Mercy Professor Provides “Teachable Moments” Through the Craft of Storytelling

Dr. Wendy Mags presenting story about Lima Beans

By day, Dr. Wendy Mages, an associate professor of childhood education, teaches on the faculty of the School of Education. She also researches the effect of the arts on learning and development, and serves as affiliated faculty for the Mercy College Center for STEM Education. But by night, Mages transforms into a storyteller, performing at The Moth and other storytelling events.

Wait, what? Dr. Mages does story slams?

Indeed, Wendy Mages has performed in several story slams—live performances of “true stories, told without notes”—hosted by The Moth, a New York City non-profit group dedicated to sharing common, diverse experience through the craft of storytelling.

Recently, Mages performed her piece called “Lima Beans: An Epiphany.” While conducting a class of Mercy College graduate students studying to become teachers, Mages searched for a way to engage her students more effectively. Recalling the wonder and delight of germinating lima beans into seedlings as a young child, Mages brought a few germinated lima beans to class to share with her students. The resulting teachable moment served as the basis of her story.

“Telling true science stories allows tellers to share personal experiences of science, as it invites audiences to experience the marvels of science in everyday lives,” said Mages. “This story was originally crafted to engage science teachers in a professional development workshop on telling true personal science stories.”

“Lima Beans: An Epiphany” was published in The Journal of Stories in Science, an academic journal that explores storytelling as a means to “teach, inspire, engage, connect and build new bridges of understanding about the diversity of paths in science.”

In June Mages presented “Lima Beans: An Epiphany” live at a sold-out conference in New York City called Cultivating Ensembles in STEM Education and Research. Attended by educators, researchers, performers, artists and entrepreneurs, the conference seeks to transform the human/cultural experience of professional and social identities in STEM.

To learn more about Dr. Mages’s storytelling endeavors, including videos of her performances at The Moth, please visit Wendy Mages: Storyteller.