4 2 6 storytelling through the years (social studies)

Everyone was afraid of the dragon.” Some scary stories are passed from generation to generation... Oral Tradition Oral tradition, or storytelling, is a way of passing history and storie

H O U G H T O N M I F F L I N

Storytelling

Through the Years

by Kristin Marciniak

by Kristin Marciniak

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Storytelling

Through the Years

Table of Contents

How Technology Changed Storytelling 11

Suppose you are sitting with your

friends and family around a campfire roasting marshmallows and telling stories Your older

brother begins to tell a scary story

“Once upon a time, there was a hideous

dragon that lived inside a volcano,” he begins

“The volcano was always exploding, and the

dragon was always roaring Everyone was afraid

of the dragon.”

Some scary stories are passed from generation

to generation.

Your older brother tells the story, but he heard it from your mother Your mother first heard it from her mother, and so on This is an example of an oral tradition

Oral Tradition

Oral tradition, or storytelling, is a way of passing history and stories from one generation

to another Before the printing press was

invented, storytelling was one of the only ways that many societies were able to keep records

If people didn’t share their stories, an immense amount of history would be lost

Since stories were not written down,

storytellers had to rely on their memories

Storytellers would learn the basic plot and

then make up details as they went along That is why there are sometimes many versions of the same story

Using Songs to Tell Stories

Storytellers sometimes sang their stories

A ballad, also known as a folk song, is a story

in song They might tell about a prince who

becomes invisible to rescue a princess

Some storytellers used ballads to tell

their tales.

Puppets in Storytelling

Have you ever been to a puppet show?

The art of using puppets to tell stories has been around for thousands of years This art form began in ancient Greece

In ancient India, puppets were used to tell religious and historical stories about kings, gods, and other events A story might be about

a warrior who refuses to give up Puppet shows continue to delight audiences even today

Puppets were used to tell stories before actors performed them.

6

Folktales

Oral stories also were used to teach lessons There are many different kinds of stories, but some common ones are folktales, legends, and myths Folktales are fictional stories about

people or animals that speak and act like

people Fairytales are one type of folktale

Folktales teach lessons about how people

are supposed to act Good characters always

win in the end, but they only get there with

determination For example, in the story of

Cinderella, we learn that being wealthy and

important are not the ways to happiness

Folktales were originally stories for adults They were popular entertainment for farmers, sailors, and other workers Many of them did not know how to read In addition, many Native Americans and American slaves used oral

traditions to preserve their history Today, some tribes in Africa still use oral storytelling as the main way to keep records of events

Native Americans used storytelling

to pass down their cultural history.

Legends

Unlike folktales, legends are stories that

are thought to be true Legends are always

about a person or subject that many people

believed was real Most legends are about kings, heroes, or a battle Famous legends include the stories of Robin

Hood, and King

Arthur and the

Knights of the

Round Table

The legend of the

Sword in the Stone

tells how King

Arthur became the

king of Britain.

Myths

Another type of story is a myth Myths are sacred stories from the past that explain a culture’s beliefs and values Myths are also used

to explain unusual events or how something came to exist Most myths come from religion The ancient Greeks had many myths that are still around today Hercules is one of those myths He was very strong and brave

The story of Hercules is an example of a Greek myth.

How Technology Changed

Storytelling

Technology has shaped the ways stories are passed from generation to generation Writing has been found carved on stones and walls from thousands of years ago Paper was later invented

in ancient China, but people still had to write

by hand During the 14th and 17th centuries, people were hired to copy texts into books

This, however, was a very slow process

Writing helped to change the way stories are shared.

In the mid-1400s, a German inventor named Johannes Gutenberg made the first printing press Gutenberg’s first version was made of blocks with raised letters The letters were inked much like the rubber stamps you can buy in craft stores today This invention made it much easier to print books

Mainz, Germany, around 1400 He worked

as a stonecutter and goldsmith These

experiences helped him to create the metal molds for the letters.

The invention of the printing press did

not decrease the importance of oral traditions Except for those who were rich, most people did not know how to read They also were not able

to get the printed books

Books became more widely available with

the invention of the monotype machine in

1897 This meant that the books were less

expensive than before, so more people were

able to read them

The printing press

made it much easier

to print books and

share stories.

Storytelling Today

Today, modern technology helps us publish stories at astonishing rates Newspapers tell

us what’s going on and we read books for

education and entertainment The Internet also allows us to access information quickly

Despite all of these forms of media, traces of oral storytelling are all around Each time you share a bedtime story, a joke, or a family legend with others, you are helping to keep the oral tradition alive

Most people still like to

listen to a good story.

TARGET VOCABULARY Word Builder Make

a word web around the word hideous What

synonyms do you know for the word hideous?

Copy and complete the word web below.

Write About It

Text to Text You just read about how

stories have been shared Write a paragraph

describing a story you have read that may have

started in the oral tradition Use a word from

the Word Builder in your writing.

hideous disgusting nasty

15

TARGET VOCABULARY

battle

exploding

hideous

hired

immense

invisible refused rescue warrior wealthy

TARGET STRATEGY Infer/Predict Use text clues to figure out what isn’t directly stated by the author.

Which word rhymes with a word that describes how you feel when you are ready for bed?

16

ISBN-13: 978-0-547-02324-3 ISBN-10: 0-547-02324-3

1032175

HOUGHTON MIFFLIN

Online Leveled Books

Level: Q

DRA: 40

Social Studies

Strategy:

Infer/Predict

Word Count: 930