Storytelling…

...as a pedagogy.

Hello all. Welcome to the 132nd edition of TEPS Weekly!

Ms. Davar teaches Grade 7 Geography. Today’s lesson is based on the NCERT chapter Air. 

Ms. Davar knows that students usually simply memorise the structure of the atmosphere and practise drawing its diagram a few times for their exams. However, she also knows that this concept is very important for students to understand and remember for a long time. If students truly “see” each layer – what it does and how it helps or harms – they can later make sense of climate change, pollution, auroras and even why planes fly high or meteors burn up. So, this year, she decides to apply a new pedagogical approach that she just overheard some other teachers talking about – storytelling. She asks ChatGPT to quickly come up with a story and walks into class.

She begins: “Let’s listen to a story about the layers of the atmosphere!

An oxygen molecule named Oxy floated upward from Earth. First he met Troposphere Tom, who said, “Weather happens here; air is thick.” Oxy rose to Stratosphere Stella: “I have the ozone layer that blocks UV.” Higher up was Mesosphere Max: “Meteors burn in me; I’m very cold.” Next came Thermosphere Theo: “Air is thin but very hot; the ionosphere helps radio.” Finally Oxy reached Exosphere Eva: “I fade into space; some satellites orbit here.” Oxy was glad to meet them all!

Then, Ms. Davar asks students to read the section ‘Structure of the Atmosphere’ in the textbook and also examine the diagram. She spends the next 10 minutes explaining the structure, followed by a quick check for understanding – “How many layers is the atmosphere made up of? Which layer protects us from harmful UV rays? In which layer do satellites orbit the Earth?” After each question, she pauses, and she is met with long silences as students look into their textbook to find the answer, like they usually do. The story seems to have made no difference to their levels of engagement or retention. 

Ms. Davar is disappointed and confused. She had overheard the other teachers praising storytelling as a gamechanger – the Physics teacher had even said that this year, her students were excited about the most difficult topics, thanks to the stories she had crafted! Then, where did she go wrong?

Later that day, over lunch at the staffroom, she talks to the Physics teacher. She shows her the page from the textbook and the story that ChatGPT gave her, and she asks for feedback.

“Ah! I see what happened. The problem is that this isn’t a story. This is just a description of the layers of the atmosphere, with funny names given to them. But you see, that isn’t enough. A story isn’t just information dressed up with character names. A story has emotion, it has a problem and a solution, it has ups and it has downs!” explained the Physics teacher. “I love stories – if it wasn’t for Physics, I’d be an English teacher, or a librarian!”

Based on this feedback, Ms. Davar gives it another go – she discusses the topic with the Physics teacher and comes up with a simple story flow, with some emotion, a straightforward problem and solution, and some ups and downs. She then prompts ChatGPT with this story idea and even asks it to format it with some basic illustrations.

The next day, she tries out the storytelling approach with a different section. She displays the story on the screen and says: “Let’s start today’s lesson by reading an adventure story!”

She reads the story aloud with emotion, and then gives students a few minutes to read it independently and silently. Next, she asks students to read the section ‘Structure of the Atmosphere’ in the textbook and also examine the diagram, and to find connections with the story.

Then comes a very important step – connecting the story to the concept. She does this by asking questions: 

• “What obstacle did Zoya encounter first? Which layer of the atmosphere was she in here?”

• “What was the space pebble that Zoya saw? Which layer do you think she saw it in?”

• “In which layer was she able to send a message back to Mission Control? How does this layer help us on Earth?”

This time, the answers come quicker and with more enthusiasm. But best of all, the students themselves have their own questions – “What was that balloon in the stratosphere?” “What about the mesosphere causes the meteorites to burn up?” “Don’t meteorites hit satellites in the exosphere and damage them?” These questions tell Ms. Davar that students have really paid attention, thought about the features of each layer and understood their purpose. Students now have a strong foundation to dive deeper into other concepts like climate change and satellites.

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Essentials of Storytelling as a Pedagogy

Crafting a Story

• A story must have characters, settings, a problem and a solution

The character is Zoya. The setting is the atmosphere. The problem is that the weather satellite is not working. The solution lies in travelling through the atmosphere to the satellite to fix it.

• The story must revolve around the ‘what’, ‘how’ or ‘why’ of the academic concept.

Zoya had to travel through the layers and overcome the obstacles presented by them to reach the satellite. This story presents the ‘what’ of the academic concept.

• A story must evoke emotions – either positive or negative – for students to relate and remember.

Zoya’s adventure may evoke curiosity in some students and fear in some others.

• A story’s events must be easy to visualise so as to aid longer-term retention.

Descriptions like ‘bumpy sky’, ‘freezing and dark’ and ‘quiet black almost-space’ help students visualise the layers and remember them for longer.

• Not all academic concepts can be converted into or benefit from being converted into stories. Concepts that already have a problem and solution or a series of connected steps are easier to convert into stories.

The different features of the atmospheric layers in sequence presented a natural opportunity for a series of obstacles in an adventure to solve a problem.

Facilitating the Lesson

• Do not introduce or explain the concept before reading the story. Doing so takes away students’ curiosity to read the story and understand how the problem is solved.

Ms. Davar simply introduced it as an adventure story and did not mention that it was about the atmosphere.

• In the first reading, read it like a normal story in one go – without stopping to explain or connect the story to the academic concept. Allow students to read it once more to deepen understanding.

• Give students independent time to read about the academic concept in their textbooks. Encourage them to actively make connections with the story.

• Then, ask specific questions to connect the story to the academic concept.

Ms. Davar asked questions about what happened in the story, immediately followed by a question about the related academic concept. “What was the space pebble that Zoya saw? Which layer do you think she saw it in?”

• Conclude the lesson by asking a few students to summarise the academic concept.

Here are a few more examples of stories for different academic concepts across subjects:

Subject: Topic	Story Idea
Mathematics: Fractions	Four friends gather to cut a birthday cake. One friend gets a big slice, two get medium slices, and one gets a tiny sliver. They all argue, "We should each get one-fourth!" But the birthday kid knows that "one-fourth" means everyone gets an equal piece. So, they cut the cake into four equal slices, and everyone is happy with their one-fourth!
Science: Changes of state	Tara is drinking hot tea, and her window gets all foggy! Her little brother thinks the glass is "leaking." Tara watches a tiny water droplet from the kettle float up as warm steam. Then, when it touches the cold window, it turns back into a little water droplet!
Geography: Ocean currents	A warm ocean current named Red races towards the cold places, and a cold current named Blue slides back towards the warm places. The bay is empty until they meet! When they do, there are foamy streaks and a light fog. Blue brings yummy food from deep down, and Red keeps the surface nice and cozy. Soon, fish arrive, and the village knows it's time to catch them!
History: Causes of WW2	After a big fight, all the animals in the Meadow made a promise to keep the peace. But Wolf's family was left hungry and sad. A loud leader, Bruno the Boar, started getting more powerful and taking small bushes while others looked away, just wanting to "keep the peace." Each time he took a bush, they let him, saying, "Just one more!" This made Bruno bolder. Finally, he took Polly the Plover's field, and that's when the neighbours finally kept their promise, and the whole Meadow ended up in a much bigger fight.
Economics: Law of demand and supply	The school canteen sells yummy mango popsicles for ₹10, and everyone lines up to buy them, so they run out fast! The next day, they sell them for ₹15. More popsicles arrive, but fewer kids buy them. So, they try selling them for ₹13, and that's the perfect price where everyone who wants a popsicle gets one!

Storytelling as a pedagogy is a powerful approach to make abstract concepts concrete and situate facts inside human experiences – however, it requires careful crafting of the story and planned facilitation. Which concept will you try this pedagogical approach for?

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Edition: 4.39