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April Armstrong - Storyteller
Serving Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, Long Island, Staten, Westchester and Beyond
WORKSHOPS & RESIDENCIES
Workshops are a great way to give your group a hands-on experience at being a storyteller. April uses her 20 years of teaching skills along with her experience as a storyteller to explore the art of storytelling with your students. During school hours or after school, students will work with elements of character voices, story sequence, narrator, gesture, creative movement and music, among others, which help to enliven stories and engage students. Some elements we will explore: What makes a good story? What makes a good storyteller? Story Twists – A case for improvisation; Inspiration - Use of picture books, story books, fables and myths.
Storytelling Workshops help young storytellers feel more confident when they stand up in front of an audience. Storytelling workshops can enhance school curriculum as they connect to history and culture. Perhaps your group needs a kick start at creative thinking. Choose from one of the workshops categories below or have April tailor a workshop to suit the specific needs of your k-12, adult or senior group.
Residencies can be 3 visits or up to 20 visits for grades k-12.
A planning session with teachers or groups leaders at your site will be scheduled prior to the start of the residency.
Workshop curriculum is planned out with a goal in mind for the duration of the residency.
A storytelling performance can culminate the workshop experience.
Workshops can be 45, 60 or 90 minutes.
Taking it for a Spin; How to Tell a Tale
How do storytellers turn stories into their own? This storytelling workshop teaches students how to bring a story to life by giving it their own personal touch. Using voice, character, narrator, eye-contact, audience awareness, gesture and movement, students explore and recreate stories from folktales and other traditional tales. Students explore how their decisions about time, place, and setting can affect their telling and the audience’s understand of the story. Confidence in front of an audience is one of the main goals of this residency. Suitable for grades 7-12, Curriculum Link: Language Arts
Aesop Fables and African folk tales
Students work with fables and folktales as they learn the basis of good storytelling. In tandem with April as lead storyteller, students help to create the story through movement, gesture, character and dialogue. They develop their skills of articulation, posture, facial expression and timing. Suitable for grades K-12, Curriculum Link: Social Studies, Language Arts
It’s Greek to Me: Stories from Greek & Roman Mythology
Students work with myths from ancient Greek and Roman cultures. Students explore how to use their voice as character and narrator; along with body movements and gestures, as they stories of Narcissus, Icarus, King Midas, Suitable for grades 5-12, Curriculum Link: Social Studies, Language Arts
We Shall Overcome: Exploration of the Civil Rights Movement through Story and Song
This in-school residency explores the stories of individuals who were there during our country’s Civil Rights Movement. Students make connections to real people as they step into their shoes through documented interviews, biographies and news headlines. These stories can be turned into a dramatic presentation for an invited audience. Suitable for grades 4-8, Curriculum Link: Social Studies, Language Arts
Spinning Yarns: Stories from Tall Tales
Tall tales can be so much fun! These exaggerated and outlandish stories tickle our funny bones and stretch our imagination. Some Tall Tales are of bigger than life heroes. Whether they are swapped over a camp fire or passing the time at work, Tall Tales are an American tradition that can be traced back to colonial times. Why not have a lying contest at your school! Suitable for grades 4-12, Curriculum Link: Social Studies, Language Arts
Pourquoi Tales
Ever wonder why the sky is blue? Or how did leopards come to have spots? Pourquoi Tales give us an entertaining and creative way of explaining our world. Pourquoi is the French word for why? Students create their own pourquoi tales after reading and listening to samples from a variety of cultures. Suitable for grades 2-8, Curriculum Link: Language Arts
“I can see a definite difference in my children’s comfort in performing and taking risks in self-expression. The children were extremely interested in what she did.”
“All the sessions were great springboards for follow up in the curriculum areas - writing, science, art, etc. ”