Author, storyteller visits Okemos' K-5 students to share his experiences

About 200 Edgewood Elementary School students learned about reading and writing in an unusual setting Wednesday.

Instead of doing classroom work, the kindergarten through fifth-grade students met with visiting author Brian "Fox" Ellis.

The Illinois man taught students how to tell and write stories using his own experiences, song and stories.

"Storytelling is one of the best ways to teach anything," said Ellis, who is visiting all of the district's elementary schools in the next week. "I want (educators) to see storytelling not as fluff on the side, but as part of the core curriculum."

Ellis' district visit was kicked off Tuesday at Wardcliff Elementary School and ends Jan. 24. He's appearing at all of the district's six elementary schools.

At Edgewood on Wednesday, he held a special all-school assembly on patriotism where he told stories about teamwork and diversity.

Edgewood fifth-grader Shay McCown thought it was fun to have an author at school.

"He would tell the stories very dramatically and it made it fun when he did that," she said.

Ellis' Okemos visit is being paid for through the Okemos Education Foundation with help from the individual elementary schools.

Edgewood reading consultant Linda Smith, who coordinated Ellis' visit, said it's easier to attract more notable authors when the district pools its resources.

The students really enjoy having an author at the school, Smith said.

"It gets them excited about writing," she said. "He shows how it's possible and that everyone has a story to tell."

Smith said the district would like to invite a visiting author every year. Last year the district brought in award-winning children's author Patricia Pollacco.

While in Okemos, Ellis will hold two events open to the community to talk about telling family stories.

This is his first visit to Okemos Public Schools. He tours full time to schools and community events.

Ellis said he especially enjoys storytelling with students.

"My favorite part of my job is watching the light bulbs go off," he said. "I love it when they're really learning."

Ellis said he specializes in Americana, ecological and international storytelling.

by Jessi De La Cruz,
Lansing State Journal
January 17, 2002