National Storytelling Week, created by the Society for Storytelling in 2000, celebrates the power of stories. They encourage everybody to tell, share and listen to stories, and the theme for 2026 is “Speaking Story into the Darkness”.
Catherine Jewkes, Educationalist and TTS’ Head of Curriculum and Product Content, shares her views on storytelling and gives ideas that you can use in the classroom this year.
Why is storytelling important?
As a former teacher, I was very aware of the need to allow children time to tell stories – real life or otherwise – and always tried to keep in mind that some find it much easier than others, but that even if they need persuading, everyone has something valuable to communicate. Because time is at such a premium in the busy curriculum (and I fear because aural skills do not easily translate into tangible evidence) we feel under pressure to get children writing and recording their thoughts rather than allowing enough time for them to talk. Even as parents, how often do we give our children the time or opportunities to do this?
The ability to communicate and to tell a story is an incredibly important life skill. Being able to talk fluently and with good vocabulary can make such a difference to children’s futures. Much of our usual daily oral communication is in single words, short phrases, or sentences, so many of us find speaking it a more prolonged way quite challenging. Telling stories is a great way to practise, improving communication skills and confidence.
Ideas to Encourage Storytelling
There are many ways to support language and communication skills on National Storytelling Week – and all-year round! Here are a few ideas for ways to encourage storytelling:
Tell stories together
Rather than reading a story, take turns to tell them. Let children hold a book they are familiar with and encourage them to use the pictures rather than the words as prompts. Children often do this as part of learning to read, but not as often once they can read the words. The fact that they are relating the story to the book will encourage them to use language that is different from everyday speech and they will add their own interpretations to the story.
Make a story chain
This can be done anywhere – a car journey for example, or out on a walk. One person begins a story with a sentence, the next person adds another sentence and so it goes on. Children often love it when they and people they know are included in the plot and it is very personalised! Here are some story starter ideas to get the ball rolling:
- “It was in the winter of 2014 when I first found out I could fly…”
- “To his complete surprise, Dylan woke up on a sandy beach with the sun beating down – this was not where he went to sleep…”
- “Once, deep, deep under the sea, lived a girl called…”
- You might even try a one-word-each story chain. How far can you get?
Create a storytelling chair
Allocate a chair to be your ‘storytelling chair’ and decorate it to look a bit special, perhaps by covering it with some sort of material and adding cushions. Anyone who sits in it becomes the storyteller with powers to engage their listeners.
You could use very well-known stories and tell them together. Many of us feel more confident telling stories when they know them inside out and know exactly what comes next. Fairytales are great for this because there is often lots of repetition, providing a hook for children. The Let’s Boost Language through Stories Kit is a great resource for encouraging innovative storytelling and an aide to encourage vocabulary and language development.
Use the Talk for Writing framework
Educationalist and author, Pie Corbett, has been very influential in encouraging group storytelling. His Talk for Writing framework encourages children to write their own version of a story by imitating the language required. You could tell your chosen story together in a visual format and use words and props to move the story along. Creating a map of the story – using pictures and arrows – could be another great way to act as a storytelling prompt.
Use puppets
Imagine that a different character is telling the story. Children often feel more confident telling a story using a puppet and you could use a cuddly toy or perhaps a sock with a couple of eyes glued on. Set up a makeshift puppet theatre, using a cardboard box or whatever you can think of. Children love performing stories in this way and find security in storytelling with a character.
Tell stories with items around the home
To encourage storytelling in a fun way, choose three random items from around the home. The storyteller must tell a short story (consider setting a time limit) incorporating the three objects. Can they mention them all in a way that makes sense? This is a real tester of quick thinking and creativity.
Enjoy National Storytelling Week
Everyone has a story to tell and the ability to tell a great story is a wonderful skill to have. Let’s tell our children about storytelling week and take part however we can.
