Helicopter

Storytelling and Story Acting for children from Foundation Stage through to Key Stage 1

 


The Helicopter Technique of Storytelling and Story Acting grew out of Vivian Gussin Paley's book The Boy Who Would Be a Helicopter (published 1990 Harvard University Press). After studying Vivian's work and visiting her in America, Trisha Lee (Artistic Director) began pioneering the technique in the UK.

"The class room has all the elements of theatre, and the observant, self-examining teacher will not need a drama critic to uncover character and plot, and meaning.  We are, all of us, the actors trying to find the meaning of the scenes in which we find ourselves.  The scripts are not yet fully written, so we must listen with curiosity and great care to the main characters who are, of course, the children."                                                                          Vivian Gussin Paley

 

The Helicopter Technique for Storytelling and Story Acting The Helicopter Technique for Storytelling and Story Acting The Helicopter Technique: Peer Education

Using The Helicopter Technique of Storytelling and Story Acting, the teacher or workshop leader sits down with the child, listens to his / her story, and writes it down word for word. At the end of the story, the child decides which character he / she wants to play and the teacher moves on to the next child on the list. Towards the end of the session, the whole class gathers to act out the stories of their peers.

The Helicopter Technique

  • Can be used with children as young as 2 years old up to Key Stage 1
  • Develops confidence, curiosity, concentration and communication skills in all children regardless of ability
  • Increases turn taking, attention span and speaking and listening skills
  • Demonstrates spectacular and measurable gains in spoken narrative and language development skills even for pupils with SEN or EAL
  • Enables pupils to see their stories acted out, and gain reinforcement of the meanings of the word through their total engagement with the process
  • Keeps a class of 30 children attentive, because no-one knows what will happen next and what the next story will contain...

MakeBelieve Arts has a team of trained and experienced facilitators, led by Trisha Lee (Artistic Director), who are available to run INSET sessions with teachers or workshops with children in schools or Early Years settings. During in-school sessions we introduce the technique and offer guidance  to the class teacher to ensure sustainability within the classroom.