Storytelling Workshops

 

Storytelling, One Bite at a Time

Beginning storytelling workshop

Do you want to tell stories but don’t know where to start? We will learn to listen and retell and create our own stories.  We will start with some simple stories, find the ones you love and start telling them to each other. 

Workshop time:  60 minutes to 3 hours

3rd  grade to Adult (will customize)

 

Building Characters

 Fleshing out the story

Stories are full of characters and we want them to come alive.  We will take familiar stories and flesh out the characters.  In this workshop we start with a puppet.  We give it a name and a life and a voice.  It becomes a character.  Now we are ready to use it in a story.

Workshop time: 60-90 minutes

Elementary through adult

 

A Head Full of Stories

Picture the Story Then Tell It 

We remember stories in very many different ways.  Sometimes a smell will trigger a story.  Sometimes it will be a song that awakens our imagination.  No matter what the source an image emerges in our brains.  In this workshop we will use a variety of visual techniques to remember our stories. We will then put the story together with storyboards, story maps, drawings and cartoons.

Workshop time: 90-180 minutes

All age groups

 

Truth or Lies

Every Family has a Story

It is always easier to tell the truth than a lie.  In the Truth or Lie game we find the beginnings of personal stories.  With the help of a little rhyme we encourage the telling of both truths and imaginative tales.  Each of the participants decides which of the stories is worth developing.  This workshop helps the individual uncover their family stories and learn to tell them. 

Workshop time:  60-90 minutes

Age 10 through Adult

 

Heirlooms, Look Ahead, Look Behind

The Family Historians

In many countries the elders were the ones to tell the stories.  Stories shared history, gossip and tradition.  They also served to entertain.  Somehow we lost track of the importance of those stories. Our histories are made richer by these retellings.  In this program stories of life are told and shared with the encouragement of the workshop leader and some very specific images.

Workshop time: 60-90 minutes-Adults

With the addition of children asking the questions, this becomes an intergenerational program.  To learn the stories and the history they hear they will learn to retell the stories in their own words.

4th – 6th grade and Adults

 

Storybuddies

This is a mentoring program designed for High School students who are also parents. With the use of personal storytelling, mentors and students become friends and gain insights into the joys and challenges of parenting.

Residency time:  3 weeks

High School