Storytelling

There is a strong connection between good teaching and story telling. Don't believe me? Try standing in front of a room staring at twenty or so bored teenage faces and delude yourself that anything you are saying is sinking in. Then imagine being animated, hooking their interest, leading them in your direction and having them enjoy it. This is generally my goal. So, next month, I'll be going to a two hour workshop on storytelling. Why? I get by but there is LOTS of room for improvement! I'm really looking forward to it. I have never forgotten the story teller that came to my elementary school. She was so good that even when you could see where the story was headed, you enjoyed the journey. I want to do that!

So, speaking of stories here is a related meme for which I was tagged by Ericka:

List 5 books that played and important role in your childhood and explain why. Then tag 5 others.

Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss - This was my all time favorite book as a child. I remember it being read to me over and over. Later, I enjoyed reading it to myself. Ever started quoting this only to have everyone around you join in because they remember it too? Yeah. It's that kind of book.


The Pop-Up Mice of Mr. Brice was my other Dr. Seuss favorite. It is the only manipulative book I can remember clearly. I was so excited when it was re-released this past year. I had forgotten all about it. This book taught important beginner concepts like opposites and because it had moving parts was (and still is) endlessly entertaining!

The Real Mother Goose was read to me when I was far too young to read on my own. Later the short nature of these rhymes, coupled with my experience of them as songs, made this a compelling read. It was fun to encounter in print the "stories" I had seen on TV, heard in song, and remembered from bedtime.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte was a real surprise to me. I was bored one day and found this book sitting on my older sister's book shelf. She had read it for school and, even though I was too young, recommended I read it. It took about a year before I did so. I believe it was after realizing I had seen (and loved) the movie version. (O.K., so maybe I was a precocious child) Fell in LOVE with this book. It remains one of my all time favorites. Because of this I picked up Wuthering Heights at a library sale many years later when I was in high school. What a disappointment in comparison. Ah well, I'll try it again some day. Maybe I was just not the right age to appreciate it.

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis - I had NO IDEA that this series had to do with Christian values when I read them. Was in fact shocked initially when someone clued me in some 15 or so years after I first read them! Their influence? They hooked me on the fantasy genre. I have never looked back. One of my favorite things about this series is the dedication at the front of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. It entreats:

My Dear Lucy,

I wrote this story for you, but when I began it I had not realized that girls grow quicker than books. As a result you are already too old for fairy tales, and by the time it is printed and bound you will be older still. But some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again. You can then take it down from some upper shelf, dust it, and tell me what you think of it. I shall probably be too deaf to hear, and too old to understand, a word you say, but I shall still be

your affectionate Godfather,
C.S. Lewis

The thought of growing out of enjoying fairy tales then back into it has always hung with me. It is delightful...

Now, as to who I will tag... Gina, Jackie, Lora, Heather, and Nicole you're it!

There will be crochet content tomorrow. Promise.