As children develop their storytelling skills, teachers may consider adding story acting to their routine. This involves children performing stories, either in part or in whole. Teachers can encourage children to act out their favorite parts of familiar books, poems, or nursery rhymes.

This process begins with the telling of a story. To introduce the concept, teachers could read a passage to children and ask them to act out what they think the character looked like during the scene, including the moves the character was making. As interest and skills develop, children can take on longer and longer scenes.

Children can even engage in story acting of original stories they create. This process requires the teacher to capture the stories that children tell by writing them on paper. Then the child and teacher work together to share that story with other children and determine which children will take on different roles in the story.  They then present the story acting to the audience of their peers.

With time and practice, story acting can become a valuable community-building element of your curriculum. Children learn to work together, listen to one another, and show respect during story acting experiences.

For more information about setting up story acting in your learning environment, check out this story acting resource.

For the main article Storytelling, CLICK HERE

For the article Developmental Benefits of Storytelling, CLICK HERE

For the article Storytelling Materials, CLICK HERE

For the article Director’s Corner, CLICK HERE