By Playtime Felts
What are felt board stories?
A felt or flannel board is a surface that holds movable story pieces. As you read or tell a story, children can put a character on the board, move it to a new spot, or act out the next event. Some sets use cut felt pieces. Print-at-home sets use paper pieces prepared for the board.
From flannelgraphs to felt play
The flannelgraph uses a cloth-covered board as a place to build a picture piece by piece. The same idea shows up in Sunday school lessons, classroom storytelling, and open-ended felt play. The Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood episode archive records one television example. The fabric toy Fuzzy-Felt, first sold in 1950, gave children a way to arrange felt shapes into their own scenes.
Why use felt stories at circle time?
- Vocabulary. Name a character or object, then use it in a sentence about the story.
- Sequencing. Invite children to place the pieces in order as they say what happened first, next, and last.
- Fine motor practice. Children pick up, move, and reposition the pieces.
- Conversation. Ask a partner to explain what a character did and why.
Connect retelling to learning goals
Preschool. The Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework, P-LIT 4, describes children showing an understanding of story structure by retelling or acting out a story. Offer pictures or props and help children recall one or two events. Add sequencing words as they are ready.
Kindergarten. With prompting and support, children can answer questions about key details and retell a familiar story, connecting to Common Core RL.K.1 and RL.K.2.
Make and care for story pieces
Try cutting simple felt shapes or printing illustrated characters on cardstock. Laminate paper pieces if you like, then add hook-side dots for a compatible felt board. Follow the care directions for your particular felt set. Store paper and felt pieces flat and sort sets into labeled bags.
Try your first felt story
Choose a short tale children already know. Set out a few pieces and let children take turns moving them during the story. Once they know the order, leave the pieces out for a retelling in your felt board literacy center.