Sunny Nunny Storytime for the Young and Older

Posted on 11 February 2021

Storytelling on German folklore to inspire a new generation of language learners

As a way to help parents struggling with homeschooling during lockdown, Ulrike Wray (Dept. Language and Linguistic Science), has created and is currently running a successful online story-telling programme called ‘Sunny Nunny Storytime for the Young and Older’.

In the series, Ulrike Wray uses her presentation skills and her experience as a German language teacher to read two stories on Zoom, one for 3-5 year olds & one for primary school children. Each story is accompanied by an illustrated digital booklet with related wording and images so that children can follow along whilst listening to the narrator’s voice.

This storytelling inspiration comes from Ulrike’s childhood memories and her German background, with tales from classics such as Grimms' Fairy Tales. The stories are read to engage children (and adults!) but because of their strong connection with German culture, they are also a way to inspire potential future language learners.

‘Sunny Nunny Storytime for the Young and Older’ event series has been extremely well received by the audience. A primary school in Nun Monkton (North Yorkshire) in January 2021 had about 20 key workers’ school children (Key Stage 1 & 2) following via a projector screen in the central hall, whilst many of their homeschooling pupils joined from their homes.

"It’s a joy to tell children stories that I loved as a child, some of which are pretty unknown in this country, such as the tale of Mother Holle - who brings the snow - or well-known ones, such as Rumpelstiltskin (originally Rumpelstilzchen in German) and to tell them a bit about the background of some of the stories." - Ulrike Wray, Dept. Language and Linguistic Science

If you are interested in joining the event series or you would like to find out more about Sunny Nunny Storytime for the Young and Older you can contact Ulrike Wray at: ulrike.wray@york.ac.uk