Don’t tell me you don’t have a family story. I will pry one out of you in the blink of an eye! We all have a family and a personal set of stories, they are part of what makes us who we are. That family story may not be the 1950’s family image, family to… Continue Reading
Author Archives: carolynstearns
3 Reasons to Attend Connecticut Storytelling Festival
Only three reasons? It is hard for me to choose three reasons to attend the Connecticut Storytelling Festival, but here I go. http://www.connstorycenter.org/festival.htm 1.) 2016 Festival Headliner Tim Lowry; is funny, interesting, educational, and a general character, a historical speaker bringing history to life! http://www.storytellertimlowry.com/ Well that is a mouthful, but you will see Tim… Continue Reading
Power In the Classroom – Storytelling Ellis Island
The room hushed, eyes all looked expectantly toward the guest. She stood at the front of the classroom, took a deep breath and held the trance a few extra seconds. Her words spilled out. At first the words came in a soft trickle then stronger as the story grew. The story character climbed the gang plank… Continue Reading
Fiona’s Viral Post
Her name is Fiona, she is one of many beautiful calves at Mountain Dairy in Storrs/Mansfield Connecticut. www.mountaindairy.com What is so special about her has been the reaction a photo of her received on Facebook. Mountain Dairy is our family farm. My grandchildren are the 11th generation. I take care of social media for… Continue Reading
Take Back Childhood
Can you count 10 moments in childhood that you remember as being near perfect? Here are some of mine. These memories have a new job…. #1) Lazy summer days, no agenda, just staying outside all day! #2) Ice Cream Cones – take it back tonight, go out for ice cream! #3) Swimming, the Beach or… Continue Reading
Fair Season, I Have The Story
Children grow up! One minute you are wrapped up in a whirlwind life filled with kids. The next minute you sit back and watch other people working with their kids, and it’s too quiet. No time of year makes me realize that more, than fair season. We were one of those families who brought… Continue Reading
5 Moments that Pulled Heart Strings
Everyone has experienced a moment that pulled at their heart strings and exposed emotions raw and so close they overflowed, usually with tears. It might have been a departure for a trip, a loved one leaving for military service and the great unknown expanse of time before seeing them again. Think back to WWII.… Continue Reading
Prompt July 4 Family Stories
July 4th and you are planning a picnic. Nothing newsworthy just some family and friends coming over. This year make it special, collect a few memories from your guests. Ask ahead for a couple of favorite recipes to prepare and share. Be sure everyone gets a copy of the recipe to take home. Then ask for the story behind… Continue Reading
50 Objects 50 Stories, Connecticut Historical Society
Connecticut Historical Society had a great idea! They have a new exhibit that highlights 50 varied objects from Connecticut, along with the story of the object. The objects themselves are a varied lot, they range from a Space Suit to a Revolutionary period diary of State Hero Nathan Hale and on to a Pepe’s… Continue Reading
Ancestors at Sea
Did your ancestors work the sea? What immigrant ship did your ancestors arrive on? Tell family stories with accuracy to detail, with a visit to a nautical museum or website. Here are some places to begin your voyage of discovery, the family stories from the sea. The whale boat above, is an image from Mystic Seaport,… Continue Reading
You Spent How Much?
How many arguments have been started with that phrase, I bet you can remember a few of your own. It may be that whom ever it is questioning your financial savvy, just doesn’t understand the economics of I love this I want this I need this This is perfect for or I’ve been… Continue Reading
5 Ways to Preserve Family Stories
The teen sat on the park bench, hungry, tired, jobless, a boy of New Haven, Connecticut. He wondered what the world would hold for him. He sat staring into space, after awhile his focus landed on a beautiful girl across the street, near the corner of Church and Chapel Streets. She was made of wood! It was… Continue Reading
5 Tips for Memorial Day Family Stories
Memorial Day 2015 Who in your family has a story that needs to be collected before it’s too late? How did they serve our nation? Where were they sent in the service? What branch of the military were they in? My father; the late Herman F. Marshall, a member of the U.S. Army, during WWII.… Continue Reading
3 Hauntingly Interesting Connecticut Places
History and Haunting seem to go together, ever have an eerie feeling at some historic site? Remember a time when you felt the chill on a warm day, you were some where historic of course! There is so much history in Connecticut, I thought I could share a few places I have had a sense of time… Continue Reading
5 Questions About a Power Outage Lead to a Story
The power is out. That always makes for a family story. Next time you get together with family, ask them if they have a story from a time the power went out. 1.) How long was it out? 2.) What season was it? 3.) Was there a blizzard or hurricane? 4.) Was the cause some accident… Continue Reading
A Fairy Tale from a Family Story
You finally have the kids bathed and in bed. They have had a glass of water, you read a story and they still won’t sleep. Don’t despair they need a family story from the best storyteller in the world – YOU! HOW? What Fairy Tale, Aesop Fable or Mother Goose story or folk tale are… Continue Reading
Family Recipes, 5 Questions for Family Stories
Food and Family, the two can hardly be separated. Family events and every day suppers hold lots of food memories and they are a good place to start collecting family stories too. Everyone has a food story to share! Are you ready to collect a family story? You can ask your kids your elders… Continue Reading
A World of Storytelling Radio
I need a little company when I’m in the office for extended hours. I tune into “A World of Storytelling Radio”, you can too, just click here: http://www.live365.com/stations/storytellingradio WHY? It’s simple, we all need a story, a little something that speaks to our common humanity. You may tune in when a poignant love story… Continue Reading
What Does Your Family Sound Like?
Every family has a certain playlist. That constant background music or noise that is seldom acknowledged. When I was a teen I babysat for a family, it was a no TV house, the constant background there was classical music piped softly to every room. It was a serene household, but I always had to fight… Continue Reading
Ties to a Shipyard Story
Allen, that is a family name, my Paternal Grandmother was Pauline Allen Marshall. She was from Port Greville, Nova Scotia Canada. Here she is as a young woman in Rye New Hampshire. She came to the United States as a young teen to work in the Amoskeag Mills in Manchester, NH. Allen is an… Continue Reading
5 Questions to Ask Collectors for a Family Story
Almost everyone I know collects something, from rocks to cars, the collections are a hobby and a glimpse into a family story. So how do we unearth the story from the dusty collection? Of course this is simpler if the collector is still collecting, grab a recording device, audio or video and a pen and… Continue Reading
Revolutionary Family Stories
From “The British are coming , the British are coming”, to “We the people”, the time of the American Revolution spun a great many family stories. Some of the names, faces and characters are well known from our history lessons. Many are unknown and buried in a couple of centuries of dust. To unearth… Continue Reading
3 Prompts to Collect a Family Story
Just ask a few questions, and with that you can collect a family story to share in the oral tradition of storytelling, or write in a journal or memoir. Here are 3 questions you can ask, you can change them, or rearrange the order. Make a point each week to ask a family member some… Continue Reading
Erebos – Art and the Family Story
Why should we bother to collect a family story? Who cares what Grandpa did in the war or where Grandma learned to drive a car? Does it really matter that some family members lived through the Depression? Yes, it all matters, it is part of the threads that make our family fabric, it is where… Continue Reading
I Need a Time Machine – Focus on Family Stories
I need a time machine! I would like to whisk back in time to another era and have a look around. What was there, what wasn’t how can I describe the place so others can see it as it was in a time passed? I looked on Ebay and Amazon – no time machine suitable… Continue Reading
The Button Box – Focus on Family Stories
I have my Grandmother’s button box. Most women saved buttons back in the day, back when people counted every penny and certainly didn’t want to spend any extra on something like a button. Buttons were salvaged from clothes going to rags, buttons found, buttons saved when a coat made shorter, buttons for shirts and… Continue Reading
Archaeology and Family Stories
It was as if I entered a portal to time and crossed over to the American Revolution. Was this a table in the offices of Archaeological and Historical Services, Inc or my great, great, great, great- Grandmothers kitchen table? http://www.ahs-inc.biz/mainpage.html While researching a family story online I found an archaeological report… Continue Reading
A-MAZE-ING If You Give A Donkey an Ice Crea Cone
How 2 donkeys helped me promote an event! Summer on Blue Hill had become sooooo boring, event the grass was short. Tobasco wished for an adventure. Tobasco told his friend Jassper about his wish and Jassper wished too! Could they have a DAYCATION? PLEASE! See how I used story to promote an event I was… Continue Reading
Who was Caleb Barnes; Focusing on Family Stories
Sometimes the search isn’t easy! I am trying to find out just who Caleb Barnes was, not the name and date in a genealogy, but the man. How did he make a living and where did he live? Did he build his own house, where was it. What were his ties to the Connecticut River… Continue Reading
My Father Built Me…..Telling Family Stories
Here is a great line to start a conversation and collect a story from someone. “My father built me….” What did your father build for you? Feel free to share in the comments. It might have been a tree house a dollhouse, a toy, a piece of furniture. I was prompted by this photo to… Continue Reading
The Patriot Gave Everything – Focus on Family Stories
Are you aware of the thousands who died for the cause of America, not in battles of our Revolution, but as prisoners of war held by the British under the most horrific of conditions. Their story is mostly forgotten, their lives given to the new nation undervalued by history, unserved by classroom text. The stories of… Continue Reading
Grandpa in WWI a Developing Family Story
Where to begin, I have a collection of letters my Grandfather, George Brooks Armstead sent home from the front when he worked for the YMCA in WWI. I have read them all, now the big question how to go from a batch of letters to a story to share? I read them straight through in chronological… Continue Reading
What is Wikipedia saying about your Storytelling Festival? NOTHING! Unless YOU change that!
Shared from the National Storytelling Network blog, co-authored by Norah Dooley and Carolyn Stearns http://blog.storynet.org/what-is-wikipedia-saying-about-your-storytelling-festival-nothing-unless-you-change-that What is Wikipedia saying about your Storytelling Festival? NOTHING! Unless YOU change that!. Continue Reading
A Story From a Silver Teapot – Family Stories
The inspiration for a family story may come from a simple object. It need not be an antique, it could be an everyday item that inspires a favorite family tale. One such item for me is a little teapot. I received this as a teen from my mother, she got it from her mother. The… Continue Reading
Focused on Family Stories – Riding for Uncle Samuel
I plan to focus my blog on family stories past and present. Previous postings have skipped all over the place much like my interests and attention. Over and over again I am reminded of the importance of family stories and our connections to people and places through story. So here we go, New Year… Continue Reading
Christmas Mice Visit Mystic Aquarium
Please, let me introduce you to these Christmas Mice, Alexa and William. I met them a week ago in Mystic CT. They had arrived with Santa and were intent on coming home with me to prepare for the after holiday visit by my Grandchildren. Santa told me the mice would have ideas of things to… Continue Reading
Weathervane Story Resources; Everythings Ducky
A Duck in flight tops this building at a fair and tells us which way the wind blows. I love the artistry of the wings, very close to life like. Our foul friends show up in stories let’s see what we can find! Let’s start our duck resource list with a Russian Folk Tale… Continue Reading
Focusing on One Thing
There is power in focusing the camera on just one thing, see what these 10 images taught me.Focus, I try to focus and see what an image is telling me, what does it represent in my life. I try to see the world around me as individual entities and as a part of the whole, instead of the… Continue Reading
One Day Museum
The One Day Museum was an impromptu idea that has hung on for the long haul through May and will be around through the end of the school year and into summer day camp. I have been pleasantly surprised at the interest and enthusiasm the One Day Museum has created with students. The set… Continue Reading
Where do Fish Stories Come From?
Where do fish stories come from? How do we find the vehicle to tell a story and make it compelling for the listening experience. I am a performance storyteller for all ages, my current project is for a curriculum guided school based program. Whose voice should the story represent and what message do I need… Continue Reading
Chalk It Up to Hans Christian Andersen
The Flying Trunk – A Fairytale in Chalk Hans Christian Andersen penned the fairy tale “The Flying Trunk” The tale was first published in 1839. I chose it for a project at the after school I work in because of its relation to flying. For the month of April the theme at after… Continue Reading
I’m Leaving You
My close friends won’t be surprised by my declaration of independence. My neighbors won’t hold any grudge although some will miss socializing with “us” as a couple. I will learn to be social without the pain of the long tenuous relationship. We set out in our relationship so many years ago. We had the… Continue Reading
The Birth of an Audio CD
How many hours, how many emails, how many years? Yes, years from start of the CD idea to CD in hand. In order to make the best CD, I needed to be ready, and so did the material. This is a storytelling CD, but the same could be said for music, you have to… Continue Reading
Snow Day…Again
Another Connecticut snow day has me locked away in my home office. I had work to get done, but since I was up early my long day included some arts. I had a fun time exploring the new set of watercolors, they are fancy, in little aluminum tubes. I painted this Cod, that… Continue Reading
A Paper City
The after school program I work at has been making little paper houses, bigger paper churches and more. The Paper City Project introduces maps in a 3D lesson on the students home town. The cold winter days lent themselves to coloring tiny buildings and cutting them out. From a simple hand drawn pattern the basic houses were crafted… Continue Reading
8 Things to Do When it is Wicked Cold
I don’t know about you but I am ready for spring! It won’t be here for awhile yet in Connecticut and even longer if you live north of this latitude. So I gathered some ideas for things to do when the North wind blows and the snow piles up and the little red line… Continue Reading
2013 National Storytelling Festival
The National Storytelling Festival What an adventure it is to attend the National Storytelling Festival! I was invited by my friend Norah Dooley www.norahdooley.com who would be telling in the Exchange Place. I have wanted to go to the festival for a long time and 2013 with Norah’s invite, I finally made it there. We’ve travelled… Continue Reading
Hands Wide Open; Reviewed
Hands Wide Open a CD by Ms. Sheila Arnold Storyteller Oh! Ms. Sheila what a collection of stories to touch the heart and warm the soul! I was swept away and lingered in the car listening to the last, not yet ready to leave your rich voice and soothing words. The opening story, Weeping Willow… Continue Reading
Launch of a Great Ship- The Charles W. Morgan
The Charles W. Morgan, the last wooden whaling ship of a bygone era went back into the water on July 21,2013. Her maiden launch was on July 21, 1841 at New Bedford, Ma. Through the talents of countless craftsman and steadfast fundraisers the iconic ship was carefully restored and readied for a launch. Towering over… Continue Reading
Singing the Chesapeake
When we teach children to love, honor and respect the rivers and streams that lead down to great bays and the sea we have taken them on a journey to save the Earth. The message is often lost in the abundant activities crammed into an annual vacation adventure. Music has the power to get the… Continue Reading
Chalk Up Student Fairy Tales
What do kids know and understand of fairy tales? How do they interpret them? I, as a storyteller, was wondering and used sidewalk chalk as a way to begin exploration of the questions. I work in an after school program and thought the kids would enjoy a spring afternoon with sidewalk chalk. I began… Continue Reading
Job Posting: Troll Caretaker
Caretaker Wanted: for single male troll Person of interest in employment as Troll Caretaker should apply by visiting the realty site and arrange a tour of the home. The current troll keepers are moving on. The well established and low maintenance troll wishes new caretaker to be easy going and patient with troll like behaviors. New… Continue Reading
Why I Tried Out for America’s Got Talent
“You went to New York City for the America’s Got Talent T.V. Show auditions …….Really? Why, How ? What was it like? Tell me more!” I’ve heard that a lot in the last week! Imagine this scenario:“Hello CBS Broadcasting how much is a 2 minute commercial? A few questions, of course, yes, Prime Time,… Continue Reading
Social Media “You Can’t Make Me”
“You can’t make me!”, a childhood declaration en route to the unwanted bath, or the dreaded family event, it is a classic line of resistance. Often the phrase is a playground recourse to a dare or command to adhere to some childhood standard. We learn this early in life and wear the moments proudly in memory. The time… Continue Reading
I Was Absent, But I Produced…
I was absent from my blog.Was there homework? Is there a new assignment? I took a hiatus from writing and posting, chasing articles and images, I just took a break. I believe in the power of my blog to reach people and to get information I feel relevant, collected and redistributed. A little bit… Continue Reading
Students Caught Eating Curriculum
Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math curriculum must be delicious, students at my workshops thought so! The workshop and demonstration S.T.E.A.M. Ice Cream is rocking the schools with excitement and creating buzz at expos and fair type outings. S.T.E.A.M. Ice Cream uses alternative energy to make 5 gallons of delicious ice cream. Students don’t think twice… Continue Reading
Weather Vanes Fox Story Resource
Weather vanes story resources is an occasionally recurring series in my blog. Each weather vane highlights particular subjects with links and anecdotal information to help create a living story from material on the web. Elusive and wily the fox in story and in the wild represents a character of resource and cunning. Brer Fox is… Continue Reading
100 Day Journey to Mustang Makeover
100 days ago he was nothing, no… he was a bit of wind and plains trapped temporarily in horsehide. The BLM ( Bureau of Land Management) round up, brought him in and he was put with a shipment headed east to TN. There he ran through chutes and into the waiting trailer of trainer Geoff… Continue Reading
Won’t Be Caught Speeding
My husband had a tire blowout the other day, ripped a gaping smile shape into the thick black rubber tire. My son, a mechanical minded young man set to the task of changing out the tire for a new one. It quickly became apparent that the axles were a different diameter. My husband said it… Continue Reading
Wed. Word Wisdom – Hand
Wednesday Word Wisdom with Carolyn Stearns StorytellerHand; it’s not what you think it is really so much more. As an equine reference point it is a fun word to define. Hand: a unit of length measurement equalling four inches, used for measuring the height of horses, usually from the front hoof to the withers… Continue Reading
Wed. Word Wisdom – Sheepishly
Wednesday Word Wisdom highlights a different word each week. Many will have agricultural backgrounds. Can you use my word of the week during your week? I think kids would have fun finding ways to make a movie of a definition, I sure am! Sheepishly; This flock at The University of Connecticut, College of Agriculture is… Continue Reading
Wed. Word Wisdom – Ruminate
Wednesday Word Wisdom from Carolyn Stearns Storyteller Ruminate to meditate and ponder…. We all do it a little, but I thought the time to get back to our roots was now. The roots of our language are based in agriculture at times, especially this word! Ruminate Don’t you feel better knowing we have a… Continue Reading
Rape of the Sea – Book Review “Cod”
Cod by Mark Kurlansky A Cod fish, seems innocent enough, yet has created international fighting, gunshots, territorial wars and innovations that have indeed raped the sea. This book is a incredible cross curriculum look at what on the surface is simple, in realityis a complex issue stemming from centuries old fishing practices to politics of today.… Continue Reading
History 300 & Coventry Farmers Market
Adventuring in local history I find a web of connections to the state, nation and world. No historical event is singular, each is a domino, or a thread, like I found today in Coventry, CT. This web between historic headstones is an example of how the story and history of one connects to the next. I found… Continue Reading
Act!vated Story Visiting CT.
National Touring Theatre Company to Appear at Shubert Library The national touring theatrical troupe Act!vated Story Theatre will arrive to “Act!vate” multicultural folktales at the Bryam Shubert Library, 21 Mead Avenue in Greenwich, on Monday, Sept. 10 at 3:00 p.m . The 45-minute program is free and suitable for all ages. The troupe will perform… Continue Reading
Simple Pleasures – Christmas Spirits
A few years ago this story fell in my lap. I was hunting for something to share over the holidays and piece by piece this came to me. It was as if the story had been waiting to be found and left a trail of clues for me to follow. “Christmas Spirits” is historical fiction.… Continue Reading
Never the Twain Shall Meet
We will never meet Mark Twain ( the pen name of Samuel Clemens), but standing in his home, surrounded by possessions that were his, a glimpse. Reading his works penned in the third story “man cave”, I know more. Reading what a few of our American Presidents had to say about Mark Twain, yet another… Continue Reading
Weather Vanes Story Resources Part 7
This is a really fantastic weather vane that adorns the top of the carousel building in Pullen Park Raleigh North Carolina. http://www.raleighnc.gov/arts/content/PRecRecreation/Articles/PullenPark.html This park not only has a carousel, but a mini train, boat rides, and amusements as well as impeccably maintained playgrounds. The Raleigh Community Arts Center, boast performance and class space for the… Continue Reading
Vermont of Yesteryear is Waiting For You
It was a time to enjoy a slower pace, my annual trip to Vermont. The many iconic images of Vermont were revival for the senses, Granite, the Sugar Maple, the Morgan horse, Green Mountains and country stores. It is here on roads that wander between mountain and valley that I recharged my battery over a work… Continue Reading
Lil Joe, A Mustang HorseAdventure
A100 Day Extreme Mustang Makeover is underway and Lil Joe a Utah Wild Mustang is the star.Trainer Geoff Goodson has been working with Joe to help him become a trusted equestrian partner. Want to learn more about the trainers and the competition with these Mustang Horses check their home:http://www.mustangheritagefoundation.org/emm.php It all began when Geoff picked up Lil Joe… Continue Reading
5 Items to Pack for Storytelling with Children
I’m off to a storytelling gig with children.Time to pack my big canvas tote bag. I always prepare a program and some bonus or extra materials. You never know, extra kids, need to shift focus due to unforeseen event, I’m ready. My favorite reason to be flexible, “kids say the darnedest things” thanks Art Linkletter for the… Continue Reading
Participatory Storytelling
Re-posting a blog on Participatory Storytelling, crossing platforms and geographic area to engage people in a blogs, Facebook, tweets and other social media to tell a final story when all the components are gathered. I loved the Three Little Pigs segment to access via QR code. Check it out looks like fun! By: Robert Pratten Link: Participatory Storytelling… Continue Reading
American Mustang Horse From the Bottom Up
Connecticut has many horses living here but one who is here temporarily is developing quite a story. Lil’ Joe Wrangler is 3. A small bay with a brave heart. He was culled from the Utah Wild Horses and sent on a journey to be part of the Extreme Mustang Makeover. www.extrememustangmakeover.com Lil Joe was picked… Continue Reading
Story Stones- Story Resources
The rain ceased, the clouds disappeared, the dry summer commenced. Just below a course mountain of volcanic rock where hill meets level plain, that is where the last bit of water glistened on river rocks. They waited…. Not for a drink but for more stories about rocks and stones. For time to explore and time… Continue Reading