Sigmund Brouwer, a best-selling author, stood before hundreds of students assembled in the gymnasium at Yorkdale Central school on Jan. 9. He’d set up a projector screen behind him on the stage. He grabbed a microphone and the audience fell silent. Brouwer found the school librarian in the crowd and told her something shocking:
“Book are boring.”
The kids muttered and murmured to themselves. They thought they’d come to the gymnasium to learn about reading. Instead, the speaker had just told them books are boring. “Confusion” is the appropriate word.
Brouwer smiled and nodded. He told them books are boring, but stories are exciting. He wants kids to think of books as portals to great stories, not dusty pages that feel like chores to read. Brouwer wants to encourage kids to discover the thrill of reading and writing.
Brouwer compares his approach to teaching hockey. Kids don’t become hockey pros simply by running drills over and over. They have to find the fun in the game so they can improve.
“Enjoying stories is going to make them great readers,” he said. “But asking them to read and write for the sake of reading and writing isn’t as motivating.”
Brouwer is a prolific author, having written nearly thirty novels with almost four million books in print. He’s written novels for adults, teenagers, and children, telling tales of post-apocalypses, football games, and hockey teams.
After a while, schools began inviting Brouwer to speak to students about his books.
“I quickly discovered the best way to engage kids is...not by talking about writing, but by telling stories,” he said.
Brouwer developed the Rock & Roll Literacy show, which combines education, storytelling, and music into a one-hour performance.
“The show’s evolved over the years,” he said.
At Yorkdale, Brouwer caused a stir with his music. He played a popular Top 40 hit and encouraged the students to stand up and dance to it. They obliged with gusto. Brouwer then played a classic disco track and asked the teachers to boogie along with it. Brouwer turned the music off and waited for the laughter to subside.
“Great songs are like great stories,” he said. “They grab your feelings.”
Brouwer has toured around North America sharing his message of storytelling. He was at Yorkdale last November to help with the “Story Ninja” program, which, in Brouwer’s words, focuses on “getting kids in grades 3-5 really pumped up about writing through story.”
After his show in the gymnasium, Brouwer helped the “Story Ninjas” in a picture book workshop.
Brouwer is currently on a tour of the Good Spirit School Division. He hopes to return to Yorkdale.
“Yorkton’s just a great town,” he said.
As he led the students through the Rock & Roll Literacy show, Brouwer encouraged them to find the fun in storytelling.
“It’s all about helping kids share their stories,” he said. “Story is the huge engine for reading and writing.”
