Constructing Narratives - Essay Example

Therefore, in order to enhance their narrative construction, ELL students need to be aware of various elements of language use. This paper will consider the function of storytelling in facilitating the ELL’s capacity to construct narratives, describing the various ways in which storytelling enhances these students’ capacity to recount events. This paper will also examine what ELL students need to be aware of regarding language use so as to enhance their construction of written and oral narrative.

All over the world, people convey stories to their children. Storytelling is a universal action, which is perhaps the most dominant kind of discourse. Through making use of stories and storytelling, ELLs having different beliefs and religious and cultural backgrounds can exist harmoniously in the classroom environment. Storytelling and stories essentially provide students from different religious, cultural and linguistic backgrounds an effective mechanism for appreciating their world, connecting both with their cultures, as well as the cultures of other students and expressing themselves effectively to others (Diaz-Rico & Weed, (2006).

The essence of storytelling is a communicative device, which requires the storyteller and listener to work together collaboratively as transmitters and receivers of both ideas and thoughts. Therefore, in the context of an ELL classroom, storytelling is a means of communication, which allows student storytellers and listeners to share, combine and exchange their experiences in order to create associations and connections. Storytelling helps construct narratives by teaching ELLs about life, about themselves and about other students.

Storytelling creates cultural understanding, which, in turn, enhances the students’ capacity to explore various aspects of their lives, thereby creating narratives based on their cultural roots. Within the context of constructing narrative, storytelling allows ELLs gain insights into various values and traditions and consider new ideas. Furthermore, storytelling enhances children’s capacities to empathize with unfamiliar situations and places. The development of narrative is also possible through storytelling because stories enable children to reveal their commonalities and differences in the cultures represented in the ELL classroom, particularly by enabling children to open up with regard to their cultural roots.

Storytelling and stories also promote narrative creation among ELLs by promoting students’ relaxation and overall well-being (Bruner, 2002). This is primarily because storytelling enhances the willingness of ELL students to communicate their feelings and thoughts. This, in turn, enhances the construction of narrative. Additionally, stories and storytelling encourage ELLs to participate actively in all aspects of their classrooms and lessons, for instance, the construction of narrative, particularly with regard to verbal narrative.

Overall, most stories involve the explanation of various actions taken by the storyteller to achieve a certain result (Craig, Hull, Haggart & Crowder, 2001). As a consequence, storytelling typically entails an extensive use of words for recounting purposes. In essence, storytelling within the ELL classroom helps ELL students enhance their verbal proficiency, thereby enhancing their narrative capabilities. In addition, stories have