generation to another. Thus the stories carried the wisdom, teachings, and culture of the elders that were to be inherited by the new generation. At the workshops, teachers were reminded that the history of the clans was also stored in the form of stories, and that, through them, children could learn not only the clans history and traditions but also behavior and conduct acceptable to the clan.
Unfortunately, radio, television, and other technologies are fast replacing the elders who, in traditional family huts, used to tell folktales and fables by the fireplace. Today, parents, children, and grandchildren listening to the radio or watching television are absorbing material divorced from their ancient culture, and little of their heritage is being transmitted. Unless teachers make an effort to continue the tradition of storytelling, todays children will have little of their culture and heritage to pass on to the next generation.
Stories as solutions to large classes and limited resources
In many countries, a shortage of teaching/learning resources is a major constraint. Teachers can use stories to teach language and to introduce other subjects, such as the HIV/AIDS problem. Even in the absence of books, storytelling or reading can enable teachers to manage large classes, such as the 60- to 100-pupil classes seen in Tanzania. In such situations, teachers can exploit stories, enhancing them by using simple objects, to improve the language skills of their students.
Getting started
Collect all types of storiesfairy tales, folk stories, fables, etc.as well as pictures, childrens books, and small everyday objects or toys.
Types of stories to use:
1. Folk stories, fairytales, legends, fables: start by using stories
from the culture of the children. They may know the stories in their
native language and this will promote understanding and self-esteem
among the learners.
2. Nursery rhymes: A treasure trove of material can be found in English nursery rhyme books.
3. Little stories: These can be longer rhymes: Mary Had a Little Lamb, Three Little Kittens, This is the House that Jack Built, or popular childrens books like Bill Martins Brown Bear, or Polar Bear, or Eric Carles The Very Hungry Caterpillar, and From Head to Toe.
For speaking skills
1. Storytelling with objects. Use objects such as toys, forks, cups, to trigger stories. For example, divide learners into groups of three to five, and distribute four to five objects to each group. Ask each group to make up a story that includes all of their objects. First, model the activity by choosing five objects from the box of objects (e.g., a car, a spoon, a girl, a banana, a monkey). Then tell the learners an impromptu story, which might go like this:
A long time ago a girl was walking along a road carrying a spoon and a banana. A fast car passed by her. She was scared. She dropped the banana and the spoon and ran into the trees. When she came back, she saw the monkey eating the banana with the spoon. She laughed at the monkey.
A story this simple will give the students confidence that they can tell a story, too. After the groups create stories, have each group tell its story to another group or to the whole class.
2. Storytelling with pictures. Use pictures in the same way as objects were used in the first activity. Distribute four to five pictures to each group, making sure each person has one picture. Ask each group to make up a story that includes all the pictures. Each person adds to the story using ideas suggested by his or her own picture.
For listening skills
1. Read or tell simple stories to the students. You can use pictures or the small objects. Telling stories has certain advantages over reading in that the teacher-teller can hold the attention of the learners with the power of eye contact, while at the same time permitting the teacher to observe how well the students are following the story. Telling allows you to use your body more than you do when reading.
2. After the initial telling, have the learners tell the story. This technique is most effective if it involves several students. Choose one person to start re-telling the story, then call on others to continue the story, letting each child say one to three sentences until the whole story has been retold. If a child gets confused and misses something important, or remembers it wrong, the teacher can make a correction.
For reading
1. Find a version of a tale that the children can read. If this cant be done, re-write a story that you know, simplifying it by deleting the difficult words or by changing them into words that the learners know or words that you want to teach them.
2. Read the story aloud the first time, or let the learners read the story silently the first time. (The latter approach allows the teacher to devote time to learners who need help with reading.) A third option is to let the students read the story aloud, with each child reading one sentence. This provides an opportunity to help students with pronunciation.
3. One method of introducing a story is choral reading, which involves the teacher reading a phrase or sentence and the class repeating it. Read the story quickly, using a chant-like rhythm. Students improve their intonation and pronunciation with this method. Choral reading is possible even if the students do not have a copy of the story, in which case it also becomes a listening activity.
4. Caution: After the first reading, ask comprehension questions to find out what the students understood. Help them with parts of the story they do not understand.
5. Important: use the same story for several different activities. One story provides rich material for other activities, such as discussion of values, role play, creating small playlets, even creating individual books.
For writing
1. Have the learners draw or paint a scene or character from a story and then write at least one line from the story under the picture.
2. Use a variation of the speaking activities above (storytelling with objects or storytelling with pictures). After the learners create the story, have the group dictate it as one person writes it down. Once the stories are complete, this can be turned into a speaking activity, with each group reading/telling its story to the class.
3. Have students each write their own story, using objects or pictures. Then they can compare their stories within small groups.
Combining skills: Enhancing critical thinking and creativity
1. Students retell the story. Through oral retelling, students can demonstrate their comprehension of a story. Help students by emphasizing the beginning, middle, and end of the story. Then have students, working in pairs, retell the story first to each other and later to the entire class.
2. Use Total Physical Response (TPR). Select four verbs from a story and place them on index cards. Say each word and model its action. After the students know the first four verbs, add more.
3. Make a story timeline. Have students list the events of the story in the order in which they occur, using simple words. Assist the students by asking questions such as: "What happens first?" "What happens next?"
4. Read the story repeatedly. Introduce a story by asking the students to predict what it is about by looking at its pictures. Pre-teach vocabulary, then read the story several times.
5. Tell the story. Instead of reading the story to the class, tell it or have a student tell it.
6. Create a story board. Have students do simple line drawings of the story in time sequence such as is found in an animated movie or comic book.
7. Rewrite a story. Have the students rewrite a familiar story in a simplified form.
8. Create a chant from the story. Using a story that features repetitive language, ask questions such as, Who is it? What is it doing? Use a question chart on the board and pictures, or draw simple stick pictures. For example, Have you seen my cat? This is not my cat. or Did the hippo kill the tortoise? No, he didnt kill the tortoise. (This chant can be used with the story, The Tortoise and the Tug of War, featured in Appendix 2.)
9. Teach sentence patterns. Again using a book that features repetitive speech, write the sentence patterns on the board. Then have the students create new sentences to fit the patterns. Some examples are: Who is sleeping in MY bed? (from Goldilocks and the Three Bears) and Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see? (from Brown Bear).
10. Create story cards. Take short stories, such as fables, and put them on cards or construction paper. Have students, working in pairs, read the stories and then tell them to their partner.
11. Do jigsaw reading. Separate a story into four equal parts. Number each part and post each one in a different corner of the room. Divide the students into groups of four and have students in each group number off from one to four. Then ask students to go to the corner that matches their number and silently read the story piece there. They then return to their seats and write down from memory what they recall of the story. After they finish writing, in numerical order each student tells the others in the group his or her part of the story.
12. Use story theater.
a. Divide a folktale into 4 or 5 parts for a class of 20.
b. Form groups of 4 to 5 students. (For larger classes, have several groups of 20).
c. Give each group a section of the story. Have students read their section and decide which character they would like to play. If there are not enough parts in their section, have those without parts work together as a choral narrator, freely adapting descriptions into narration. They may choose any props on hand and use any actions.
d. Allow students to practice their section of the story for 15 to 20 minutes.
e. Ask students within each group to line up according to the storys sequence and to either read or perform the story as seamlessly as possible.
An excellent description of how to use story theater can be found in Hines (1995).
13. Create books. Have students create their own books, either by retelling an existing story, or by making up a story of their own.
14. Dictate short stories. To improve listening skills and help students practice their spelling, dictate short stories to the students.
References
Ada, A. F. 2004. Authors in the classroom: A transformative education process. Boston: Pearson.
Brumfit, C. J., and K. Johnson, eds. 1979. The communicative approach to language teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Campbell, J. 1987. Primitive mythology: The masks of God. New York: Penguin Books.
Cortazzi, M. 1994. Narrative analysis. Language Teacher (27): 15770.
Hines, M. 1995. Story Theater. English Teaching Forum 33 (1): 611.
Krashen, S. 1982. Principles and practice in second language acquisition. New York: Prentice-Hall.
Morgan, J., and M. Rinvolucri. 1992. Once upon a time: Using stories in the language classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Zipes, J. 1995. Creative storytelling. New York: Routledge.
Useful websites
1. Aarons Storybook Folktales http://www.aaronshep.com/stories/folk.html
2. Cinderella Variants: http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/type0510a.html
3. Storytelling in the classroom: http://storyarts.org/classroom/retelling/index.html
Myrtis Mixon, Ed.D., a teacher at the University of San Francisco, is currently serving as a journalism ESP teacher trainer in Uzbekistan. She was a recent Fulbright Scholar in Slovakia and, before that, an EFL teacher-training fellow in Albania and Croatia. She is the author of several ESL/EFL textbooks; all of them use stories.
Philomena S. Temu is a senior school inspector at the Ministry of Education and Culture, Tanzania. Educated in Dar es Salaam and Scotland, she has worked in Development Projects Management and has participated in the Tanzania English Language Teaching Support Project.
Appendix 1: Nursery Rhymes
WEE WILLIE WINKIE Wee Willie Winkie runs through the town, Upstairs and downstairs, in his nightgown: Rapping at the window, crying through the lock: Are the children in their beds? For now its eight oclock.
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ONE, TWO One, two, buckle my shoe. Three, four, shut the door. Five, six, pick up sticks. Seven, eight, lay them straight. Nine, ten, a good fat hen. |
RAIN, RAIN Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day. Little Johnny wants to play.
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LITTLE BO-PEEP Little Bo-Peep has lost her sheep, And cant tell where to find them; Leave them alone and theyll come home, Wagging their tails behind them.
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HUMPTY DUMPTY Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall; All the Kings horses and all the Kings men Could not put Humpty together again.
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PAT-A-CAKE Pat-a-cake, pat-a-cake, baker man Bake me a cake as fast as you can; Roll it and pat it and mark it with B And put it in the oven for baby and me.
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THREE BLIND MICE Three blind mice, See how they run! See how they run! They all ran after the farmers wife, She cut off their tails with a carving knife. Did you ever see such a sight in your life As three blind mice?
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THERE WAS A LITTLE GIRL There was a little girl, And she had a little curl Right in the middle of her forehead. When she was good, She was very, very good, And when she was bad, She was horrid.
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BAA, BAA, BLACK SHEEP Baa, baa, Black Sheep, Have you any wool? Yes, sir, yes, sir, three bags full; One for my master, one for my dame, And one for the little boy that lives in the lane. |
THE CAT AND THE FIDDLE Hey, diddle, diddle! The cat and the fiddle, The cow jumped over the moon; The little dog laughed to see such sport, And the dish ran away with the spoon. |
Appendix 2: A Sample Story with Teaching Strategies
Before you read
1. Describe an elephant, a hippo, and a tortoise. Discuss with students how the animals differ from each other;
2. Pre-teach unfamiliar vocabulary such as insult, apologize, challenge, vine, respect, tug of war.
(Note: This story is readily adaptable to choral reading.)
______________________________
The Tortoise and the Tug of War
Many years ago, Tortoise was walking in the jungle. He was unhappy because Hippo had chased him out of the river. Suddenly, Elephant ran across the path and almost stepped on Tortoise.
Watch where youre going, you big fool! said Tortoise.
Elephant did not like to be insulted. He said, You watch where youre going, tiny Tortoise, and also watch your tongue. Dont insult me.
You dont frighten me, said Tortoise. Im stronger than you think. In fact, Im as strong as you.
No, youre not! shouted Elephant. You are too small to be strong. Apologize or I will step on you.
I have a better idea, said Tortoise, as he took hold of a thick vine. I challenge you to a tug-of-war. You hold one end of this long vine with your trunk and Ill go down to the river with the other end. I will yell, Pull, big animal, pull! when Im ready.
Very well, agreed Elephant, it will be fun to make a fool of you.
Tortoise took the other end of the vine and went into the jungle. When he got to the river, he called, Hippo! Hippo! Stick your head out of the water!
Hippo raised his head. What do you want, little one?
You chased me out of the river, and Im angry. You think that youre strong because you are big, but I will show you that I am strong too.
Hippo laughed, Your words are bigger than you are. You are not strong like me.
I challenge you to a tug of war! said Tortoise. You take this end of the vine in your mouth and Ill go into the jungle with the other end. You try to pull me into the river, and I will try to pull you into the jungle. Ill yell, Pull, big animal, pull! when Im ready.
Hippo agreed. He bit on the end of the vine and Tortoise walked back into the trees. Then he yelled in his loudest voice, Pull, big animal, pull!
Both Elephant and Hippo pulled and pulled with all of their strength, but neither could move the other.
Tortoise is as strong as Hippo! said Elephant as he pulled harder.
Tortoise is as strong as Elephant! said Hippo and he pulled harder.
Tortoise saw they were tired. He yelled, Stop, stop! The vine is breaking. Lets call it a tie!
Both of the large animals were happy to stop pulling.
Tortoise ran to the Elephant, and Elephant said, You are strong, friend, and I will be careful not to step on you.
Then Tortoise went down to the river and Hippo said, Im sorry for chasing you out of the water, little friend. You are strong.
They treated Tortoise with great respect from then on.
_________________________
After reading the story, ask students:
1. Did you understand the story?
2. What did Tortoise do to trick Hippo and Elephant?
3. How did the big animals act toward Tortoise in the end?
Practicing vocabulary: Understanding words in context
Have students work in pairs to select from the words below the appropriate ones to fill in the sentence blanks; then have students read their sentences aloud.
tug-of-war; suddenly; insult; apologize; challenged; vine; respect
1. You called me a fool, and that is an ________________________.
2. You came behind me _____________________, and I was afraid.
3. The tortoise _________________ the big animals to a tug of war.
4. When you show admiration for someone because he or she is smart, strong, or wise, you are showing ____________ for that person.
5. The hippo held on to the ______________________ with his mouth.
6. Two animals pulling against each other is a _________________.
7. If you do something you feel bad about, you _______________ and say you are sorry.
Oral skills
Play a game
Have students tell the story, using toy animals or pictures of the animals and a rope (that will be the vine). Students take turns telling the story, either all of it or parts of it, using objects, or pictures to illustrate the story. Students can act out the story as they tell it.
Oral drill
Use the story for oral drills, such as changing present tense to
past tense.
1. Did Tortoise apologize for insulting Elephant?
2. The elephant almost stepped on the tortoise.
3. Did the tortoise insult the hippo?
4. The tortoise challenged the big animals to a tug of war.
5. Did the big animals respect the tortoise?
Oral Discussion
Have students in pairs or small groups discuss the following questions:
1. Why do big animals treat small animals so badly?
2. Is the tortoise really wiser than the elephant and hippo?
3. Think of your family and friends. Are the larger children kind to the smaller ones? Why? Why not?
Writing Practice
Have students:
1. Write another ending for the story.
2. Write a summary of the story.
3. Describe the three animals.
Role-playing
Have students role-play the following situations:
1. Elephant and Tortoise: Tortoise meets Elephant and is angry.
2. Tortoise and Hippo: Hippo tells Tortoise to stay away.
3. Elephant and Hippo: They meet, talk, and discover what Tortoise
did.
.