$750.00

LifeStories for Kids 3-5

Why LifeStories for Kids 3-5 is so special

LifeStories for Kids^TM 3-5 brings tales of social challenge to life in the classroom. This captivating, school-based curriculum weaves together the best of academic, psychological, artistic, and literary media into a single package that uniquely combines evidence-based practices for skill building with the engaging and ancient art of storytelling. The result is an easy-to-use teaching tool that guides 3-5 classrooms to explore, enhance, and reinforce understanding of character, prosocial and emotional skills, while enriching the academic curriculum. Featuring nationally acclaimed storytellers Willy Claflin, Donna Washington, and Olga Loya (Meet the Storytellers), LifeStories for Kids 3-5 is an academically challenging and prosocial addition to any 3-5 classroom.

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Why social skills matter

Extensive research shows that problems related to making and keeping friends have a significant negative impact on a child”â„¢s functioning and mental health. Peer problems contribute to school failure, alcohol and drug abuse, serious aggression and criminality, and depression. On the other hand, evidence reveals that improved peer relationships foster not only a happier kid, but also a peaceful school climate and stronger academic achievement. LifeStories for Kids 3-5 provide classrooms with the tools to build social skills while practicing academic skills that complement the daily curriculum.

Components

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Each LifeStories for Kids^TM 3-5 Kit includes:

Storybooks and DVDs of 9 stories as told by nationally acclaimed storytellers Willy Claflin, Donna Washington, and Olga Loya.
1 Professional Manual (View Table of Contents)
- Administrative Guidelines
- 9 session outlines complete with:
  - FX Discussion Topics
  - Creative Storytelling Activity
  - Write-On Worksheet
  - Explor-A-Story Worksheet
  - Word Herd
Series of 27 Full Color Story Posters. Each story is complemented by 3 story posters which use original illustrations from the DVD and provide questions related to story comprehension and personal application of the story’s meaning.
Full Color Story Mapping Poster provides the classroom with a visual key to the icons used in the story mapping activity; an engaging technique to diagramming stories that children love.

Benefits

Stories, read or told, have always been a primary teaching tool of educators, particularly for children. Storytelling is a natural mode of communicating with kids and inviting them into the educational process, whether it is academic learning or social emotional skill development. Storytelling is particularly applicable to the complex and often abstract issues that children face day to day in social interactions. The art of storytelling makes the science of social development fun to explore.

Who Benefits from LifeStories for Kids^TM 3-5?

Any 3-5 classroom would benefit from a program that promotes the development of social-emotional skills and peaceful school climates.

The Benefits of Multiple Application Methods

One of the many benefits of The LifeStories for Kids^TM 3-5 curriculum kit is the carefully designed approach to combining academic endeavors with social skill development. Hectic classroom schedules often make it difficult to incorporate social emotional skill development, even when it is beneficial to students and the classroom environment. LifeStories for Kids^TM 3-5 makes the choice between academic or social skill development a thing of the past. This unique approach combines the exploration and reinforcement of social skills with grade-appropriate exercises that strengthen word recognition and vocabulary, story comprehension and self-reflection, and help build effective readers and writers of oral and written language.

Research

The first step in the LifeStories for Kids^TM research process was to determine whether children are able to identify the character trait that corresponds to the LifeStories for Kids^TM stories. In order to accomplish this, a study was conducted with 75 K-5th grade students (ages 5 through 11). The students watched three different stories from the curriculum. All of the students were able to correctly identify at least one of the target character traits for each story, and 85% of the children were able to identify the primary character trait for each story.

A research study is currently in progress to assess the effectiveness of the complete LifeStories for Kids^TM (K-5) curriculum. All K-5 teachers (N = 102) in four elementary schools are teaching the LifeStories for Kids curriculum to their students (N = 2,309). Data will be collected from students, teachers, and administrators at three time points during the academic year in order to determine whether LifeStories for Kids^TM will improve social, emotional, behavioral, and academic functioning for the students receiving the curriculum.

Training

Training and on-going support are integral components to successful implementation of LifeStories for Kids^TM. SELmedia provides customized on-site training to meet your system’s needs. Initial training as well as booster sessions are available. Contact training@SELmediainc.com to learn more about our training and support packages. On-line training and support courses will be available at www.selmediainc.com beginning July 2007.

Objectives

There are three main objectives for using storytelling as a way to teach life skills:

To use a fun and imaginative approach to capture attention.
To use this attentive state as an opportunity to teach positive social skills and confidence for dealing with social dilemmas through identification with the characters and situations in each tale.
To provide an opportunity for children to actively practice the new skills they are learning through evidence-based and academically-oriented exercises.

The following life skills or dilemmas are taught in LifeStories for Kids^TM 3-5 with their corresponding stories.

Anansi and the Turtle - Respect
The House that Talked to Itself - Cooperation
Wise People of Helm - Compromise
Red Hat/Blue Hat - Perspective Taking
Debate in Sign Language - Assumptions
Ghost House- Check-It-Out
Bully Goat Grim - Bullying
Left Out - Cliques
Growing Up in East L.A.- Cultural Acceptance

Who is LifeStories for Kids^TM 3-5 for?

LifeStories for Kids^TM 3-5 is primarily designed to provide opportunities for 3rd-5th grade classrooms to explore social issues and reinforce the skills listed above.

How is LifeStories for Kids^TM 3-5 implemented?

LifeStories for Kids^TM 3-5 provides teachers with nine lesson outlines which coordinate with each story listed above. In addition to developing social-emotional skills within the classroom, LifeStories for Kids^TM 3-5 maintains the dual goal of providing academically appropriate activities that exercise developing skills in language arts. The intention is not to overwhelm an already busy teaching schedule, but rather to provide a dual approach to enhancing social-emotional and academic learning in tandem.

For your ease of use, each lesson is designed to flow in the same manner from story to story. There are six main activities included in each lesson. However, completion of every activity is not expected each time you listen to a story. Children learn by repetition, as well as enjoy hearing a good story multiple times. Participating in multiple activities will provide children with essential practice to reinforce learning.

What Others Are Saying About LifeStories for Kids^TM 3-5

"Storytelling is a very natural way to reach children. To be able to use storytelling and allow children to do their own storytelling is a magnificent way to teach children how to get along with one another. I watched children who spend time in my office and spend time in the main office-- who are often unable to focus -- be absolutely mesmerized and totally focused on the storyteller."
Claudia Bazemore, School Counselor, Brook’s Elementary, Wake County, NC

"Teachers are looking for those non traditional ways to develop the social and emotional skills and positive interactions in the classroom. These kinds of things are a jump off for teachers to be able to use, cutting on a light bulb in their mind, especially with storytelling. It captivated the audience. The kids were really interested and into it and paying attention. It is a great way to jump start questions and dialogue afterwards."
-Elementary school teacher after observing children watch the LS3-5 stories.

"Storytelling is basically how ALL cultures have handed down ALL information throughout history. You can think of teaching as all the stories that we have accumulated through our culture being shared with children. Studies show that stories are also how we most easily remember things. The more teaching can consciously incorporate storytelling the easier it will be for children to simply retain information."
-Willy Claflin, featured Storyteller in LS 3-5, on the Benefits of Storytelling

"Storytelling is a powerful tool for learning because first of all you are listening. As a child is listening to a story they are learning how to absorb all the different ideas and use their imagination. Then first they start talking, they start speaking the stories out. After a while they think, ‘maybe I should go read it.’ Then they think, ‘I could write anything better than that. ‘Storytelling helps children learn how to communicate and find a better way of saying what they need to say in an enjoyable form. "
-Olga Loya,featured Storyteller in LS 3-5, on the Benefits of Storytelling in the classroom

"The lesson was to be brave and to face what your afraid of."
Petey, 3rd grader at Brooks Elementary, Wake County, NC

"I learned that you should get all the facts before you judge something"
-4th grader after watching Ghost House

"The thing I liked about it best is that little hint of mystery. Ms. Loya has never figured out why Tina was so mad."
-Dillion, after watching the story "Left Out"