The Power of Story-Based Instruction

We ALL love stories! Whether they're funny, sad, or inspirational, they are always memorable. Let's look at some examples we all know and love. The story of Pinocchio teaches us to tell the truth, that choices have consequences, and that it’s never too late to do the right thing. "Little Red Riding Hood" teaches us to be careful of strangers, to obey our parents, and that appearances can be deceiving. "Beauty and the Beast" helps us understand that love triumphs over hate, and that we should fight for what we believe in.

Think of these other stories and what things we can learn from them: "The Boy Who Cried Wolf", "The Ant and the Grasshopper", and "The Tortoise and the Hare". So many important life lessons are very effectively taught using these stories.

The power of story-based instruction lies in the ability of stories to not only provide a safe place from which to observe a character making mistakes and solving problems, but also in the ability to increase engagement and attention span. From the safety of their position, a reader or listener can discover answers to many of the same questions he or she has about the topic, explore various approaches to solving the problems, and learn important concepts by sharing in the protagonist's experiences in the story.

So, why don't we as educators use stories more often? One reason may be the dearth of books written to teach such subjects, especially math and language arts. I know when I was a classroom teacher, I could easily find books in the library about science and social studies topics, but I couldn't find much of anything about math or language arts concepts. Now, as an author and Instructional Designer, it is my passion to write the books that I wish I had had when I was teaching my own children and students.

That's what Start With a Story is all about! Whether it's counting money, telling time, capitalizing proper nouns, or forming letters correctly and neatly, students and teachers LOVE using my books! The extra cool thing about my books is that I include practice pages and activities that purchasers are welcome to copy and use with their kiddos! So, if you're a primary grade teacher or homeschooling parent, please take a stroll through my own "library" in the Books and Resources section! You may find just what you're looking for, and if there's something you have in mind, please contact me with your idea! I'm always looking for more topics to write about! Best wishes in your educational endeavors!