USING STORYTELLING
To Promote Literacy and Critical Thinking Skills
A One and a Half Day Training for AmeriCorps and Other Literacy Programs
"If you want your children to be brilliant, tell them fairy tales. If you
want your children to be
very brilliant, tell them even more fairy tales." --attributed to Albert
Einstein
Researchers have found that storytelling is not only a fun and pleasurable
pastime, but an activity that
is crucial to healthy child development. The process of storytelling helps to
strengthen neural
pathways that make learning of all kinds possible, and cultivates reading,
writing and oral
communication skills as well as a range of critical thinking skills.
A unique new training on storytelling can help teachers, tutors and mentors
enhance literacy skills
among students at all levels of education. Storytelling is an easy to learn
and yet highly effective tool in
supporting students' academic and personal growth.
In this informative, highly experiential training, participants will learn:
Why stories and the development of imagination are so important to child
development;
How stories from different cultures can be used to explore significant
issues--such as trust, love,
compassion, anger and grief--that are of vital importance to all young
people;
Activities that can be used with stories to develop literacy and critical
thinking skills; and
Specific techniques for making storytelling more enjoyable for both teller
and audience.
All participants will receive a packet of information containing a variety of
multicultural stories,
descriptions of skill-building activities and an annotated bibliography of
storytelling resources.
About the Presenters:
Linda Fredericks is an experienced storyteller who has lectured extensively
on the link between
storytelling and human development. She is the former director of a national
nonprofit organization
dedicated to substance abuse prevention and health promotion at all levels of
education, and the author
of two nationally-distributed manuals on storytelling. She is currently the
director of Weaving Futures
Consulting in Boulder, Colorado.
Emilio N. Williams is a nationally known speaker and consultant who served
for five years as deputy director and
vice president of the National Association of Service and Conservation Corps
(NASCC). He has provided training
to thousands of AmeriCorps staff members from throughout the country and
specializes in applying experiential
learning to team building, communication skills, diversity issues and
personal development. He is currently
president of The Koi Group, a team of consultants and trainers with expertise
in enhancing the effectiveness of
AmeriCorps and other youth development programs.
For more information about this training, please call Linda Fredericks at
(303) 545-6051 or
Emilio N. Williams at (800) 583-8496, or send an e-mail to
koigroup@ix.netcom.com
October 9, 1997
Dear Education/Literacy Partner:
Would you like to use an ancient technique that could bring new vitality and
effectiveness into your
literacy programs? Would you value a learning tool that can be used with
young people from all ages,
cultural backgrounds, and levels of education?
If so, you may be interested in a new training available for AmeriCorps and
other literacy programs.
Entitled "Using Storytelling to Promote Literacy and Critical Thinking
Skills," this unique, innovative
and research-based training shows how the beloved, worldwide tradition of
storytelling--combined with a number of practical and engaging
activities--can be used to enhance
reading, writing, oral communication and critical thinking skills. Any
program, whose members are
involved in mentoring, tutoring or other educational activities, can utilize
the training designed to
increase students' literacy skills.
Facilitated by Linda Fredericks and Emilio N. Williams, two experienced
trainers and storytellers, this
interactive, joyful and experiential training has already been used with
staff from a number of
AmeriCorps programs. Response to this training has been consistently
positive and enthusiastic, as
reflected in several typical comments made by training participants:
"Thanks for an awesome workshop! The creative possibilities for applying the
training materials
are endless. Great experiential learning, wonderfully affirming of each group
member's
contributions." --Cindy Porter, VISTA Volunteer, Michigan Cares
"The workshop equipped me with fresh ideas, energized my creativity, and
reiterated the fact
that learning can be educational, entertaining, and empowering. The knowledge
gained and
shared from the workshop will be a useful tool in promoting change and
development within the
lives of those we serve..."-- Michelle Sinkgraven, Field Coordinator, Grand
Rapids Service Corps
"Thanks for helping me recapture the magic of stories and
storytelling...we're planning to make
storytelling a bigger part of what we do and how we do it in our AmeriCorps
program in the
future."
--Bill Ternent, Ph.D., Coordinator/Director, North Central Technical College
We hope that you will review the enclosed flyer and call us for more
information about this training.
We would be happy to answer any of your questions and provide references.
Best wishes and good stories,
Linda Fredericks, Director Emilio N. Williams,
President
Weaving Futures Consulting The Koi Group
Office: (303) 545-6051 Office: (800) 583-8496
Fax: (303) 545-5623 Fax: (301) 779-0389
lindaf@indra.com
koigroup@ix.netcom.com