Development of Language and Identity Through Author's Chair and Draw and Tell in the Context of Storytelling in Early Childhood Classrooms

Abstract

Storytelling is powerful. Young children use stories to share experiences, cultural beliefs, and thoughts in their early years. This chapter aims to examine the impact of traditional and digital storytelling on language development and identity among young immigrant children. In a study conducted with young children, they were encouraged to tell and share their personal stories with their classmates in a comfortable and engaging environment created by the author's chair and the draw and tell technique. The authors observed and analyzed the children's work in the after-school program over time and saw that they developed social skills and became confident communicating in their newly acquired language by sharing their own stories. The power of language and culture immersion intertwines with stories that encourage young children to freely communicate and share in a safe space, which fosters children's identity and language development.