When we share our hearts through story, we inspire others to think more deeply about their own hearts and how stories connect us all. In this book of the heart, teacher, librarian, book lover, and story ambassador, John Schu, known to reading communities all over as Mr. Schu, invites readers to consider literacy beyond its academic benefits, highlighting the ways story speaks to our hearts and brings us together.
Presented through a study of five affective elements—healer, inspiration, clarifier, compassion, and connector—The Gift of Story explores how the universal truths found in stories can change us, inspire us, connect us to others, answer our deepest questions, and help us heal. Along the way, readers will encounter insightful contributions from educators, children’s writers, and illustrators, as well as recommendations for sharing the gift of story with learning communities including: treasured book suggestions that stir reflection, engaging tips for celebrating literacy, and heart-growing applications to lift classroom and library practices.
The Gift of Story is a celebration of the ways we define, revise, and imagine ourselves through literacy; a celebration of the way we connect to others and build community through reading; a celebration of children, authors, illustrators, teachers, librarians, books, and readers; and, ultimately, a celebration of hearts and the stories they hold dear.