The Storytellers Return

Jill says...We have been home for a few days, and it's always good to come back home, but I would have loved to have stayed for just a few days longer. Festival at the Edge was the perfect ending to our storytelling trip, and I think my favorite part was just watching the other storytellers weave their magic, although the workshop was definitely educational. There is a picture from it next to this post, and it is my acting debut as a little pig. It's probably a good thing that my next performance will be in front of four-year-olds!

I have already been back to school and several people have asked me about the trip and told me they have been reading our blog, along with many of our family members. I understand many of you had problems trying to post comments on the blog, and I apologize, but I'm glad you were at least able to read about our adventures.

One of the questions that I have been asked several times already is, "What did you learn?" To sum it up---a lot. This is definitely something I asked myself often while we were walking around the different countries and going through our different experiences. I learned many things, but more than anything, I am inspired. I am inspired to get back in my classroom and make some changes during my story time. I am inspired to write my own children's stories and have the students act them out and retell them. I am inspired to change the way I engage students while they are sitting in front of me. One of the things that I observed that kept recurring throughout all the places we went and things we did, was that if you're going to tell a story and do it well, then you need to remember you are on stage. Four-year-olds are used to television and cartoons, and it is important to be dynamic and theatrical and use your voice and actions to hold their attention and develop their enthusiasm. Maybe I am not the greatest actress, and it will definitely involve being silly, but that's part of teaching Pre-K--one of the best parts!

This was a trip of a lifetime, and one of the best experiences I will ever have, and it's not over yet! I am excited to continue learning about interactive storytelling, and get back in the classroom to apply what I have already learned. I am also excited to share my love of reading and stories with my classroom. Thank you again for reading our entries and sharing this with us. This was our first attempt at blogging, and it has served as an excellent tool to document what we did and what we learned. If you are interested in finding out more about Fund For Teachers or are interested in applying for your own learning adventure, go to their website: http://www.fundforteachers.org. Lastly, thank you Fund For Teachers, for providing us and many other teachers the opportunity to follow our dreams.

Festival at the Edge

Bethany says :
The Festival at the Edge was a great experience. We were able to hear some great stories. The workshop on Storytelling was very helpful in explaining how a great storyteller begins the process of telling a great story. We were asked to find the "bones" of a story (our group picked The Three Little Pigs). We were then asked to act out the "bones" of The Three Little Pigs. (We will put some pictures of our acting skills up later... I am sure you can't wait!) Then the storyteller shared a story of her own. Followed by a group discussion of what the "bones" were in her story and how others might tell it differently. No two storytellers tell the story the same.

Now we are off to London for the night and then catch our flight home! Thank you for reading our blog and sharing in our travels.

We're off to the English Countryside!

Jill says... Yesterday was a very busy day, and unfortunately we over planned a little and didn't get to everything, which I am a little sad about. We began the day at Hyde Park, and luckily we got there before it began raining. We strolled through the park and took a lot of pictures. Next we moved on to Harrod's to do some shopping. However, we entered Harrod's directly through the Food Hall, and never left it! It was truly amazing, and we wandered through the patisserie and the bakery, the deli, fruit, gelato, caviar and champagne---it was a little overwhelming to say the least! We chose a few items each, and wandered over to a statue outside to have a picnic. Really, we were looking for Kensington Gardens, but couldn't find it, so the statue had to do.

From there, we headed out to Discover--the Story Making Centre (http://www.discover.org.uk/). I had heard about the indoor/outdoor play space online, and it had sounded like something we definitely had to see while we were in London. Discover engages children's imagination and promotes creativity by providing them with a space to pretend and create, all based around stories and children's books. We were able to get a tour by one of the employees, and she told us that most of the people who are employed at Discover are professional artists (actors, writers, etc). The construction of the different areas was exceptional and would definitely appeal to little ones. They had puppet areas, interactive computer games, dress up areas, forts, caves, and tunnels. My favorite part of Discover was the exhibition that is in the downstairs area called City of Stories. From the Discover website: "It was designed by artist Cathy Wren and composer Jon Owen, City of Stories will open your eyes to London's rich tapestry of tales and adventures. Find out by exploring our wonderful world of legends, folk stories and traditional tales. Explore stories from London's east end communities including Bengali, Polish Roma, African, English and Tamil. Watch out for chairs that tell stories, magic furniture and hidden worlds." We bought the City of Stories CD to bring back to our classrooms to enhance our own story time. This was definitely one of the best children's museums I have ever been to, and it was different because most children's museums focus mainly on science. It really gave me a lot to think about in how I can change my classroom to create a more literature-based environment.

After that, we headed back to the hotel for a nap. It was our last night in London, and we were too tired to do much of anything.

Today we are heading to Shropshire, England which is in the English Countryside. We are taking a bus to get there, which actually sounds good right now--sitting for four hours and seeing some wonderful scenery while we do it. We are going to the Festival at the Edge http://www.festivalattheedge.com/, which is a storytelling festival. I am also looking forward to our next hotel--it's a Holiday Inn! Don't laugh, after you've been holed up in a shoebox with another person for several days, a Holiday Inn sounds like luxury. We will be in Telford, England, right next to the park in the town square. We will try to write while we are there, but I am not certain if we will have Internet access or not.

Bethany says: Off to Shropshire we go! I am with Jill on the Holiday Inn! There was not enough room for our luggage to move through the room without picking it up over head. I hope the Holiday Inn lives up to its name.

Busy day in London

Bethany says...
Today will be very productive for us. We will be rounding out our trip in London today. We have a few more sights to see and experince before we leave London tomorrow. Hopefully Harrods, Tower of London, Tower Bridge, Discovery, Storytime, and a visit with Cindy later in the evening. (I feel like I have forgotten something.) Then it is off to Shropshire, England for a Festival. We will be taking a bus...4hours. We will have to let you know how that goes...

Windsor Castle and the British Museum

Bethany says...
We just finished with the British Museum and it is a gorgeous building. The main entrance is huge and filled with amazing large works of art. We arrived early to beat the rush and we did just miss the crowds of people. I headed off to the African and Roman exhibit and finished in the American exhibit. My head is still swimming from all the artifacts and sculptures I saw. I love visiting museums and this was no exception.

We are on our way to visit Windsor Castle. After that we will be visiting at Jill's family's house for a traditional fish and chips meal. Another awesome day ahead of us!

Jill says....The British Museum was the most amazing museum I have ever seen. It was absolutely gigantic, and the sheer number of their artifacts was astounding. I saw quite a few mummies, the Rosetta Stone, and a lot of pieces from Egyptian tombs. From there we headed out to Windsor Castle, which is about an hour outside of London. Unfortunately we didn't have a lot of time to spend in Windsor because we were under a time crunch to get the bus back in time to have dinner with my family. I will definitely be going back there the next time I am in London. Windsor is a beautiful, quaint town. The castle itself is breathtaking. We took a lot of great pictures (of the outside, no cameras allowed inside). It was very interesting to be able to walk through the state rooms. We saw the most elaborate doll house and dolls. Check out the website (http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page557.asp), especially since I can't get pictures on here right away. I cannot wait to go back to Windsor!

In the evening, we went to my family's house (north of London) to have a fish and chips dinner. Dinner was very good, but the company was even better. It was fun to sit around and catch up. I also got to see one of my cousins, Alex, that I hadn't seen in 17 years. We ended the night with a cup of tea, and finally I could barely keep my eyes open, so we headed home on the tube. Thank you to my family for taking such good care of Bethany and I while we were in London and making us feel so welcome!

The sun is shining

Jill says...When we returned from Dublin, I guess you could say we were a little worn out, so we spent the night at our hotel in Bloomsbury doing laundry and hanging out. It is nice to have my entire wardrobe clean again. Yesterday we were treated to a wonderful day by my London family. In the morning we walked to the London Eye, where we met up with my aunt Julita and her classrooms (she's a teacher in London). We helped chaperone the 11 and 12 year-olds on the London Eye, which is sort of like a giant enclosed Ferris wheel (but they don't like it when you call it that). The views were amazing, and the weather was absolutely perfect for the ride. The skies were blue and only a few clouds. I was able to get some fantastic pictures. After the London Eye, we went on the London Eye river cruise on the Thames. More chances for some great pictures!

After we were through, we went on a walk around the Thames and had a lunch on a patio that faced the water. It was lovely, as they say in London. We went to the Tate Modern to view some modern art. It was, ah, interesting... We then spent the next two hours walking all the way back to the West End. I have never been so physically exhausted in my life. Finally, we were close to where we needed to be (at this time it was 6:30 p.m.), and I saw a rickshaw (a bicyclist pulls us along in a cart while we sit), and I thought, "This is perfect. No more walking." So, we get inside and pay him the 10 pounds, and he takes off through the cobblestone streets, dodging taxis, doubledecker buses, and pedestrians. Bethany and I looked at each other, and burst out laughing hysterically. We continued to laugh, or maybe I should say, Bethany laughed and I alternated between laughing and screaming. It was very funny, and exactly what we needed after a long day of walking in the sun.

We met my cousin, Cindy, at the Shaftsbury Theatre to see Hairspray. It was definitely one of the best musicals I have ever seen. I love the old theatre it was in, too. It was very ornate, and the lighting was gorgeous. By the end of the show, the entire audience was on their feet dancing and clapping. I still have the music going round and round in my head. Theatre is definitely one of my favorite things to experience in London. After the show, we walked even more to get back to our hotel. It seemed like the hotel wasn't too far away from the theatre, but I think we should have gotten another rickshaw. When we arrived back at the hotel, I was so exhausted, I could barely walk up the stairs to our room. My legs wouldn't bend. It sure was a wonderful day...

Bethany says...
I am so grateful to Jill's family who have shown us around the city of London and taken us to places we might not have gone on our own. I loved the markets that Cindy took us to on our first stay in London. The London Eye was breath taking. We were able to see the entire city of London. The cruise along the Thames River was informational as well as entertaining. Thank you Julita we enjoyed getting to spend time with your class and seeing the sights. I was amazed at the play Hairspray. The seats that we sat in were great. The whole experience was amazing. The theater itself was something beautiful. The carved decorations throughout the theater were art in their own right. Thanks to Cindy!

Our last day in Dublin

Jill says...Yesterday was our last day in Dublin, and it was definitely my favorite day. We went on an all day excursion to the Wicklow Mountains, just outside of Dublin. It was absolutely gorgeous, and we had an awesome guide as well. There were about 50 of us on a bus, winding through the narrow mountain roads (for those of you who know me, you will be surprised to know I did not freak out). We stopped at a pretty cafe/market/shop called Avoca for coffee and scones on the way there. We drove through Enniskerry, where P.S. I Love You was filmed (my favorite movie). Then we stopped at the top of a few cliffs for some picture opportunities (I wish I could post them, but this computer does not have a USB port). Then we took an hour-long walk through a 6th century Monastic settlement and through Glendalough. I cannot wait to show you all the pictures!

The tour ended around 5:30, and we rushed to the Brazen Head, Dublin's oldest pub for a night of Food, Folk, and Fairies (www.irishfolktours.com) The dinner was excellent, but the storytelling was superb. We sat at a candlelit table with seven other Americans (there was one other table of guests, too), and listened to Johnny Daly tell the story of how the Irish lived off their land so long ago, and the repercussions their dependency on the potato had on their lives and the Irish as a whole. I know I learned this stuff in school, but it's funny how it's so much more fascinating when you are hearing it from a storyteller. He also told of how the Irish believed in the fairies (think leprechauns), and they would often account for the unexplainable by believing that it must have been the fairies. Johnny did a wonderful job of telling a few of the fairy stories to us, and when the dinner was over, I wished we could hear a few more. It was the perfect ending to our Dublin trip.

Now it's back to London...

Bethany says:

Hands down my favorite part of our trip has been Ireland. I really enjoyed the trip to the Wicklow Mountains. Our guide was excellent! The scenery was breathtaking. I have never seen so many shades green in my life. I am amazed at the bogs on the top of the mountains. The heather and bog cotton was blooming everywhere. I was able to collect some heather for luck. The sheep dot the mountain. It really is an amazing view and exactly what I was hoping to see when I was in Ireland.

I was also able to purchase a coloring book of Celtic work and a children's fairytale book at the gift shop in Glendalough. The children will enjoy them I am sure of it! I cannot wait to show them the pictures of the countryside and the treasures I am bringing for them to see. I have been taking pictures of some of our food while we are here, so that the children can compare how the food is different and like ours in the states. (It is rather embarrassing and I am sure people think we are nuts!) Oh,well!