SHIELA R.

NAVAL MAED ELT

A MODULE ON MYTHS AND

HOW TO BECOME A GREAT STORYTELLER

I. INTRODUCTION

A. This module provides activities on developing skills in listening, speaking, reading and
writing exploring the values and culture of Filipinos through Philippine literature suitable for
Grade 7 students.

B. Rationale: This module is important part of our lesson because it introduces you into real life
situations within the experiential background of the youth to the featured literary pieces as it
portrays a living language. This will help you discover your identity as Filipino in a worthwhile
learning. You will use this module to prepare yourself in narrating a story.

C. Below are the objectives for this lesson. Before you proceed to the Pre-Test or Pre-
Assessment stage, read these objectives carefully:

General Objectives – By the end of this module, I will be able to narrate a story using a video
recorder.

Specific Objectives:

1. Recall myths and legends that you know.

2. Outline the important details happened in the story.
3. Give the characteristics of myths.
4. Describe the different types of myths.
5. Give the importance of myths.
6. Use correct juncture/phrasing and rate of speech when reading passages/paragraphs in
storytelling.
7. Use rising intonation pattern and rising-falling intonation.
8. Create your own story using podcast.

Pre-Test. Answer the following questions:

1. What is a myth?
2. What are the characteristics of myths?
3. What are the myths told by your parents or grandparents?
4. Do you also tell stories your friends such as myths?
5. What details do you tell?

After answering these questions, read the lecture Notes in the Learning Frames below to find the
answers. Then answer the questions in the pre-test again.

Learning Frame 1. INTRODUCTION TO PHILIPPINE MYTHS

Definition of Myth
 A myth is a story based on tradition or legend, which has a deep symbolic meaning.
 A myth conveys a truth' to those who tell it and hear it, rather than necessarily recording a
true event.
 Myths are often used to explain universal and local beginnings and involve supernatural
beings. The great power of the meaning of these stories, to the culture in which they
developed, is a major reason why they survive as long as they do - sometimes for thousands
of years.

Ten Characteristics of a Myth

1. A myth is a story that is, or was considered, a true explanation of the natural world and how it
came to be.
SHIELA R. NAVAL MAED ELT

2. Characters are often non-human and are typically gods, goddesses, supernatural beings or
mystical “fist people.”

3. Setting is typically ancient, or prior to the time when actual records were kept. Myths are
typically set in a world very similar to our own, but with supernatural monsters or areas.

4. The plot of a myth may take place between a supernatural world and our present day world.
Myths do this to highlight the basic human behaviors that are essential in any setting.

5. Myths possess events that bend or break natural laws. This is often done to magnify the
“super-naturalness” of the mythical world.

6. Promotes “Social Action”—myths try to tell people how to act and live. Core values such as
individualism, family and community are often instilled in mythical heroes.

7. Myths have sense of mystery, or the unknown.

8. Dualities (or complete opposites such as night/day, good/evil) often play important roles in the
plot of a myth.

9. Myths often have an emphasis on language. Mythical heroes are often sophisticated
storytellers.

10. Myths are often metaphoric—that is, myths are created to comment or analyze a real-world
event. Real world questions that myths often attempt to answer are:
Why are we here?
Who are we?
Why are we living? What is our purpose?

USES OF MYTHS

1. To explain natural phenomena or an occurrence.

2. To explain the creation of the world.
3. To teach people moral lessons.

Examples of Myths

a. Bicol Origin Myth

b. Matukad Island, the Hidden Lagoon and the Giant Milk Fish ( Caramoan )

Self-Test 1. The Characteristics of Myths.

Answer 😊 if the statement is True and ☹ if the statement is False.
______1. Setting is typically ancient, or prior to the time when actual records were kept.
______2. Characters are always human beings.
______3. A myth is a story based on tradition or legend, which has a deep symbolic meaning.
______4. Myths does not explain natural phenomena or an occurrence.
______5. Myths promotes social action.

Check your answers using the answer key at the end of this module. If you received wrong
answer study the learning frame above again.
SHIELA R. NAVAL MAED ELT

Learning Frame 2. TYPES OF MYTHS

1. Aetiological Myths

Aetiological myths (sometimes spelled etiological) explain the reason why something is the way
it is today. The word aetiological is from the Greek word aetion (αἴτιον) meaning “reason” or
“explanation”. There are three subtypes of aetiological myths: natural, etymological, and
religious.

A natural aetiological myth explains an aspect of nature. For example, you could explain
lightning and thunder by saying that Zeus is angry.

An etymological aetiological myth explains the origin of a word. (Etymology is the study of
word origins.) For example, you could explain the name of the goddess, Aphrodite, by saying
that she was born in sea-foam, since aphros is the Greek word for sea-foam.

A religious aetiological myth explains the origin of a religious ritual. For example, you could
explain the Greek religious ritual of the Eleusinian Mysteries by saying that they originated when
the Greek goddess, Demeter, came down to the city of Eleusis and taught the people how to
worship her.

All three of these explanations are not true: Zeus’ anger is not the correct explanation for
lightning and thunder; Aphrodite’s name was not actually derived from the Greek word aphros;
and Demeter did not establish her own religious rituals in the town of Eleusis. Rather, all of these
explanations had meaning for the ancient Greeks, who told them in order to help them
understand their world.

2. Historical Myths

Historical myths are told about a historical event, and they help keep the memory of that event
alive. Ironically, in historical myths, the accuracy is lost but meaning is gained. The myths about
the Trojan War, including the Iliad and the Odyssey, could be classified as historical myths. The
Trojan War did occur, but the famous characters that we know from the Iliad and the Odyssey
(Agamemnon, Achilles, Hector, etc.) probably did not exist.

3. Psychological Myths

Psychological myths try to explain why we feel and act the way we do. A psychological myth is
different from an aetiological myth because a psychological myth does not try to explain one
thing by way of something else (such as lightning and thunder can be explained by Zeus’ anger).
In a psychological myth, the emotion itself is seen as a divine force, coming from the outside,
that can directly influence a person’s emotions. For example, the goddess, Aphrodite, is
sometimes seen as the power of erotic love. When someone said or did something that they did
not want to do, the ancient Greeks might say that Aphrodite “made them” do it.

Self-Test 2. The 3 Types of Myths.

Describe the characteristics of the three types of myths.

The 3 Types of Myths

Aetiological Myths Historical Myths Psychological Myths
SHIELA R. NAVAL MAED ELT

Self-Test 3.
Review Frame 1. Go back to the questions in the Pre-test and answer the same questions there.
Review Frame 2. Answer True or False to the following questions.

______1. The plot of a myth may take place between a supernatural world and our present day
world.
______2. A myth conveys a false perception to those who tell it and hear it, rather than
necessarily recording a true event.
______3. Psychological myths try to explain why we feel and act the way we do.
______4. A religious aetiological explains an aspect of nature.
______5. Myths possess events that bend or break natural laws.
______6. Historical myths are told about a historical event.
______7. A natural aetiological myth myth explains the origin of a religious ritual.
______8. Myths have sense of mystery, or the unknown.
______9. Myths teach people moral lessons.
______10. Myths are created to comment or analyze a real-world event.

Check your answers using the answer key at the end of this module. If you received 7 out of 10
correct answers, study the notes again, answer study the learning frame above again and ask for
a copy of handouts to your teacher.

Learning Frame 3. How to become a Great Storyteller?

WHAT IS STORYTELLING?

 Storytelling is the process of using fact and narrative to communicate something to your
audience. Some stories are factual, and some are embellished or improvised in order to better
explain the core message.

 Storytelling is an art form as old as time and has a place in every culture and society.

WHY DO WE TELL STORIES?

 Stories Solidify Abstract Concepts and Simplify Complex Messages
 Stories Bring People Together
 Stories Inspire and Motivate

Pre-Test. Telling a Story. Recall a story that you heard from your parents/grandparents. Outline
the different events happened in that story. Share your story with your classmates and teacher. If
your classmates and teacher do not understand the flow of your story take the Branching frame
below. If your story telling is good, then, you may proceed to the next activity.

Study the process of storytelling. You may research the steps for you to deeply understand about
story telling or you may click the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHvg7pAfgEg.

THE STORYTELLING PROCESS

1. Know your audience
2. Define your core message
3. Decide what kind of story you’re telling
4. Establish your call-to-action
5. Choose your story medium
6. Write!
7. Share your story
SHIELA R. NAVAL MAED ELT

Pop Quiz: True or False?

____1. Storytelling helps you engage to people.

____2. Storytelling is an art.
____3. The most important thing to do when you tell a story is to simply tell the scene so that
listener can imagine the picture in their head and feel what is going on.
____4. Make them feel the atmosphere of your story and make tension so the other person
cannot wait to know what will happen next.
____5. Correct juncture/phrasing, intonation and rate of speech when reading
passages/paragraphs in storytelling enhance your skills as storyteller.

Check your answer by watching again the video on the given link above. Review the notes and do
the branching Frame if made a mistake in any of your answers. Once you know all the answers
to these questions, go on to the next Learning Frame which should prepare you to create your
own story to tell using a podcast.

Learning Frame 4. STORYTELLING PODCAST

The objective is to identify a possible path toward own storytelling podcast.

1. Concept: Put together a phrase that describes the idea behind the podcast.

 What is it about?
 Are there other podcasts alike?
 How will it standout?

2. List of possible part of your story:

The objective is to verify that the concept defined in point 1 works. An idea that cannot be taken
to an episode is useless.

3. Format: Storytelling alone. You can apply the correct use of juncture, phrasing, stress,
intonation and other voice qualities.

4. Script
There are many ways to face this step. I suggest starting by doing a general draft of the story.
Which is the central point? What are the main ideas to carry out?

Then define elements like:

 Who are the characters?

 How will the events take place?
 What scenes can be built?

5. Script editing
After you have a first version of the story, you start polishing details and perhaps enter crisis
mode. Is this the best way to tell it? Are there extra fragments? Or missing ones? Does it work as
a story?

6. Recording or traffic
It is important that the narration sounds informal. This is closely related to the script — to be
written for the ear. The main idea is that the narration avoid sounding like it’s being read.
Instead, it should sound like a friend telling you a story. This requires practice and to get to know
your way of speaking when you’re relaxed so you can replicate it in the studio or behind the
microphone.
SHIELA R. NAVAL MAED ELT

7. Verification and adjustments

Once you have your first draft of the mix and can hear it, you’ll have to go back and adjust
what’s necessary. It’s possible that the script will require a few modifications and that you’ll
have to record again. You can go as far back as to reconsider the podcast’s concept, because
things might come up that you hadn’t expected.

Test Yourself
Answer the following with YES or NO.

____1. Did I enjoy knowing about storytelling in podcast?

____2. Do I have idea on how storytelling goes?
____3. Am I ready to create my own storytelling podcast?
____4. Do I already have a story to tell in podcast?
____5. Do I have appropriate tool in storytelling podcast?

If you answered “YES” to the questions above, you are ready to go on to the next step below.

If you answered “NO” to the questions above, then review Learning Frame and follow the
process in storytelling podcast.

Please click the link to help you more in doing your storytelling podcast:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxJ9_wC6U_4

Getting Ready for the Next Activity: Sharing your Storytelling Podcast

o Ask a peer and teacher to comment on your module and give suggestions to improve it.
o Try to revise your story based on the suggestions.
o Create another podcast after revising the first one.
o Share again the revised storytelling podcast.

Answer Key:

Pretest.

Self-Test 1.
1. 😊
2. ☹
3. 😊
4. ☹
5. 😊

Self-Test 2.

1. Answers are on notebook.

Self-Test 3.
1. True
2. False
3. True
4. False
5. True
6. True
SHIELA R. NAVAL MAED ELT

7. False
8. True
9. True
10. True

Pop Quiz. True or False.

1. True
2. True
3. False
4. True
5. True

Test Yourself
*Answers may vary