Tuesday: Storied Lives: Finding & Celebrating Our Voices [Ages 8-13]

 Develop your skills to prepare and deliver a story to an audience. We will use gestures, voice inflection, diction, tempo, and imagination. We will be inspired by folktales from around the world as each class will begin with a warm-up exercise followed by a story experience (listening, reading, poem, song, tale), reflection, and retelling. This will be in preparation for writing your own story based on the pattern of the tales and your personal background and experiences. Some of the sessions will integrate the arts through mask-making and prop design used to enhance the story presentation. At the end of the sessions, friends and family will be invited to a culminating Story Slam. 

About the Teaching Artist
Dr. Thomas Chiola, has taught in both public schools and colleges in Mercer County and has amassed over twenty three years in education. He obtained his Ed.D in Literacy Education from Rutgers, The State University in 2015. As a teacher, he has been known to incorporate storytelling in all aspects of his teaching. He is a Past President of the New Jersey Literacy Association. He is a member of the Garden State Storytellers League and has presented workshops for teachers on both the national and international level. Dr. Chiola has appeared in many regional plays and musically staged events across the state New Jersey and often can be found singing songs from the Great American Songbook in local restaurants and other venues.