Emoji Emotions: Interactive Storytelling Game

The Girl with the Pearl Earring
by
Johannes Vermeer, 1665

Earlier this year I was struggling to help some of my storytelling students succeed using appropriate vocal intonations for the characters and situations in their stories. Even though I used a number of storytelling activities to demonstrate vocal expression, discussed character voices matching story events, characterization, and coached them on their delivery, nothing was working.

Then one night it suddenly became clear, they were struggling because for the past two years they have been wearing masks in school and in public. They were interacting with others seeing only their eyes, not their entire faces, and sometimes voices were muffled. The masks had affected their social interactions and ability to convey their feelings through facial expression and vocal tone.

What could I do differently? What could I use that they already understand? Emojis! Using emojis I designed a new activity. I found a variety of public domain emojis, copied each into a blank document and typed the corresponding emotion. I printed and laminated each one and the Emoji Emotions game was born. We played it the next day with remarkable success! Here are the instructions for you to try with your students.

EMOJI EMOTIONS GAME © 2022

Instructions

• Explain that you will be working on vocal intonations; share/display the emoji cards.
• Direct each student to choose a line of dialogue from their story to use for the game.
• Invite two students to come to the front of the class. 
• Fan the emoji cards face down and have each student chose a card at random. * You can also do this activity with a solo student.
• Holding the card in front of them have them hold a ‘conversation’ with the dialogue from their separate stories, using the chosen emotion. Of course, the conversation won’t make any sense, but it will be funny!

The following week I expanded the game. I passed out individual kazoos to each student. (Individual kazoos may be purchased through Oriental Trading.)  The directions were the same but this time they the conversation using a kazoo to speak the dialogue. *Many thanks to Andrea Lovett for this idea i.e., using kazoos to tell a story. It was hilarious!

* Note: When I did this for the first time, I noticed each student naturally added a facial gesture and changed their body language to correspond with the emotion.

The students couldn’t wait for their turn and asked to play the different variations of this game again and again. Not only was the game fun, but it also made a huge difference in how the student’s connected with their characters and emotions in their story. It loosened them up and gave them permission to play with their story. The next time they practiced their story it was obvious how much this simple activity helped their performance. Some of the emoji cards I created are below.

This is the list of emotions I used; there are many more you can add but I kept it as simple as possible due to the age of the participants, fourth and fifth grade students. You could add more subtle emotions for an older group.

• Angry
• Bored
• Confused
• Embarrassed
• Happy
• Nervous
• Sad
• Scared
• Silly
• Surprised
• Worried

A few examples I created for this game.

This game is a keeper! If you decide to try this out with your students, please let me know how it turned out for you and for them. 

Permission for private use is granted but I do ask that you maintain the copyright information and offer proper attribution. Publication is prohibited without my expressed written permission. 

There are many more original games I have created in my book, Story by Story, along with worksheets to help your students step into their story. 

Please note, websites change at a rapid pace and weblinks may change or break without notice. I cannot be responsible for redirected or broken links. At the time of this posting all links were in working order. Thank you for understanding.

 

Karen Chace 2022 ©
This blog post was researched and compiled by Karen Chace. Permission for private use is granted. Distribution, either electronically or on paper is prohibited without my expressed written permission. For permission, please contact me at storybug@aol.com. Of course, if you wish to link to my blog via your website, blog, newsletter, Facebook page or Twitter please feel free to do so; I appreciate your support and personal integrity.

Celebrating the Country of Ukraine

 “And if you want to suppress a culture, take their stories. If you take their stories, you take their power.” - Kristin Pedemonti

Carousel
by
Oleksandr Murashko, 1906

I always love sharing folktales on themes and different countries. Today I am celebrating the beautiful country of Ukraine. As we all know the country and its courageous people are under attack. Let’s keep them in our hearts and continue to share their stories and traditions.

Around the world countries are offering support in a variety of ways, food, shelter, medical care, and more. If you would like to donate to these efforts, Charity Navigator offers a number of essential, reliable, and financially responsible organizations here:
https://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=content.view&cpid=9366 

FACTS ABOUT UKRAINE

• Ukrainian civilizations date back to 4800 B.C. The country is located in an area where Trypillian and Scythian civilizations thrived.
• Ukraine is home to seven sites protected by the UNESCO World Heritage L
• The world’s first constitution was drafted and introduced in 1710 by Ukrainian Hetman Pylyp Orlyk.
• Ukraine is the world's largest producer of sunflower seeds. It is estimated that the total size of Ukraine’s sunflower farmlands could cover the entire territory of Slovenia.
• The vast tracts of arable land in Ukraine with fertile black soil made it an ideal place for growing wheat and other food crops. As such, it was nicknamed the "Breadbasket of Europe.” Today, Ukraine continues to be one of the largest producers of wheat in the world.
• The gas lamp was invented by two Lviv-based pharmacists - Jan Zeh and Ignacy Łukasiewicz in 1853.
• The deepest metro station in the world is Arsenalna station on the Sviatoshynsko – Brovarska line located in Kyiv – the capital city of Ukraine.
• Vyshyvanka is the name of the National Costume of Ukraine. This is differentiated from others because of its embroidery work which features Ukrainian embroidery.

The above information found at the following links:
https://thefactfile.org/ukraine-facts/
https://www.indiatimes.com/trending/social-relevance/ukraine-facts-you-didnt-know-562918.html

STORIES

The Cat and the Rooster
http://tinyurl.com/zdscqm4

The Fox and the Crane
https://www.tccweb.org/folklore.htm#The_Fox_and_the_Crane

The God and the Devil
https://www.tccweb.org/folklore.htm#God_and_the_Devil

The Heron, the Fish, and the Crayfish 
https://en.derevo-kazok.org/folk-tales/ukrainian-folk-tales/the-heron-the-fish-and-the-crayfish-ukrainian-folk-tale.html

How A Fish Swam in the Air and a Hare in Water
https://sites.pitt.edu/~dash/type1381.html#ukraine

The Magic Egg
https://www.worldoftales.com/European_folktales/Ukrainian_folktale_24.html#gsc.tab=0 

The Magic Pumpkins
https://tinyurl.com/ybqo2lr4

Sister Fox
https://en.derevo-kazok.org/folk-tales/ukrainian-folk-tales/sister-fox-ukrainian-folk-tale.html

The Tsar and the Angel
https://www.worldoftales.com/European_folktales/Ukrainian_folktale_16.html

STORY COLLECTIONS

Cossack Fairy Tales and Folktales – “Originally translated by British historian and linguist Robert Nisbet Bain in 1894, this collection of stories hail from an area known to us today as western Ukraine.”
https://publicdomainreview.org/collection/cossack-fairy-tales-1916/    

Ukrainian Folk Tales translated by Marie Halun Bloch – Meet The Poor Wolf, The Spiteful Nanny Goat, The Foolish Dog, and a host of other animals between these pages.
https://diasporiana.org.ua/wp-content/uploads/books/26495/file.pdf   

BOOKS

Children’s Books Set In Ukraine
https://kidstravelbooks.com/product-category/europe/ukraine/

CRAFTS

Printable craft based on the children’s book, The Mitten.
https://www.littlepim.com/blog/explore-winter-ukraine-craft-based-clever-story

Ukraine Coloring Pages for Kids
https://www.supercoloring.com/coloring-pages/countries-cultures/ukraine

CURRICULUM

Ukraine Facts for Kids
https://kids.kiddle.co/Ukraine

U is for Ukraine - Ukraine for Kids Virtual Tour
https://www.localpassportfamily.com/2020/07/u-is-for-ukraine-ukraine-for-kids-virtual-tour.html

TRADITIONS

A History of The History Pysanka Symbolism – ”A great variety of decorative motifs are found on pysanky. Because of the egg’s fragility, no ancient examples of pysanky have survived. However, similar ornamental patterns occur in pottery, weaving, wood carving, embroidery and other traditional crafts, examples of which have survived through the ages.”
https://www.pysanky.info/Symbols_NEW/History.html

How to Decorate Pysanky Ukrainian Easter Eggs
https://www.allrecipes.com/article/how-to-decorate-pysanky-ukrainian-easter-eggs/

“Once Upon a Time:” How Ukrainian Folklore Reflects Ukrainian Cultural Values  
https://www.volunteeringukraine.com/en/post/once-upon-a-time-how-ukrainian-folklore-reflects-ukrainian-values

Pysanky Ukrainian Easter Eggs and How to Make Your Own - The start of spring means that Easter is on the horizon, which for many people means one thing—it's time to start decorating eggs.”
https://mymodernmet.com/pysanky-ukrainian-easter-egg/

Ten Customs That Only Ukrainians Will Understand
“The roots of Ukrainian customs date back centuries, but at the same time, they remain no less popular nowadays…Ukrainians pay great attention to the observation of customs, as they are unique and extremely peculiar – even absurd sometimes.”
https://theculturetrip.com/europe/ukraine/articles/10-customs-that-only-ukrainians-will-understand/

Traditional Crafts – Learn about pottery, weaving, painting, and more.
https://authenticukraine.com.ua/en/traditions-crafts

Ukrainian Customs and Traditions – Learn about wedding traditions, national costumes, and food.
https://greentourua.com/ukrainian-customs-and-traditions/ 

Ukrainian Folklore –History, cuisine, folklore and more.
https://computerscience.johncabot.edu/kduong/S2020CS130-1/mavramova/about/project/index.html

Ukrainian Women Bring Back Traditional Floral Crowns To Show National Pride|
“According to the tradition, these headdresses were worn by young, unmarried women to show their “purity” and marital eligibility. Now though, the artists are using them as a reminder of Ukrainian identity in rough times the country is going through. With continuing political and actual physical pressure from Russia, the country faces serious threats to its integrity and unity is needed more than ever.”|
https://www.demilked.com/traditional-ukrainian-flower-crowns-treti-pivni/ 

SOMETHING EXTRA

Authentic Ukraine – An amazing project on the cultural Heritage of Ukraine, including performing arts, traditional rituals, food, music, oral traditions, tours of cultural heritage, and “authentic audio and visual examples of Ukrainian identity.” Learn more about this beautiful country and its fascinating history.
https://authenticukraine.com.ua/en

Chuhaister: Spirit of the Ukrainian Forest
“Chuhaister is the spirit of the Carpathian mountain forest. Chuhaister is both protector of the woods and the spirit of the forest.” Learn all about this spirit at the link below.
https://www.patheos.com/blogs/babayagascottage/2020/11/chuhaister-spirit-of-the-ukrainian-forest/

ADDITIONAL CULTURAL RESOURCES

Celebrating the Continent of Africa
http://karenchace.blogspot.com/2021/01/celebrating-continent-of-africa.html

Celebrating the Country of China
https://karenchace.blogspot.com/2022/02/celebrating-country-of-china.html 

Celebrating the Country of Germany
http://karenchace.blogspot.com/2021/02/celebrating-country-of-germany.html

Celebrating the Country of India
http://karenchace.blogspot.com/2021/01/celebrate-country-of-india.html

Celebrating the Country of Russia
http://karenchace.blogspot.com/2021/03/celebrating-country-of-russia.html

Celebrating the Country of Scotland
http://karenchace.blogspot.com/2021/04/celebrating-country-of-scotland.html

Celebrating the Country of Turkey

https://karenchace.blogspot.com/2017/11/celebrating-country-of-turkey.html

 

 

Please note, websites change at a rapid pace and weblinks may change or break without notice. I cannot be responsible for redirected or broken links. At the time of this posting all links were in working order. Thank you for understanding.

 

Karen Chace 2022 ©

This blog post was researched and compiled by Karen Chace. Permission for private use is granted. Distribution, either electronically or on paper is prohibited without my expressed written permission. For permission, please contact me at storybug@aol.com. Of course, if you wish to link to my blog via your website, blog, newsletter, Facebook page or Twitter please feel free to do so; I appreciate your support and personal integrity.