The Magic of Storytelling

I just found out that the house that I "walked into" every week on TV has been sold.  The house associated with one of the most popular seventies TV familes, the Brady Bunch house, was sold to NSYNC's Lance Bass.  Just seeing this house on TV in these news stories brings back so many memories of family TV stories that I relished as I grew up.  I love TV for the stories it tells.

I've always told students that people will remember more about how they feel after they hear or see your video story, than whatever details you told them during the story.  In class, we are going to talk about storytelling this week and learn, or relearn, the importance, and skills, of telling a good story.

Parents, please be aware that I will ask that students and you look over, sign, and return some forms this week.

After going over the syllabus and class rules and procedures, we are going to dive right in to how to find a good story, how do you write a great script, and how do you add visual elements to make an impression on your audience. 

One of the greatest news reporters I know is Steve Hartman.  He is a cosummate storyteller and can hook and engage a viewer like no one I know.  Just Google Steve Hartman and watch one of his stories and you'll see what I mean.  Here is one example:  https://www.cbsnews.com/video/steve-hartman-goes-on-the-road-with-his-sons-for-the-eclipse/

Writing, audio, visual elements, proper lighting, story twists and turns, and fair, accurate, and true reporting will be the basis of Hawk Talk and we will turn the show into an important element in the school day to find information, news, and entertainment about what's going on in and around our school.

Storytelling is magic. 

It's what connects us as humans.  It's what makes each of us relateable to each other.  It's what has maintained the history of civilizations large and small, and it's what our daily lives are built around.   The importance of learning to communicate with each other cannot be understated.  I hope students learn a lot of how to communicate in my class and I hope that they, too, are able to "invite others" into their stories in powerful ways.  We are really all just storytellers at heart.