Available for
Workshop, Talk, Interview, Commission a bookAudiences
Age 5 to 7, Age 7 to 11, Age 11 to 14, AdultBook types
Alphabet, EducationalOrganisations
Details
"Kevin Graal is a great story-teller who brings thoughts, feelings, and the music in words directly to children. There is nothing more powerful in our use of language than face-to-face meetings where we discover things that matter. Any school interested in helping children want to write and want to read, will find in Kevin's storytelling ways of motivating children to tell stories, write stories, read stories."
Michael Rosen
HELPING CHILDREN LEARN THROUGH STORIES
Kevin Graal is an experienced storyteller and educator with an extensive repertoire of traditional stories, riddles, songs and games from around the world. He has 30 years' experience storytelling in schools and helping children and young people to learn.
"If you are looking for ways to inspire, delight and enchant your children, then look no further than Kevin Graal. As Kevin weaves his magical world around the children, you can actually feel them grow into new levels of perception, understanding and engagement with the spoken word. I would thoroughly recommend Kevin to any school who wishes to bring the joy and excitement back into literacy."
Avril Newman, Sir William Burrough Primary School, Limehouse, London
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BRINGING STORIES ALIVE!
Kevin's work is about story-making as much as story-telling; helping children and young people to find their voices, and to experience first-hand the pleasure and power of words; enabling them to articulate their curiosity about the world around them and to express their creative responses to it; fostering the confidence to ask incisive questions and the critical skills to formulate thoughtful answers; above all, nurturing the core skills which will help them to learn.
"I have worked with Kevin Graal for 3 years now and he is no small part a reason for us achieving our best ever English results. He is very professional, approachable and the children love him to bits. He is a real master in managing the children and getting the best out of them and a wonderful storyteller and more!"
John Greenwood, Head of Shinewater Primary School, Eastbourne
DEVELOPING CHILDREN'S SKILLS
Kevin has worked with children and young people of all ages and abilities since 1981. Tailored to particular themes or curricular topics, his storytelling performances celebrate a multitude of cultural traditions and are always pitched at just the right level of understanding. During a one-day visit, he can provide performances for all the children in the school, either in single Year Groups or combinations of Year Groups. Workshops and residencies focus on the children as storytellers and are often linked to specific literacy goals - with games and exercises on story-structure, character and setting encouraging confident use of both spoken and written language. The dynamic blend of words, movement and music ensures that everyone is fully engaged.
"Kevin was absolutely brilliant at the Early Years conference and all our colleagues left feeling energised and ready for the term."
Ruth O’Keefe, Inspector for Primary & Early Years, Kingston Upon Thames
PLAYFUL BUT STRUCTURED
Over the past thirty years Kevin has established a reputation for excellence in a wide range of work: from performances for children and young people to teacher-training workshops and collaborations with leading arts and educational organisations such as the British Library, Tate Modern and the British Council. He works in a highly structured way: introducing new ideas in carefully graded stages, providing clear frameworks, and always reinforcing turn-taking and teamwork. Combining playful improvisation with a keen sensitivity to the needs of each particular audience, his finely tuned performances are filled with laughter, magic and imagination.
"It’s always a joy and a privilege to see this master storteller weaving his magic spells."
Geoff Sully, South East Regional Education Officer, National Trust
"Kevin is a fantastic storyteller and we've always received excellent feedback from families who have taken part in his workshops."
Ria Bartlett, Learning Programmes Manager, The British Library
Event feedback
The children loved Kevin. He engaged them with his stories and they enjoyed joining in.