A love of reading and reading for pleasure is one of the most powerful foundations for future success – it sparks imagination, builds confidence and has the power to transform the lives of children growing up in challenging circumstances.
Children who read regularly are more likely to be happier, healthier, do better at school, develop a strong sense of empathy and overcome socio-economic disadvantages caused by inequalities.
Whilst 95% of parents believe that it is important to read to their child, only 42% share a bedtime story. 1 in 5 a children do not own a single book of their own at home.
Many low income families lack the resources and confidence to create a culture of reading at home. The longer children go without reading regularly, the harder they find it to access and enjoy books, with many children not reading anything at all by the time they get to secondary school.
Story Tellers is about creating a safe, fun and vibrant space where families can come together and enjoy stories. We help children develop a lifelong love of reading by providing the tools to help the whole family feel confident and excited about reading regularly together.
Each week, we use evidence-based practices and methods that are known to help support children in becoming lifelong readers.
Our sessions immerse children and parents in all elements of a story through shared, unhurried reading, games, crafts and comprehension activities which build familiarity and positive associations with stories and books so that families feel more able to establish reading routines at home.
100% of parents we have worked with in the last year said our groups helped them feel more confident about reading aloud to their child, and helped them read more together at home.
The thing we loved most was the sense of community and interacting with other parents and kids.
SaniaThe thing I liked most was how the interactive activities linked to the book which really made my son want to get involved!
GabiThe staff were so animated when telling the story, and the activities fit so well with the story. It made reading feel fun and easy to do.
HenryEzekiel didn’t speak a word his first week at Story Tellers and even the smallest mistake made him retreat. But a few sessions later, he was smiling, whispering ideas, and lighting up the room.
Read how stories helped one little boy rewrite his own.
