Assemblies: Playing with Story
(150-500 students)
45-60 minutes
Students experience audience-participation folktales from around the world.
Playing with Language: Small group storytelling and author talk
(up to three classes at a time, often in the school library setting.)
45-60 minutes
Students enjoy stories from world folklore, share one or more of my own folktale picture books, and learn about the art of the picture book, the editing process, and the fun of playing with language. MRM can tailor storytelling sessions to include tales from specific cultures, tales of pathways to peace, or ecological tales.
Small group storytelling workshops
45-60 minutes
I work with around twenty students at a time. Usually each class sends two representatives to the workshop. These students learn one short folktale, then return to their class and perform the story. I recommend that students be chosen for their verbal qualities, rather than their academic prowess. Often kids who are not best at reading and writing skills CAN achieve at this new art form.
Richard Scholtz small group workshops
When Richard tours with MRM he offers workshops as well. Richard can provide folk music sessions with classes.
He also offers an interesting workshop for small groups in which a few of the children bring poems they have written. Richard sets these to music and discusses his musical choices and the ways music can enhance the spoken word.
Teacher workshop
One or one and a half hour workshop after school
Teachers learn three short audience-participation folktales to tell and receive bibliographies for further work.
Extended School Visits
A multi-day visit could include assemblies, workshops for every age group, a family night performance, and a workshop for parents and teachers. For example a program at the Hong Kong International School included five days of assemblies, small group performances and workshops for the children, two evening performances, and a workshop open to the entire Hong Kong community on Saturday.
At the International School of Brussels I worked for a week with just the kindergarten classes. Each class heard stories twice a day and learned a story which they performed for the whole pod at the week’s end. Parents came to school for a storytelling workshop. And teachers received training in storytelling skills. Thus the enthusiasm for storytelling blossomed both at home and at school.
Spreading Stories Throughout the School
The American School of Warsaw asked me to teach a different story to each grade level. That class then could perform their own special story to other classes in the school. We opened with assemblies for all students, then I worked with each grade level. This took two days.
Aloha Elementary in Oregon wanted me to teach a different story to each class! I did a short author talk and then demonstrated a very short folktale for each class. The teacher continued their rehearsals and they then performed for other classes later that week. 2 days.
Brown's Point Elementary in Tacoma asked for three assemblies and hour long storytelling workshops for all 4th and 5th graders. I taught one story to each grade (about 90 students). 1 day.
Junior High and High School Visits
In addition to school assemblies, I am often asked to do workshops for drama classes, childcare classes, English lit classes, and others studying folklore or children's literature topics.
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