The debut of our first story box took place last weekend here at the National Museum of Scotland during a storytelling event for National Family Week. The theme for this story box is Animals. It was created by a Family Learning Group in Leith along with help from Heather Yule, a professional storyteller.
The group really enjoyed the traditional Scottish tales, especially when it was time to make all the various animal noises to go along with the stories! The children were also given a chance to tell their own stories about animals, some were very creative and made up right there on the spot. The books that were chosen for this animal themed story box were The Tortoise and the Hare and Aesop’s Funky Fables.
Thanks to a loan from the Scottish Storytelling Centre, we were able to bring along a sample story box. The soft toys and finger puppets were a big hit with the children and they enjoyed the feeling of discovery while digging through the box for the animals in each story while Heather was telling it. The group also had some great input for what else they would like in their story box, everything from riddles to masks to fluffy slippers with animals on them were suggested.
The Animal Tales storytelling session took place in the Treasured: Wonderful Things, Amazing Stories exhibition, with four performances throughout the weekend. Heather read the selected books while using the items in the story box to enhance each tale. The storytelling sessions were accompanied by mask making, plate decorating and fossil making, as well as a dive though the treasured box. Visitors used the masks in the Treasured exhibition and the masks from the story box as inspiration for some beautiful designs.
