Storytelling sessions in Year 1 classrooms

Abstract

This study focused on storytelling sessions in four Year 1 classrooms. This was done via 19 observations in order to gather information about how storytelling sessions were being conducted. An observation checklist based on previous research (Egan, 1990; Fenwick, 1990; Ellis & Brewster, 1991) was prepared to collect information about the teachers' behaviours and children's involvement during the sessions. In order to support information gathered during the observations, as well as to find out about the teachers' beliefs and perceptions about storytelling with young learners, individual interviews were conducted with the four teachers. Interviews with 42 (40%) of the participating children were conducted to find out their preferences for stories and to record children's views about storytelling sessions in their classrooms. Although teachers reported that storytelling was frequently used in their classrooms, observations indicate that teachers need to improve their storytelling skills to perform effective sessions. Success in storytelling does not arise as a result of one factor. These results and their implications are discussed.