Learning about story is always interesting for young learners. From stories, Primary 1 students learnt about characters’ feeling, where the story was set and how the events happened. As the final project, the students were challenged to make their own story book. They were asked to modify the story of “Shark in the Park” by Nick Sharratt.
To start the project, P1 students started making the story map on Monday, February 24th, 2025. They named their own character and decided the setting of the story. Then, they wrote the sentences to tell what happened in the beginning, middle and end of their story. On the next day, Tuesday, February 25th, 2025, Miss Citra was invited to guide students drawing illustration for their story book. In the session, Miss Citra shared her passion in digital drawing. She also told her experience in doing digital drawing for making illustrations of children story book.
To make a story book, Miss Citra explained that students could start finding inspiration from their surrounding. The most interesting thing that they found could be used for story idea, then it was continued to be developed into story. One of important things for story book, especially children book, was illustrations. Illustrations helped writer visualize their idea and it helped reader understanding the content of the story better. By joining this activity, students would understand that a story book was made with critical thinking and creativity.
Making a story book is a strategy to stimulate students’ critical thinking and creativity. In the first step, students used their creativity in finding idea and creating a character. Then, students critical thinking was stimulated when they were asked to decide the setting and the plot. While, making illustration with Miss Citra built both, students’ critical thinking and creativity. In making illustration, students should relate the story they had made with the pictures they had to draw.
By joining this series of activities, students were expected to know that making story was a creative process. In the process, critical thinking was needed as well. This experience showed that a story was a kind of delivering ideas or thought to others in written form. That was the reason why it should be told clearly. This activity was a start for students to keep building their writing skill later on.
