My last visit to Manor Beach was in December 2016. I had a great time sharing ‘More Impossible Tales’, so it was lovely to be invited back to lead a storytelling assembly and two writing workshops.
The morning started with a storytelling session in the hall with all of the Key Stage 2 pupils. The children listened amazingly well for twenty-five minutes as I put on the story waistcoat and shared the story of Deep Scar Davies and the pirate medallion. It’s one of my favourite stories to perform and I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve tangled with Deep Scar! Fortunately, we all made it back safe and sound.
The rest of the morning was split between the two Year 5 classes. Each class had listened to my short story, ‘Blown Away’ from the original Impossible Tales. It features a kid with super-powered trumps! My task was to get the pupils to recreate their own versions of the ending.
After recapping the main events and pulling apart my story ending, the pupils shared ideas for their version. The children’s level of creativity and imagination was a joy to behold and they generated all manner of weird and wacky suggestions. As my stories are Impossible Tales, pretty much anything goes. The pupils planned out their three-paragraph endings before getting stuck into the first draft. My favourite part of the morning was listening to the children as they proudly read out their story endings. It’s was ace!
I had a cracking time at Manor Beach and I’d like to thank Mrs Ward for inviting me along. It was a pleasure to spend the morning in such a lovely school.