ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the use of therapeutic stories with students who are under-achievers or have behavior problems. The stories were developed using strategies developed by Lankton and Lankton (1986, 1989). The stories were bound in book form and read by students in school classrooms as part of their curriculum. Teachers noticed improved student behavior. There was also a higher percentage of students whose reading grades improved than was found in a control group. There was further evidence of interpersonal behavior changes based on the pretest-posttest results of the Interpersonal Checklist. The 136 students who read the stories self-reported improved interpersonal behavior patterns. The control group self-reported behavior patterns that seemed more problematic than their pretest scores. The trends of the data collected were positive and support the use of therapeutic stories in the classroom. In light of the current inability of school systems to meet the changing needs of students, therapeutic stories can provide needed help to students in the classroom.
