Storytelling competition underway

The first fairytales and fables contest for UAE schools was launched by Zayed University to inspire students to read, write and explore their creativity.

ABU DHABI // In 1,001 Arabian Nights, the clever Scheherazade buys her life, one day at a time, with her engrossing stories for the king.

Now Zayed University is encouraging pupils to write their own fairytales or fables for a competition designed to inspire them to read, write and explore their creativity.

Sheikha Alyazia bint Sultan Al Nahyan, whose cultural establishment Zowd is one of the organisers, said the Fairytales and Fables competition was aimed at instilling the Emirati storytelling tradition in pupils.

“A culture is only as strong as the stories that keep its people alive, so tell a story and celebrate our Emirati heritage,” Sheikha Alyazia said.

In the competition, which began yesterday, high school pupils are asked to compose their stories in 500 words or less, in Arabic or English. Electronic submissions will be accepted until March 19.

The contest is held in partnership with Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Centre for Cultural Understanding.

“The new Fairytales and Fables writing competition not only encourages students to get to know the local culture, but makes them active participants through story writing that addresses common values and characters in the Emirati traditions,” said Debbie Jaunich, school programme coordinator at the centre.

Each school will also be responsible for hosting storytelling events.

An integral part of the competition will be “We are Writers”, in which every pupil who submits a story will be published in a book for their school.

The contest is being run in the Year of Reading, declared for 2016 by the President, Sheikh Khalifa.