Trust the Reader

Workshop Title: Empowering Growth and Healing Through Bibliotherapy

Workshop Title: Empowering Growth and Healing Through Bibliotherapy

Duration: 3 hours  Audience: Teachers and Librarians  

Prepared by Zarah C. Gagatiga, RL

Program Schedule

A. Introduction to Bibliotherapy (30 minutes)  

Objective: Understand the concept, history, and importance of bibliotherapy.  

Activities:

  1. Welcome and Icebreaker Activity (10 minutes): "What’s Your Favorite Story?" Participants briefly share a story or book that has impacted them emotionally.  

  2. Presentation (20 minutes): Cover the history, definitions, and three types of bibliotherapy (Developmental, Clinical, Institutional) with real-life examples.  

B. Frameworks and Processes of Bibliotherapy (40 minutes)  

Objective: Learn the structured process and frameworks for bibliotherapy.  

Activities: 

  1. Discussion (15 minutes): 

     - Introduce the Identification, Catharsis, and Insight process.  

     - Highlight the 3-2-1 Framework (Sanacore) and its application for group or individual settings.  

  2. Hands-On Group Work (25 minutes):  

     - Divide participants into small groups.  

     - Each group analyzes a provided story using the bibliotherapy framework and identifies potential questions or activities they could develop.  

C. Practical Applications of Bibliotherapy (60 minutes)  

Objective: Explore and design bibliotherapy sessions for their own contexts.  

Activities:

  1. Case Study Presentation (15 minutes): Present a successful bibliotherapy session 

  2. Workshop Activity (45 minutes):  

     - Groups create a sample bibliotherapy session tailored to their context (e.g., helping children deal with pressure to do well in an exam, fostering empathy).  

     - Include pre-reading, during-reading, and post-reading activities with an emphasis on storytelling and reflective practices (art, writing, movement).  

D. Reflection and Sharing (30 minutes)  

Objective: Consolidate learning and inspire collaboration.  

Activities:

  1. Group Presentations (20 minutes): Groups present their session plans to the audience.  

  2. Open Forum and Q&A (10 minutes): Participants ask questions and share insights on how to integrate bibliotherapy into their work.  

E. Closing and Call to Action (20 minutes)  

Objective: Empower participants to apply bibliotherapy.  

Activities:

  1. Debriefing Activity: Participants write one insight and one action plan on a card to share with the group.  

  2. Distribution of Resources: Provide a curated list of books and activities, including tools from your Bibliotherapy Guide.  

Materials Needed 

1. Presentation slides with the guide’s key concepts and frameworks.  

2. Copies of sample stories and activity templates.  

3. Art supplies for post-reading activities.  

4. Screen and projector; Feedback forms for evaluation (Can SPCP provide this?)

Designed and prepared by Zarah C. Gagatiga, RL

Email: zarah.gagatiga@gmail.com

Mobile number: 09209672884

Blog: https://lovealibrarian.blogspot.com/

Socials: @zarahgeeh on IG | @https://www.facebook.com/authorZarahG815 on FB

When a Book Talks is with AKLAYA and Kuwentuhan Series

My Author Visit at the Valenzuela City Library

 My first Author Visit post lockdown age was at the Valenzuela City Library! I had the pleasure of meeting a small number of young readers. They were thirsty for books and face to face experiences of reading aloud and storytelling. I met the brave and the wonderful staff of the ValACE, met an ARMY and Ms. Rochelle Silverio, colleague and kindred spirit. 

Thank you, Lampara House for hosting and sponsoring this event last Sunday, February 26, 2023!

Thank you, Mayor Wes Gatchalian and Madame Tiffany Gatchalian for giving me this opportunity to serve your community! Mabuhay!

@djahjumma Happiness! The daycare kid’s preferred to listen to a read aloud and interactive storytelling! Tech fatigue? #authorvisit #storytelling ♬ original sound - TitaZee

Author Visit 2023: Grand Opening of the Valenzuela City Library

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World Read ALoud Day 2023

 Today is World Read Aloud Day!

Let the telling and the reading of stories from books and oral traditions begin! #WRAD #WRAD2023

For starter, check on the WRAD Activity Packet. WRAD begins on the 1st Wednesday of February, but it doesn't mean you cannot celebrate it the entire month or year. 

Head on to LitWorld for a wealth of resources, activities and soupy ideas to celebrate books, reading aloud and storytelling. There are Live Events you and your community can take part in; a virtual bookshelf of stories for the young and the young at heart; and the Build A Story Challenge where you can share your stories of life experiences in big and small ways!

A Trolley of Stories

 

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Bibliotherapy, BTS and An Afternoon with Librarians of Brent International School Manila

This pandemic challenged and inspired me to develop modules and training programs for teachers, librarians and parents on Bibliotherapy. I had several online sessions last year with teachers of Saint Pedro Poveda College, students and scholars of the De La Salle Greenhills and with the online learning community of The Learning Revolution. 

Early this year, I had the pleasure of doing a new program with teachers of the Create Learning Paths, a progressive school in Merville, Paranaque. The program, Finding Grace in Everyday (FGE) focus on catharsis and companionship. In May, Teacher Ani Almario invited me to her Children's Literature Class to run a pocket workshop on Bibliotherapy to her class of undergraduate students. The post reading activity with the students can be viewed and read in this link. 

Last month, the library staff of Brent International School Manila and I had an afternoon of sharing life stories. Using the FGE once more, I had an afternoon of reflection and introspection on life during the pandemic with friends and colleagues. What made it different this time is my facilitation of the session using one of BTS' songs, Awake, a solo by Kim Seokjin.

Through a music map activity, participants listened to the song (in Korean) and while doing so, they drew, doodled and write on their journals. When the song was over, we all listened to the song again, but this time, I made them watch the video that has the English translation. 

 

 The song's message is that of resilience and perseverance at a time of doubts and fears. The afternoon ended with an acceptance of how things are at the moment and hanging on to hope for better days to come.

How do we use Storytelling to connect with people?

 

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Re-stories: On Our Path to Peace

 

Run BTS Episode 143 and Teaching Character Development

Episode 143 of Run BTS is such a delight! The Bangtan Boys wrote stories for children and they told/read them aloud after. Needless to say, it pushed me farther on to the BTS rabbit hole. 

Since Suga was recuperating at the time of the shoot, there were only six members present. They were grouped in two but later on became three groups. RM and Jimin worked together on a story about a super cloud. Jin and JK wrote and drew a story of a man with a single strand of hair. V and Jhope finished the story of a fairy who gave out special stars of emotions. The boys were natural storytellers!

Of the three stories, I pulled out JinKook's to use it as an example for character development for my creative writing class this summer. My students are elementary school aged children and yes, they are ARMY. Just like their creative writing teacher!

Entitled as A Single Strand, the man with a single strand of hair searched for ways to enhance the single strand of hair. All his efforts were futile, of course. Until, he realized that the best thing to do is to accept his single strand of hair. Yes, the story stays so true to the theme of love yourself. 

After showing my students several samples of stories where the characters experience different trials and problems, JinKook's One Single Strand of hair was my last example because of the very simple problem-solution structure and yet, the character is at the very heart of the story. My students are making character studies this week and I am excited to read their story concepts.

Paghilom at Pag-asa sa Panahon ng Pandemya: Kamusta ka? Kamusta na? Magkamustahan Kata sa Panahon ng Pandmeya!

This is one of two priming activities for my webinar-workshop on bibliotherapy, Paghilom at Pag-asa sa Panahon ng Pandemya. It is important that you participate in the two activities prior to attending the webinar. The allotted time of the webinar-workshop is only one hour and a half. Under normal circumstances, it would take me two to four hours to run a workshop such as this. But we are living in strange and unusual times so, we need to be resourceful and resilient. 

I do hope to get your full participation since bibliotherapy is a topic that is close to my heart. I am continuously developing materials and conducting research on bibliotherapy. Your contribution to these activities, before, during and after the workshop is very much appreciated. I am positive that I will learn many things from you.

Priming Activity 1 - Kamusta ka? Kamusta na? Magkamustahan tayo sa panahon ng pandemya?

1. I had an interview with the Vlogger Librarian Ph about school librarianship, children's books that I have authored, Work From Home routines, burnout and life in general during the pandemic. Here is the video of the interview. Watch the video and pay attention to the book I shared and briefly talked about.

2. Answer the following questions. You do not have to explain or expound on your answers.

a. What is the most challenging experience of the pandemic have you had so far?

b. What has been your source of joy and inspiration in these uncertain times?

c. What story or stories from socmed or from shows in TV/streaming, books and reading materials, friends and family that has/have touched you? Stories that you were able to relate with its characters on a personal level. 

3. Post your answers on your socmed accounts with the hashtags: #bibliotheraphy2020 #paghilomatpagasa #storytellingforhopeandhealing #regalotouchinglives

Here is an example:

The most challenging experience I have of the pandemic is taking care of my seniors - meaning my parents, however, a source of joy and inspiration in this time of uncertainty is my mother's vegetable garden. We have harvested fruits from the okra, eggplant and siling labuyo she planted last March at the beginning of the lockdown. Of the many stories I heard and follow on socmed, it is the closure of ABS-CBN that has affected me the most. Even my seniors were depressed for a while not being able to watch their favorite noon time shows.

##bibliotheraphy2020 #paghilomatpagasa #storytellingforhopeandhealing #regalotouchinglives

Thank you for your participation! I am excited to know your stories. This way, we can be linked to one another despite the distance that the quarantine has drawn between us. 

See you online! Continue to stay safe!

 

The Lighthouse Diary Entry #23: Statistics as Science and Story

A grade 10 student asked me about the NBA and statistics. Thanks to the student's Personal Project Supervisor and PP Coordinator for this chance to connect with a fan of the NBA from one of our students.

Yes, I am an NBA fan. I miss the Spurs not playing in this year’s playoffs and the Splash Brothers’ entertaining game. As a fan I look at statistics as science and story. 

As a science, a player’s statistic is one way to determine his or her progress and potential, areas for growth, aspects that need improvement on like shooting ranges in areas that are too difficult to make one in the first place. Apart from what you said, the coaching staff can use a team’s statistic to identify more plays that will work for them and mix-match combination of players. Steve Kerr is very good at this. This way, a coach is also able to predict winning or losing a game.

These are things we know as fans from watching and following the NBA games. We can look at sports science particularly on basketball, the NBA and how coaches approach the game so that they win games. Credible game analysts can also be referred too.

The science of the stats is interesting but the story of the stat and how athletes, coaches and fans respond to it is fascinating. The Warriors are a third quarter team as the stats show. They pull in points and plays at the third quarter. Why is that? Is this good for a championship team? This is where we see athletes and coaches going beyond what they can do, defying physical and mental limits and succeeding or failing in the end. As fans, we are in this journey with them. 

Klay Thompson’s Game 6 performances in the past 3 championships are filled with mind blowing stats! How can he score 20 or more points in one quarter and pull the team from the pit of loss? That is heroic and the stats prove it. It makes for a good storytelling at dinner time when we miss watching the Warriors in this season’s playoff. Now, Klay Thompson is recovering from an injury. Will he be the same player we know him to be? We will have to watch and his stats will show the science and the story.

This is how I view stats. Predicting who will win or lose is the end to itself. But sports engages us because there is a far more interesting science in the game and an amazing story of individual athletes and the collective effort of a team.

So, as for your question on what platform to use, Google has accessible tools. Spread sheet, yes. Present the highlights and cumulative data in a Google Site. You can also visualize the data using visualisation tools. For this, research on which tool is the most accessible and easy to learn. From one NBA fan to another, I hope you will be able to see the beauty of the science in basketball by looking at stats and be inspired by the marvelous feats of such athletes. Derive inspiration from their stories in victory and in loss. What awaits you is an insight, a universal truth or a significant discovery about the human spirit and humanity’s capability to survive and thrive in adversity.

Let me know if you need specific resources. Good luck on your PP! 

NCBD 2020: Oras ng Kuwentuhan

Online Bibliotherapy: Mapping Your Heart

Maps help us locate places we have never been to before and aid us in finding directions to places we wish to go to. There are geographical maps, political maps, economic maps and maps in mobile apps programmed with GPRS like Google Map and Waze. In school, teachers often ask you to create mind maps. 

A mind map, like the maps mentioned above, functions as a tool and a strategy to keep your thinking focused on a specific concept or topic of study. It also helps you monitor your understanding of the concept or topic. Using a mind map allows you to see connections of sub-topics and factors that are related to a concept or may have effects on it. It shows you the bigger picture and the details affecting it.  

Click the link for examples of mind maps made by kids and teens.  After viewing the samples, move on to the next part of the activity.

Today, we will learn another kind of map, the Heart Map.

Writer and poet Georgia Heard collaborated with LitWorld.org to introduce Heart Mapping to as many kids, teens and young people all over the world. Because LitWorld.org is a global non-government organization that promotes literacy through storytelling and language arts activities, Heart Mapping is a core activity for its members and patrons who use it as a way to understand one's self. Furthermore, heart maps have become spring boards for storytelling, story and poetry writing.

According to Heard, mapping your heart is one way of figuring yourself out against the physical world you journey and traverse in every day. Through mapping the heart, you come to an understanding of who you are. When you are aware of your feelings, you can make decisions. When you have knowledge of your emotions, you can take an action that is proactive when faced with challenges, conflicts and crises. Heard believes that when we map our hearts, we find a pathway into what we know is true and what we believe in.

Many teenagers like you, even adults like me benefit from heart maps. Watch this short video of those who have made heart maps and listen to their story.

Before I give you the specific instructions for creating or mapping your heart today, what questions do you have so far? If you have some, write them down and we will discuss over Hangouts on Wednesday, 3-4pm. 

How to Make a Heart Map

1.Draw a large heart shape on a piece of paper or drawing app.

2. Inside the heart, draw or write about the ideas, the feelings, and the things that are most important to you at this time. 

3. Take a photo of your heart map and send it to my email address: teacherlibrarian@beaconacademy.ph on or before Tuesday, March 24, 2020.

Be ready to present your heart maps and tell us something about it during our chat this coming Wednesday, March 25, 2020.

To end this session, read this comic by Grant Snider.  I hope you are all doing well and reach out when you need help on school related matters.  

See you online! ~ Ms. Zarah J

March 22, 2020

One on One Reading Aloud and Storytelling Workshop

I had a wonderful time sharing stories and swapping teaching adventures with Yvette Solina Salish at Nook in Molito. Yvette is a teacher in Erbil, Iraq. She teaches Math in Primary Years Program of the International Baccalaureate in the school. Home for vacation, she thought of taking stock on her teaching pedagogy. 

Big thanks to her sister, Bernadettte Solina Wolf who connected us. Our four hour session stretched to six hours. Almost the entire day, really. And thanks to the peeps in Nook as they warmly accommodated us with a whole day pass for our first visit. That’s good customer service!

This is my favorite nook in Nook. If you know me well, you know why. 😉

As this was my first tutorial for a reading aloud and storytelling workshop, I didn’t know how it woluld work. It did end well! 

 Yvette and I will definitely meet again, get in touch online and keep the learning connections active. She found the materials I used as enlightening and the input session valuable addition to her skill set in teaching primary students. She hopes to be more confident in reading aloud and telling stories to her students. In the end our session, I gave her these tips, baon, as I call it to bring with her back to Erbil.

On Messenger she sent me this message afew hours after our session. 

“Thanks too for teaching and inspiring me to read aloud and do storytelling! I’m amazed by how well you do it. I hope I can reach up to your level of ease in the future! I can’t wait to try all of your techniques! Take care and keep in touch! 😊🤗😘”

My reply to her was this:

“Go! You will grow into it. Start by investing on good books for kids. Develop your own selection criteria. Read the books aloud to your family. Plan your pre, during and post reading activities. Practice. Evaluate yourself. Listen to your students too. You will learn from them too!”

I am having a productive summer! 

On Reading Aloud and Storytelling (2/2)

In the event of being with two different groups of people who are interested and eager to learn and relearn skills in storytelling and reading aloud, I consider myself fortunate to learn from them too. 

From the TSP volunteers, I realized how our search for meaning and goodness in this world can be actualized in volunteer work. I look back at the young professionals I met a week ago and I am still touched by their hope and their sincerity to help TSP reach its goal of people empowerment through books and reading. From the DepEd K-3 teachers in Pangasinan, I am reminded once again of the values of grit and patience. The Filipino public school teacher is up against challenges bigger than herself or himself. It will take a lifetime to change the system, but it is enough to be able to inspire and affect one person. 

Feeling young and energized with TSP volunteers!

I see the goodness in Rey Bufi and his wife, Grace, the parents and founder of TSP. I admire the resilience of Teacher Ara for continuing on and doing a thankless job. Organizing people and mobilizing them is not an easy task, but they do it anyway. This is the grace I take away from leaving Biñan once in a while. I meet authentic people who, despite limitations, persevere to make a difference in their communities.

Specifically, I discovered how tenuous our connection is with our folk literature and local knowledge. Pangasinan is showing signs of progress, but my conversations with teachers there reveal gaps in the use of their mother tongue and in telling stories from their culture and history. Exposure to different forms of literature is an area of growth as well. Both groups, TSP volunteers and K-3 teachers were fascinated at the folk tales I used as samplers for storytelling. Comments like “ganun pala yun”, “ay pwede pala” were aplenty. 

DepEd Superintendent Balderas explains that reading is comprehension.

The scarcity of books and resources was a clamor of both groups. I resolve to include one or two activities for materials creation next time I do a workshop. As a librarian, I will echo and share this concern. Hopefully, any of my advocacy group could pick from there and help bridge children to books they so badly need to engage in.

On Reading Aloud and Storytelling (1/2)

I am writing this on may way back to Manila from a successful training workshop on reading aloud and storytelling in Pangasinan. I was invited by the Department of Education of Region 1 through the initaive and effort of  Teacher Arabella Soniega. The training program is designed for K-3 teachers to learn and relearn pedagogy in early literacy education. There were 128 teachers present in the training plus, a dozen school leaders. 

Last week, I was with the The Storytelling Project (TSP) to run the same workshop for their volunteers. Of the 15 volunteers, 2 are teachers and 1 is a librarian. They will soon be implementing TSP’s reading program in a public school in Laguna.

Two workshops. Same topics. Different audiences. Different purpose. Same goals. TSP volunteers need a good skill set in reading aloud because their two-fole roels. One is to support teachers in teaching literacy slills and the other is to provide children with an environment where reading is enjoyed and experienced outside of the classroom. The DepEd recognizes storytelling as an adjunct strategy for reading aloud when learning skills in the four communication arts, namely, listening, speaking, reading and writing. I discuss both in workshops and demonstrate ways of using them.

Reading Aloud from a teaching context, especially in literacy teaching, is a proven technique in teaching comprehension skills. When an adult reads aloud to children, the act of reading and the cognitive processes involved in it are shown, shared and modelled to them in a manner that is enjoyable and non-threatening. In storytelling, the teller does not use a book but a story to take the listener in a journey of adventure, wonder, play and the discovery of insights. Both are multi-sensorial activities that develop many skills including life skills, compassion and empathy.

PPT: Reading Aloud Workshop

Presentation on Bibliotherapy: The Healing Magic of Stories for the IASL-PASLI Regional Conference 2019