Lesson video

Hi, everyone, my name is Ms Voyle, and welcome to today's lesson, where we are going to be learning all about telling a story with charisma.

We'll be learning different techniques to help you retell the story of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" in a charismatic way.

During this lesson, you'll need to be listening and looking carefully.

But most importantly, there will be lots of tasks where you need somebody to talk to.

You'll also need to use your face and your body to help you retell the story in a charismatic way today.

I hope you're feeling excited and ready to learn.

Let's get started.

The learning outcome for today's lesson is I can understand and practise techniques for telling a story with charisma.

Here are the key words for today's lesson.

Let's practise saying them.

My turn, your turn.

Charisma, tone, facial expression, body language.

Great job, well done.

Let's take a look at their definitions.

Charisma is the natural ability to attract, engage or influence people.

Tone is the pitch of our voice, and how this is used to convey a message appropriately.

Facial expression is a form of nonverbal communication shown on the face to convey a range of emotions.

And body language is how we use movements and gestures to communicate meaning and feelings.

There are two parts to today's lesson.

In the first part, we will be looking at speaking with charisma.

And in the second part, we will be looking at using voices for different characters.

So let's begin with speaking with charisma.

In this unit, you are learning all about oral storytelling.

You are learning and retelling the famous story of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears." You have already done the following, sequence the key events in the story and developed storytelling vocabulary for retelling the story.

In today's lesson, we are going to learn about techniques for telling a story in an engaging way.

Discuss with your partner, why does it matter how we tell a story? How we tell a story impacts how well we engage the audience who are listening to the story.

Telling a story in a charismatic way helps to engage the audience and hold their interest in the narrative throughout.

Charisma means a natural ability to attract, engage or influence people.

You now know the definition of charisma, so I would like you to discuss the following question with your partner.

How do you think you create charisma when telling a story? Pause the video and discuss.

We use our whole body to create charisma.

We need to consider all of the following, changes in our voice, facial expressions and body language and gestures.

Let's check your understanding.

Which of the following support charisma.

A, changes in voice.

B, facial expressions.

C, staying completely still.

D, body language and gestures.

Pause the video and select the correct answers.

The answers are A, B and D, well done.

Changes in voice, facial expressions and the use of body language and gestures all support charisma.

Discuss the following, how can we use our voice to enhance the storytelling process? A varied use of tone and intonation can help us to convey greater meaning when presenting a narrative.

Tone refers to the pitch of our voice.

It is important to use a tone which matches the atmosphere and conveys characters' emotions.

For example, your tone can be light and cheery or it can be tense.

Intonation refers to the changing pitch through the rise and fall of a person's voice.

This can be used to communicate meaning and emphasis.

For example, you may use a rise in intonation for an exclamation.

I would like you to read the following sentences aloud and then discuss this question with your partner.

Where would the tone change and why? Pause the video and do this now.

Hopefully, you said that you would use a light tone, maybe even a cheery one at the beginning before any problem has been introduced.

The bears are just going for a stroll.

Then Goldilocks is introduced, who enters their home without permission, so you could use a surprised tone to convey the shock of this.

And then as she starts to try the bear's items, you would use a tense tone to build suspense.

I am now going to model reading these sentences using changes in tone to convey meaning.

Listen and look carefully.

"One morning, Papa Bear, Mama Bear and Baby Bear "decided to go for a stroll as their porridge cooled.

"Not long later, "a young blonde-haired girl named Goldilocks "stumbled upon their cottage, "and she went inside.

"In the kitchen, "she found three bowls of porridge, "and she decided to taste each one." Can you now read these sentences, using changes in tone to convey meaning? Pause the video and do this now.

Well done, I really loved hearing how your tone changed at different points to convey different meaning.

Facial expressions are a key technique for conveying meaning when storytelling.

As a storyteller, you can use facial expressions to convey a character's feelings in response to events.

Here are some examples.

For the emotion of happiness, you would see the corner of the mouth raised upwards.

For sadness, you would see the corner of the mouth turned down.

For anger, you would commonly see lowered eyebrows and tightly pressed lips or bared teeth.

For surprise, you would see wide eyes and maybe even a dropped jaw.

And for fear, you would commonly see heightened eyebrows and wide eyes.

I would like you to read the following sentences and then discuss this question with your partner.

How would your facial expressions change at each point? Pause the video and discuss now.

You might have said that when reading about Papa Bear's porridge being too hot, you could have a facial expression of worry or fear because if food is too hot, it might burn you.

When talking about Mama Bear's being too cold, you might have a facial expression of disappointment or sadness because when it's too cold, it's not enjoyable to eat.

And then when she tries Baby Bear's and it is just right, you might have a facial expression of relief and happiness because we know that at this point Goldilocks is excited to gobble it all up.

I am now going to model reading those sentences using facial expressions to convey meaning.

Make sure you listen carefully, but most importantly watch my facial expressions carefully too.

"First, she tasted Papa Bear's, "but it was too hot.

"Next, she tried Mama Bear's, "but it was too cold.

"Finally, she had a spoonful of Baby Bear's, "and it was just right, "so she excitedly gobbled it up." Can you now read these sentences, using facial expressions to convey meaning? Pause the video and do this now.

Well done, you did such a fantastic job at using a variety of facial expressions to convey different meaning throughout.

Body language refers to how we use movements and gestures to communicate meaning or feelings.

As the storyteller, your body language may change, depending on the atmosphere and events at each point in a narrative.

For example, you may gesture or mimic a character's actions.

You may use relaxed and open body language when describing positive events for a character.

You may use tense and closed body language when describing difficult events for a character.

I would now like you to read the following sentences and discuss how would you use your body language at each point? Pause the video to discuss with your partner now.

I heard some great answers.

Let's take a look.

So at the beginning of this, it talks about Goldilocks being full and content.

At this point, you would have open body language, and you might even gesture towards the stomach.

Then, when it talks about her excitedly trying each chair, you might give a little bounce for excitement.

Then, when it talks about Papa Bear's chair being way too hard and Mama Bear's chair being a touch too soft, you could use hand gestures to show a lot or a little.

And finally, when it says that she broke Baby Bear's chair and she gave a sigh of frustration, you might use slumped shoulders and closed body language at this point to convey the difficult emotions that Goldilocks might be experiencing.

I am now going to model reading these sentences using body language to convey meaning.

Make sure you listen carefully, but more importantly pay close attention to my body language throughout.

"Feeling full and content, "Goldilocks hopefully went in search of a place to rest.

"In the living room, "she found three chairs.

"She excitedly tried each chair "so she could find the comfiest one.

"Papa Bear's chair was way too hard.

"Mama Bear's chair was a touch too soft.

"But Baby Bear's chair was just perfect.

"However, as she set herself down, "the chair accidentally broke.

"She gave a sigh of frustration." Can you now read these sentences using body language to convey meaning? Pause the video and do this now.

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to you read this section and seeing the different body language and gestures you used to convey meaning, well done.

It's time for a task.

Retell the story of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" from the beginning up to her falling asleep in Baby Bear's bed.

Take turns to tell the story with a partner, saying one sentence each.

Focus on using changes in tone of voice, facial expressions and body language to convey meaning.

Partner A could begin by saying, "Once upon a time, "there lived a family of," finish the sentence.

Partner B could continue, "That same morning, "a young, blonde-haired girl," finish the sentence.

Pause the video to retell the story now.

Welcome back.

Well done for retelling the story of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" from the beginning, all the way up to her falling asleep in Baby Bear's bed.

I really enjoyed listening to you, but more importantly seeing the kinds of facial expressions and body language you used.

Can you now reflect? Did you and your partner do the following to convey greater meaning and character emotion? Did you use changes in your tone of voice? Did you use a range of facial expressions? And did you use body language and gestures? Pause the video now and take a moment to reflect.

Then I would like you to tell your partner at least one thing that they did well when orally retelling the story.

Well done for reflecting.

Hopefully, you managed to identify things that you and your partner did well, and maybe you even identified something you'd like to improve on next time you orally retell a story.

Laura said to her partner, "I liked the way that she created a tense atmosphere "when Goldilocks entered the house." Jacob said to his partner, "When you used your hands "to show the different sizes of the chairs, "it really captured my attention." These are great examples of how you can speak with charisma when orally retelling a story.

It's now time for the second part of our lesson, where we will be looking at using voices for different characters.

We know that we can use changes in our tone of voice to convey greater meaning when telling a story.

It is also important to consider the kind of voices we use for different characters' speech.

Using a different voice for each character helps to convey greater meaning about that character and how they are feeling.

The audience benefits from hearing a different voice for each character as it helps them to identify who is speaking.

Using different voices for each character also helps to bring these characters to life, which engages the audience more.

Let's check your understanding.

Using a different voice for each character, complete the sentence with all of the correct answers.

A, conveys greater meaning about a character and their feelings.

B, creates mystery and confusion for the audience.

C, helps the audience identify which character is speaking.

D, brings the characters to life and engages the audience.

Pause the video now and select all of the correct answers.

The answers are A, C and D, well done.

Using a different voice for each character conveys greater meaning about a character and their feelings, helps the audience identify which character is speaking and brings the characters to life and engages the audience.

It's time for you to discuss a question with your partner.

How do you think your voice might differ for each of the following characters? Papa Bear, Mama Bear and Baby Bear.

Pause the video to discuss with your partner now.

So for Papa Bear, you would use a deeper voice.

For Mama Bear, you would use a softer voice.

And for Baby Bear, because baby Bear is a child, you would use a higher-pitched voice.

The kind of voice you use for each character will also depend on what they are saying and the emotion you are trying to convey.

All three of these voices should be different to the voice you use when telling the rest of the story.

It's now time for you to read the following sentences and then discuss this question.

How would you say each of the character's lines? Pause the video to discuss with your partner now.

So for Baby Bear's speech, you would want to use a high-pitched cry.

We know this because Baby Bear is a child so would speak in a more high-pitched voice.

And the reporting clause says that Baby Bear cried these words.

For Mama Bear, you would want to say this line in a soft and worried tone.

We know that Mama Bear has a softer voice, and the reporting clause says that she asked this question in a concerned voice.

And for Papa Bear, you would want to say this in a deep and serious tone.

We know that Papa Bear has a deeper voice, and it says that he instructed this in a serious and determined manner.

The voice you use for each character should match the reporting clause.

You switch back to your narrator voice for the reporting clause when retelling the story.

I am now going to model reading these sentences using different voices for each character.

Listen carefully.

"'All of my porridge has been eaten,' "cried Baby Bear.

"'Poor Baby Bear's chair is broken too.

"'Who did this?' "Mama Bear asked in a concerned voice.

"'We need to check upstairs.

"'Stay quiet and follow me,' "Papa Bear instructed in a serious and determined manner." Can you now read these sentences using different voices for each character? Pause the video and do this now.

I loved listening to the different voices you used for each character, well done.

And it was also great to see how hard you focused on ensuring you switched back into your narrator voice for the reporting clauses.

It's time for your final task.

Continue retelling the story of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" from when the bears arrive home up to the end.

Take turns to tell the story with a partner, saying one sentence each.

Continue to tell the story with charisma, and focus on the different voices you use for each of the bears.

Partner A could begin with, "When the bears arrived home from their walk, they found," finish the sentence.

Partner B could follow on, "'All of my porridge has been eaten,' "cried Baby Bear." Pause the video to continue retelling the story now.

Welcome back, well done for retelling the story of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" from when the bears arrive home right up to the end.

I loved hearing the different voices you used for each character.

It's now time for you to reflect.

Did you and your partner do the following to convey greater meaning and character emotion? Did you use different voices for each of the characters' speech? Did you use changes in your tone of voice as narrator? Did you use a range of facial expressions? And did you use body language and gestures? Take a moment to reflect, and then I would like you to also tell your partner at least one thing they did well when orally retelling the story.

Pause the video and do this now.

Well done for reflecting and identifying positives in both your own retelling and your partner's.

Laura said to her partner, "I liked the way you used a high-pitched voice "to show when Baby Bear was speaking "and a deeper voice for Papa Bear." Jacob said to his partner, "You did an angry facial expression "for when Papa Bear found Goldilocks asleep, "and it really helped to show how he was feeling "at that point in the story." These are great examples of how the voice you use and the expressions you make can help convey greater meaning when orally retelling a story.

These are all parts of telling a story in a charismatic way.

We've now come to the end of our lesson, so let's go over a summary together.

Telling a story in a charismatic way helps to engage the audience and hold their interest in a narrative throughout.

Using expression will help make your story interesting to listen to.

Facial expressions can convey a character's feelings in response to events in the story.

Using body language and gestures to engage an audience will help to keep their attention.

And using a varied tone and different voices for characters will engage the audience and make the story easier to follow.

Well done again for your hard work learning about the different techniques you can use to tell a story with charisma.

I have really enjoyed teaching you this lesson.