How to Make Story Stones

By: Alicia M. Beavers

TECM 2700

Table of Contents

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Table of Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................... 1 Materials ........................................................................................................................ 3 Directions ....................................................................................................................... 5 Prepping the Project................................................................................................... 5 Find your stones ..................................................................................................... 6 Wash your stones .................................................................................................... 7 Choose your pictures .............................................................................................. 8 Painting the Stones .................................................................................................... 9 Set up your workspace............................................................................................ 9 Finishing Up ............................................................................................................. 13 Let your stones dry overnight .............................................................................. 13 Voila! ..................................................................................................................... 14 Troubleshooting ........................................................................................................... 15 Frequently Asked Questions ................................................................................... 15 Will the paint rub off over time? .......................................................................... 15 Im no good at painting! ........................................................................................ 15 The paint isnt sticking to my stones! .................................................................. 15 Activity Suggestions .................................................................................................... 17 Classroom Play ......................................................................................................... 17 Plot Twist.................................................................................................................. 17 Gifting ....................................................................................................................... 17 Matching ................................................................................................................... 17 Themed Stones ......................................................................................................... 17 Tactile Stones ........................................................................................................... 17 Tips ............................................................................................................................... 19 Crafting with Young Children ................................................................................. 19 Involving your child .............................................................................................. 19 Keeping your workspace clean ............................................................................. 19 Index and Works Cited ................................................................................................ 21

Introduction

Introduction
The act of play is crucial to the healthy growth of children and their imaginations. As they play, children learn to negotiate problems, cooperate with peers, use objects in a symbolic way, and prioritize their goals. They also learn to consider the perspectives and needs of other people and to be intentional with their actions. Imagination, then, becomes a crucial skill. Unfortunately, the immediacy of technology in the modern world means that there are fewer outlets through which children can use their imagination, and like a muscle it begins to atrophy. While video games are mentally stimulating in their own right, a sensory pleasure is evoked when children play with physical objects and can take pride in enjoying something they created themselves. In this manual I will show you be you parents, aunts, uncles, or grandparents to children of any age how to partner with your child to create Story Stones. Story Stones foster creativity through providing children with basic prompts to tell stories, developing their language and processing emotions through acted-out scenarios, in addition to having tons of fun creating the stones themselves.

Introduction

Materials
Smooth stones Acrylic paint Paint brushes in various sizes Cup of water for rinsing brushes Cups for paint (clean applesauce containers or paper plates work well)

Directions

Directions
Prepping the Project

How to Make Story Stones

Find your stones Most craft stores sell decorative rocks or pebbles by the bag as vase fillers. However, if your child is old enough, they may enjoy gathering their own rocks from outdoors! River stones are exceptionally smooth visit a local park with a river to find the best specimens for your project.

Directions Wash your stones Wash your stones to rid them of any dirt or gunk that would make it harder for the paint to adhere to their surface. Warm water should be enough but soap will get more stubborn grime off your rocks. Make sure the water is the right temperature for your childs hands!

How to Make Story Stones

Choose your pictures Together with your child, decide on what you want to paint on your stones. A good starting point is to dedicate a couple of stones each to various parts of the story you or your child may tell. For example, a. b. c. d. e. f. Animals pets, forest animals, mountain animals, sea animals Transportation cars, buses, planes, boats, ambulances Events birthday, rainstorm, nighttime, dinnertime, bedtime Places beach, park, bedroom, hospital, museum Emotions happy, sad, angry, shocked People children are naturally ego-centric, so a self-portrait may prompt excitement to create a story about themselves.

If youre scrapped for ideas, search for Story Stones on any Internet search engine and look at what other crafty parents and children have done! Or paint some of your childs favorite things: favorite food, favorite toy, favorite animal, etc.

Directions

Painting the Stones

Set up your workspace Now that you have some ideas of what to paint, make a pallet of colors for you and your child using the cups or plate. Be sure to have water available for rinsing your brushes. If your child is very young and has trouble effectively rinsing brushes, you can provide a separate brush for each color of paint. Paint your stones!

Directions

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How to Make Story Stones

Directions

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Finishing Up
Let your stones dry overnight When you have finished painting, gather your stones where they can dry overnight. Acrylic paint will seem dry to the touch after 20-30 minutes but remains tacky for up to 3-4 hours after application. Drying overnight will make the paint more resistant to scratching or removal accelerated by too much handling.

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How to Make Story Stones

Voila! Congratulations on your completed Story Stones! Its time to play some games! Keep reading for information on how to troubleshoot any problems and for some fun activity suggestions.

Troubleshooting

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Troubleshooting
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the paint rub off over time? Acrylic paint is designed to be both waterproof and long-lasting. However, if your Stones are frequently handled (and I hope they are!) the paint may wear off quicker. To counter this, you can apply a thin layer of clear-drying glue or sealing paint to each stone. Im no good at painting! No worries! One of the cornerstones of this craft is using your imagination. As long as your child gets the basic idea of your painting they wont care if youre Michelangelo! But if youre still insecure, feel free to forgo painting altogether in favor of using glue to adhere clipped images from magazines or paper paraphernalia to each stone. The paint isnt sticking to my stones! Try washing them again to rid them of any dirt or grime that would prevent the paint adhering to their surface.

Activity Suggestions

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Activity Suggestions
There are a variety of ways you and your child can enjoy your new Story Stones! Aside from their intended purpose, telling a story, here are some suggestions:

Classroom Play

Story Stones are a great addition to any classroom. In a large group of children, have each choose two or three stones and write or tell a story about the pictures presented on their stones.

Plot Twist

Lay the stones picture-down and choose one at a time to flip over, incorporating each new picture into a story. You and your child can take turns or your child can do this on his own.

Gifting

Story Stones make a great gift! Your child may enjoy creating a set to give to a close friend and combining sets during playdates or visits.

Matching

Sort your stones into different categories, for example: characters, settings, and objects. Or things that start with different letters of the alphabet. One of the great things about Story Stones is their timelessness. Your new set can always be expanded! Now that you have a few good starting Stones, consider creating expansion sets that perhaps revolve around a theme. For example, a Weather theme, or a Medieval theme, or an Astrology theme. Encourage your child to do their own research and choose their own pictures to paint, even if they need you to help paint theme! Story Stones have the potential to teach your children all sorts of things!

Themed Stones

Tactile Stones

Children love the sensory pleasure of tactile toys. Consider creating stones with various crafty materials, including glitter, googley eyes, cake sprinkles, or sand. A thin layer of white craft glue will adhere such products to your stones and create interesting new additions to your set.

Tips

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Tips
Crafting with Young Children
Involving your child As much as you can, allow your child to direct the activity and creation of your Story Stones. Even very young children will feel pride in the completed project and consequently have much more fun playing with the Story Stones! Keeping your workspace clean As long as youre having fun, dont worry too much about keeping your workspace tidy! Children love to create unheeded by strict rules about how messy they can be (or not be!) Make sure you and your child wear clothes that you dont mind getting paint on, because acrylic is known for its durability and will not wash off fabric after it dries.

Index and Works Cited

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Index
Acrylic paint, 7, 13 Activity, iii, 11 Animals, 9 Classroom Play, iii, 11 creativity, v Emotions, 9 Events, 9 Gifting, iii, 11 Imagination, v Matching, iii, 11 Paint brushes, 7 pallet, 9 Paper plate, 7 People, 9 Places, 9 play, v Plot Twist, iii, 11 stones, v, 7, 9, 11 story, 9, 11 Tactile Stones, iii, 11 technology, v Themed Stones, iii, 11 Transportation, 9 Troubleshooting, iii, 13 water, 7, 9

Works Cited
Cover Page image: http://living-simply-free.com/2013/12/02/frugal-christmas-callingall-crafters/