Educator Tale Teacher
Tanya is a qualified kaiako (BEd, Dip Teaching ECE) specialising in Arts Education.
She is regularly invited as a keynote speaker and workshop presenter at conferences and has lectured and provided professional development for tertiary colleges, schools, early childhood providers and many other community groups and education service providers. She is the author of five teaching resources in the areas of storytelling, drama and dance education and continues to develop quality teaching resources in the areas of environmental education and sustainability. Tanya can be booked for professional development workshops and offers a monthly online professional development subscription service, Batt on the Mat.
She believes that delight and curiosity form the basis of life long learning and is committed to her own journey of learning tikanga and te reo Māori.
"No education that is not founded on art will ever succeed."
Margaret Mead
Thank you for the wonderful workshop you ran last weekend. You have an amazing gift with people, inspiring and motivating them to action. It was a great experience. I look forward to future workshops .
Lisa Andraczke, Kindergym Victoria, Australia
“Thoroughly enjoyed the workshop, and my children really enjoyed your Sunday stories. Quite apart from anything else I found your passion, and the skill with which you do what you do, inspiring. It gave me a little gleam of optimism and excitement which seems to be enduring - that's a good week now - not to be sniffed at! Thank you.”
Tracy Sullivan, Parent and Writer
Teaching Resources in the Story shop
The perfect gift for tamariki/children or families who love stories.
For a whole year you get to join storyteller Tanya Batt and musician , Peter Forster (monthly sessions) in the 'Batt Cave' as a special guest. Enjoy stories, music, prizes, surprises and the wonderful company of the worlds' only super hero storytelling sheep - 'Batt-lamb'.
* These sessions are recorded and form the basis of the 'Story and a Song - musical stories for children' podcast which is enjoyed in over 135 countries around the world. Please note it is only the audio that is recorded and we are careful not to use any identifying information that would compromise children's safety online.
Seasonal Story Telling is a colourful, illustrated handbook for storytellers and teachers that follows seasonal rhythms. Acclaimed and experienced storyteller, Tanya Batt, provides a guide for interactive storytelling; notes for organising process dramas; instructions for group games; as well as songs, recipes, and ways of celebrating the changing seasons. The book contains stories, both originals and adaptations, from a range of cultures, including The New Zealand Gingerbread Man, the Chinese Ten Suns, the Iranian Roll my Pumpkin, and, the Australian Aboriginal Rainbow Bird. Batt’s thoughtful, practical and inspiring writing makes this book a must-have for aspiring story-tellers, educators, and anyway interested in reviving this most ancient of arts.
The book includes access to a generous digital audio collection of more than 30 stories, music and songs.
“Seasonal Storytelling combines Tanya’s expertise as a storyteller with her profound respect and understanding of the natural world.
Interweaving Māori pūrākau, waiata and whakatauākī with stories and songs from cultures around the world, Seasonal Storytelling offers imaginative and practical ways to help tamariki celebrate and connect with the seasonal changes in Aotearoa. It also provides teachers with helpful suggestions around working with tamariki through storytelling and the arts.
Ngā mihi maha ki a Tanya mō tāna rauemi hou, he tino taonga mā ngā kaiako o ngā tamariki.”
Moira Wairama – storyteller, writer and teacher
ISBN 978-1-991083-19-7
Lassavia Publishing
This product is for ordering a physical copy of the book. If you want to download a digital file please go here.
Seasonal Story Telling is a colourful, illustrated handbook for storytellers and teachers that follows seasonal rhythms. Acclaimed and experienced storyteller, Tanya Batt, provides a guide for interactive storytelling; notes for organising process dramas; instructions for group games; as well as songs, recipes, and ways of celebrating the changing seasons. The book contains stories, both originals and adaptations, from a range of cultures, including The New Zealand Gingerbread Man, the Chinese Ten Suns, the Iranian Roll my Pumpkin, and, the Australian Aboriginal Rainbow Bird. Batt’s thoughtful, practical and inspiring writing makes this book a must-have for aspiring story-tellers, educators, and anyway interested in reviving this most ancient of arts.
The book includes access to a generous digital audio collection of more than 30 stories, music and songs.
“Seasonal Storytelling combines Tanya’s expertise as a storyteller with her profound respect and understanding of the natural world.
Interweaving Māori pūrākau, waiata and whakatauākī with stories and songs from cultures around the world, Seasonal Storytelling offers imaginative and practical ways to help tamariki celebrate and connect with the seasonal changes in Aotearoa. It also provides teachers with helpful suggestions around working with tamariki through storytelling and the arts.
Ngā mihi maha ki a Tanya mō tāna rauemi hou, he tino taonga mā ngā kaiako o ngā tamariki.”
Moira Wairama – storyteller, writer and teacher
For book sales within Aotearoa/New Zealand please place your order below, direct from the author.
For overseas orders please email tanya@imagined-worlds.net
ISBN 978-1-991083-19-7
Lassavia Publishing
This is the set for both the digital pdf of the original Dance Upon A Time Teaching Resource book and the digital audio files in mp3 format.
Dance Upon A Time is a weaving of stories, movement and music that draws upon children’s love of stories and dancing. It was originally released as a double CD in conjunction with the book of the same name with the stories being used as an exploration of movement concepts. The collection draws its inspiration from both the ordinary and the extraordinary - magic carpets, snails in the garden, nursery rhymes, the changing seasons, well known traditional tales and perhaps the even more familiar play dough table. We hope your ‘dance upon a time’ leads to many more creative movement adventures.
by Tanya Batt and Craig Denham
Dance Upon A Time is a weaving of stories, movement and music that draws upon children’s love of stories and dancing. It was originally released as a double CD in conjunction with the book of the same name with the stories being used as an exploration of movement concepts. Due to its popularity, this release is a stand alone single album which contains all the favourites including the Gingerbread Man Blues and the Magic Play dough, narrated by storyteller Tanya Batt. The collection draws its inspiration from both the ordinary and the extraordinary - magic carpets, snails in the garden, nursery rhymes, the changing seasons, well known traditional tales and perhaps the even more familiar play dough table. We hope your ‘dance upon a time’ leads to many more creative movement adventures.
2014
59MB mp3 files
Tanya Batt
Illustrated by Juliet Hawkins
A teaching resource in the area of creative dance and movement, where dance is primarily about using the body as a means of exploration and expression. Learn how to assist children to express their thoughts, emotions and stories through movement. The book begins by introducing the reader to a conceptual approach to teaching movement and dance. It goes on to explore this approach through four mouse foot stories and ten lesson plans, each focusing on a different movement concept or element and culminating in a movement story. This resource is best suited to people working with children aged three through to eight years of age.
This download is for the printable pdf of the book. A downloadable set of both audio and book in pdf format is available elsewhere in this store.
Format: PDF, 62MB
Tanya Batt
Can Jill win her bucket back from an enterprising bird? Will Mrs Wash-a-lot persuade the wind to not to blow her washing off the line? This collection of ten process dramas provides a starting place for creating shared imagined experiences with young children. Using song, dance, mime, storytelling, visual arts - this book is a resource developed from my own teaching practice with children from pre-school to eight years old. Part One of the book explains how to create a drama and the educational theory behind process drama. Part Two reproduces in detail twelve dramas I have used with young children and Part Three gives an extensive list of resources that people might find useful in developing their own work.
This set includes MP3s of all the audio files available on the original cd accompanying the book.
Format: MP3 and PDF
81 MB
Tanya Batt
Can Jill win her bucket back from an enterprising bird? Will Mrs Wash-a-lot persuade the wind to not to blow her washing off the line? This collection of ten process dramas provides a starting place for creating shared imagined experiences with young children. Using song, dance, mime, storytelling, visual arts - this book is a resource developed from my own teaching practice with children from pre-school to eight years old.
Part One of the book explains how to create a drama and the educational theory behind process drama. Part Two reproduces in detail twelve dramas I have used with young children and Part Three gives an extensive list of resources that people might find useful in developing their own work. ~ Tanya Batt
This product listing is for the PDF book only. A set of both the audio and the pdf for digital download is available elsewhere in this shop.
Printable PDF Format, 63 MB.
Tanya Batt & Craig Denham
This album contains eighteen songs/chants that accompany the teaching resource 'Imagined Worlds' of the same name. The songs are used to facilitate the twelve process dramas detailed in the teaching resource but many can be used as stand alone activities for mat times or for general use.
The album is intended as teaching tool to help people learn the songs/chants. Each song is first sung with musical accompaniment, and then followed by the un accompanied music for you to practice the song.
Tracks
01 What have you got in your apron
02 Action travelling song
03 Climbing scale
04 Nest Building Song
05 We are going
06 Crystal Ball
07 Preparation Song
08 Spinning Song
09 I traveled all over the land and sea
10 I am a little bird
11 Caa Caa Ah Wee Oh
12 Moving Chant
13 Hoea te Waka
14 The Chopping song
15 Hello Song
16 I’m the Christmas Fairy
17 I went to visit a farm one day
18 Do you plant your cabbages
This album can be purchased as a stand alone item or bought as a set with the Imagined Worlds teaching resource. This purchase is for the Album Audio only, see the set or separate printable teaching resource elsewhere in this store.
19MB, 18 mp3 tracks. Originally published by Playcentre (2007)
Tanya Batt
Tanya shares her stories and skills as a storyteller who specializes in working with children ages 3 - 7 years. A valuable teaching resource for those who want to learn or develop confidence in storytelling and story making with young children. Suitable for those working with children ages three to eight years.
This product is a digital download of both the audio files as mp3 and a printable pdf of the book.
Tanya Batt
PDF Digital Download
This book is primarily aimed at adults who wish to learn or develop their confidence storytelling and story making with young children. It is based on my experience as a performance storyteller and arts educator for early childhood, and my love of stories. The book includes a discussion of the value of storytelling, practical advice for storytelling and story making and a collection of traditional stories suitable for sharing with young children.
This is an educational resource and this product is the pdf only. If you’re interested in the audio as well as the pdf look for the Book& Audio Set in this shop.
Tanya Batt & Craig Denham
A sack of stories guaranteed to delight younger audiences. Meet Lulu and her bedtime menagerie, hear why stones are storytellers, discover the secret of the apple and laugh out loud at the foolishness of lazy Jack. This collection of traditional stories retold is best suited for children between 3 and 8 years of age. This album is now only available as digital download.
Track Listing
01 Why Stones Live Forever (2:50) Tradional Nupe West African
02 The Story Sack (5:44) Traditional Korean
03 The Ten Suns (6:07) Traditional Chinese
04 Grandmother's Bed (14:26) Adaptation Traditional
05 Lazy Jack (8:59) Traditional English
06 The Riddle Story (7:49) Adaptation Traditional
07 The Singing Sack (14:36) Traditional Spanish
08 The Three Wishes (6:15) Traditional European
71MB, 8 MP3 audio files. Originally published by Playcentre (2006)
Tanya Batt - Craig Denham
A sack of stories guaranteed to delight younger audiences. Meet Lulu and her bedtime menagerie, hear why stones are storytellers, discover the secret of the apple and laugh out loud at the foolishness of lazy Jack. This CD stands alone as a collection of told stories and as a teaching resource that accompanies the book 'The Story Sack'. Recommended for those 3 years plus.
This product is a physical CD album that will be shipped to you. If you prefer a digital download of mp3s you can find The Story Sack - Digital Download Album also in this store for $15 NZ.
Track Listing
01 Why Stones Live Forever (2:50) Tradional Nupe West African
02 The Story Sack (5:44) Traditional Korean
03 The Ten Suns (6:07) Traditional Chinese
04 Grandmother's Bed (14:26) Adaptation Traditional
05 Lazy Jack (8:59) Traditional English
06 The Riddle Story (7:49) Adaptation Traditional
07 The Singing Sack (14:36) Traditional Spanish
08 The Three Wishes (6:15) Traditional European
Dance Upon Our Earth is a collection of ecologically themed stories created for children to sing, dance and move to. These stories explore the processes of creation, life cycles and relationships. They are designed to nurture an active curiosity, connection and understanding between children and our home, the Earth.
“If we want children to flourish, to become truly empowered, then let us allow them to love the earth before we ask them to save it. Perhaps this is what Thoreau had in mind when he said, “the more slowly trees grow at first, the sounder they are at the core, and I think the same is true of human beings.”
-David Sobel, Beyond Ecophobia
If you prefer a digital download of this album you can find that in this store too!
Download both the Album Dance Upon Our Earth (as mp3s) and the pdf with the Teaching Notes
This is a digital product. You will download a zipped folder containing all 17 tracks of the Dance Upon Our Earth Album and Teaching Notes (Downloadable PDF - 61 pages 8MB) accompanying the album.
Dance Upon Our Earth is a collection of ecologically, cosmologically and geologically themed stories created for children (ages 3 – 10 years) to sing, dance and move to.
Merging the expressive arts and science, these stories explore the processes of creation, life cycles and relationships. They are designed to nurture an active curiosity, connection and understanding between children and our home, the Earth.
The album is supported by a teaching resource which includes a series of 10 instructive videos with children dancing to the stories, comprehensive teaching notes for extension activities and online links to support the learning areas featured on the album.
This teaching resource is illustrated with images by Kristy Barlow and is specifically designed for teachers and caregivers in early childhood and primary school age settings. Videos for each of the stories are available as a support.
“We are all storytellers. The value of traditional stories, are that they serve to ‘distill’ the human experience. They are meaning makers in ‘non rational ways. Stories are where reason does not go.”
Alida Gersie
by Tanya Batt and Peter Forster
Bat stories from around the world
Storyteller Tanya Batt and musician Peter Forster invite you into the twilight realm of the bat. This recording is a weave of traditional bat stories from around the world, bat science and stranger than fiction folkloric traditions. $2 from every sale of this recording will be donated to bat conservation project in Aotearoa/NZ.
1. Why bats fly at night
A sing along adaptation of a traditional tale from Sierra Leone, Africa
2. Where bats comes from
An adaptation of a First Nations Cree tale, Canada
3. Bat's Incredible
Song by Tanya Batt and Peter Forster
4. Bat bomb
A very sad but true chapter in history
5. How can we be kind to our own kind
Song by Tanya Batt and Peter Forster
6. The Eight Eyed Bat
An adaptation of a traditional Hawaiian Tale, South Pacific.
7. The Gift of Darkness
Sierra Leone, Africa
8. The Five Blessings of the Bat
Traditional Chinese
2026
163.7MB mp3 files