"Once upon a time, there was a very clever young man in a a certain village. People were jealous about this. One day an old man came to visit this young, clever man to ask him some difficult questions to prove his intelligence."

The first time children are exposed to stories and narratives is through their family.

Children recall how their parents talk about their day, the bedtime stories their mother used to tell them, the little jokes their cousins would narrate or tales of traditional tales told to them by their grandparents - brimming with life's lessons and humour.

These tales are often the first glimpse many children get into the world of reading and stories.

And they're powerful, not simply because they're exciting and imaginative but because they set the foundation for how children come to experience and narrate their own lives.

Storytelling is, and always has been, a part of African culture. Regardless of the way stories are told, or what medium is used to express them - songs, books or plays - they are the mirrors that reflect social values, ideas and beliefs in a culture.

Through stories children bond with their elders, connect with the past and also start to understand how to make sense of the world around them in the present.

These family stories get kids to understand that their culture is valid, their identity is important and that their perspectives and thoughts have a place.

As South African author Zukiswa Wanner says: "These are the tales that children love, they're the ones that they ask to hear again and again. These stories are the ones that turn children into readers."

Even if all families do is share a story or details about their day, good or bad, the effects can have a major impact.

Recent studies have shown that children whose families talk about daily events and family history have stronger identities, better coping skills and even lower rates of depression and anxiety - particularly when shared with children as they enter their adolescent years.

The University of Cape Town's Dr Shose Kessi, who specialises in psychological research into identity and difference in relation to race and gender in African contexts, notes that the lack of multicultural books and published stories is a problem when it comes to building the identities of children.

"The majority of books display conventional families (husband, wife, son, daughter) when, in fact, we live in a more diverse society with children growing up with grandparents (or multiple parents) or with same-sex parents, for example.

Children's books are also dominated by stories about Western families or the cultural values of the middle-classes (the house, the garden, the types of food they eat, the clothes they wear, and so on).

"A more diverse perspective in the stories we tell children would better prepare them for life in our current context; for developing positive self-esteem and for developing positive relationships with others."

Kessi adds: "What we learn through dialogue with others, through the media and through written texts shapes our understanding of ourselves and others. Through my research, working with different communities in South Africa, especially marginalised communities, I have found that when people are able to tell their stories and are recognised by others in that process, it can lead to a positive sense of empowerment."

The most important thing to remember is that it starts in the home. Families - whether it's parents, grandparents, neighbours or siblings - are the first people children look to.

By bringing these stories home, families can ensure children have many informal encounters with stories and narrative, that they will carry through life with them.

As Vera Nazarian said: "The world is shaped by two things - stories told and the memories they leave behind."

l Mohana writes in association with the Nal'ibali Story Power campaign