Octavia Sexton

Octavia Sexton grew up in eastern Kentucky hearing, telling and writing stories. Her teachers of stories were Master Storytellers from Appalachia. A native of eastern Kentucky, she grew up in a rich tradition of storytelling.  Her English/Irish ancestors migrated to Kentucky via North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia from Europe - bringing their stories with them.  Her paternal and maternal great grandmothers were Cherokee women from North Carolina.  Octavia has been privileged to grow up hearing folk tales, ‘haint’ tales, Jack tales and Cherokee legends. The core of her stories is rooted in the traditions and lifestyles of her family and her past.
 
A teacher for more than 20 years, Octavia founded her own arts education/performance company, SpoonWood Productions, in 2000.  She is a teaching artist in literary art and storytelling and is recognized as a master folk artist in storytelling. She is an experienced in-service presenter and conducts workshops on whole brain teaching strategies and incorporating storytelling into the classroom. Octavia has worked with adjudicated and psychiatric institutionalized youth and has presented literary, drama, storytelling and professional development programs in numerous schools, colleges and other educational settings.  Her stories have been broadcast nationally and internationally and she is a published writer and recording artist of the spoken word. 

All residencies are designed to incorporate literary and drama elements together with the Appalachian folk art of storytelling.  They are core content based, make connections to other curriculum areas and use whole brain teaching strategies.  Teaching materials and lesson plans, developed by Octavia, are provided for the teachers to keep and use.

Potential writing residencies include: 
Elementary - Classroom activities focus on students writing a fictional story modeled after a Jack Tale together with Native American cultures and the Colonial period.

 
Middle - classroom activities focus on students comparing Jack Tales to stories from the Classical Greek and Roman periods and writing their own ‘Odyssey’ with Jack as the hero.


High - Classroom activities use the student’s writing of their own Jack Tale to explore and reinforce learning in the subject area being taught; from the study of famous artists to eastern cultures.

Potential storytelling residencies include:
Elementary, Middle and High - Classroom activities focus on developing performance and technical elements as well as individual creativity to present an oral story, skit or play.