QUALITY STORYTENTS

A resource for family, early childhood and community literacy workers

How can you use a storytent?

A storytent can be offered at an event or as a program.

At an event, a storytent can stand on its own, or it can enhance a larger event such as a community fair, a festival, a school event, an organization’s summer picnic, etc. (See Appendix C for more detail).

As a program, a storytent can be made available at the same place and time over a period of weeks and can enhance the literacy resources available to a community (See Appendix D for more detail).

Why run a storytent program?

A Storytent Program can have a positive impact on children, families and communities. In the Crescent Valley Neighbourhood, the 2003 and 2004 programs contained research components. This research used multiple methodologies, both qualitative and quantitative, including informal assessments of a number of children early and late in the summer. The evaluative research demonstrated that the program helps children:

• improve their reading skills
• increase the frequency of reading in their lives
• develop positive self-attitudes around reading
• build positive social relationships in a healthy, learning environment.

As well, the research indicated that most children who participated in the project socialized more positively with their siblings and peers (Brown & Dryden, 2005).