“Story, as it turns out, was crucial to our evolution — more so than opposable thumbs. Opposable thumbs let us hang on; story told us what to hang on to.” – Lisa Cron

An ingenious story-telling workshop was conducted for the teachers of SAI Angan on January 18, 2023, with renowned international storyteller-Award Winning “Friend of the Deaf” Storyteller & Founding Director, Federation of Asian Storytellers, Mr. Roger Jenkins. Emphasizing on the role of storytelling in early education, Mr Jenkins touched upon fables, book tales & the traditional panchatantra collection to depict the imperative components in the art of storytelling just as gestures, voice modulation, visuals, sequencing, body language & non-verbal communication, and shared valuable insights on intriguing ways of engaging the class, further discussing about the various sort of stories that should be on their lesson plans to instil curiosity & critical thinking amongst kids from an early age.

While addressing the teachers, Roger Jenkins, said “stories are not to exaggerate reality, they are there to teach you all that nothing is impossible. No matter how big the obstacle, you will always find your way around it.” He emphasized on how stories can teach children all about hope, happiness and tolerance. He also said, “Having animals as characters make the stories more fun & helps lighten the tales that have strong lessons.’’

The story-telling session culminated with the spread of joy amidst the attendees as they discovered that any one of them could be a story-teller. Late Dr Bijay Kumar Sahoo, Founder-Chairman, SAI International School was someone who believed in the magic of storytelling & its significance in formative education. He encouraged his students to be veracious readers & discover a wide array of stories, in order to develop their vocabulary & make them proficient communicators.

Storytelling brings language learning alive and creates a participatory and immersive experience that allows young learners to enjoy hearing the language in a dynamic, sometimes entertaining way. Participation using key vocabulary and phrases can create an awareness of rhythm and structure. Storytelling allows teachers to enter the lives of students as they’re forming a sense of self- identity. It promotes a sense of community and belonging, enables relationship networking, allows participants to engage in sense-making, helps develop empathy and self-confidence, and facilitates learning

Story Telling: An Imperative Ingredient of Early Education