Archive for the ‘Tell a Story Contest’ Category

Tell a Story Day: The Contest

Tuesday, April 27th, 2010

Today was to be the day that we announce the winners in the Tell a Story Contest. As you remember, the challenge was to create a new story based on the fabrics in any of our eight Storybook Quilts themes. Either a video or a written story could be submitted.

We received no videos, but did receive two written entries. Both were creative and fun, but two entries do not a contest make. We had hundreds of visits to the contest pages on the website; interest clearly was there.

So, why no entries? We’d love to hear from you on that, but suspect it’s a matter of time. Life seems to be so rushed! It’s sad that there’s no time to spend with a child or grandchild –- or school class — to make up a story.

We will have another contest this year, something simpler but no less entertaining, and will invite you will join us for that.

In the meantime – our new theme is about to debut! As we noted in an earlier post, this one centers on a girl, a pair of magic boots and a wild horse in the Southwest. You can follow its development on our Design Board page and/or our Facebook Fan Page.

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6 Steps to Creating the Winning Story

Friday, April 9th, 2010

Time is speeding by! The April 21st deadline for the Tell a Story Contest is closing in. Have you started making up your story yet?

Below are the six steps that we use to write our stories. Maybe they will help you, too.

1. Give a name to the character you pick. It’s easier to make up a story about something that has a name.

2. Look at the pictures of the fabrics. Imagine your character talking to or having an adventure with what’s in the fabric. For example, let’s say the frog wins the jumping contest but ends up on the train by mistake and the train starts to move!

3. Pick more of the fabrics and do the same thing. For example, say the fairy grants the frog three wishes – what three fabrics would make a great story about that? (Now you’re up to five fabrics – you need at least seven, so only two more to go!)

4. Cut out the pictures of the fabrics you have chosen and arrange them in a line. Try to tell the story. Rearrange the pictures until you get a story you like.

5. Think of a fun ending – a surprise always is good or an ending that makes the listener wonder. At the end of our frog story, the listener has to decide whether Winnie the Frog was a really a frog — or a boy.

6. Stand in front of a mirror and tell yourself the story. Or tell someone else. Or have someone make a video. This is a great way to find out if you would like to change anything.

Then it’s up to you whether you want to enter the contest with a video or a written story.

Remember: Nothing has to be perfect; the idea is to use your imagination and have fun doing it!

The Grand Prize is a personalized Storybook Quilt or a $300 cash gift card; First Prize is a Storybook Quilt. We expect an adult to help with the story a bit and an adult must be the official contest entrant. Please see full contest information here.

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Enjoy Frogs! April is National Frog Month

Tuesday, April 6th, 2010

Like frogs? We do! Although kissing a frog is a bit more than anyone here is willing to do, even for a handsome prince.

Have you ever raised a tadpole or a polliwog? We have! We found a great website about how to raise tadpoles. Of course, you have to find them first. This is JUST the right time of year. Find a local pond and you likely will find tadpoles. On the other hand, this may be something that’s better to read about or do at school.

What else do you know about frogs? Here are some fun facts:

1. Frogs drink water right through their skins! This isn’t surprising since they spend so much time in the water. But they also can breathe through their skins, which is amazing.

2. Some frogs shout so loudly that can be heard up to a mile away. But they make all that sound with their mouths closed – except when they are scared and then they open wide. You can listen to some frog calls here.

3. Frogs are the best jumpers it the world and can jump up to 20 times their own length. That would be like a human jumping the length of two and a half big yellow school buses!

4. In Japan, frogs are considered good luck.

In any country, our frog Storybook Quilt could be very good luck! Create the winning story about our froggy friend in the Tell a Story Contest — or use one of the other themes. You could win a Storybook Quilt or even a cash prize. What could be better than that?

Hurry, though. The contest ends in just two weeks.

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Frog Fairy Tales

Wednesday, March 24th, 2010

Frogs are everywhere. Every country has frogs — and frog fairy tales. Below is a lively and imaginative telling of the Frog Prince fairy tale that children will enjoy.

Our frog, Winnie, has his own fairy tale, but he gets tired of living in the same story all the time. Winnie the Frog would like to try out a new story — a new fairy tale that you make up in the Tell a Story Contest!

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It’s On! Spread the Word!

Sunday, March 21st, 2010

Today’s the day! No matter what else is happening today – whether Spring livens up your corner of the world or not – the Tell a Story Contest begins today.


Full details are on our website but to repeat the basics:

What: The contest challenges you to play with the child(ren) in your life to create a new story around any of our existing quilts. The story does not have to be polished or perfect. Make a video! Or submit your story in writing.

Who: For children ages 3-10, with an adult as contest entrant. Involve as many children as you wish!

When: The contest continues through April 21st. Winners will be announced April 27th — Tell a Story Day!

How: Full details are on the contest page on our website. Updates will appear here on our blog and on our Facebook Fan Page.

Round up your children or grandchildren – one, two, three or a classroom full – and make your plan. Which character will you choose? Remember, it’s not just the character that’s fun, but all the fabrics and the many, many options they provide for creating a story.

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The Thrill of Storytelling

Wednesday, March 10th, 2010

Have you ever listened to a really good storyteller – someone whose choice of words, twist of thought, lilt of voice and turn of body had you totally captivated? Perhaps the storyteller you remember was a grandparent or parent, or your pastor, or a teacher, or maybe your physician. Few of us realize how critical storytelling is to passing on information in a way that makes the information relevant and ensures that it sticks with us. It also can be just plain entertaining.


For children, storytelling can be critical for development. Think of little girls playing with dolls or boys with cars and trucks, for example. They tell stories to their playmates — or just to themselves — one after the other in endless variety. These stories help figure out how to deal with the world.

Storytelling has been a fascination for me since childhood. My father and uncles (one complete with pipe for the perfect pause effect) could turn an everyday event into a story that was totally enthralling, even to a young child. They delighted in this art and everyone who heard them did, too. The enjoyment of that was one motivation for creating Storybook Quilts.

Our new Storybook Quilts contest, set to begin on March 21st, is all about storytelling. More details appear below in our March 4th blog post and additional information will appear as we near the start date.

We also will be posting a series of blog articles here about storytelling – the renaissance of the art that has taken place, how children can become involved, and the value to us all.

So, come back here to visit us often! And start thinking now about which theme you might pick for your storytelling entry.

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Announcing the Tell a Story Contest

Thursday, March 4th, 2010

Remember last year’s contest — to name [Turtle]? The entries were imaginative and exciting. The winners, Kelly and her family, have been loving Luna the Turtle ever since.

Our new contest goes to the heart of what Storybook Quilts is all about — melding two creative American traditions: patchwork quilting and storytelling. Each quilt is made of fabrics printed with objects, animals or people and a large central shape that is the main character; the story that matches the quilt is written around these fabrics and that shape.

DanZy the Rabbit, for example, includes fabrics with magicians’ hats and rabbits; in the story, what DanZy wants most is to become a magician’s rabbit. The other fabrics in the quilt help tell the story of his journey in Hip Hop Ala Kazam! Olivia Meets DanZy the Rabbit.

One of the key goals of Storybook Quilts is to tickle children’s imaginations. Hearing the stories read is important to developing literacy, enhancing family closeness and creating wonderful memories — but each Storybook Quilt offers even more. We hope that children also will make up their own stories based on the fabrics in the quilt, giving their imaginations a chance to shine.

With that in mind, our first major contest of 2010 is based on creating a new story around any of our existing quilts. The story does not have to be polished or perfect, it just needs to be new and draw directly on the imagination of a child in your life. Instead of a written story, we are asking contestants to submit a short video.

Details will be available soon. The contest begins on March 21st.

The Grand Prize and other winners will be announced on April 27th, which is National Tell a Story Day. But it’s not too soon to start thinking!

Again, many thanks to all of you who took the time to vote in our polls about the contest. Your guidance was very helpful and we will be announcing additional opportunities in the near future.

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