Digital+Storytelling

 "I know only one thing about the technologies that await us in the future: We will find ways to tell stories with them." ~Dr. Jason Ohler

Consider the ways in which the typical school project has evolved. We began with simple oration (consider Wiston Churchill's ability to keep a captive audience in England for four hours). We moved to speech-with-visual-aid. Now, we come to expect audio and video components embedded in a PowerPoint.

What has remained constant, however, is our use of storytelling to get a point across. We use it every day in our teaching by sharing our own real-life connection to classroom materials and presenting hypothetical situations to place our students "in the moment."

With rapid technological advancement, we must prepare our students to use such phenomenal tools out there to enhance their own storytelling and, ultimately, build their own literacy skills in ALL content areas. This is definitely not just a language arts thing.

Below you will find a plethora of links to help you and your students create your own digital stories. Yes, the information below may seem overwhelming, but remember: start small. Your students' creations will grow with time.

GUIDING YOUR STUDENTS (and you) THROUGH THE PROCESS When preparing your project, ask yourself these two critical questions:
 * 1) How do I plan to assess their projects? (As literacy projects? As art projects? As content area projects? Or is it a combination of these?) You need to have a clear goal before you dive into the specifics of the project.
 * 2) How much time do I have? (Honestly, these are time-consuming projects. Keep them at 2-minute stories...at least to start.)

Below are a few rubrics and rubric generating sites you can use/modify to your specifications.
 * [[file:DS_Rubric.doc]]
 * [|Rubistar] : While it requires you to create an account, this site is free and provides a wide variety of templates for you to modify to suit your needs.
 * [|Recipes 4 Success Rubric Maker] : This site also requires and account, but it's free. You can search their templates according to grade level and modify to your liking.

Now, consider these steps for student planning, writing, and producing (courtesy of Jason Ohler). This is not really new to you; these steps emphasize the importance of careful planning, of revision.

Handouts for students:
 * [[file:Visual Portrait of a Story.pdf]] : This document will help students to establish the emotional flow of a story.
 * [[file:digitalStorytellingStoryBoard.doc]] : Just one of many versions out there to help students in planning out their scenes.

CHOOSING THE BEST TOOLS FOR YOUR PROJECT Let's start with some simple Web 2.0 tools that allow for simple uploading of photos and music without too much editing. For those who are tech savvy and would like to venture into enhanced audio editing, try creating stories with Windows-based Audacity or Mac's Garage Band. Both programs will allow you to record your audio, edit the audio, then import music and other sound effects to place precisely where you want them. You can also add original artwork and photos.
 * Photostory : Check out all of the resources from Tracy Sevin's tech camp presentation.
 * [|Voice Thread] : This site allows you to add photos and record your own narration. Requires an account but does have a free, protected version for educators.
 * [|One True Media] : A great site for uploading photos and video, creating text slides, and including music for the ultimate story. Account creation required.

 RESOURCES FOR STORY IDEAS AND MORE POPULAR TOOLS
 * [|Digital Storytelling with Jason Ohler] : This site provides reputable materials by a educates today's teachers on the importance of digital literacy and teaching our students to compile material they learn in original, creative ways. Take a look at the five site sections that Mr. Ohler provides.
 * CogDogRoo : This is a wikispace that provides an extensive list of popular web 2.0 tools, story ideas, student examples, and more.
 * Tell a Story : This is a wiki created for workshops by by Michelle Krill, an accomplished teacher out of York, PA. (Check out her professional profile on scribd.com. Keyword search, Michelle Krill) She has provided a comprehensive definition of the term Digital Storytelling, and she lists a variety of tools for creating stories.

Sample digital stories and showcases:
 * [|Live of a Veteran] : This middle school social studies project resulted in an impressive digital story of WW II veteran Cal Page. You can read through the project's criteria and view this sample by clicking on the QuickTime icon (the blue Q).
 * [|Responsibility PSAs] : Fourth graders at a Nebraska school created public service announcements about being responsible students. You'll be surprised at many students' careful attention to cinematography, choice of music, and careful storyboarding.
 * [|Center for Digital Storytelling] : This is THE place for those who promote the true art of storytelling with new media. The Center (a nonprofit organization) focuses more on first person narrative and personal stories, but the quality of the pieces provide great inspiration and some wonderful examples to show your students the care in scripting, crafting, choosing art, music, etc. Careful: Some material may not be appropriate for students, so preview carefully before you let kids loose on the site.
 * And to wrap up, check out the creative genius below. Talk about "media persuasion"...