Why should you use storytelling to teach English?

Richard Cleeve
Children sat outdoors reading a book together
Reading time: 5 minutes

Stories can make us laugh, cry or tremble with fear. They can teach us valuable life lessons and transport us to other worlds. They've been around since the beginning of language itself, but can they actually help us learn a language?

Stories are one of the most useful toolswhen teaching childrenEnglish. Not only do they help with listening and reading skills, but they can also support speaking and writing skills by providing context, language and structure.

Very young learners may already be familiar with stories – they may hear them in daycare, school or at home with their parents. Therefore, incorporating these into their language classes may help them to feel more comfortable in their surroundings. And if children feel comfortable, they are more likely to be receptive to learning.

Storytelling usually happens as part of a group in the classroom. This means that it becomes a bonding activity for children where they can communicate and subconsciously pick up the key language. While having fun listening and interacting with the story, theysoak up information without even realizing they’re learning.

So, what storytelling activities can we use with younglearners? Let’s find out.

Practical activities for storytelling with young learners

Often, we think of storytelling simply as reading a book aloud to children. Yet, there are other activities you can do. These include:

1. Choral repetition

To get young children interacting with the story, first read out a sentence alone. Then, have the children repeat the line with you as a group. Repeat as many times as necessary, until the children feel confident with the language.

2. Individual repetition

If your learners are happy to, ask them individually to repeat the sentence after you. Make sure each one has a turn and praise them for being brave and trying to use the language.

3. Play acting

An activity that works well with children is to act out the story’s characters. For example, there may be animals, fairies, monsters or other exciting characters that they can each act.

Ask them to make the noises of the animals, the wind, or the scenery to create an atmosphere while you read. This gets them interacting with the story and the rest of the group, which will help their communication and listening comprehension skills.

4. Use puppets or dolls

Young learners react particularly well to visual aids and realia. Why not use puppets or dolls to act out the characters, or even ask students to have a go with them? They will engage more with the story and the language.

5. Dive into the pictures

Children’s story books are usually quite visual with illustrations and pictures. Make the most of these while telling the story. Try asking students questions about the images to get them using the vocabulary.

You could ask them, “what can you see?”, “what’s he wearing?” or “can you find an apple?”. This is another great way to reinforce the vocabulary they’re learning in class.

Use these activities individually orincorporate a mix into your lessons. Either way, storytelling will help your learners with more than just developing their English language skills.

Storytelling with adult language learners

While we often think of storytelling as a pastime for children, it can also be a useful language learning activity for adults.

Stories are part of our daily lives, from news to social media to books and movies. Therefore, they can be extremely beneficial tools for English language learning.

Yet, the way we approach storytelling as a class activity for adults differs to that of young learners. While we typically read fairy tales to young children, we can bring in a much wider range of content for adults, such as:

  • News stories– There may be a current news story that learners are interested in. Ask them to bring in an article to retell in class.
  • Traditional folk stories–Ask learners what traditional folk tales or ghost stories they were told as children growing up in their hometowns. This can be really interesting for both language and cultural awareness.
  • Personal life stories – Our lives are a series of short stories that can make for very interesting reading. You can either ask students to share stories in class orally or have them write up a “chapter” from their lives to tell the class. It could be something funny that happened to them or an anecdote from their childhood, for example.
  • Movie plots– Ask students what their favorite movies are and have them either tell the group the summary of the plot or write it up to share at the end of the lesson.
  • Advertisements–There are some fantastic advertisements which tell mini stories in under three minutes. Have students choose one, show it to the class and discuss it as a group.

Storytelling can be a wonderful language learning tool for both children and adults. If you’re looking for a new way to engage, inspire and motivate your learners, why not try it in your next class?

Check out our readers

More blogs from ɫèAV

  • A teacher showing her students a globe, with her students looking at the globe, one with a magnifying glass in hand.

    What’s it like to teach English in Turkey?

    By Steffanie Zazulak
    Reading time: 3 minutes

    Alice Pilkington qualified as a CELTA (Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) certified teacher in October 2009. She started working in Rome before moving to Istanbul, where she’s spent the past three and a half years teaching English to “everyone from 8-year-olds to company executives; students to bored housewives”. Having taught in two very different countries to a diverse range of English learners, Alice shares with us the five lessons she’s learned:

    1. Don't take things personally when you're teaching English

    "I am probably not emotionally suited for this job. I take everything very personally and if a lesson goes wrong or an activity I have taken time and energy to plan doesn’t work, I feel like a complete failure. It’s a trial and error experience but when things go wrong, they can go very wrong, and it really makes you doubt your abilities as a teacher.

    Having said that, the lessons that do go well can make up for these negative feelings. I shouldn’t take things personally; the majority of my colleagues don’t and it saves them a lot of sleepless nights"

    2. Teaching English is incredibly rewarding

    "There are very few feelings that I’ve experienced that compare to seeing a student use a word that you have taught them – it makes you feel like a proud parent. Equally, seeing a student improve over a series of months is so joyful.I have been teaching English university preparation students for the past year.

    In September, they could barely say what their name was and what they did over the weekend. Nine months on and they’re capable of reading academic texts and speaking at length about marketing strategies and environmental problems. It’s a wonderful thing to observe"

    3. Teach more than just English

    "Turkish students love hearing about how you appreciate their food and cultural traditions. Equally, they are genuinely interested in understanding how things operate in the UK and enjoy hearing personal anecdotes.I tend to be very open with my students – even about my personal life.I think it is partly because I have striven from the very beginning of my career to be seen as their equal.

    Turkish students are used to having a huge respect for teachers, and there is a hierarchical system in schools here, which I can never go along with. In my first lesson with most students, I tell them that they must call me by my first name (usually you refer to teachers here as ‘hocam’ which means ‘my teacher’ and shows respect) and this can take a long while for them to get used to."

    4. Failure to prepare is to prepare for failure... or is it?

    "Lessons that you spend hours preparing for generally don’t go as well as you had hoped. There were several times when I’d spend hours cutting and sticking things on pieces of card and placing pictures all over the classroom, hoping it would get some vocabulary action going, only to start the class and receive no response from the students.

    Conversely, lessons where you don’t feel very motivated or have no idea what you are going to do until you get into the classroom (which I call the ‘flying by the seat of your pants’ lessons) can turn out to be the best ones. I once had a lesson in which I was, admittedly, rather hungover. On the way to the lesson, I grabbed a book called ‘Taboos and Issues’, full of discussion topics, which I used as a basis for a rather impromptu lesson on addictions, which was very successful indeed."

    5. Teaching English isn't easy

    "Teaching English is a love/hate profession. There are weeks when you absolutely loathe it and want to quit, but then within the space of a lesson or two, you get inspired by something completely unexpected, rediscover your joy for it and love it again."

  • A woman stood outside in a square holding a map smiling

    3 traveling tips your English dictionary won’t teach you

    By Steffanie Zazulak
    Reading time: 3 minutes

    Traveling to a new country is a wonderful way to practice your English skills, but sometimes speaking English in a foreign country can be a little daunting—and an can only help so much. That’s why we’re sharing these three traveling tips: try them the next time you travel to an English-speaking country. They’re sure to make communicating in English with others more interesting and fun.

    Learn how to “break the ice”

    While you’re exploring, you’ll likely come across strangers you might want to “break the ice” with or speak to. A simple “hi” or “hello” along with telling them where you’re from is a great way to start a conversation. Next, ask them for “insider tips” about their city, like their favorite places to visit or not-to-be-missed restaurants.

    If they seem friendly and are willing to share more information, make sure you ask for their name and use it when asking more questions. Most people appreciate it when others call them by their names in conversation.

    Learn how to ask people for help

    It's normal to get lost during your trip, but don't worry. Most English-speaking countries will have tourist centers near popular destinations with trained staff who can help you with any questions.

    If you can’t find a tourist center quickly enough, approach a friendly-looking person (students with backpacks are a pretty safe bet) and use the skills that you’ve already learned about approaching new people. You can include additional questions like “I’m lost, could you help me?” or “Do you know where I can find _________?” to let them know that you need their help. It’s also not uncommon for strangers to come up to you, especially when you’re carrying a map and look lost, to ask if you need help finding your way.

    Learn to express gratitude

    You will likely want to thank many people during your travels, like the new friends who just helped you when you were lost—and there are many ways to express gratitude.

    Saying “thanks” or “thanks so much” is an informal form of “thank you” in many English-speaking countries. You can also add the phrase “I appreciate it” or say “Thank you. I really appreciate your help” if the person you are thanking did something really special for you, like helping you out with directions.

    For some people, talking to someone you don’t know can be a little scary, especially in a second language. But don’t worry— most people will be pretty responsive to you. In fact, many people welcome visitors to their cities with open arms, just remember to be polite and have a smile on your face when approaching them.

  • A woman sat on a sofa smiling reading a book

    11 fascinating facts about English

    By Steffanie Zazulak
    Reading time: 3 minutes

    English is one of the most widely-spoken languages in the world, but how much do you know about the language? Here are 11 facts about Englishthat you might not know.