Parent Education Activity at Keeble EC/PK Center

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Julie Cowan, a local puppeteer, author and storyteller, visits the Keeble EC/PK Center every year to share with parents the importance of storytelling with their children.

Cowan and school librarian Alpha Omega Cruz-López told the story of “Goldilocks and the Three Bears” using puppets. For a storyteller, the use of puppets can be an important and effective tool in maintaining audience attention, involving listeners in the telling of the story. The use of puppets increases student participation in storytelling, which in turn increases hands-on, enjoyable, and effective learning.

Cowan expressed how important it is for parents to share stories with their children. She stated that parents should consider telling the stories their own grandparents told them as children as well as stories and folktales from their countries. Cowan emphasized the significance of sharing these stories with their children so that they would never lose their family history and cultures.

To help aid storytelling at home, the parents made puppets using patterns that Cowan provided. To ensure students participated in the puppet making process, a few items of decor were left off so that they could later add these to their puppets later at home.

Parents also had the opportunity to practice by telling their children stories using their newly created puppets.

“We had a wonderful turnout,” stated Cruz-López. “Both the parents and children really enjoyed this activity and they learned about the importance of storytelling.”