Tales and Telling
Learn to hold a room with nothing but a story.
About this course
Students learn the art of storytelling through classic and contemporary stories. The course focuses on understanding plot, character and sequence, while teaching students how to summarise a story without losing what matters. Learners also practise oral storytelling, helping them express ideas clearly, confidently and creatively.
What is included
- Plot, character and sequence fundamentals
- Summarising without losing meaning
- Live oral storytelling practice
- Confidence in front of an audience
Who this course is for
Ages 8–14, particularly children who go quiet in group settings or lose the thread when retelling something. Equally suited to confident talkers who need structure rather than volume.
What you will be able to do
- Retell a story with beginning, middle and end intact
- Summarise without losing the detail that made it matter
- Hold a listener's attention using pace and pause
- Speak to a group without reading from a page
How the course is structured
Session 1: What makes a story a story
Shape, sequence and stakes, taught through stories students already know.
Session 2: Summarising well
The difference between cutting a story down and gutting it. Students summarise the same tale at three different lengths.
Session 3: Telling out loud
Pace, pause and eye contact. Everyone tells; nobody is put on the spot cold.
Session 4: Your story
Each student prepares and performs a short story of their own choosing.
Frequently asked questions
Never cold. We build up through pair work and small-group telling first, and a child who is not ready in week four can tell their story to the teacher instead. Most choose to perform by then.
No. It is oral. Students plan on paper but the work happens out loud. If you want writing, look at Creative Writing for the same age group.
Directly. Presentation confidence is the most common thing parents report back.
Guides worth reading
Similar courses
How it runs
Live online · small group: taught live, never pre-recorded, with sessions recorded afterwards so students can revisit anything they missed. Timings are arranged around school and time zones, and we reschedule when exams or travel get in the way.
Learning Bubble teaches online to students across Pakistan, Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad, as well as the Gulf, the UK and North America. You will need a laptop or tablet with a working camera and a reasonably stable connection. If a course requires any materials at home, we send the list before the first session.