Storytelling is an incredible way to boost language skills and bond with the special children in your life.
Creating verbal stories helps children to explore language in a fun and exciting way without feeling the pressure of more formal academic activities. Storytelling sets the stage for a lifelong love of language, books, writing and reading. Aside from this, creating oral stories also has a number of other benefits. It helps to build self-expression, creativity, confidence, communication skills, and even concentration. By incorporating storytelling activities into play, children can truly be inspired and have a head start in language development!
Check out this sweet story that was inspired by our Majungasaurus!
The little Majungasaurus had a lot of friends, but sometimes he felt sad or left out. It was never about the fact that he didn’t have friends. He had plenty and all sorts — from herbivores and carnivores to sauropods, down to dromaeosaurs. There were even a few little mammals that would come play with them.
He loved all his friends. He never tried to eat any of them, and he always played very gently. He knew he was big and strong. He knew he could hurt them. He never wanted to.
They played all sorts of games. They ran and chased each other; they would go down to the stream when it was flooded and see who could swim across the fastest, and sometimes, they would try to climb trees. Not that any of them were particularly good at that last one, but they laughed and laughed as they fell again and again.
The little dinosaurs didn’t have any issues with these games. He couldn’t climb very well, but neither could his long-necked friends. The one thing he did struggle with, however, was catch.
Every so often throughout the wetter seasons, one of his friends who could actually reach them, would find a particularly nice, big, round fruit and pluck it from its tree. “Let’s play,” they’d say, and all the dinosaurs would stand in a circle.
Now, sauropods didn’t have arms, but their kicks were strong enough to make up for it. The dromaeosaurs could pick it up and throw it.
But the little Majungasaurus never could. His arms were far too small. They were pressed close to his body in a way that didn’t let him bend them. So he stood there, flailing his tiny arms in the air as if it would help.
Sometimes, he tried to kick it like the sauropods did, but his feet were too clumsy. He fell on his tail several times.
Other times he tried to catch it in his mouth, only to grab it too hard and have the fruit explode, leaving a very sour taste for hours after. That also meant they lost their toy for the afternoon.
Eventually, when they wanted to play catch, he would say, “Mom wants me home now. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Of course, his friends knew something was wrong, but they didn’t know why he didn’t want to play with them anymore.
But as more time went on, the little dinosaur kept noticing ways that his friends could use their arms that he couldn’t. His were too short, too stubby, bent the wrong way. Even climbing, something none of them were good at, suddenly felt like he was worse at than them. He tried it with his mouth, but that just made his teeth hurt.
One day, he decided that he must not be good enough to play with them anymore. That’s what he thought it all meant.
As moms do, his mom noticed that something was different, was wrong. When she asked him about it, all he had to say was, “I can’t be anyone’s friend anymore.”
“Why?”
“Because my arms are too small.”
His mother wrapped her tail around him. “My arms are small, too. I still do everything any other dinosaur can do.”
The little Majungasaurus looked at her. “How do you do it?”
“Well, little one, if I ever feel like my arms stop me, I tell myself that I’m capable and strong, so whatever it is, I know I can do it. It may not always be the same way everyone else does it, and that’s OK – I’ll do it my way.”
“But what if you can’t?”
“I find that if I tell myself that, things usually work out.” She held him a little closer. “Tomorrow, will you go play with your friends again?”
He nodded. “I will.”
And he did. When the next day came, he was in a much better mood. He met his friends, and they played together again. They played chase, and they went across the river and tried (and failed) to climb trees.
When the time for catch came, he felt a little sad, but he was okay with sitting on the sidelines.
But his friends weren’t.
They had realized catch was causing him trouble and changed the rules. Now, they picked a different type of fruit — smaller, rounder, better for kicking and swatting with tails, so that the little Majungasaurus would no longer be left out of the game.
He was still nervous but remembered what his mom told him: I am capable and strong. I know I can do it. And he did, and he even enjoyed it.
He sometimes still feels like his arms are too small, and then he remembers what his mom told him. He knows if he keeps her words in his heart and is okay with doing things in his own way, everything will turn out all right.
*SafariFan story cred goes to Hope from Louisville, KY
Storytelling is a magical way to boost creativity and spark connection with your kiddos.
Safari Ltd. figurines are the perfect story starters. Grab one of your favorite figures and weave a magical tale with the help of your children. You can take turns coming up with what happens next, or one person can decide on a setting or problem while the other chooses the figurines for characters. Having the figures act out the stories is one of the best parts! There are so many fun ways to tell stories with toys!
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