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68 BASED ON A TRUE STORY: YOU! While you are not a professional teacher, you are professionally engaged in what you are about to teach. So don’t be afraid to pay your ace card: your experience! We encourage our law enforcement instructors to invest their own professional experiences into the learning process. Tell the story of policing as only you can – the profound joy, sadness, courage, despair and hope!

Based on a True Story

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We encourage our law enforcement instructors to invest their own professional experiences into the learning process. Tell the story of policing as only you can – the profound joy, sadness, courage, despair and hope! So don’t be afraid to pay your ace card: your experience! While you are not a professional teacher, you are professionally engaged in what you are about to teach. 68 69

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BASED ON A TRUE STORY: YOU!While you are not a professional

teacher, you are professionally engaged

in what you are about to teach.

So don’t be afraid to pay your ace card:

your experience!

We encourage our law enforcement

instructors to invest their own

professional experiences into the

learning process. Tell the story of

policing as only you can – the

profound joy, sadness, courage, despair

and hope!

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Stories have the power to reveal truth in a way that raw facts cannot.Every aspect of law enforcement is rich in human drama. It is a

story which you have the privilege of relating from personal

experience.

Stories can explain and illuminate:

1. Our core values

2. What we care about

3. Our greatest aspirations

4. Value lessons & great insights

Take time before the class to think about the subject matter at

hand and your own related experience.

Story PromptsYou will notice that we have included in the new materials

something called STORY PROMPTS.  Each suggested prompt –

some short, some long – are designed to spark more imaginative

and engaging approaches to the written text.

Example:  Relate to the cadets your first day in the police

academy.

What was the hardest part? What was difficult for others, that

you found easy? Explain a part of the training that made a cadet

fail or quit the academy.

Tips Telling a Masterful StoryPick the moment you step out of the prepared lesson to tell your

story with care. The cadets should know when a story has begun

and the exact moment your story ends.

1. Get the cadets used to the idea of “story time”.  

2. It should be approximately two minutes.

3. Give them audio and visual clues using a marked

departure in voice and manner.

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D O N ’ T F E E L C O M F O R T A B L E T A L K I N G A B O U T Y O U R S E L F ? S P E A K O N B E H A L F O F

A N O F F I C E R Y O U K N E W :

“I want to tell you about the greatest police officer I ever knew. It’s my privilege to speak on his behalf. He was my real police academy.”

I T ’ S T H E W A Y W E K E E P T H O S E W H O H A V E P A S T E D O N . . . A L I V E .

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4. During this two minutes, the cadets should become accustomed to complete silence and no hands up for a question.

Sacred GroundThe story you relate may be sacred ground for you, so the class should be respectful. You may want to start with stories that are humorous

or perhaps less personal while they are still getting used to how to behave during this time.

Always know the point of your story or how it ends.  In other words, how does it relate to the UNIT.  How does it amplify the information

you were covering.

Plan Your TransitionUltimately your story will be judged based on the grace with which you are able to end the story on point and step back into the lesson.

This is simple enough to do if you give it a little thought prior to classroom. Trying to work out the details of your exit while your telling the

story is not recommended.

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Fire up those Life Lessons

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Here is a small selection of common story themes. They

will hopefully trigger a great story. [If they do, find the

appropriate UNIT and work them into the classroom.]

REMEMBRANCE OR MEMORIAL STORIES

Stories that acknowledge, honor or reflect on the life of

one who has died.

The Best Police Officer I Have Ever Met…Stories of a significant mentor in your career.  What impact

have they made on your life?

Nearly every law enforcement officer draws inspiration

from a veteran who they admired. Pick an ah-ha moment

from that partnership.

Stories of ChallengeStories in which you have experienced challenge and how

you overcame it. They can be physical as well as mental

challenges of conquering a specific fear early in your

career.

Objects & ArtifactsAll of us have own a possession that holds tremendous

value in our lives. There is always a compelling story that

brings that object to life and gives it meaning.

Stories about a PlaceGeographical places hold intense memories and emotional

significance in our lives. While places may not have

historic markers and may seem unremarkable to the casual

observer, they are never-the-less sacred places in your life.

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Jim Leavelle is the "man in the white hat" and the centerpiece to the most famous image in the history of photojournalism.  An early supporter of this program, Jim is the gold standard for how to share your experience: 

• Remain good humored regarding events.

• Be candid about mistakes you may have made.

• Remember you are a goodwill ambassador for law enforcement officers past and present, speak with conviction to the nobility of your profession.

the gold standard

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The archaeological history of you is fertile ground for every

storyteller.

A picture, plus a thousand or so wordsCountless stories can be found in the well-worn shoe box or

photo album. Each photo preserves a moment in time and each

moment has a corresponding story: “Where was I when this

photo was taken? Who took it? Who is in the photo with me?

What was I thinking when this was taken?”

Listing ExercisesMake a list. Jot down three to five:

1. specific experiences that have made you the person you

are;

2. unique things that you do habitually that have helped

you succeed;

3. experiences you'd mention if someone asked you to

explain why you do the work you do.

FocusTelling the entire history of

your experience in a single

short story can be an overly

ambitious task. It is often

hard to know where to start

a story and usually harder to know when to end it.

Just keep in mind it should end by relating the wisdom or

transformation that occurred as a result and you can’t go

wrong!

Your StoryAnd if you have any doubts as to the value of your own stories,

imagine for a moment what you would give to hear the

thoughts and insights of the long line of law enforcement

professionals who have preceded you.

Remember, it’s not just a story, it’s

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