It’s been an unusual month for the educational community as we have been juggling teaching remotely, home-schooling and working from home. Our team in Cambridge have been thinking of ways to help teachers, parents and students adapt to this new way of working and studying. Today, I’d like to invite you to… relax and listen to a story!
Have you heard of Jackanory? Jackanory is a Cockney rhyme for a story. If English is not your first language, then you may be, like me, wondering what this is all about.
Well, back in the 1960s, a creative team from the children’s programmes department at the BBC had a brainwave – they decided to invite famous actors to read bedtime stories to children. With time, the stories evolved from a person reading by the fire, to full productions with music, props and animations. Several generations of children grew up with Jackanory, and several generations of famous actors lent their talent to storytelling on screen. Today, if you ask someone over the age of forty in Britain, they are likely to smile and recite the Jackanory rhyme.
And, the rhyme goes like this:
I’ll tell you a story
About Jack a Nory
And now my story’s begun
Tell me another
About Jack and his brother
And now my story is done.
So, are you sitting comfortably? Then, here’s a story…
The Little Red Hen.
Sweet little story, isn’t it? You can use this read-along as the centre of a fun, simple storytelling session for young learners.
Before the story
Take a few minutes to set the scene. Ask your child some questions related to the story to get them thinking. Show them some pictures to spark their imagination. What do they think is going to happen in this story? You can ask questions in your own language or in English; the important thing is to get your child interested and ready to listen.
With the Little Red Hen, you could ask ‘What do we find on the farm?’; ‘What’s your favourite farm animal?’; ‘Some of these animals don’t behave very well in the story – can you guess who?’.
During the story
Build the suspense and ask your child to guess what happens next. ‘Who will help?’; Would you help the Little Red Hen?’.
After the story
Take a few minutes to reflect on the story with your child. Ask ‘Who asks for help?’; ‘Why don’t the animals help?’; ‘Who eats the bread in the end?’; ‘How do the other animals feel?’.
Stories enrich our language skills as well as developing thinking skills.
You can practise sequencing and pattern recognition with these simple worksheets:
> Activity sheet 1
> Activity sheet 2
Extending the activity
You can enjoy the story in other ways too – why not make a story book? Print the story pages and ask your child to help you create a cover. Older children can change the ending or add a new character. Budding actors and actresses can act out the story for you!
Finally, why not check out Laura’s blog on storytelling online with young learners
The script
Here is the script for the story to read through:
One day the little red hen finds six seeds.
She is very happy.
“Who will help me plant these seeds?” she asks.
“Not I,” says the orange cat.
“Not I,” says the yellow duck.
“Not I,” says the white sheep.
So the little red hen plants the seeds by herself.
The wheat grows very quickly. The little red hen cuts it down.
“Who can help me make flour?” she asks.
“Not I,” says the orange cat.
“Not I,” says the yellow duck.
“Not I,” says the white sheep.
“I can make flour all by myself,” she says.
“Who can help me bake bread?” the little red hen asks.
“Not I,” says the orange cat.
“Not I,” says the yellow duck.
“Not I,” says the white sheep.
“I can bake it all by myself,” she says.
“Who can help me eat the bread?” the little red hen asks.
“I can,” says the orange cat.
“I can,” says the yellow duck.
“I can,” says the white sheep
“No, thanks. I can eat it all by myself,” she says.
If you would like to read more blog articles from the Supporting Every Teacher series, click here.