A storytelling training workshop for scientists, environmental educators, interpreters, resource managers, and parents.
A naturalist’s life experience holds a wealth of story material. Personal experience or anecdote is the most accessible story form for the beginner and useful in many situations.
Possible workshop formats:
- Lecture / demonstration
- Half-day workshop
- Full-day workshop
- Follow-up workshop
- Two-, three-, four-day contiguous workshop
Note: Portions of the four day workshop can be worked into the context of a shorter workshop–designed according to particular requests of an organization
Day 1 format
In day 1 of the workshop, you will refine a personal anecdote for use in an interpretive program, while you develop an understanding of the essential elements for developing any compelling story and a story well told. These elements include:
- Transforming information into image
- Developing a sense for the “hook phrase” and ending phrase
- Development of sensory experience
- Building denouement and the element of mystery
- Using metaphoric language
- Using repetition
- Using voice, the image-making power of sounds, sound effects, and dialogue
Other possible inclusions:
- Introduction to other story forms and their potential interpretive uses
- Scientific writing samples that demonstrate ‘a story way of giving information’
- Introduction to voice work.
Exploration of story forms and reinforcement of essential story elements will deepen on subsequent days.
Bring to the workshop a personally moving experience you’ve had in or with Nature, History or Culture. Your story will be put through a series of activities that will shape and transform it — making it ready for public telling. This journey will deepen your understanding of what is needed to form any compelling story, be it mythic, historic or folkloric.
Day 2 format
Day 2 reinforces lessons from first day basics. Participants learn to tell a traditional story as a myth, folk tale, fable, parable, legend, or fairy tale.
Engaging with the telling of a traditional story deepens the participant’s understanding of the story crafting art as it varies in different cultural styles and has been refined over time.
- Further develop your voice and movement work from the first day, as it applies to character voice and narrative word choices
- Learn practice techniques for memorizing stories
- Study various texts of a single story to better understand the uses of language, dialogue and cultural/historic influences on a story.
Bring a traditional story of choice to learn or choose from a selection of tales that will be available.
Day 3 and 4 format
In days 3 and 4, you use what you learned from the previous two days to transform scientific information into a story form or a ‘story way of giving information.’
- Study a variety of story structures and follow a process to develop a story structure for your scientific information.
- Study and discuss model texts and recordings that illustrate how fact can be integrated with story. Movement, music, drawing, and imaginative activities enhance and refine the story.
Bring to the workshop a small body of specific scientific and/or historic information on a particular subject such as the geology of a specific area, a particular plant, animal or bio-region. This is the content you already worked with on days 1 and 2.