"First
you listen, then you talk."
Portuguese student
McMurrich P.S.
A TELLING BEE? An apple bee is when countryfolk help each other harvest apples. A quilting bee is when neighbours bring patches of cloth and get together to stitch a quilt. But a telling bee is when all the people in a school — students, teachers, administrators, caretakers — gather to celebrate their stories.
The Telling Bee is a storytelling and book creation program developed by Dan Yashinsky. It is intended for use in single classes/grades or as a school-wide project. The Telling Bee was first run as a pilot project in l993/94 at McMurrich P.S., Toronto Board of Education, with the support of The George Lunan Foundation.
In a Telling Bee, students and staff collect stories from people they know — mainly family members, but also friends, neighbours, camp counsellors, anybody who's passed on a tale about a memorable experience. These word-of-mouth stories are brought to class and, with permission from the original tellers, re-told by the students, teachers, principal, caretakers. They write and edit their stories and publish them in a book. This book is often sold at a book launch or festival, where students honour the people who told them their tales.
Ontario curricula emphasize the need for children to master oral language skills as well as reading and writing. In a multicultural society educators are seeking innovate ways to teach children respect for and awareness of each other's traditions. The Telling Bee addresses both of these curricular needs by focusing on oral storytelling.
The Telling Bee:
- trains children's listening, memory, speaking, and writing skills;
- builds inter-generational bridges as students seek out stories from people they are close to;
- helps children gain a new knowledge of other cultures and backgrounds;
- brings the whole community into the school in a celebration of stories that express values of courage, love, adventure, humour, neighbourliness.
Telling Bees don't sting!
Here are several affordable ways we can help you run a Telling Bee in your school. You can download for free The Telling Bee Guide (includes Teacher's Guide; Planning Committee Guide; Letter to Parents; Teller's Story Sheet; and Schedule). This is a free resource provided by The Tellery. You are welcome to use it to animate your own Telling Bee. (Please acknowledge The Tellery as the source and copyright holder for these materials.) If you want to bring in Dan Yashinsky or other Telling Bee leaders, please contact The Tellery to negotiate price, schedule, and scale of project. A free lunch-hour teachers workshop is included when you invite a storyteller in to launch or lead a Telling Bee. For references from schools that have conducted Telling Bees, please contact The Tellery.
To Bee or not...
J. Kostoff, Principal of St. John of the Cross School: "You have encouraged our children to become keepers and tellers of their own stories."
Merle Gould, Drama teacher, Applewood Heights Secondary School: "Students instinctively trust Dan and share personal and cultural stories that liberate them and enrich us all. Students who have worked with Dan never forget his stories or his generosity."
Imran Bhatti, grade ten student: "It was great telling stories and listening to them because now all these stories will remain with us through our journey of life. Stories are not just a means of passing time. They are a representation of life. They can help us see the past, present, and maybe future."
To book a Bee, contact:
The Tellery
19 Kenwood Ave.
Toronto, Ont. M6C 2R8
phone: (416) 654-1542
fax: (416) 651-2910Or write to bookings@tellery.com.
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