Story Telling & Books - Engaging Communities

Story Telling- with vulnerable families

In association with Surrey’s Family Learning, working with community partners to support literacy in families. For communities with low literacy but who were often good story tellers, these half day workshops opened up a new pathway to engaging and validated that skill. Working in small groups, story telling, mask making, puppet making and making books the workshops provided parents with the tools and confidence they needed to engage with their children’s learning.

Handmade Books - with low confidence writers.

A series of workshops aimed at junior aged school children (7-11) with dyslexia, ESL or who had been identified as lacking confidence in their writing skills or who found writing slow and difficult. Delivered in different settings these mixed-aged groups were taught to make a concertina book (with pop ups), and a single page folded into a simple 8 page book. The focus was on sequencing ideas and planning a story to have a beginning (hook) middle and end (if possible with a twist). Visually the children were asked to vary viewpoint (include some close ups and some pop ups). The focus on the visual supported story telling for those who found writing challenging and off putting.

Bind a Book workshop with ‘At risk’ Teenage Girls.

Watts Gallery works with a series of community groups to encourage engagement with learning and the arts through their Big Issues and Art for All program. This workshop focused on creating an outcome that was achievable to all but required concentration, measuring, team work and listening skills. The girls were at risk of being excluded from their various schools and found these skills difficult to sustain but all made a beautiful journal and created a good bond within the group.