Remembering that story matters

I stole an hour this morning; stumbled out of bed early, found a wonderfully dark cup of coffee and a good book the solitude of my backyard deck.

Let me admit formally- I'm a morning person. There is often nothing better for this soul than an early hour to read and think alone (unless you count the birds and the squirrels and my dear old cat who still believes he's going catch of the former)out in the warming morning's waking air.

This morning, cozied under one of my wife's hand sewn quilts, I began with a book I have been reading strictly for pleasure. It's something I picked up for Spring Break, but that I hadn't quite finished. I got a whole chapter in without interruption- glorious. With a little extra time I opened an e-book I had just downloaded on my phone- something more "professional" or so I thought and began to scroll. This was supposed to me teach writing better, a topic I'm keenly interested in, but not necessarily "joyful" about. To my surprise the author caught my attention in a way I was completely unprepared for. She started by telling a story. From get go, I was completely sucked in.

The rest of the book worked between story and reminder. It wasn't long, but the tale had such meaning that I couldn't help but be compelled to think about my own journey with story as a teacher of middle school history. This "professional" book quickly became "fun" and meaningful and I think it's because that's what great stories do.

Telling stories isn't something we talk much about professionally anymore in Social Studies. We talk about making kids better readers and writers, but we don't spend much time on "story"... or at least it doesn't feel like we are supposed to. I can't remember a recent time when this was part of the professional development we get from time to time. Outside of conversations with a good friend and professional storyteller, Brian "Fox" Ellis and my co- teacher story just doesn't seem to manifest itself as a major skill we teach or practice.

Story is what brings history to life. Right? The best history teachers I've had, known and or currently know are great story tellers. It's fun to tell stories. It's part of who we are as humans and frankly has been going on in the oral tradition for a very long time.

Story is entertaining. We make connections from ourselves to all manner of tales. So why isn't it ever discussed? Why don't we make time for it much? If we want to help kids engage we have to tell great stories, I think. Rudyard Kipling, famed British writer once said, "If history were told in the form of story, it would never be forgotten". Yet,sadly I think some of it's importance has been forgotten under the weight of standards, mandates, and testing in a less- traditional looking Social Studies class.

So, I wasn't prepared for Ruth Ayers little reminder this morning, but it was well- timed. As we wind down an old school year and start to look ahead, I'm feeling affirmed in my desire to work with colleagues to continue making time for good stories. We have to be intentional about the way we weave them between the tests and standards. After reading my e-book, I'm even more convinced than ever that these stories will help my students find their own voice both orally and on papers as passionate writers.

While it isn't talked about much- there is no doubt story matters! It truly is the heart of my discipline. So let's hold onto it. Let's keep it alive in our hearts and our classrooms.