Did you ever think of using stories to teach your child her/his first words? Or wondered how to make your extremely active two year old sit in one place for any amount of time? Sonam Kejriwal is a storyteller who is doing just this. Stories are a source of fun as well as learning, for kids and adults of all ages. But when you start telling toddlers, who have barely started speaking, stories with dramatization and sounds, you command their full attention, and in the process create story lovers for life. Sonam works with kids between 2 to 6 years of age, making them fall in love with stories. We spoke to her about her love for kids and teaching. Here are some excerpts.
How do you define Sonam – the storyteller?
I began my journey as a teacher eight years ago. I love teaching. Being around children gives me immense joy and satisfaction. I believe, as an educator I have lots to offer and a teacher’s job is to mold these young adults with great values to enable them to grow into responsible citizens of tomorrow. Storytelling a great tool to teach.
Anyone who interacts with children has a bit of experience with storytelling. Working with children as an educator I realized that storytelling is not just reading aloud from a book. Dramatizing, narrating and enacting stories for the young ones while watching their priceless reactions and emotions was addictive. And that is what influenced me to take up storytelling with more seriousness.
What were the challenges you faced as a storyteller?
When I moved to Bangalore in March 2015, I wanted to do something new and different. I had heard about Little Readers Nook and found it very interesting but did not get the chance to pursue it. After the move, I had time on my hand. So I took up the training and started out with a demo in my complex. Moms wanted their children to attend storytelling sessions but they were unsure why. It’s not just a class. Parents need to realize the bigger picture here, which is the benefits of storytelling. I started discussing this with moms, conducting classes with just two children. Slowly more and more people understood that fun and learning could be combined so well. The existing ones saw the advantages and today I run a full batch.
What kind of audiences do you like working with?
I work with children between the age group of 2 to 6 years. This age group is known to have an absorbent mind. They are bubbly, chirpy and full of life. They have their own perspectives on situations and their solutions are very unique and not influenced by prejudices. The fact that they are full of surprises makes them my favorite!
Have the stories in your life influenced your style of storytelling and the way you use stories?
My journey as an educator and someone who loves being with children has influenced my style of storytelling. I use stories to teach and instill important values among children. Any lesson with a story attached, even from personal experiences, goes well with a child’s understanding.
What is it that you love about your profession?
The best part about storytelling is when the children are so completely engrossed in the story, and when you pause they shout out, “What happened next?”. These small moments keep me motivated.
Stories in which I engage the children to repeat certain phrases or catch lines in the story are my favorite. Storytelling is all about teamwork. Involve the kids in everything you say and then you know that the kids are enjoying every bit of the session.
Do you think storytelling can be adopted as a full-time profession?
Storytelling is an age old profession. It has always been a profession. As children we all loved to listen to stories. Stories made sense even when applied to our own life experiences. With increasing awareness, and more parents and educators taking up storytelling as a profession, there is more scope to provide stories for children.
Your advice to parents and teachers on why and how they should keep stories alive.
To parents and teachers I would say, keep the stories alive. Read, read and read to the children and let them fall in love with books.
Stories can be kept alive by attaching emotions to them. This is done with the help of enacting, dramatization, voice modulation and use of props. This way children enjoy the story, understand the lessons and also remember them for a long time.
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Sonam Kejriwal is a storyteller with Little Readers’ Nook. Read more about Little Readers’ Nook here.
Don’t Miss: We love storytellers as much as we love storytelling. On Tell-a-Tale, we’ve featured a lot of talented storytellers, in the past.
Are you a Storyteller? If you’re a storyteller who is actively pursuing storytelling and would like to be featured in this column, drop us a mail at contact AT tell-a-tale.com or reach out to us via Facebook.
