Reading stories with Squirrels

Preparation is the key to a successful story session, particularly if you’re feeling a little out of your comfort zone. Control the things you can control and the job’s half done: 

• Think about the location. Be aware of distractions such as books or toys within easy reach. It can be a good idea to designate a special ‘story’ rug or mat for the group to sit on or sit in a circle.
• Look for places in the story where you can use voices or noises and dramatic pauses. Feel free to use gestures and actions to enhance the story. Vary your vocal style, too - if the story calls for a silly voice, do a silly voice; if it needs you to act frightened, act frightened.
• Practise reading your chosen stories out loud.
• Make the story interactive. Where can the young people get involved, can they make a funny or scary voice, can they think of different types of trees or the noise an instrument might make. Look for opportunities to engage the young people in the story and share the experience with them.
• Have one adult reading the story at a time. This can be a different person at each meeting but should be the same person for the whole story. More than one person reading the story will make it difficult to follow. All other adults and young leaders can support the young people to interact with the story and quieten them down when the reader needs to move on.
• Ask questions after the story, what happened? What did they enjoy about the story? How would they feel if they were the main character? Sharing these experiences will embed their understanding and support their ability to critically analyse similar situations in the future. 

However nervous you’re feeling inside, try to look happy and confident. You’ve got a story to share and it’s going to be great! Many young people love stories and being read to is a great experience so enjoy it and they will too. 

• Read clearly and slowly. If you’re nervous you’ll tend to speed up, often without realising. 
• Make eye contact. Putting your head down and just ploughing through it will kill the story and the experience for the audience. 
• Use the recurring words and catchphrases in the stories to get the young people involved. There are three things young people love most when having a story read to them: repetition, repetition and repetition. 
• Encourage the young people to respond to the words and pictures and don’t be afraid to go off script. For example, ‘Who’s afraid of sharks?’ ‘And what do you think happened next?’ Get them to roar like a lion or hiss like a snake. A story meeting is interactive, so interact. If the group gets overexcited, simply put the book aside until they quieten down. 
• If you’re nervous about reading in front of other adults, don’t be! They are there to help make the meeting a success, so make sure you create opportunities for them to get involved in the storytelling too. Getting them to sit with the young people during the story is a good way to get them involved. 

• Take time to review the meeting and think about what worked and what didn’t. If things went well, brilliant. Whatever you did, keep on doing it. 
• If things didn’t go so well try to work out why. Learn from it, put it behind you, and move on. 
• But always remember, when it comes to reading a story, play to your strengths. No two readers are alike. Some are natural performers, others are better at just being themselves. There is no ‘right’ way to read a story. Just your own way. 

Remember: if you have fun telling stories, your group will enjoy hearing them. So, try to enjoy it!