Friends:

My second full day in the Philippines began with a teacher workshop at the Development Academy of the Philippines sponsored by Scholastic Book Fairs, Philippines Division. There were over 100 enthusiastic attendees, teachers from all over Metro Manila.

I opened with a lively song, my adaption of “How Funky is Your Chicken, How Loose Is Your Goose?” I asked the teachers to give me some names of animals and I was given “Hippo” and “Rhino.” That was a challenge but I came up with “How wobbly is your hippo? (with hips wobbling from side to side)” and “How pointy is your rhino?” (with a finger symbolizing the rhino’s horn).

The all-day (6 hr.) workshop called “Explore-A-Story-Um” consisted of three workshops: “Stories on Board: Creating Board Games from Favorite Tales,” “Tangram Tales: Story Theater Using the Ancient Chinese Puzzle,” and “Tell Along Tales: Playing with Participation.”

We began with “Stories on Board: Creating Board Games from Favorite Tales.” I told the story of “The Little Red Hen Makes a Pizza,” my modernized version of “The Little Red Hen,” and then, as a group, we created a board game on a white board. First, the attendees and I created a story map based on the characters, the characters’ traits, the motivation of the characters, the perils, the aids, and the triumphs of the story. The board game is based on the characters, the perils, and the triumphs of the story paired with perils and triumphs of a board game. For instance, using the story “Cinderella,” a peril on the game board could look like this: “You lost a glass slipper. Move back 6 spaces.” Participants were also given various kinds of board game patterns to use: the square, the winding path, the zig zag, and the spiral.

Next, the room was divided into groups of six, where they worked on creating their own board games. In addition to “The Little Red Hen Makes a Pizza,” they were also provided with three other stories to choose from: “The Tortoise and the Hare,” The Three Little Pigs,” and “The Three Billy Goats Gruff.” Here is a picture of a group working on their board game. This group is creating a board game based on “The Tortoise and the Hare.” They used the spiral path pattern, drawn inside the shape of a tortoise. Very clever!

After lunch, I livened the group up with my song/chant/fingerplay “Peanut Butter and Jelly Jam,” from my “Jump, Jiggle & Jam” CD. They loved it. We then moved into “game playing” mode. The groups moved and played another groups’ game. There was a lot of laughter, hooting, and hollering. This is a picture of me playing one of the groups’ games. Talk about fun!

Here is a picture of the “Stories on Board” games that were created by the many groups in the workshop. Phenomenal creativity!

Everyone got a prize because I just couldn’t pick out a favorite or “best” one. What I really loved seeing was the groups’ collaboration and cooperation in creating the board games. It’s a great way for students to work with stories and really learn the structure of stories. There is also the bonus of tons of fun.

After completing the “Stories on Board” portion of the workshop, we moved on to “Tangram Tales.” I told the story of “The Legend of the Tangram” and then shared a story, “Henny Penny,” using tangrams to illustrate. The participants were taught how to create a tangram without using a pre-designed pattern. Then the workshop attendees familiarized themselves with tangrams by working with tangram patterns.

Next, the room was divided in half and each group was assigned a story. The first group was given “Tiger’s Tale, Anansi’s Stories,” an African folk story, while the second group was assigned “It Could Always Be Worse,” a Jewish folktale. After parts were assigned (storytellers, tangram artists, and chorus), the groups then worked on their parts to create a whole story theater. The results were amazing. While the storytellers told the story, tangram artists assembled the illustrations.

The story chorus jazzed things up by singing, chanting, rapping, and dancing their parts.

At the end of the seminar, Scholastic presented me with a certificate of appreciation. I am pictured here with Meinard Cruz, the general manager of Scholastic Book Fairs. Meinard was a fantastic host, treating me like royalty. Working with Scholastic was fantastic! Maraming salamat po (thank you very much) to my Scholastic “Dream Team!” Mahal kita!

After my workshop, my day was not over! I met up with another friend, Dr. Luis Gatmaitan, a pediatrician and children’s book author from Manila. We ate at Conti’s, a delightful Bistro at “The Fort – Bonifacio,” a new high end mall area in metro Manila. The food was delish and the cake (Mango Bravo) was enough to cause a “foodgasm.” Ha ha ha! Here is picture of “Dr. Author” and I, enjoying the night.

Luis has this ultra cool camera that has a “coupling” feature. Rather than explain it, I will show it to you. Here is a picture of Luis and I, and Luis and I, having fun at a local coffee shop. (Thanks, Luis, for introducing me to “coupling.” It gives a whole to new meaning to the word! Hehehe

Day 2 was a fun-filled day of business and pleasure. Love to all my new friends. Teachers, you can do it! Add storytelling to your curriculum and let me know how it goes! Happy Tales to You!

Warmly, Dianne