From the excitement of myths and legends to the magic of folklore, stories have captured our emotions for centuries. Most of the time, when we reach the end of a book we place it back on a shelf, but what if we thought more about the story and how it made us feel?

Exploring how we feel when we read stories can often tell us a lot about ourselves. It can be therapeutic.

That’s what makes the Verbal Storyteller app so different. Funded by BBC Children in Need’s A Million & Me programme, the app is being piloted to help parents boost their children’s emotional wellbeing with a combination of storytelling and therapeutic conversations.

Developed by a team of experts in the fields of Psychology and Literature, each storytelling experience aims to provide new perspectives on problems, helping children to express their feelings and explore key themes such as resilience and empathy.

It’s all about creating a safe space where conversations around mental health become fun, and children can feel comfortable in expressing their thoughts and emotions.

Before the official launch later this year, Verbal are offering a group of 150 parents and children free early access to Storyteller through their pilot scheme.

Storyteller uses stories to teach children about emotional wellbeing and empathy in the most natural and organic way. The app will provide parents with an outlet where they can enjoy the experience of reading a great story whilst gaining the reassurance that they are helping their child’s emotional and behavioral wellbeing.

“We want families with children aged 8-11-years-old to try our digital Storyteller app and tell us about their user-experience. Their feedback is extremely valuable and will help us ensure that Storyteller is not only easy to use, but also having a positive impact on the emotional wellbeing of the children taking part.”

Right now, with many children experiencing increased anxiety, isolation and some also facing bereavement, this app will offer a unique way to support children in understanding their feelings before issues embed and potentially require clinical intervention.

As the pandemic continues to affect every aspect of our lives, it’s simple but effective interventions such as these which will make the biggest difference for children and young people.

Verbal’s Storyteller app is funded through BBC Children in Need’s A Million & Me programme that has been designed to support children aged 8-13-years-old who are beginning to struggle with their mental health or emotional wellbeing. If you are a parent or caregiver of a child aged between 8-11-years-old and would like to try the pilot version of the Storyteller web app, you can sign up at www.verbaldigital.com/register, you can also learn more about the Storyteller web app here.

Make sure to click on the ‘include in pilot’ option to sign up for your free account before Monday 22nd February to participate in the pilot. Once launched the Storyteller web app will be free to use. Verbal has to cap the testing at 150 families however there are still ways to feedback if you miss the opportunity, details can be found on their website.