So maybe one reason we continue to tell each other stories is because we find them interesting to both tell and hear. Without stories, we would have virtually no forms of entertainment, which would be incredibly boring. Overtime, we have adapted the stories which have been told for generations and also continue to create our own in the form of books, films, television, and more. Traditionally, stories were especially told during the winter months when the shorter days left people with more free time, they were a way to distract from boredom, and were an integral part of community life. In addition to its educational benefits, storytelling is also a very common form of entertainment and over time it has been modified to suit the modern tastes of the twenty first century. Therefore, we can reason that being told stories at an early age can be of a great benefit to children in not only expanding their vocabulary and understanding of the English language, but in consequently helping with their future education and giving them confidence. In the U.K., the Department for Education finds that this gap is reflected in the divide between the students who are eligible for free school meals and those who aren’t, and the word gap is greater still by the time students take their GCSEs. The telling of stories is a crucial way for children to be exposed to more words and grammar, which as a result leaves them better equipped to read challenging texts as they grow older. By the age of three, there is a 30 million gap in the number of words heard and experienced between the most and least advantaged children. A study in 2003 by Hart and Risley found that in America, there is a clear gap in the number of words which children from disadvantaged families hear in comparison to those from better off families. As well as the stories themselves containing educational material, being told stories can help children to develop in a number of other ways. These are stories which illustrate and portray a moral through the narrative. This shows just how much Viking knowledge and history was contained within the stories which the Skalds learnt, and how crucial it was to the community that these stories were told to preserve it all.Īs I mentioned briefly in my last post, another common way in which stories have been used for centuries is to teach morals and manners to children, especially though the form of fables, parables, and allegories. Skalds were well respected within the Viking communities, and as well as entertaining, could have serious responsibilities such as acting as advisors and historians to the rest of their people, and teaching children. These stories would then be shared to the whole community at gatherings and events. For example, Viking communities relied on storytellers, known as Skalds, who were responsible for composing and remembering tales containing the history and knowledge of their people. This is because their format can help make them easily accessible and memorable. Stories were, and still are, an effective way of passing on the knowledge of history, culture, and morals. One of the main ways in which stories have traditionally been used is to educate. But why are stories such an integral part of our education, entertainment, and society? From the oral tradition all the way through to the films we have today, stories have been told across cultures for many reasons. “After nourishment, shelter and companionship, stories are the thing we need most in the world.”įor centuries humans have been telling stories to each other in many different ways.
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