However, despite the recognised importance of these fundamental skills, they pose a major challenge for many students, particularly at the early stages of formal education. The initial encounter with writing—from recognizing letters to constructing sentences and stories—is often perceived as an insurmountable obstacle by many.

The 2018 PISA survey statistics highlight this issue:

• At age 15, nearly 17% (13% of girls and 27% of boys) of students show significant deficiencies in reading, impacting their ability to comprehend the content of their textbooks.
• At age 9, 18% (13% of girls and 24% of boys) of children avoid reading for pleasure outside of the school context.
• Approximately 13 million young Europeans under the age of 15 struggle with reading and writing deficits.

In this context, the STORIAS project aims to revolutionise the traditional approach to teaching literacy through the concept of “Participatory Stories“. This method places young learners at the heart of the creative process, inviting them to take the reins of the narrative. By providing a basic structure and guidelines, it encourages children to build their own stories, customising elements like characters, settings, and plot developments according to their imagination.

This pedagogical model is particularly suited to students who present learning difficulties, as it moves away from conventional methods that prioritise memorisation and repetition. By adapting the complexity of stories to the children’s age, this approach aims to enable them to develop increased autonomy in reading and writing while strengthening their confidence in their literary abilities.