The Case for Storytelling in the Classical Christian School Part 2

In my last installment, I argued for why the Christian classical school should focus on training a generation of storytellers. In this article, I will explore how we can do this.

The main obstacle that comes to mind is that most classical Christian schools have limited resources and cannot invest in expensive equipment or faculty.

My response is that limits can enhance creativity. A former Disney Imagineer once told me he’d rather have $50 than thousands of dollars when working on a production. Why? Constraints force you to create in a fresh way. Artists may moan and fight against them, but we need them. I refer to this concept as The Michelangelo Principle. We can do much with little!

Here’s a step that takes no money: train our students to pause and listen. One of the most important skills a storyteller can have is the ability to look and listen to the world around him. Really look and listen. The noise and rush of the school day often prevent our children from doing that. So what can we do? Build empty spaces in their schedules without technology. Allow them to be bored and make them pause. Give them journals and cameras and notepads to capture what God has placed around them. As Flannery O’ Connor writes in Mystery or Manners, “anything that makes you look” can serve as training for the writer. I’d add . . . and for the storyteller.

Second, we should start creative storytelling programs, whether film, theater, or writing, in which students play a pivotal role in the creative process.

Just about every classical Christian school says it’s pursuing excellence; it’s written in the mission statement and posted on its website. But sometimes, aiming for excellence can stop us from taking risks because we think excellence means safe, expensive, and established.

About fifteen years ago, my wife and I started a drama program for about ten kids at a classical Christian school. We did not know how to run a theater program, but there was a need, so we just started. We had no money, so we grabbed bed sheets and PVC to assemble a set. We adapted a script from the public domain and cast the kids in the story. I still remember the explosion of joy from the audience and kids as the curtain (err, bed sheets) brought the show to a close. This wasn’t Broadway quality, but the kids didn’t care. The creative process had drawn them in, and soon awakened within them gifts they never knew they had. Some students loved the stage and wanted to act, others wanted to stage manage or direct, and a few wanted to write. Eventually, we started offering a One Act production in which the students took the lead in writing, directing, and stage managing. Some of them serve in creative industries today.

During those years we pursued excellence. With our limited resources, experience, and knowledge, we poured everything in that we could. We wanted to see God glorified and joy fill our community’s hearts. We set our minds on learning from our last project and growing for the next. We’re still writing and directing for the kids.

Perhaps your school or homeschool already has an established theater program. Great! Now start a film program. The same principles from above apply. Don’t know anything about film? That’s ok. Either find someone who does or scour the unlimited depths of how-to content on YouTube. Learn the basics of composition, lighting, sound, and editing, and pass it on to the kids. (You’ll be surprised at how much they already know!)

A couple of years ago, I wanted to start a film program at our school, so I gathered a host of people in our community who were professionals in the media and storytelling industry. I asked them how to get started. I wanted specifics on equipment, but they wouldn’t give it to me. Their voice was one: you don’t need lots of money for equipment; grab a cell phone and teach them to craft stories.

This year, we started the seeds of a film program at our school. We have a limited budget, a few interested kids, and supportive leadership. Sometimes I feel like I’m back at the beginning, assembling bed sheets and PVC, admittedly self-conscious of someone who’ll point and say, “What an amateur!” But if I learned anything about creativity, it’s that we must start where we are. We must be faithful and creative stewards, embracing our limits. Then pray that God would multiply our efforts for his Kingdom.

Fear rooted in pride keeps me from taking creative risks. What helps is remembering that everything is really about the kids and the impact they will have on others. Ultimately, it is about the Lord and his glory. We’re but instruments in his hands, actors on his stage.

So, let’s get busy and shape a generation of storytellers! Let’s cultivate the good man speaking well for the glory of Christ!