How to Tell Stories to Young Children (and Why)

How honest should we be about our past lives? Most storytellers agree with Kendrick, who urges, "Always tell the truth in an age and stage appropriate way."

Lipkin adds, "Folklorists and storytellers believe that a personal story is formed at the place where fact and imagination come together. Even if a personal story isn't one hundred percent factually accurate, it is emotionally accurate, revealing the hopes and fears and dreams of the teller."

Sometimes a story can address a real-life dilemma in an imaginative way. "This is an ideal, non-threatening, avenue for a child to reveal things to you," Kendrick says.

Black recalls how her storytime mouse helped her son overcome a difficulty. "My son could not tell me what was wrong, but through the mouse we strategized a solution to his problem."