Something to Say: Children Learning Through Story

Abstract

Research Findings: All children from all backgrounds and histories learn through their stories while engaging in play and other daily activities. They experience development in multiple domains and engage in multidimensional learning when given the opportunity and encouragement. Practice or Policy: This article documents a segment of a larger qualitative study of early childhood integrated curriculum. This study, which is based on critical theory, focuses on the use of story as a vital construct for development and learning. Findings on children's engagement with story have emerged to illustrate information in three areas: story supporting children's symbolic play, story supporting children's interaction with literature, and story supporting children's writing about their ideas in narrative form. This article documents young children and their teachers using narrative to cross boundaries and interact with different constructs within their world of learning.