Storytelling in the Classroom

People have told stories since time began as a way to pass down knowledge and as a survival technique. Telling and listening to stories is an essential part of our human experience. We don't just learn from them; we are also entertained by them. These days we get stories from television, books, and digital platforms. Still, we can always appreciate the value of a told or spoken story, especially in our classroom.

 

I love telling a good story, and I do it well. I can also deliver a good joke and love writing (hence this blog). In the last few years, I've had to write and deliver 3 eulogies, and morbid as that might seem, I appreciated it. All three were close to me (including my Mum), so naturally, I wanted to honour them by telling their story. Humans love to listen to stories. Ask me what Pi is or any other mathematical formula, and I couldn't tell you. But ask me what my favourite books, nursery rhymes, and TV shows from my childhood were, and I clearly remember. This is because one was delivered as a fact, and the others were offered as stories.

 

Storytelling is an essential part of my pedagogy. Writing this blog had me wondering why that is. Is it because I love a joke and a laugh? Is it because I have 48 years of life experience to share or 22 years in education to work out what works for me? It is all three.

 

Laughter is good for the soul. Everybody appreciates a good laugh. How often have you heard someone start a joke, and you tune in to listen even if it's not directed to you? …Just me? In class, I use humour regularly. I tell Dad Jokes, and I include humour in a story. I'm not afraid to make the joke about me, either. If I can build some trust, respect, and rapport with students by getting a laugh at my story, then students will connect with me and engage in our lesson.

 

I am closing in on 50 years of age. As daunting as this seems, my teaching practice, particularly my storytelling ability, is still improving. I have worked many jobs in my 48 years. Some good, some bad. Some remote, dirty, challenging, and some relatively easy. I have also been lucky enough to travel quite a bit. I love travelling and learning about people, places, and cultures. Where laughter is good for the soul, travel broadens the mind. In 2020, I worked in a very remote part of Australia that was sometimes intimidating and scary. I was removed from many creature comforts I was accustomed to, and my Mum passed away while I was away. Needless to say, it wasn't the best time of my life. However, from all those experiences, I can draw on stories related to my class's lessons or content.

 

Within my 22 years of teaching experience, I have only worked at 3 different schools. One of those for 19 years! However, I can still draw on various stories to tell about lessons (good and bad) or teachers and students I've worked with. Different year levels and subjects I've taught, excursions, or extracurricular events I've been involved in.

 

So, what is it about a good story that can capture the attention of a class and have them learning?

 

Firstly, a story can connect learning to the real world and give the students an understanding of the need to learn something. I'm sure we have all been in a situation where we have wondered, "why do I need to know this?" Providing students with a real-world example makes that connection.   

 

Stories can make learning more enjoyable. Hamming it up doesn't hurt, either. Using humour or variation in the tone of your voice and volume. Role-playing characters or getting others to assist makes it more fun and interesting.

 

And, of course, embellishing those stories! Of course, I embellish/alter/change the story to fit the content or the point I am trying to make. Before my Mum passed, I remember telling her about a particular lesson I taught and the story I told. My Mum knew the story and said, "That's not true. You lied to them!" I remember saying to Mum, "No, I'm engaging them." The story doesn't have to be real or accurate; it's about engaging students in learning.

 

Storytelling has been around for thousands of years, and for good reason. It is a great teaching and learning tool. It's the simplest, but to do it well, like anything, requires practice and refinement. But how often do you use it? Of course, we have fantastic technology and resources available to us today. Still, sometimes getting back to the basics, the original methods are also great for students learning.      

 

You may have noticed I've mentioned my Mum a couple of times in this blog. Today is the second anniversary of her passing. I have been talking about her quite a bit today. Retelling stories about my memories of her. I have so many great memories. But that's a story for another day…

The Value of Curiosity... and 18 rubber ducks!

A friend of mine owns a tutoring company for which I do some work. A few weeks ago, I was standing at the sink filling my water bottle when I noticed a little yellow duck stuck to a light shade. It was tiny! No bigger than 10mm tall. Obviously, this sparked my curiosity, but I did nothing about it. Then, a few days later, I overheard some kids talking about another little yellow duck sitting on top of the blinds in one of the rooms. When I asked them where it was, they showed me and told me that there were 18 scattered around the building.

A range of kids from Prep – year 12 come through the doors each week. In weeks that followed, most of them were talking about these ducks. Some of the older kids soon worked out where they all were, and we quickly hushed them to avoid spoiling it for the younger kids. But what was happening was amazing! The kids had become super curious and excited about where the ducks had come from. Who put them there? Why were they there? As it turns out, a young girl named Amelia had found them in a $2 store and thought placing them around the building would be fun.

In the weeks ahead, I used them for the focus of several of my younger kids' lessons. We drew treasure maps, locating the ones we'd found, and measured the distances between them. We wrote stories and poems about the ducks. We wrote clues so other kids could search for them. However, what struck me the most was how such a simple idea had led to so much excitement and curiosity in the building. I couldn't stop thinking about other lessons I could teach using these tiny ducks and, more importantly, how valuable it is to have students excited and curious.

This had me reflecting on what I do in my school classroom to build curiosity. At first, I was concerned that I didn't do that much. So, I started reading up on creating curious classrooms, and it soon became apparent that I do use strategies to create curiosity.

Practice and encourage active listening 

A former colleague of mine regularly used to say, "God gave you two ears and one mouth for a reason." This has always resonated with me, to the point that in my class, our rule is regardless of how silly you might think a response/answer/idea might be, it may be a starting point for someone else's response/answer/idea. So, share that idea and build on it. It may just strike some curiosity in someone!   

Be curious yourself

I hated history at school, but I have become a regular traveler since my school days. Don't get me wrong, I love a holiday, but when I'm abroad, I treat that experience as a one-off. Like I may never get back there again. So, I make the most of seeing and doing as much as possible to learn about that place. This is me being curious.  

Like everything we do as teachers, kids will follow our lead. So, it's important to model being curious. I am not the font of all knowledge. Far from it! Something I admit regularly. I will say, "I don't know, but let's find out." Of course, from there, we can plan a way forward to find what we need. Hopefully, this supports the student in developing curiosity.

Use students' interests or passions

Teaching Design Thinking allows a certain amount of bringing students' interests or passions into their learning. But Design Thinking can be used across a range of subjects. Teachers can also be flexible in allowing students' interests/passions into lessons. Sure, it might take a little bit more planning or thought, but experience tells us that you get out what you put in. By planning lessons where students can pursue their interests, students are more likely to be engaged. They dig deeper in their learning through natural curiosity.  

Invite guest speakers

The last of the methods I have used is to invite guest speakers to talk to students. We have a plethora of these in schools, amongst staff, the parent body, and the broader community. Let their expertise and enthusiasm about their specialty get students enthusiastic and curious. Bring them in at the start to provoke thoughts or halfway through to inspire further interest. Of course, it takes some organising and connections to the community. Still, it helps kids, makes your life easier, and connects them to the real world of authentic learning.

Picasso famously said that "all children are born artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once they grow up". I think the same could be said about kids' curiosity. Think about the number of questions kids ask when they are little. They want to know about the world around them. They are naturally inquisitive. We need to keep thinking about ways to keep students curious and show them that curiosity is valued and an important aspect of learning.

The only certainty we have is that we have no idea what the future has in store for us. Therefore, the leaders of tomorrow will have to solve problems we have never faced before. To do this, they must come up with unique and challenging solutions. To do that, they will have to be curious and ask questions to arrive at solutions that will enable them to be custodians of the future.

The Power of Design

Last year I was lucky enough to be involved in Matthew Flinders Anglican College (MFAC) inaugural Design for Impact summit. This was a 2-day Design thinking immersion experience for all Year 5 students where they were set with a real challenge that impacted their local community. This year I was able to participate in the 2nd annual Design for Impact Summit and have again, seen first-hand, the benefits of teaching Design Thinking to school children, in particularly, primary school children. 

Design thinking is a problem-solving process or problem identifying process. It is an iterative process that draws on creativity and innovation and focusses on the user to develop the best solutions to problems. Design thinking embraces dispositions such as empathy, collaboration, critical and creative thinking, adaptability, communicating and failing forward. Skills that are essential for our next generation of leaders to navigate future global issues. Skills that MFAC are developing in students from a young age. 

In 2020, MFAC kick started a program called I-Impact, which embeds design thinking into the curriculum of all their Junior School classes. MFAC views these skills as essential to students’ education. The college recognises Design Thinking skills as transferable, scalable, and adaptable to all subject areas, year levels and areas of a child’s development and growth. 

To provide an authentic experience, MFAC partnered with QUT’s Design Lab and CreatEd and challenged the Year 5 students to design and prototype the Maroochydore City Centre of 2050. The Maroochydore City Centre https://www.maroochydore-city.com.au is a real project under construction on the doorstep of where these children live. It is a place with which many of these children will interact, work in or visit as the next generation of Sunshine Coasters. 

The Design for Impact Summit not only used a real project to challenge students’ thinking but engaged experts from the wider community to enhance the learning experience. Over the course of 2 days, students were lucky enough to listen to presentations from Architects, Town Planners and local Councillors. They got to work alongside peers, teachers, university lecturers and university students and a variety of experts from industry. Students’ thinking was disrupted, challenged to empathise with users and dared to think deeper about future needs. Students were empowered, as the future custodians of this precinct, to think critically and creatively about what the challenges, possibilities and solutions might look like in 2050. Over the course of the summit, students imagined, designed, prototyped and tested. They discussed, shared and redesigned. They negotiated with stakeholders, role played, worked in ministerial groups to abide by local design regulations and presented their solutions. The experience was an inspirational one for me and I’m sure one that the participants – old and young – will never forget. 

As an advocate of design, I hold the strong belief that design thinking should be taught from an early age. Imagine students entering high school where empathising with others is second nature to them. Where students see failure as just their first attempt and using it to improve and solve the problem. If resilience and perseverance are the essential skills that students need, then design thinking is the way of their future. When students have the capacity and confidence to communicate with a range of people from different backgrounds, cultures or expertise; when they can value collaboration and flexibility, then we can be confident that the world’s future will be in capable hands.

What I’ve learnt from tutoring maths.

I’m a proud Design Teacher. I believe that Design should be taught across all year levels including the very early years. I am well connected, have preached my passion and presented at national and international conferences and at 47 years of age, I still have a burning desire to connect, learn and hone my craft. In the last 12 months, I have done just that, but I haven’t taught one class of design. 

Let’s rewind 12 months. I had finally taken the plunge to leave Australia and had accepted a job teaching Design at an exciting International school. COVID 19 hit and I was forced to walk away from that job, fearing that now was not the best time to travel. For a little while there I was in limbo, with no job and wondering what my next move was, when a former colleague contacted me and asked if I was interested in tutoring two primary school girls… MATHS! 

I’ve never taught maths and I’ve never even tutored before. However, I believed in my abilities as a teacher of children rather than just subjects and contacted the family. When I got the job, I remember being very excited and enthusiastic and really looking forward to getting started. Maybe it was the new start? Maybe it was the new challenge? Or maybe it was because I had no other way to pay the mortgage. 

Since then, life has thrown me (…and all of us) some curve balls. Halfway through 2020, I found myself teaching in a remote indigenous community ‘smack bang’ in the centre of Australia, 3 hours drive from the next town. Without warning, my Mum passed away and by late 2020, I desperately wanted to secure a teaching position back in Brisbane to be closer to my family. 

While many things have changed for me over the past 12 months, the one thing that has been constant is my maths tutoring sessions with these two girls in Hong Kong. I’ve enjoyed every minute of it, but it has only been this week, that I have thought about why these times have been so special. 

The first thing has been the personal connection. Our lessons are over SKYPE twice a week, but to be able to work with only two students, has allowed me to really understand how those two girls learn. I got to see their strengths, weaknesses and interests so that I could design lessons to best cater to their learning needs. With only two students sitting in front of you, you also enjoy the ‘A-ha’ moments on a higher level. I’ve felt even greater pride than normal in those moments because of the more personalised connection. 

The personalised connection has also allowed me to connect and work with their parents to support and encourage their learning. I’ve always considered teaching a team sport and a good parent/teacher/student connection can only enhance learning. 

Through reflecting on what has worked well and what I have enjoyed while tutoring the girls, I have been able to focus on those areas within my own classes at school. Things like getting to know the kids on a more personal level, taking the time to discover what their interests are and having conversations about this. This, in turn, develops a rapport with students that allows trust and respect to flourish and let kids see that you are genuinely interested in them achieving to the best of their ability. 

It has also reminded me of the responsibility I have to educate each and every student and not let any child slip under the radar. I am not a parent, but I’m certain every parent sends their child to school every day, entrusting us to provide them with equal opportunities to learn and develop their minds. 

I’ve missed out on working and living abroad for now. But, connecting with this English family, living in Hong Kong, has somewhat still been a bit of an adventure. Concepts that have come up in lessons like measurement, money, food, travel that are different from those in Australia has given me a taste of a different culture and been a learning experience for me as well. Conversations with the girls and parents have also taught me things about Hong Kong and the culture. 

I have also learnt a lot about maths in the last 12 months. More than I can ever remember learning at school. I didn’t enjoy maths at school. I didn’t understand things and I never really tried to. So, I’ve been determined to put my maths lessons into contexts that could be understood. I have checked that it was understood and if it wasn’t, tried other strategies, or contexts until it was. In the classroom, we often get tied up with trying to cover a certain amount of content per lesson. Tutoring has reminded me that understanding is more important than covering content and to slow down more often and take the time to ensure everyone understands. 

Fortunately, the girls are able to resume school soon but unfortunately this means that the tutoring will come to an end; however, the connection with the girls and the family won’t. I’ll miss the regular SKYPE calls, the jokes, and even the teaching and learning. But there’s still some learning ahead for me. I’m looking forward to seeing how well I’ve prepared the girls for their return to regular classes and reflecting on that. 

Will I be rushing out to apply for maths teaching jobs? Not likely. Will I be more open minded about learning from different challenges, not just professionally but personally? ...Absolutely! 

I never imagined how valuable tutoring these girls would turn out to be for me both personally and professionally. Thank you, Ramsey Family! I hope your girls have learnt as much as I have.

New Year, New School, New Challenges.

This time last year, I decided it was time for a change but little did I know just how much of a change it would be. You see, I thought I had a plan – a new position in a Canadian school in Beijing. Then COVID hit and the whole world shifted off kilter. So, here I am 12 months later, on a completely different path, working in a new school but with a whole bag of experiences and lessons learnt in 2020. 

I’ve always loved teaching and I’ve always loved travel. I knew that it was only a matter of time before I would combine the two. Whilst attending a conference in Singapore in November 2019, I took the opportunity to visit some International schools. Listening to like-minded people and seeing some of these wonderful schools, resonated with me and provided me with the motivation to make some changes to my life. I returned home knowing that 2020 was the year. 

Once the decision was made, I started the search for a new school in earnest. I submitted many applications and was lucky enough to sit quite a few interviews. Finally, I secured a position in Beijing, and the big change was suddenly becoming real. At first, I took the safe option of applying for a year’s leave. With 19 years at the same school, a total leap into the unknown seemed a bit too daunting at first. However, my confidence in my teaching ability had never been higher and I decided that if I was really going to challenge myself, I needed to cut ties completely and start afresh. So I resigned! 

 Of course, that’s when things started going ‘pear-shaped’. A little thing called COVID-19 reared its ugly head. At first, like most people. I had no idea the impact it would have on the world around us. It soon became apparent that this was not going away, and my best made plans were now unravelling. International travel was becoming less appealing and quite frankly, a bit scary. As supportive and as encouraging as my new school was, I took the option, with my school’s blessing, to walk away from the job. 

All of a sudden, I was jobless, living in a new house that I’d just built with, no furniture (I’d sold it to go overseas) and no idea what I was going to do for work. Instead of heading back to my old school with cap in hand, I took this time to reflect and reassess. Thinking over my options with an open mind I soon realised that I could do anything I wanted! I had no ties. I had no pets, little debt and of course no furniture to store if I chose to move towns. This was exciting! I reached out to my professional connections to let them know I was open to new beginnings. 

Before long, I was on my way to the Northern Territory to teach in an Indigenous community. I had never been to the Northern Territory and I’d never visited an indigenous community let alone lived in one. The following 6 months were exciting, but it also had its challenges, both personal and professional. I won’t go into detail as this topic needs a blog of its own. 

Fast forward 6 months and I am back in Brisbane, a week into a new school year, in a very good school. A school, that 1 year ago, was not even on my radar. I am teaching different subjects from my usual collection – again another challenge. This is a new environment, with kids who are both socially and economically extremely diverse, in a staffroom with people from a variety of faculties, experience and ages.

It is amazing what happens when you open yourself and your mind and I’d like to share my take on it. 

 1. It pays to take a risk. If you trust in your abilities and give it a go, it opens you up to new             experiences. In turn, that develops you as a person and as a professional. 

 2. Teachers are flexible and adaptable. We are great actors and story tellers and draw on all our      experiences to create learning opportunities for our students. 

3. We need to live the ‘growth mindset’ that we educate our students to have. We need to take        that attitude into our real life and again, that may just lead to experiences that you can use to     tell stories and create learning experiences. 

4. It’s important to be grateful for the life you have. It’s easy to remember and complain about        the negative things, but what about all the great things in your life! 

I’m really enjoying my new school. But will I be here this time next year or the year after? Who knows, but that is not what is important. To paraphrase John Lennon - Life is what happens to you while you are busy making plans. So no more plans. I intend to enjoy each day and revel in the surprises it may bring.

The Next Adventure

Isn’t it funny how things work out! I started this year knowing exactly what I was going to do. I spent the Christmas break planning, applying for the next step and early in 2020 had secured a position to make it happen …and then COVID-19 hit!

Late 2019, I made the decision to look at changing the direction of my career. I had spent 19 years at St Paul's, the only school I had taught at since graduating. It had given me some wonderful opportunities, but it was the right time in my life to make a change. I wanted an adventure. I wanted to travel and I wanted to learn something new. I had applied for numerous International jobs and I was lucky enough to secure a Design position at a very good International school in Beijing where I was going to teach in the International Baccalaureate space. I resigned from St Paul's, leaving enough time to enjoy some down time before taking up this new role. I was very excited at the prospect of a new school, teaching new curriculum and living in a new country.

COVID-19 was already around when I accepted the new position and I was well aware of it. But as the weeks and months went on the wretched virus wasn’t going away and overseas travel restrictions were locked in place. Add to that the political tensions and my dreams of adventure were fast slipping away. I won’t bore you with the details but the situation at the school in Beijing had been affected by COVID-19. Like the rest of the world, they were feeling the effects. They were very transparent and open about the situation and offered me a chance to get out if I didn’t feel comfortable. After considerable thought and talking to lots of people, I took this option with the thought that perhaps now is not the time. Back to square one!

I’m really fortunate in life that I’m not driven by money. I’m certainly not rich and I don’t consider myself frugal, but I am comfortable in my financial position. So, as I approached this next phase in my life, I kept reminding myself that I have time on my side and that there are people in a worse position than me. I decided to approach this next step as an opportunity to explore my options. This situation was not a problem, but an opportunity!

I started this by reaching out to friends, colleagues and fellow education professionals to let them know where I was at. To my great surprise, within 48hrs I had signed a contract to teach in term 4 and a week later, here I am sitting on a plane writing this blog.

I am on my way to Adelaide to stay a night before flying to Alice Springs tomorrow and then driving 5 hours south to Yulara. For the next 10 weeks I am going to be teaching at a school that has 3 campuses spread out over 500kms. The school has a total of 70 students across the 3 campuses and was set up to educate Anunga children. To these students, English is a second language. They regularly don’t attend school and all are on individual learning plans. Yulara, the biggest of the 3 towns, has some basic shops. The other 2 towns I will be driving to each week, are only accessible by dirt roads and I have to take my own supplies and a satellite phone.

I know I created my own luck by being proactive. However, as a teacher and in particular a design teacher, I think I have also developed the ability to be flexible, adaptable and look at situations with a different mindset than I once had.

Am I excited about the next 10weeks? You bet I am! This year I wanted to have an adventure. I wanted to travel and I wanted to learn something new …and that is exactly what I’m going to get!

Isn’t it funny how things work out!

Global Challenges and who will solve them?

 This semester I have been working on a unit on sustainability with my year 5 classes. Their challenge has been ‘How can we become more responsible users of plastic as a community?’ I’ve learnt a lot about this topic through preparing resources for these classes and from what the kids have discovered and shared. But in a round-about way it has also led me to reflect on my teaching practice.

Last week I attended the 2019 EduTECH Conference. I was really lucky to be able to attend to learn from connect and share with so many amazing educators. I was also lucky and grateful that the conference was held in Singapore. Food and eating is very important in the Singaporean culture. There is so much variety and everywhere you look, there are restaurants, cafes, Hawker stalls or street food. So as you do in Singapore …I ate out a lot!

One thing I noticed about eating out so much is the amount of single-use plastic Singaporeans use and it made me think about my year 5 classes and the problem I challenged them with. It made me think about how authentic it would be to challenge them with how Singapore could reduce their plastic use. At this point, I have to say I’m not having a go at Singapore or accusing them of overusing plastics. I’m sure it’s something they’ve been thinking about and working on, long before I started this blog. After all, they are an island and don’t have near as much space for landfill or issues associated with disposing of plastics.

However, it got me thinking about global issues of the future and how kids in my classes today are going to be faced with solving them. It got me reflecting on whether I am doing all I can to prepare them to face these big challenges and what could I do better. It got me thinking about what is required to prepare kids for this. And the results of my musings are:

Mindsets – Nothing good can occur without the right frame of mind. Emotional intelligence needs to be something all teachers are developing in students, not just for life beyond school, but for their learning in school also. Students need to have the attitude to understand the difference between failure and failing. The ability to value and build on mistakes. Afterall, some of the greatest inventions the world has seen came from failures. Teachers need to be careful in modelling these mindsets in class. Things like praising effort rather than just talent. Highlighting and celebrating failures. Being vulnerable enough to admit their own failures. Pointing out that there are more ways than one to get an answer and constantly encouraging students to aim for progress rather than perfection. 

Collaboration – I have been listening to an audio book by Shane Snow called Dream Teams. He discusses the benefits of working as a team. Using each member of the team’s unique backgrounds, cultures, experience or point of view as a way of not just solving problems or creating solutions but to provide a variety of methods and options. The big issues of the future such as global warming, lack of water, medical breakthroughs are going to require teams of people collaborating to create solutions. Teams that are going to be able to value others’ ideas and contributions as well as their own and build on these. Individuals who will be able to compromise and sacrifice their ideas for the benefit of getting the best result. Teams that accept diversity and are able to collaborate globally. Teachers need to provide learning experiences where students can connect with a variety of people. Opportunities for students to collaborate and develop communication and teamwork.     

Provide authentic learning experiences – By providing authentic learning experiences, students will not just develop a sense of, ‘I can do this’ but will also understand ‘why’ they are learning this way. These learning experiences need to provide students with opportunity to collaborate with others. Perhaps other students or teachers outside of their classroom or experts in the required area. Opportunities where students get to empathise with consumers or those affected and get to experience things from a different point of view. To experience a world outside of their own. Opportunities where students can develop confidence and understanding of the importance of a growth mindset. Opportunities where students can be empowered by working on problems, with people, like in life beyond school.

Even the oldest students I teach are 6-7 years away from graduating school. What will their world look like in 2026? One thing I do know is that the world around us will continually change and, as a teacher, I need to change with it. I need to have the mindset to keep developing my practice. I have to collaborate with others to do this and I have to bring my authentic experiences, like observing the world around me (like in Singapore) into my classes.

Will my students be prepared? I’m counting on it…