profile 3.p65


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T here are many ways to get students  involved in the English learning process. Telling stories is one of the
most effective ones. This article attempts to
gather some pedagogical and psychological
reasons why this kind of activity is important,
not only to improve students vocabulary and
make them achieve a feeling of self confidence
but to let them develop social values.

IntrIntrIntrIntrIntroductionoductionoductionoductionoduction

English language teaching methodologies
used in our schools often focus on
understanding grammatical structures as well
as on translating texts. They do not necessarily
view communication as an essential part to
effectively learn a second language. Brumfit and
Johnson (1979) were some of the first linguists
to draw our attention towards five main
communicative functions: 1. Personal (the
individual inner thoughts); 2. Interpersonal
Communication (social relationships); 3.
Directive (for persuading, convincing,
suggesting); 4. Referential (to talk about the
past); 5. Imaginative (the creative use of
language). These aspects have had a great
impact on current teaching practices as learning
a language is seen not only as the acquisition
of formal aspects, but also as the capacity to
use them according to sociocultural variables.

Other important works like the ones by
Fillmore et al. (1979) and the Colombian
National Curricular Guidelines for Foreign

Languages (1999) point out that we should
be aware of three types of processes students
need to experience in the English classroom:
the social, the linguistic and the cognitive
processes. In order to effectively activate these
processes we also have to take into
consideration individual differences in second
language acquisition, for example: older
learners vs. younger learners, social
opportunities, and motivation, among others.
Having those ideas in mind, we can think of
storytelling as a tool to ensure students engage
in the said processes.

Why use stories in class?Why use stories in class?Why use stories in class?Why use stories in class?Why use stories in class?

There are many reasons that justify the use
of stories in class. First of all, they allow us to
work with emotional and social aspects and
this is something that helps us to maintain
our traditional and cultural background. It is
well-known that people have told stories as
part of their tradition and with the purpose of
transmitting and passing on their knowledge
to the new generations. This has happened
since the beginning of spoken language and
in every civilization. Many of these stories
have been passed on from country to country
over thousands of years. The storytelling

THE MAGIC WORLD OF STORYTELLING:

SOME POINTS FOR REFLECTION

Martha CastrMartha CastrMartha CastrMartha CastrMartha Castrooooo
San Martín de Porres School
marcas0828@hotmail.com



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tradition is one of the richest possessions of
any culture and both children and adults love
to hear the same story over and over again
and learn to remember every detail. Nowadays,
it is possible to find some of these stories in
books; but, the telling of short stories orally
gives the readers a breath of life that printed
word cannot.

Another reason why teachers should tell
stories to their classes, and encourage children
to tell the ones they know is that traditional
stories introduce children to the main features
and beliefs of their national culture. They give
them an inheritance from the past, and thus a
sense of history.

Telling stories exercises the imagination
(Ellis and Brewster: 1991). Children try to
visualize what they hear to imagine what
people, animals or spirits look like and how
they sound. This imaginative experience helps
to develop their own creative powers. Listening
to stories develops children's listening and
concentration skills and their ability to receive
and understand information expressed in
words. Also, stories expose children to new
vocabulary and sentence structure which will
enrich their thinking and gradually enter their
own conversation.

As mentioned above, children enjoy hearing
stories over and over again and learn to
predict what is coming next in the story.
Following meaning and predicting language
are important skills in the development of
reading. Listening to stories in class is a
shared social experience. Reading and writing
are often individual activities, done alongside
others but completed alone. A shared response
of laughter, sadness, excitement, etc. is not
only enjoyable but important for social and
emotional development.

It is well known that most of the stories
have a moral about human attitudes and
behaviour. Through listening and talking about
these children begin to develop a sense of
what is right and wrong and learn to appreciate
other people's feelings. According to Ellis and
Brewster (ibid.), storytelling can enhance work
in ever y subject area and on any topic.
Religions are also rich in stories which can be
enjoyed by ever yone. Sharing these
encourages children to respect other people’s
beliefs and traditions. It is not necessary to
restrict student- teacher to traditional tales
because it is possible to make up stories about
anything. Young children particularly enjoy
stories related to aspects of their own
experience, for example, about the area in
which they live, the animals they are familiar
with and so on. Through listening to such
stories they will learn to think imaginatively
and to create their own adventure to tell.

ConclusionConclusionConclusionConclusionConclusion

The main objective of telling stories is to
build the students’ confidence and develop
in them a positive attitude towards English.
Storytelling is an authentic resource to be
introduced because it gives students the
opportunity to participate actively in the
learning process. Some teachers think that
this learning process has to deal only with
young learners but people from all ages love
to hear and tell stories. We as a teachers have
to realize that children do not lose their
enjoyment of stories when they get older. This
necessity becomes more intense. Why?
Because they are part of our lives and they
make them more interesting. By using stories
we can have a way that will help us to give
children a tool to achieve their success in
school and in life.



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References

Ellis, G. and Brewster, J. (1991). The
Storytelling Handbook for Primary Teachers.
London: Penguin English.

Fillmore, C. J., Kempler, D. and Wang,
W.S.Y. (eds.) (1979). Individual Differences
in Language Ability and Language Behavior.
New York: Academic Press.

Brumfit, C. J. and Johnson, K. (eds.) (1979).
The Communicative Approach to Language
Teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Ministerio de Educación Nacional.
(1999). Lineamientos Curriculares. Idiomas
Extranjeros. Bogotá: Ministerio de Educación
Nacional de Colombia.

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