National Tell a Story Day is on Tuesday, April 27, 2027, and it falls on April 27 every year. It encourages everyone to share a story, whether it’s a fairy tale at bedtime, a family memory or a tall tale around a campfire. It’s also a good day to listen.
When Is National Tell a Story Day?
It’s always April 27 in the U.S. It’s an unofficial day, often marked by libraries, schools and families.
Who Started National Tell a Story Day?
No founder or start year has been documented.
Background: preserving everyday stories
One of the best-known U.S. storytelling projects is StoryCorps, founded by radio producer Dave Isay in 2003. Friends, relatives and even strangers sit down for 40-minute recorded conversations.
StoryCorps has recorded hundreds of thousands of interviews. They’re preserved at the Library of Congress’s American Folklife Center, and excerpts air on NPR’s Morning Edition. Since 2015, a free app has let anyone add a conversation to the archive.
Why Tell a Story?
Stories are how families pass down memories and how communities remember who they are. A grandparent’s account of their first job can teach more history than a textbook chapter.
The day is a reminder that those stories disappear if nobody asks for them. It also celebrates storytelling as a craft, from authors to oral storytellers.
How to Celebrate National Tell a Story Day
- Interview a relative: record a conversation on your phone and save it somewhere safe.
- Use good questions: StoryCorps suggests starters like “What is your earliest memory?” and “How would you like to be remembered?”
- Read aloud: share a picture book with a child, or a favorite short story with a friend.
- Swap stories at dinner: everyone shares their funniest or most embarrassing moment from childhood.
- Tell it again: retell a story you heard as a child.
- Try a story chain: one person starts a story, and each person adds one sentence.
- Attend a storytelling event: many libraries and bars host open-mic story nights.
- Write it down: jot a family story in a notebook, with names, dates and places, so it outlasts the telling.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are good questions to ask a grandparent?
Try “What was your childhood like?”, “What lessons has your work life taught you?” and “What is your first memory of me?” Follow up with “What happened next?”
How can I record a family story?
Use your phone’s voice recorder or the free StoryCorps app. Find a quiet room, keep the phone close to the speaker and label the file with names and the date.
What makes a story good to tell aloud?
A clear beginning, one main problem and a satisfying end. Keep it short, use specific details and practice once before telling it.