WRITING POURQUOI STORIES

by Alexis York Lumbard

When I stumbled upon the fable Why Trees Lose Their Leaves in an old collection of Native American stories, I hadn’t yet developed an appreciation for the pourquoi form.  As many of you know, a pourquoi tale is a specific kind of fable, one that explains “why” or “how” something in the natural world came to be.

According to the old storytellers, the reason deciduous trees lose their leaves each winter is that long ago a poor sparrow injured his wing and couldn’t migrate with his family as winter approached.  Seeking shelter from the cold, sparrow hobbled from tree to tree begging for help.  Only Pine, who has the least to offer, shows compassion.  For this reason Pine alone remains green against the snow, evergreen evermore.  The bareness of trees, according to this pourquoi fable, reminds us how terribly empty selfishness can be.  Thanks to this pourquoi story, I now view the winter landscape in a fresh and thoughtful light.

Seeing with an eye of wonder is what children do best. Why does a chameleon change color? Why is the sky blue? Why do zebras have strips?  Ask a child such questions and you will see their bright eyes widen with possibility.  Many will whip up hilarious answers. The more fun something is, the more inclined children are to do it. This exercise will show them how fun creative writing can be. 

 Creative Writing with Pourquoi Stories—Five Easy Steps

1)    Define the Genre-Pourquoi stories are traditional stories that explain “how” or “why” something in nature came to be.

2)    Read Several Examples—There are many traditional African and Native American pourquoi stories.  Ashley Bryan has several, so too does Joseph Bruchac. 

3)    Review the Three-Act Structure—Pourquoi tales generally share a few common characteristics.  Firstly, they begin “a long time ago.” Secondly, someone misbehaves.  This someone is often an animal and their bad behavior causes problems for everyone.  Thirdly, a higher being or magic force steps in to solve the problem, punishing the naughty animal by changing forever their outer appearance.

4)    Animal Selection-Ask the children to chose an animal to write about. They may choose any animal that arouses their curiosity. 

5)    Pen Your Own Pourquoi--Ask your kids to use all the creative powers they can muster to come up with an imaginative explanation for why their animal looks they way it does.  Make sure they follow the 3 Act Structure.  Perhaps the will enjoy acting out or illustrating their new fables.  If there is time, they might enjoy comparing their explanation with a scientific one.

I hope this exercise gives everyone a good laugh!

 

Alexis York Lumbard grew up in Northern Virginia where she eventually received a B.A. in Religious Studies from George Washington University.  She currently lives in Natick, Massachusetts with her husband, three daughters, two hairless cats and a book-eating bunny rabbit.  She has five picture books with Wisdom Tales Press including, The Conference of the Birds, Angels, Everyone Prays: Celebrating Faith Around the World, Pine and the Winter Sparrow, and the upcoming, When the Animals Saved Earth.  For more about her work please see www.alexisyorklumbard.com

Writing with Wordless Picture Books

by Joan Waites

Having just received my copy of (three time Caldecott winner) David Wiesner's  new book, Mr. Wuffles, I started to think of how I could incorporate wordless picture books into my teaching and school visits. Students of all ages sometimes struggle to come  up with ideas for a story, even if prompts and suggestions are given. A wordless picture book is one way to visually inspire a student to come up with a story based on the illustrations in the book. No two students will interpret the pictures and story in the exact same way.

Using  a wordless picture book as a prompt, have your students write (or tell) about what they see happening in the pictures. Who are the main characters? Where is the story taking place? What challenges do the characters face and how are they eventually overcome? For older students, a vintage photograph, a travel shot, or picture from a garden magazine could be used in the same way to help stimulate story ideas.

Using an already written story (a familiar tale or a student created work) as a prompt, have students draw the story in pictures only. Challenge students to incorporate as many details of the story as they can--not only the physical traits of the characters and the setting, but the mood, emotion, and the interaction between characters based on what is happening. Have students share their wordless picture books with the class and ask other students tell the story as they see it.  How closely does it match the author's vision? Even for older students, this can be a useful exercise to help develop a story before writing it down.

There are many wordless picture books to choose from, but some of my favorites are:

Flotsam,  by David Wiesner

Tuesday, by David Wiesner

The Lion and the Mouse, by Jerry Pinkney

Unspoken: A Story from the Underground Railroad, by Henry Cole

www.joanwaites.com

STORYTELLING IN 3-D

by Joan Waites

This week I will complete a five week artist-in-residence program at an area school. The program has involved working with four fourth grade classes on a large wooden display case with objects inside created from recycled materials. Each class was assigned a different season, with the goal of constructing not just a typical seasonal display, but one that is reflective of their experiences in school during their assigned season. These display boxes will be installed in a new school being constructed over the next two years.

Before the first day, I wasn’t exactly sure how I would be able to work with 25-28 children at one time. Each would have to have something to work on, and the project would need to be completed in about a total of five hours time.

I decided to present the project as a “story” each class would tell, using three dimensional objects. When someone looked at the box years from now, what would they learn about this particular class and what memories they created during spring, summer, winter and fall.

We started the first day with a planning session. Each student was given a folder to write down ideas, make a list of materials to bring in, and paper to do a rough sketch or two of what they thought the display should look like. Next, each student had a chance to present their ideas to the class. About two or three similar themes seemed to emerge with each class such as the Halloween parade, the winter music concert, the last day of school, or the spring carnival. After a vote was taken on what theme the class wanted to work with, we proceeded to break up into five groups of about five children each.

I assigned each group a different portion of the display to work on. We had the “background painting group,” “the nature group,” “the structure group,” “the people group,” and “the hanging elements group.” The children were then responsible for dividing up tasks. I met with each group each week until all the separate parts were completed and the display assembled.

This same project could be applied to any number of 3-D storytelling assignments. An original story, a favorite picture book, an event in history or even a poem could be illustrated using found objects and a little paint. Displays could be worked on individually using shoe boxes, or on a larger scale as a group with a larger display case. After the projects are completed, have individual students or groups observe their classmates work and write about the “story” depicted in the display.

It will be hard to say goodbye to these wonderful fourth graders as we complete our work this week, but nice to know their stories will be shared and enjoyed by many in the coming years.

www.joanwaites.com

CREATE A WORLD

by Mary Amato

Fiction writers have the fun of creating an entire world. Teachers and parents can encourage kids to use cheap materials like shoeboxes and peeps to invent a 3D scene. As they are constructing the scene, ask them to be thinking of a storyline for the character (s) in the scene. 

Make a storybook to accompany the scene or simply allow for verbal storytelling. When I was a child, I told many stories as I played with my dollhouse. Creating a unique scene can facilitate even more interesting stories.

http://www.maryamato.com/