Does anyone tell stories to their children?

[FlamingoBingo]

By 'tell stories', I mean learn them and recite them, rather than read them from a book?

A friend of mine ran a workshop recently about storytelling as a tool to help children learn things (life things, not school things), which I couldn't go on, but the other evening, when my 9 year old was upset, I suddenly realised I remembered the whole of The Three Sillies story and told it to her (as we were talking about when you make yourself upset imagining horrible things that could happen). She loved it! My 7 year old was listening in and loved it too - both asked for another one...but I didn't remember any more.

It spurred me on, though, and I learnt The Apple Dumpling last night and told them that - I have plans to learn a new one every day to tell them each evening, and have been rather amazed at my memory. It's great fun to be telling them a story and actually seeing their reactions because I'm talking to them, not reading to them IYSWIM.

Does anyone else do this? Can we do some resource-sharing, and tip-sharing? I'd love, for example, some with a bit of humour in, as that really keeps them engaged, but also stories that show them something about how to live. And traditional tales from around the world appeal to me.

I do this but just stories I make up as I go along. I usually make the main character an animal and also usually put a child in the story with same name as dc. I did this for dd..she's 20 now and still fondly remembers them. Ds is 9and loves them . He asks for one when he has a sleepover , they love adding bits to the story as well.

Dh used to make up stories and tell them when we were waiting at bus stops and at other times when they needed occupying. A couple of times he wrote them down afterwards with illustrations.

I used to tell them old fairy tales. Dd still asks me sometimes when she is stressed and anxious but I'm afraid I've forgotten them.

I do this as I walk round the woods with DD and dog. She's 2.10 now. Mostly simple traditional tales like the Three little pigs, that she can join in with. She sometimes tells them to me too. I think it's a great idea.

Not sure I'm up to making up stories as I go along. I do like tales with a message in them - I know that traditionally that's why most stories were created, and sometimes the message is deeply hidden.

I've recently been reading Women who run with the Wolves, by Clarissa Pinkola Estes, which explains how traditional stories had messages in them for telling women how to be women - how to grow up, how to become wise etc. It's fascinating!

I make them up too, dc's love it, sometime if i want to read them a book at bedtime they say no no, a mouth story not a book story - meaning make something up and just tell it, but sometimes it is a bit tiring to have to think of a new story every time but they do love it though
If i think about it, i probably do remember stories i heard when i was little and could just tell them those.

Yes. Not only do I tell DS stories from books, but I make them up too. And he, bless him, made one up for me the other night! He's 4.6 - I was very pleased with his story (even if every animal family had a junior with DS's name! )

I have learnt some stories off by heart, only as a result of having to read them 1000s of times!

Yes, I tell them old fairytales as I like not having to read out of a book. Haven't been making them up, though - I don't have the energy for imagination after a day with three under 3!

I sometimes remember the ones dd always asks for and we recite them together in the car.

I'm not good at making them up, my other half is brilliant at it though.

I make up stories for my four year old. He loves them, even though I don't think they're particularly imaginative! I have fond memories of my dad making up stories for me so want to do it for my kids too.

I like the idea of traditional tales from around the world though. Shall post if I find any resources.

You could use a traditional story as a starting point then alter bits to make it your own, so maybe use 3 little pigs but change the pigs to another animal, change the wolf, change where they live etc???

I do it as a holiday thing. When we're on holiday, I make up stories about the places we've been and the things we've seen. There's always an adventure and DSs are always the heroes of the story. Mummy usually misses all the action because she's asleep or reading her book! They love it.

I knew all the traditional fairy stories from being the eldest of a big family and frequently given bedtime story duty by my parents when busy with other children, so have told them to my own. We have our own versions of most of them, with very specific locations. They used to get acted out during walks.

I make up stories or tell old ones I remember.
The DCs like it best when they get to dictate the parameters for the story. They get to say: Who is in the story (max. two characters); where it is set; pick an object that will be in the story. Then I make up a story round their choices. I find it easier than relying on my own tired imagination .

I do. Both make up and receit.
Ds loves a made up story. We used to have the adventures of "Nelly and Pongo"-two of his soft toys-every night for a while. They went to the beach and found shells, went to the zoo, played hide and seek during a wet day... not very exciting things but he loved it. Mad eup as I go along.

I also tell stories about things that happened to me/my relatives. I pick up dd2 and friend (age 8) from an activity and they usually get in the car asking for "one of your little stories". That's been ongoing over a year and I'm beginning to have to wrack my brains for new ones, but things like the first computer at school, are loved, and I've never met a child who hasn't laughed the story of my uncle and the toaster!

I also have based a couple of parties round a made up stories. These I make up in advance, and it works quite well for a small group of children. You start setting the scene, then maybe the story comes to a part where they have to cross some water, so you play stepping stones. When they get to the other side they find some "gem" stones which they pick up and put in the bag. Maybe later they have to sort "jewels" and you empty a packet of smarties and they have to put them in colour sequence. So each section of the story leads to a challenge either separately or together and they get a "reward" in their party bag for doing it.

I also receit poems and stories (anyone who can't do Hairy Maclary from memory after reading it could of times must be rare. I learnt it reading to my brother 30 years ago!) that I've learnt, particularly when they've very tired, wanting a story at bedtime but haven't the energy to want to look at pictures. Or in the car is another time when receiting comes in useful. I learn (particularly poetry) quite easily, so I do know a lot.

My dss absolutely adore me making up stories for them, particularly funny ones, they also love family histories and traditional fairy tales from this or other cultures (eg tales from the Arabian Nights are quite popular, if occasionally somewhat bloodthirsty!) told from memory. They even enjoy bible stories - it's irrelevant whether you believe in God or are a Christian, they still make cracking good stories. I do think telling stories in that way is a great way of communicating with and sharing things with your children, rather than having your nose buried in a book and missing some of their reactions.

Yes, me too. They're generally ones I've made up and my 4 yo often asks for a "made up story" that he can act out with his toys (trains, Spiderman, Finn McMissile etc). He loves it and I like the fact that I can lie down and storytell with my eyes shut!

I used to make up stories for my younger brother, he remembers them very vividly. I used to make them up as went along, often inventing personalities for his stuffed toys. There was one of a very cute rabbit, but because he was so cute he became big headed and one by one his friends dropped him, as he was only interested in himself. Then he left the stuffed animal town, and went to live in the big city, that didn't work out (long story ) and he returned to his friends, remorseful, and his friends all forgave him and welcomed him back in. He was changed bunny now, who always was ready to listen to his friends and help them. For some reason this used to be my brother's fave story, even if it made him very sad at the bit where he loses his friends... There was another story about a home made teddy who was not as pretty as all the other animals, and a strange little knitted bear (elderly aunt's present) who was weedy looking but had amazing strength and rescued others etc... let your imagination run wild!

Not sure the story is any good, but I think many children think a lot about friendship, and doing something "wrong" and not being forgiven is a big fear, and being able to make things o.k. again through heartfelt apology is a relief. My 7 years old thinks and worries a lot about these things.

Oh, and the other fun thing about making up your own stories is it seems to encourage the dcs to be more inventive, too, and see if they can make up stories like that!

All the time. We have to catch a bus and walk a couple of miles to do the school run every day so I make up all sorts of stories for dd. Her favourite ones I've written down (and illustrated ). Some have morals, some are bizarre, some are based on her and her friends, some are adaptations of fairytales, some are stories from the pov of other characters (so the 3 little pigs told from the wolf's pov or view), some are through the eyes of her pet cats etc etc.

DD's all time favourite is the tale of the Honky Tonk Elves. It was a corker. She likes it when a favourite character pops up (like Dig the Dog who has been in countless tales) and she is amused when somebody she recognises from rl appears in the story or if you weave in several characters from several stories all at once.

TBH it amuses me as much as her.

My father used to make up his own-they are the ones I remember decades later.

As a teacher you are told the power of story telling over reading-and it works.

You are all very clever. I don't know if I have the imagination for it. But I will tell DD the Three Sillies story - cheers!

Doesn't every one?

"learn and recite" nope but make up stories of course.

The tale of the hot air balloon and the tubby custard went on for years it seemed!

HipHopOpotomums - have a go at it. The lovely thing about testing out your skills on your children is that they have very low standards! It's actually really good fun to launch into a story without the faintest idea at the start of where it is actually going to take you and watch their reactions as you go along. And even if it has a silly ending, because you couldn't work out how to end the d*mn thing, it doesn't matter, because they still think it was great.