Ressources

Storytelling: Learning and Sharing (videotape) with Sandy Jenkins. Fallbrook, CA: Coyote Creek Productions, 1995. 45 mins. $24.95 + $3 S/H

The promotional flyer that accompanied this tape said that Sandy Jenkins has been a storyteller for ten years, but I think anyone who has taught school for 23 years as she has, has been telling for longer than that.

After a discussion of the importance of storytelling, with particular emphasis on its educational benefits, Jenkins moves on to share tips on finding, learning, and telling stories. She looks at knowing your audience, vocal techniques, and copyright. In the section on finding stories to tell, a school librarian shows the viewer how to search, arid what subject headings to look under. This is one part of the tape which is a bit dated since a card catalogue was used in the search rather than a computer. The information is still valid, though, despite the search tool.

Although the classroom is used throughout, this tape is useful to others besides teachers. Parents, librarians, anyone with an interest in telling to children can learn from it.

This is a well-edited tape which intersperses the instructional (lecture) parts with footage of Jenkins telling various stories to groups of schoolchildren. At other times there are shots of children in the classroom with voice-overs. These techniques keep the tape lively and interesting. A particularly nice touch in the way the story segments are edited in is that while the viewer does not hear whole stories, she hears enough of the beginning, middle, and end to know what happens.

Storytelling: Learning and Sharing is the best instructional storytelling video I have seen. It's an excellent introduction to the basics, clearly presented.

Available on Amazon  Jun 2014

The Second Story Review, Vol 2, No. 3, Sep 1997