The Super Skill of Narration
What is Narration? Narration is the telling back of information given, in one’s own words. This art form may come easy to some. To others, it takes time to develop. To both, it is a skill that should be honed and crafted. As we will see through this series, narration is the foundation for great composition and high-level mental processing.
In this first article we focus on what you learn through narration, pointing out four things that are developed through the art of narration: attention, processing, verbal feedback, and retention. This info is for you, the parent, to understand the “why” behind the skill.
Attention
Narration begins with the student’s ability to pay attention. Isn’t this what we want for our children, to pay attention to our words or to their surroundings or to the needs of others? According to Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary, the word “attend” means: to direct one’s attention, to apply oneself, to apply the mind or pay attention, to be ready for service, to be present. Each of those definitions is a treasure. They imply focus. Without attending to what’s going on in the moment, there will be no narration. By careful instruction (Part 2), this attending can be developed over time.
Processing
Once the mind takes in information, it must process it in some way. The mind will place the information into either the short-term or long-term memory or it will disregard the information altogether based on a priority level. How does the mind assign the priority level? If the information creates a new pathway in the mind, the likelihood of retention is much greater. For information to stick, it must be creative, unique, surprising, or inspiring. This is why news, sometimes shocking news, is interesting and memorable. When we present educational information, the quality of the material matters. Living books supply a wealth of creative thought as new, interesting ideas make processing more enjoyable. To complete the processing, the ideas must be assimilated, or rounded-up, in the mind. The time it takes for this and the manner in which it happens will be different for each child.
Verbal Feedback
It’s amazing how quickly the mind processes things. It is important to draw on that information audibly, because something else happens when we are asked to repeat what we’ve just heard. It makes the abstract idea concrete to the one expressing the idea. It gives shape and form to the thought, almost like a picture. It IS the verbal expression of the picture in the mind that was created by the idea. To some, these mind-pictures are not easily interpreted, so it is difficult to draw them out. For others, verbal expression comes naturally. If the mind-pictures are not even there for verbal feedback, the student may have skipped the attention or processing step, or they may need more time to develop those steps.
Retention
When the mind-picture is then made concrete by verbal expression, long-term retention is magnified. During processing, some people have multiple thoughts rattling around in the brain. What is verbalized is the expression of one thought out of many, but now the one thought takes precedence over any others. It has priority. The likelihood of retention of that one thought is greater because it has essentially been made “real” to the speaker. There is no guarantee those ideas will remain forever locked in the brain, but now the idea has been heard twice – once during the initial hearing or reading and a second time through their own narration.
