Benefits of Storytelling and Americans All to Students
Our unique storytelling tool offers many benefits for students participating in non-curricular* school activities. It can also make a positive difference in their personal lives.
- All stories begin at birth, and legacies are built each time a personal, academic or professional milestone is achieved. Every student has important experiences and lessons learned to share with family, friends and future generations. Creating and publishing a story about themselves (or their families) helps students develop skills in critical thinking, communicating, researching, and, especially, writing—skills needed to help ensure their success in postsecondary education and/or the workforce. For student-athletes, this is an ideal opportunity to showcase their talents to post-secondary institutions.
- Americans All enables each school club or team to set up its own free Legacy Partner landing page to host stories created by its members on our Heritage Honor Roll. Each of these landing pages can become a virtual annual yearbook. Students can post their current story on as many landing pages as they desire. If the members of the clubs and teams update their stories after graduation, their peers are kept current on their classmate’s activities. For additional exposure, students can also post their stories on any Americans All legacy partner landing page.
- Our program also provides students with an opportunity to demonstrate that they understand and appreciate the value of community service and volunteerism. By helping others less skilled in the art of writing and the use of today's technology to incorporate images and recordings into their legacy stories, a student can earn service-learning credits. Moreover, storytelling can also be a wonderful intergenerational bonding experience, building compassion, empathy, and understanding.
- Even though Americans All is no longer active in curriculum areas, our resources remain online to provide background for many of our Heritage Honor Roll stories. We will continue to host resources (now called issues/topics) that are academically well-researched and written, especially those that feature individuals or groups that make up local histories. A student can use their second Heritage Honor Roll story in English or set up an additional, free email membership account (https://www.guru99.com/best-free-email-service-providers.html) and select a “Group” story instead of an “Individual” story. Students will find it easy to start creating their stories. Our story template only requires individuals to fill in a name, date of birth and summary not to exceed 60 words. Additional story text, hyperlinks, photographs and audio-visual media can be added over time. The story does not have to be completed in one session and can be updated at any time. All previous versions of the story are archived. Moreover, stories can be published in multiple languages. Only the student can edit the story, and half of the story can be privacy-protected with a second password.
As part of their lifetime membership in Americans All, we offer our members a free, three-month subscription to our optional Social Legacy Network to receive additional benefits. After the trial period expires, the cost is $4 per month to continue receiving these benefits, 77 percent of which is donated to a school of their choice. This membership includes discounts on goods and services offered by our program partners, such as restaurants and other businesses that cater to their needs. We believe the financial benefits that a member can receive from our business partners will more than cover their monthly subscription fee.
* Non-curricular activities include, but are not limited to, extra-curricular activities such as sports, performing arts, volunteerism, student government, and clubs that focus on topics such as academics, vocational and professional, service, arts and crafts, mechanical shops, hobbies, publications/media, languages, religion, and so on. They also include events like excursions and social outreach programs, to name a few. These activities provide a channel for reinforcing the lessons learned in the classroom, offering students the opportunity to apply academic skills in a real-world context, and thus help contribute to a well-rounded education. Our storytelling tool and outreach concepts can be quite useful in many of these areas.
Click here for tips on “How to create a legacy story.”
Click here for tips on “Storytelling for younger children.”
Click here to view our program overview
Click here to register for Americans All so you can create and share a legacy story and receive program benefits.
Click here to learn how your family can become a Legacy Partner.
Any questions? Please contact Americans All.