Bedtime Story Cards
Here's What To Do
1
Work together to create about 20 "story cards" on index cards (or paper). You can make them all at once, or spread it out over several days and weeks.
2
Cut out pictures from magazines and glue them onto the cards, or draw your own drawings. Try to include a mixture of pictures of people, animals, places, and objects.
3
Once you have several cards, use them nightly to make up stories together!
Put PEER Into Action
P
Pause:
- Find a quiet space free of distractions.
E
Engage:
- "Help me find some pictures so we can make up stories about them. Tell me when you see a picture you like, and we'll cut it out and glue it on a story card."
- "I'll start. This card has a dog on it, so I'll start our story like this. 'Once upon a time, there was a silly shaggy dog. He wanted to play, so he was looking for friends.' Okay, your turn! Let's look at the next card and see what happens next!"
E
Encourage:
- Prompt your child by asking simple Who? What? When? Where? Why? How? questions about the pictures on the cards.
- If your child is having a hard time telling the story on their own, take turns using cards to tell parts of the story.
R
Reflect:
- "What did you like about our story? What other story cards should we make next?"
Not quite ready?
If your child has difficulty making an entire story, try asking them to look at one story card and describe what's happening in that picture.
Ready for more?
See if your child can use the story cards to tell a story independently.
As your child masters this skill...
They will be able to tell a made-up story.