storytelling at Cwmbran Library

Stories

Christine has a large repertoire of stories suitable for all ages and abilities. She frequently arrives at workshops with a basket of objects frequently found in stories, such as a ring, a stone, a feather, a map and suchlike,  to prompt memory, ideas and imagination.

Pre-school

In pre-school, kindergarten and nursery groups  she uses repetition and call and response to help young people to learn listening skills, to visualise, imagine and be part of a story. Using and repeating new words in context to increase vocabulary, Some of the stories she tells to these young people are:

Dragonhatch © Christine Willison

Stone Soup

Jack the Giant Killer

The Old Woman and the Magpie

Sevens and Under

In her sessions with early readers and writers Christines likes to inspire ideas for stories, using examples from her repertoire and additionally sparking off discussions about favourite books and writers. The legacy left with people of this age range is usually a head full of ideas, a ‘kit’ to help with story creation and an array of artwork. Some of the stories she tells to these young people are:

The legend of the Afanc

The Giant Turnip

The Rabbit and The Wolf

Long Legs, Dazzle Eyes and Stout 

The Frog who stole the Water

Eight to Twelve year Olds

Christine works with this range of pupils, to engender a love of story, to empower creative storymaking either written or oral, to engage even the most hesitant child in the creation of stories. To prepare stories for presentation orally or in the written form, by looking at style and content, by using the examples demonstrated by children’s own favourite writers and storytellers.

She can help to improve performance skills and  voice projection and can introduce techniques to combat performance nerves. Some of the stories she tells to these young people are:

Mouse Woman

The Boggart

Wild Geese

The Singing Ringing Tree (also available as a set piece performance with music)

The Shepherd of Allt y Goed

Twelve and Over

With this older group of children, Christine presents a range of stories, looks at how a story is structured, what a good story needs, where to get ideas, how to turn the germ of an idea into a gripping story of which the writer or teller can be proud. Some of the stories she tells to this age group include:

Three Golden Hairs of the Old Man of the Sun

Gwion

The Twelve Witches

The Green Man (Also available as a set piece with musical accompaniment)

Peregrine and the Mermaid

Adults and older children

Christine has told many stories and run many workshops for adults and older children. In these sessions she encourages people to seek themes from their own family, town or village or a favourite place. She can set people going on the creative trail with a story starter, or an object or artefact which inspires. She has developed, plays for radio, gathered local stories and anecdotes and can inspire people with her own large repertoire of contemporary and traditional stories. Some of the stories she performs to such a group are:

The Story Spirits

The Juniper Tree

The Story of Culhwch and Olwen

Blue Beard

Mallt of the Mist.