Story Telling ~

We have been reading a variety of different fairytales this term as we continue to explore features of a narrative. Fairytales are a great way of exploring the elements of a story as these stories use a familiar beginning with the use of 'Once upon a time' and a predictable ending with 'living happily ever after.' Children love the familiarity and predictability of these stories and just love joining in to read the text aloud as a whole class. We have been applying the B.A.R strategy to the learning of fairytales, looking at how we can make a story ... B - Better, A - Add something to it or R - Remove/Replace an element to make it more interesting. After listening to a selection of stories and taking them apart through discussion and reconstruction, students are better equipped to start writing on their own. Rein-acting elements of fairy tales offers opportunity to use dialogue and language purposefully in a tactile and kinaesthetic way. This think and do philosophy to learning engages the whole person in learning, activating both the mind and body to consolidate the whole learning process.

The B.A.R Strategy

B - Better

A - Add

R - Remove/Replace

Student suggestions included a few of the following,

We could make a story better by:

using different settings i.e a city, a bridge or a swamp instead of the forest, 

by including a moral into the story like fables do,

or changing the scary elements 

and characters featured in the story so people don't get eaten!

We could add something by:

creating a new scene,

incorporating a different character into the story

(or by adding extra details), 

like Red Riding Hood walking through the forest 

with a friend and not by herself.

We could remove or replace something by: 

using different adjectives or nouns within the text,

 removing Red Riding Hoods cape and giving her a name instead.

Or swapping the big bad wolf for a stranger in the woods!

(and include a new protagonist later on)

Or removing the wood cutter and replacing him with her Dad.

(A new hero - My Grade Ones loved this idea!)

Drawing upon a rich fabric of ideas assists students to write creatively and imaginatively.