Winter is upon us and it feels like the time to curl up with a good book and a cup of hot chocolate.  Why not consider storytelling as an occasional alternative to reading?  Check out your local storytelling guild or group and hire a professional teller for a special event, or take the time to tell (not necessarily READ) stories to family and friends.  My four-year-old granddaughter is one of my best story-listeners.  Whenever we get together, she asks for a story.  Now, she can tell many of the stories to me and to her friends.  What a great way to encourage critical thinking, creativity, and pre-reading skills!  And...she's getting pretty good at the telling.  Her stories follow the linear pattern in the plot and are quite entertaining.  Stories are a great gift you can give to yourself and to those you love, so keep telling tales.