Storytelling for Children ~ Keene, NH

Wow! What a time! I played music with John Porcino and got to hear Laura Simms' amazing keynote. The concert at 3PM included Motoko, John Porcino's 3rd grade student, ( who rocked the house with her rendition of "How to Change a Bad Habit") John Porcino his own self, KR Glickman and Tony Toledo all in one day. For those who took my workshop, you will find a pdf of materials here: http://web.mac.com/dubhhero. All best wishes to old and new friends.

STF workshop notes -- are ready, email me.

Yours truly, the STF '08, photographer


What a great group at the workshop today. Thanks for your patience, support and participation. I really appreciated how Andrea, Dave, Kevin and all added to the collective wisdom and to Jo and Lorna who created blogs while we sat there. Bravi ragazzi! Thanks to Ari for letting us use her name and info.Special thanks to Doria for being such a gracious and hard working host and Andrea for use of her snowball mic and all her support.Mad props to Vernon for the digital projector and Kevin and Vernon for bringing "power to the people". Check out resources and links in the sidebars at http://storypodnewengland.blogspot.com/


Link to your handouts follow.I have posted notes as pdf's for all who care to check it out or fear they may lose them in a tsunami of emails. Anyone may down load class notes at: http://web.mac.com/dubhhero or email me for a pdf.

doochild6@gmail.com

All the best,
Norah

improv

Robert is an impovising kinda guy. Here is a short sample of his work.

More on Freedom Stories from Tim Van E.

Tim sent an email full of good info:

"A man captures a bird, and it asks him to tell its friends and relatives what became of it. When he does so, they fall to the ground apparently lifeless. Heart-stricken, the man returns home and reports this to the bird. The bird immediately falls to the floor of the cage and lies still. The man sorrowfully takes the body outside to dispose of it, but as soon as he lays it down the bird spreads its wings and flies away. The version I remember hearing from Gioia Timpanelli ends with the bird saying "I knew I could get good advice from my friends and relatives!" I saw a speaker on PBS talking about Taoism who told this tale as a parable, with the bird telling the man that what his friends and relatives taught him was that to be free in life, you have to "die" first.

You can find my "First Takes" recording at www.storybee.org/10through12/10through12.html.

Angela Klingler looked through her collection when I later told her I was trying to track down this story, and found it as a fable attributed to Rumi, "The Indian Bird," in Tales of the Dervishes, Teaching Stories of the Sufi by Idries Shah, Penguin Books, 1967, ISBN 0-14-019358-8.

Also, I looked up "Freedom" in the Storytellers' Sourcebook, and the one entry is an Aesop's Fable: Wolf prefers liberty and hunger to dog's servitude and plenty." Various books are cited including Aesop's Fables pub. by Grosset & Dunlap, 1947 pp 22-24, Aesop's Fables retod by Anne Terry White, Random, 1964, pp 75-74, & the Fables of Aesop, Joseph Jacobs. Macmillan, 1950, p.55.

Good luck with your program!"

Tim

Freedom stories - help from LANES-listserv

Thanks all who sent information to LANES listserv! I wish we had a blog for our organization. A blog would be perfect for this kind of woolgathering and all would benefit.
*DEEP SIGH*
Here is what some people said [ If you'd rather not be referenced here, tell me and I will remove]Most people referenced David Holt's version of Freedom Bird which can be found here: http://www.davidholt.com/story/readytales/freedombird.html
Perhaps the Freedom Bird? I'm convinced that the story was one of those created in a society were people were not aloud to speak out and or speak out for freedom so they hid the message in the story --- i.e. you can kill one of us but hundreds more will rise up.
-- Johnny Porcino

You can look at the NSN American History story book - lots of not well known stories from US history- many are about freedom- also has workbook with exercises.
Of course there are books like Spinning Tales, Weaving Hope http://massmees.org/index.php?option=com_mtree&task=viewlink&link_id=1563&Itemid=512
and Peace Tales http://www.margaretreadmacdonald.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Books.BookDetail&Book_ID=11
that have freedom themed stories in them. There are Julius Lester's versions of Brer' Rabbit stories, which are always fun and Stanfield's book on High John the Conqueror. Also the People Could Fly book. Also, Stories of the Spirit, Stories of the Heart. Freedom can be a very broad subject!
-- Stu Mendelsohn

Another freedom story is ‘Fly Eagle, Fly’ from Africa. ‘The Cat Who Came Indoors’, another from Africa (also a great woman story and VERY funny – I bet you LOVE it). http://books.google.com/books?id=Lldvp3HS0A8C&pg=PA21&lpg=PA21&dq=the+cat+who+came+indoors&source=web&ots=K7ziq_6tIl&sig=vCqOuWv7Isp3P4u1SIn3VKcRTSU&hl=en#PPA21,M1
Another Moe/Asbjornsen story: ‘The White Cat in the Dovre Mountains’ freedom from Trolls – you can really have a lot of fun with this one. It is a laid back tale, as I tell it!
-- Simon Brooks

My freedom story ideas would include Exodus stories.
--Cindy Rivka

The People Could Fly http://www.virginiahamilton.com/pages/people.htm
was originally released in 1985 as the title story of a set of folktales collected by Virginia Hamilton, and illustrated in black and white by Leo and Diane Dillon. This time, the story appears in picture book format, once again illustrated by the Dillons, but this time in magnificent color.
--Laura Packer, Judith Black, Mike Lockett, Rona Leventhal, Katie Green and others I may have forgotten.

Thanks All!

A Dog, a Cat and a Rat

Dunno about the sponsoring group but the video is interesting, no? There is a story here, for sure. A friend sent me this:




"This is a video of one of the homeless in Santa Barbara and his pets. They work State Street every week for donations. The animals are pretty well fed and are mellow. They are a family. The man who owns them rigged a harness up for his cat so she wouldn't have to walk so much (like the dog and himself). At some juncture the rat came along, and as no one wanted to eat anyone else, the rat started riding with the cat and, often, on the cat! The dog, will stand all day and let you talk to him and admire him for a few chin scratches. The Mayor of Santa Barbara filmed this clip and sent it out as a Christmas card."

New Podcast and Other news

Well, I have been busy, working on taxes, trying to get my CDs back into "print" and working full time at a small private school. All I can say is "mad props and serious kudos" to real* classroom teachers. The amount of work, care and creativity that goes into this vocation( it surely isn't just a job!) is astounding.

So, with this dearth of free time I took a notion to make a podcast.
Why? I just do not know. My ADD gets worse as I get older.
Anyway podcast Vol. 2.#1 includes the legend of the King of Denmark. In it I read Carmen Deedy's beautiful telling of the story and tell some other true stories of bravery and creativity. See more about Carmen Deedy at: carmendeedy.com


I found out about David Shepherd and Travis Price while searching the internet for information about King Christian and other social issues. David and Travis are high school seniors at Central Kings Rural High School in Nova Scotia They did a simple thing. They stood up for a fellow student and acted with courage and creativity.


Give a listen and pass the link along at: http://storypodnewengland.libsyn.com/
SeatofHerPants Podcast Vol 2.1: Sticking your neck out.

To see what I am doing in school click on the link below:
http://inventorsnotebookatrium.blogspot.com/

* i.e. people who have been doing this for years. I am unfit to even sharpen their pencils