Based on the theory that learning takes place if the learner is able to relate new knowledge to something already known, the course of study described in this booklet consists of recording stories dictated by individual students and using these stories as a basis for teaching reading and creative writing to students from preschool through adult levels. The first part of the booklet provides an overview of the course, which was developed for use with Belizean students in a Peace Corps program; discusses problems these students had with English verb tenses and cultural aspects of the stories they produced; and describes teaching methods, primarily drawn from the language experience approach, used with the students. The second part of the booklet contains sample lessons, word cards, vocabulary lists and student stories, while the final part contains materials used to teach phonics, vocabulary, word configuration, and story vocabulary in different contexts. (FL)