Storytelling as a part of Education Curriculums

What is the role and value of oral storytelling in education?

Storytelling is felt by some to be one of the arts that are diminishing in importance in our culture. Yet Waldorf education curriculum places strong emphasis on this experience for children. Storytelling imbues the imagination and fantasy, and is a loving way of communicating values, principles, and challenges, among others. Oral stories may be curative (Dancy, 1989, pg 184) where a made-up story may be told to a child or group of children who are exhibiting a particular problem or behavior that you hope will change.

While stories can reflect life’s challenges, the oral storytelling provides a strong basis for the development of “picture consciousness” (Meyer 1981), or our imaginations. Dancy (1989, pg 168) notes the “role of imagination or the ability to think in images is recognized as an important component in creative thinking. Albert Einstein said he discovered the theory of relativity by picturing himself riding on a ray of light.” Meyerkort, who heads the Waldorf early-childhood teacher training program in Great Britain, notes that imagination is essential for many reasons: initiative (to see potential, rather than static existence), compassion (imagine and empathize with another’s predicament), love (imagine a person’s potential, possibilities for growth).

Images that are envisioned from something a child hears in a story are based on their imagination, are not static, and can transform over time in one’s “mind’s eye”. On the contrary, images from television or movies, or even books with detailed pictures, take the imagination away from the child and provide it to them in a static way that “sticks”. Thus oral storytelling embraces the inner fantasy and creativity in all of us.

One of the goals the Jayátu team is to help bring oral storytelling educational resources for parents, teachers, and home school families/groups and create a vibrant online school where 'children of ALL ages' can enroll to receive official certificates of completion that can be used for credit.   We are in the beginning stages of discussions with an education institute about partnering with them to develop an easy curriculum that can be integrated into their school.  We will keep you posted through the Friends of Jayátu newsletter!