Telling stories to children

How can I tell children's stories in an exciting way?

Speak clearly: When telling stories to children, you should make sure the words are pronounced clearly and, if necessary, a little more slowly. Especially if your child doesn't yet know the story, they need the time to be able to follow the plot.

Gestures and facial expressions: If your child notices that you are fully engaged in telling the story, the mood can quickly rub off. Joy, sadness, or tension expressed in your facial expressions can help your child dive into the story and empathize with the characters.

Adjust the volume: If something mysterious happens in the plot while you are telling the story to your child, or a character sneaks up on someone, you can lower your voice to a whisper and also get loud when something exciting happens or someone screams. Of course your child should not be frightened, but when you change the volume of your voice you attract your child's attention and secure their concentration.

Join in the actions: If the story says that a character is laughing, yawning, or making distinctive sounds, you can include these while telling the children's story. This makes the reading come alive.

Leave pauses: A short pause and building a suspense arc – that makes every action more exciting when you tell stories to children. Conversely, you can also speak faster when the prince has to ride very quickly to escape the monster.

Changing roles: Use your voice to give different characters a distinct personality. The children's story becomes more lively if the grumpy troll mutters into his beard and the king maybe speaks nasally. In combination with pictures, your child can immerse even more in the story and their imagination will be stimulated.

Telling children's stories: What suits which age?

Tastes vary – this is of course also true when telling stories to children. Whether your child prefers stories about animals, knights, wizards, or monsters, you can only find out by trying. And preferences can change. What has always captivated your child until now may be boring tomorrow.

About 0 to 2 years old:

From the very beginning you can tell your child stories and Children's books read aloud. Even if at first the content of the stories is less interesting and you can choose the exciting stories yourself, the baby enjoys the shared moments. Over time, of course, the topics of the stories become more important. Especially Picture books for children and babies become exciting then. Here you can discover colorful pictures with your child and read or invent stories to go with them.

Tip: Babies want to not only see the first stories in their picture books, but also feel them. For this, Baby books with exciting tactile elements like faux fur, crinkly foil, or small mirror surfaces. That makes reading stories together even more fun!

About 2 to 3 years old:

At this age most children are excited by stories from everyday life. Here they can recognize people and places and more easily empathize with the story. They will probably also begin to slowly tell stories themselves about past experiences. You can include your child as a character in your story or tell about an event you experienced together.

From about 3 years old:

Now the children's stories told can already become somewhat more abstract and fairy-tale-like. It is important that your child finds a character in the story who copes with all situations and that the story ends well. The older your child gets, the longer the stories can be.

About 3 to 4 years old:

Now your child is in the so-called 'fairy-tale age'. You can tell your child stories from the Brothers Grimm's collection of fairy tales or read one of the literary fairy tales by Hans Christian Andersen. It is still important that the plot is simple and predictable and that the heroes of the stories overcome evil easily — whether by magic or other special means.

From about 5 years old:

Now the children's stories told can be somewhat longer. Your child can now even follow stories that have two plotlines that intertwine. Time jumps are also allowed. However, they should cover time periods your child knows and can imagine, such as two days or one week.

About 6 to 7 years:

From this age you can tell stories together with your child. They are now able to retell children's stories they already know. So you can jointly tell a fairy tale like 'The Frog Prince' and if your child gets stuck, you jump in to help. But let your child tell as much as possible. This way they learn to put themselves into the characters and understand their feelings.

From 8 years old:

Now the roles can be reversed. Your child is now capable of inventing and telling stories themselves. That is not only a lot of fun, but also promotes your child's expressive abilities and expands their vocabulary.

Tip: How about Bedtime stories for babies and toddlers? They are the ideal bedtime ritual to creatively end the day. They also give your child the security they need to calm down in the evening.

Checklist for telling children's stories in an exciting way

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Not too thrilling: Especially Children's fairy tales to listen to and get excited about or stories with unknown plots can sometimes become too exciting for children. If you notice that your child starts to become afraid while you're telling the story, you should first continue reading with your 'normal' voice until they have calmed down a bit.
Read beforehand: Also, read-aloud children's stories can easily be made exciting. The better you know a story, the easier it will probably be for you to build suspense while reading. That way you won't be surprised by the plot while reading and can concentrate on embellishing. Of course you don't have to rehearse the reading. But you will certainly come to know your child's favorite book almost by heart very quickly.
Allow interruptions: Even if you are currently telling your child a story and get into the role of the characters, you should let your child have a say. Intervening questions and comments show that your child is interested in the story and is listening attentively. Maybe you both can change the plot sometimes and continue it together. Because Inventing stories with children, is fun and helps them process situations and experiences from everyday life.