This document is a summary of a presentation about using multimedia storytelling in teaching. It explores why stories are effective teaching tools, providing memory cues, context, and emotions. Examples show how stories can increase understanding, such as a poem about Napoleon. The presentation discusses finding stories, telling them engagingly, and using PowerPoint features like animation, video and sound. It emphasizes making stories culturally sensitive and having fun to actively involve students in learning.

1. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Licence.
Teaching through Multimedia Storytelling
(or getting the dog to whistle!)
The Easy Steps Way®
Susan Lieberman
June 2012
The Business School
Humber College ITAL

2. Storytelling Session
This session explores
teaching through multimedia
storytelling
– Why? What? When? How?
– Focus on presentation software
PowerPoint, Keynote…
– Sourcebook
• PowerPoint Worksheets,
articles, bibliography &
more …
Let’s get started …
2

3. Tell me a story!
Let’s start our exploration of “why stories?” through a story ...
3
Great matching song is “Tell me a story” by Lonesome Val, NYC album

4. Napoleon
Why stories?
Children, when was
Napoleon Bonaparte born,
asks teacher.
A thousand years ago, the
children say.
A hundred years ago, the
children say.
Last year, the children say.
No one knows.
Children, what did
Napoleon Bonaparte do,
asks teacher
Poem by Miroslav Holub from Barton, Bob and Booth, David, Stories in the Classroom, (Pembroke
4
Publishers Limited, 1990), p11. Image www.historyonthenet.com/Sources/primary_or_secondary_source.htm

5. Napoleon cont.
Won a war, the children say.
Lost a war, the children say.
No one knows.
Our butcher had a dog
Called Napoleon,
Says Frantisek
The butcher used to beat him and the dog died
Of hunger
A year ago.
And all the children are now sorry
For Napoleon.
Miroslav Holub
Barton, Bob and Booth, David, Stories in the Classroom, (Pembroke Publishers Limited, 1990), p11
5

6. What would a student remember about
Napoleon?
So, why use stories? ...
6

7. Buzz Session
• Turn to a person sitting in
a near-by seat
• Identify at least 2 reasons
why we would use a
story in our teaching
7

8. Why use a story?
What does a story give?
A story provides ways for students to
– assign context for meaning
– receive memory cues
– connect to unconscious through
visualization or mental imprint with
perceptions and emotions
– see multiple sides to quandaries
– develop alternate thinking routes
– find epiphanies
– increase respect for others
– model critical thinking skills
– see self in a new way
– give advice and comfort
– influence people
– shape emotions
– foster imagination
To summarize…
8

9. Getting the Dog to Whistle Story
Caryn, her dog Eddie and her friend Ayesha are outside at the park
Caryn turns to Ayesha and says, “I taught Eddie how to whistle”
Ayesha says “No way! Show me”
They both look at the dog standing there wagging its tail with its tongue hanging
out
Caryn finally commands “Okay, Eddie, whistle!”
The dog does nothing but wag its tail
Caryn says “Whistle, Eddie”
The dog still does nothing
This goes on for quite a while
Finally, Ayesha turns to Caryn in disgust and says “Hey, you said your dog could
whistle but we‟ve been here for 10 minutes listening to you tell him to whistle
and he hasn‟t done anything!”
Caryn looks at Ayesha with a grin on her face and says “Of course he can‟t
whistle. I told you I taught him how to whistle. I didn‟t say he learned it”
So, how do we go beyond teaching to learning in a classroom?
9
Story adapted from Wacker & Silverman, Stories Trainers Tell (Pfeiffer, 2003) p. 340

10. Teaching?
Getting the dog to whistle
Getting your students to LEARN!!!!
How do students respond to teaching through storytelling?
10

11. Do students learn from the stories?
“The stories and case studies in this course helped
my understanding of the material”
Agree Disagree
33% 3%
Strongly
Disagree
2%
Strongly Agree
Strongly
Agree
Agree
62% Disagree
Strongly Disagree
Based on feedback received in Student Feedback Questionnaires over 6 years
(857 responses) 11

12. Student comments about stories?
“Helped me to think
critically”
“Some were so
outrageous it just
sticks in your head”
“every time I studied I
referred to the stories
and everything just
popped in my mind”
“Great. They helped
me a lot and
attracted me. I
love the idea of
12
bringing stories in”

13. ESL/Multicultural Response
“It was very helpful because for my
case, I have language problem
therefore, the stories helped me to
understand ... much easier”
• Stories provide rich context-
embedded comprehensible input 
• And stories have been shown to
have physiological importance…
13

14. Storytelling & Physiology
• The Brain
– Left “side” processes text
– Right “side” provides context
– Need to teach to both “sides”
• Content within meaningful context
– Scientific American Mind
• The Secrets of Storytelling Aug/Sept
2008
• Storytelling (especially with
PowerPoint) reinforces both text
and context for students
And some consider stories to be even more important…
14

15. Jacques Cousteau
“My grandfather shifted a paradigm in our world
on how we understand our oceans, and he did that
by telling stories and engaging people to think about
the issues and to take action in their communities...”
(Alexandra Cousteau, G & M, July 17, 2010)
15
Photo purchased from iStock

16. “OK, so what’s a story?”
• Narrative unit with
– Beginning, middle and end
– Conflict or challenge
– Rhythm
– Emotional context/shaping
– Sensory details
• Refer to
– Kieran Egan‟s an imaginative
approach to teaching
– Robert Fulford‟s The Triumph of
Narrative (1999 Massey Lectures)
16

17. But, what about ….
• Other „story‟ forms, such as
– Examples, case studies &
problems used for problem-
based learning (PBL)
• For me, stories
– „Fly‟ – more freedom to play
with imagination
– Enhance connection to learners
– Deliberate
– Don‟t need listeners to go to
outside research
… So “when” do we tell stories? ...
Anytime  17

18. Video Stories to Introduce a Lesson
• Videos - Capture quickly what
could take much longer and be
less meaningful or “distant” if
using words
• Eg To introduce the topic of
safety in the workplace
– Start with a quick 31 second visual
story
– “Because there are no such
things as accidents”
YouTube video is an ad for WSIB Workplace Safety –available at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1Z8xxWhh5k
18

19. Stories to Develop Concepts
• Issue: Conflict resolution
– When, how and why use different
options?
• Sam bought a new cell phone from
the manufacturer‟s outlet, Cool
Energy Life Ltd (CELL). She paid a
lot of money for the phone and it
stopped working after three days!
She is miserable!!!
• What can Sam do?
– Negotiation …
Yes, stories work anytime in a lesson, not just as
“after the fact” examples
And remember …. 19

20. 3 Ps & 3 Cs...
lan ahead
onnect story to learning
outcome
reate a focused strategic
pathway to the story
larify the story‟s purpose
ractise out loud
unch the clock
– Keep track of time
20
So, where do we find good stories?

21. Where do we find stories?☺
• Everywhere!!!
– Newspapers, books, magazines
– TV, radio, YouTube, videos, in
ternet
– Home, work, leisure activities
and places
– Food, clothing, pets
– Friends, family, colleagues,
– Examples already used, and
– Our friendly dinosaurs
21

22. How to tell our stories?
• (Almost) Dramatize
Anything goes! Describe
– Tell it
– Read it Pause
– Sing it Gesture
– Act it
React
– Show it
– Play it (Avoid
– Make it up sarcasm)
And be culturally sensitive ...
22

23. Cultural Sensitivity
• Check that stories are
appropriate for our learners
• Eg Vietnam experience
– When planning, I asked my
translator whether the Napoleon
poem would be appropriate
– He said “OK to use Napoleon,
but change story from dog to a
bird, preferably a parrot”
– Here is the version I used …
23

24. Naploeon cont.
Won a war, the children say.
Lost a war, the children say.
No one knows.
Our neighbour has a parrot
Called Napoleon,
Says Binh
The parrot is famous because
It can dance.
And now all the children
Want to meet
Napoleon the parrot.
Adapted from Barton, Bob and Booth, David, Stories in the Classroom, (Pembroke Publishers
24
Limited, 1990), p11

25. What would be remembered about
Napoleon?
So be sure to make use of multimedia
storytelling with PowerPoint (or Keynote)!!!
25

26. Unleash the POWER in PowerPoint
• PowerPoint features? ☺
– Organization
– Sound and music
– Picture
– Video
– Animation
– Hyper-linking
• Websites, documents, other
presentations & slides
– Transitions
– Underlining, highlighting
– Charts, graphs …
Have fun and .....
26

27. Take risks
• Our students want
entertainment and
involvement!!!!
• We “teach” while they (&
we) have fun AND learn
• Use PowerPoint slides to
imprint stories
• Be flexible, take risks and
enjoy!
27

28. Wrap-up
• Teach through
Multimedia storytelling!
• Have fun with your
PowerPoint slides
• And remember - It‟s all
about getting the dog to
whistle!
Great matching whistling tune is “Main Hoon Na” by Javed Akhtar
28

29. Citations
•The original presentation includes several animations and sounds.
Images, Cartoons & Sounds not already cited are from the
following subscribed (s) or royalty-free (r) sources
 Microsoft Office clips (s)
 www.iStock.com (s)
 www.Animation.com (s)
 www.cartoonstock.com (s)
 The Nightingale Voice Box (s)
 ClickART Cartoons (s)
This presentation is also available in the form of a
Squidoo lens at
http://www.squidoo.com/TeachCollege

30. Thank You & The End
30