Date of Award

7-2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Education (MSEd)

First Advisor

Mollie Welsh Kruger

Abstract

Study on oral storytelling in early childhood education is ample. Study on oral storytelling in the elementary grades, however, is limited. This is likely due to the connection between storytelling and dramatic play, a creative and imaginative exercise that loses value in many classrooms as children grow. The emergent themes across the developmental stages of seven, eight, and nine year olds illustrate the need for and power of storytelling in second and third grade classrooms. The Storytelling Study is an interdisciplinary, multimodal curriculum in which children foster deeper understandings of themselves and others through the exploration of oral storytelling. The study begins with an examination of the oral storytelling traditions of Indigenous and Black communities. Then, students learn about family stories and practice telling their own family stories to others. Lastly, inspired by early childhood educator Vivian Paley’s work, students write and act out their own imaginative stories. Through this study, teachers will support their students in the hard work of identity formation, as well as the development of empathy and literacy and social studies understandings.

Comments

Childhood General Education (Program of study)

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