Choose from these exciting, original kids’ audio stories.

Clem the Detective Dog
Ralphie The Gopher
Sheriff Daisy & Deputy Bud
Rainbow of the Sioux
The Monotonia Chronicles
Tibbodnock Stories
Fiona the Smart Ghost
Ivan the Not-So-Terrible
Nikki the Invisible Girl
Sarabel to the Rescue

“Tall Tales Audio’s CDs are perfect for entertaining young car passengers — but I often linger after they hop out to hear the wacky endings.”
—Jackie T, Mom, Walnut Creek, Ca

Storytelling Tips

Listen to storytelling podcasts (fun for parents and kids) or subscribe to free TallTales Audio podcasts at the iTunes Store.

Vacation Storytelling

Vacations are wonderful times for family storytelling. Away from the distractions of work, school, and the everyday rat race, days are longer and bedtimes later. In fact, vacations may be one of the few times the whole family is together (and relaxed) for an extended period. Fortunately, whether you’re spending a week or two at a lakeside cottage, exploring big city museums, camping, or visiting an overseas destination such as Europe, there are lots of fun ways to build storytelling into your vacation.

1. Check out the history of your vacation spot before you go (most travel guides have short history sections, and Wikipedia is always a good source). That way, you’ll have enough knowledge to build a story that’s as educational as it is fun. So whether you plan to tell a story about the American Indians who lived in upstate New York or the royalty who called Austrian castles home, bone up on a few facts.

2. Make storytelling part of your vacation planning. For example, if you’ll be visiting New York City, you might begin a story set in Dutch times that touches on both the history and geography of Manhattan Island (a story like this would surely make a planned visit to the early American collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art lots more fun). Just be sure your stories are age-appropriate and fun (no one wants to go to school on vacation).

3. Plan to tell stories en route to your travel destination. Whether by car, train, plane, or boat, there is usually more than enough time. Especially for little kids, focus on all that you see on the way, such as giant trucks on the highway, horses on country roads, or clouds outside the airplane window (hey, these could be part of a magical cotton candy kingdom). Again, it helps to plan ahead because it can be hard to be spontaneous if the trip becomes even more stressed than usual — for example, if you’re stuck in a crowded airport due to a delayed flight.

4. . Don’t forget storytelling based on transportation themes when you reach your destination. Whether you’re up close to a kayak, cable car, subway, or monorail, there are all kinds of adventures you can create — such as a girl who falls asleep on a bus and wakes up in a village of lost princesses. Transportation themes often work particularly well with younger kids: A five-year old will be delighted with a simple story about a talking canoe (while a pre-teen will want you to throw in Nessie and Bigfoot).

5. Take advantage of the more novel features of your surroundings — whether palm trees, alligators, or ski slopes. For example, the palm trees outside a tropical bungalow might become the family home of miniature monkeys. The bright lights of Las Vegas might be the perfect setting for a band of twinkling fairies who come out to play in the middle of the night. Let your creativity loose — a dry-seeming museum portrait might inspire a story on that person’s exciting childhood. Or if you’re taking a factory tour, tell your kids an imaginative tale of what happens when the sun goes down and the workers leave.

6. Water — whether it’s the ocean, a mountain lake, or even a hotel swimming pool — is an especially great storytelling inspiration. For example, a trip to the coast of Maine can be a terrific place to tell stories about the pirate Blackbeard who is reputed to have hidden treasure there. For little kids, a stick washed up on the shore can be a magical fishing pole left behind by a mermaid. And again, you can touch on history in your water stories — such as native Hawaiians going long distances (and having dramatic adventures) in outrigger canoes.

7. If you travel out of the country, think about how to build your storytelling around the local culture — whether it be Buddhist monks in Thailand, bullfighters in Spain, or Aborigines in Australia. You’ll do better if you briefly research your subject before your leave (or stop in an Internet café while vacationing).

8. Be ready to make any vacation hiccups part of the storytelling fun. Late planes, lost luggage, long amusement park lines, a weird hotel room, or funky weather can add unexpected (and often unwelcome) drama to any vacation. Don’t wait until you’re home and regaling friends and family with your vacation travails. Turn them into fun stories now. One person we know did this by calling their story “The Clark Family’s Worst Vacation Ever,” with every person in the family telling about at least three goof-ups. Your sense of humor — and willingness to accept whatever problems you face — will teach your kids valuable life lessons.

9. Whether at home or on vacation, bedtime is the traditional time for storytelling. If the weather and location allow, move the action outdoors — for example, wrap everyone in blankets and sit on the porch after dinner or gather around a fire pit (see our tips for fireside storytelling). And take advantage of any cool storytelling sites — for example, if you have a rowboat pulled up on shore or a sailboat tied to the dock, load everyone in it for a memorable storytelling session.

10. Vacations are a great time to shake things up and veer from your regular routine. Tell stories in the morning when everyone is still in their pajamas eating breakfast or schedule mid-afternoon play with everyone charged with improvising costumes as well as dialogue.

11. It also makes sense to plan a fun game or two for those times you might have to wait (familyeducation.com has some good ones). Incidentally, this same site has a great list of guides to family vacations — everything from factory tours to museums (large and small) to Civil War battlefields to ranch vacations.

12. Keep vacation fun alive for years to come by making a family vacation memory book. In addition to your photos, have the kids include their favorite mementos — things like ticket stubs, travel brochures, postcards, and souvenir menus. For ideas on family scrapbooks, check out http://familyfun.go.com/arts-and-crafts/cutpaste/feature/famf29scrapbook. Don’t forget to include extra-special stories — take a few minutes to read the best ones when they are still fresh in your memory. (But we don’t recommend recording stories when telling them the first time, because this is likely to kill the spontaneity of the storytelling moment.)

13. Finally, our own department of boosterism wants to remind you not to forget TallTales Audio’s CDs and MP3 downloads! Our stories make great family entertainment, whether you’re going by car (and the whole family listens) or plane (and your child has their own CD or MP3 player).

©2007 TallTales Audio