How to Nurture Your Child’s Storytelling Skills and Spark Their Imagination

Why Storytelling Matters More Than You Think

After a long school day filled with math drills, reading comprehension, and the challenge of sitting still for hours, your child might feel both overstimulated and emotionally drained. You, as a parent, may just want a peaceful evening—but somewhere deep down, you also wish there was something that could spark their imagination again. Something that wasn’t a screen or a worksheet.

That’s where the art of storytelling comes in. Encouraging your child to invent stories isn’t just about fun; it’s about helping them develop creativity, resilience, empathy, and even language skills. Whether your child struggles with homework or battles anxiety about school, storytelling can become a soothing practice that reconnects them with their inner world.

Start Where They Are, Not Where You Wish They Were

Some children dive headfirst into imaginative play. Others hesitate, afraid their ideas aren’t "good enough." Before introducing storytelling techniques, it’s important to meet your child with genuine curiosity. Observe how they naturally express themselves—through drawing, play, or even long tangential conversations. These are often the seeds of their own narrative voice.

You don’t need to force storytelling into a writing assignment or formal exercise (especially if schoolwork already feels like a burden). Instead, storytelling can be invited gently through daily rituals. During dinner, ask a playful question like, "If our cat had a secret job at night, what do you think it would be?" Let your child take the lead.

Evening moments can be especially fertile creatively. If you're looking for ideas that inspire without overstimulating, we explore some evening activities to relax and inspire kids here.

From Listening to Inventing: The Power of Stories They Hear

A child’s ability to tell an engaging story often grows first from stories they hear. Rich, imaginative stories not only model narrative structure—they also spark inner worlds your child may not have explored yet.

One simple yet powerful way to nurture this is by incorporating audiobooks into their daily routine. The iOS or Android version of the LISN Kids App offers a thoughtful collection of original audiobooks and audio series designed for children aged 3 to 12. Whether during car rides or at bedtime, these stories can trigger that quiet inner spark that later becomes a child’s own tale.

Listening isn’t just passive—it lays the groundwork for active storytelling. In fact, you can learn more in this guide on active listening and creativity.

Making Storytelling Part of Your Everyday Life

Invention doesn’t need a blank page. Many parents find that children open up creatively when storytelling becomes part of daily life—not a special activity, but a shared one. Some ideas:

• During walks or car rides, take turns adding to a made-up tale. Start simple: “Once upon a time, there was a squirrel who didn’t like nuts…”
• Play "What if?" games: “What if your backpack had a secret world inside it?” Each answer is a story waiting to unfold.
• Use toys as characters. Let them have adventures beyond the toy shelf, and offer to be a background character in your child’s story.

These micro-moments help children gain confidence, experimenting with voice, characters, and plot. In time, many will begin inventing more elaborate tales—on paper, aloud, or visually through drawings or comic strips.

If your child needs help finding their creative spark, this piece on daily habits that nurture creativity can offer a few gentle nudges to get things going.

Let Go of “Correct” and Embrace “Curious”

One of the biggest blocks to storytelling—for both children and adults—is the pressure to get it "right." But storytelling isn’t about grammar or structure; it’s about connection and imagination.

If your child says, “I don’t know what to say,” try asking guiding questions: “Where does your story happen? Who lives there? What do they want?” Be a listener, not a fixer. Your child’s version of good storytelling may be messy, repetitive, or fantastical—and that’s precisely what should be encouraged.

If you’d like to explore techniques for guiding their creative process, we’ve put together advice on how to tell stories that spark your child’s imagination.

When Storytelling Becomes a Lifelong Tool

The value of storytelling doesn’t end with childhood. For children facing academic pressure, social stress, or learning differences, storytelling can become a tool for self-expression and emotional regulation. Making up a story can help process a tough school day or empower them to imagine alternative outcomes to troubling situations.

And when children feel heard—when you show genuine interest in the worlds they invent—they gain confidence not only in their creativity but also in their voice as a person.

Whether through shared tales, solo inventions, or listening to a great audiobook together, storytelling helps children feel seen. And in today’s push for test scores and routines, few things are more powerful than a child who believes their ideas have value.

To further explore opportunities to unlock storytelling in children, here’s a curated list of audiobooks that inspire kids to create their own stories.