Lord Geoffrey and the Power of Storytelling

This month, our 3rd, 4th, and 5th Grade students are participating in an elective story time on Zoom with our lead aftercare instructor Mr. DeRienzo. Using his imagination and a natural flair for storytelling, Mr. DeRienzo has created a series of wonderful adventures for Philip and Suzette, two child thieves who in previous stories were adopted by King Navarre of Córdoba. In the story we’ve shared below, Philip and Suzette must overcome dragons and wizards to deliver a special wedding gift to the king’s cousin Lord Geoffrey.

This imaginative story was originally told to lower grades students, but it’s appropriate for younger (and older) children as well.

Listening to stories, fairy tales, legends, folk tales, and fables are an integral part of the Waldorf curriculum, throughout early childhood and the early grades, leading students in upper grades to their study of biographies, history, and culture. In the grades, academic subjects are often approached through stories, and students at Waldorf schools become keen and curious listeners.

Not surprisingly, many Waldorf teachers (like Mr. DeRienzo!) are skilled storytellers, holding their students’ attention rapt and teaching them to deeply comprehend a story or fable.

To read more about storytelling in Waldorf schools, our colleagues at the Eugene Waldorf School have a good description of the power of stories in our curriculum.