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INVITATION How can we give students opportunities to continue the tradition of storytelling by using digital media? How can we motivate them to utilize multimedia tools to connect to users in the same ways our ancestors did at the local barbershop or around campfires? How can we increase writing skills through digital storytelling? |
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TASKS Students review basic principles of storytelling and elements of fiction, create storyboards, capture images with digital cameras or scanners, write stories, compress the final output, and post stories on the Internet. Students also host a Digital Storytelling Festival and share their stories with the community. |
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TOOLS Computers; the Internet (optional); Sherlock (optional). AppleWorks; Inspiration; Photoshop LE or Photoshop Elements; QuickTime Pro; SmartSound. Final Cut Pro (optional). Digital cameras (optional); scanners (optional). |
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INTERACTIONS Students work together as a class during the initial discussion concerning storytelling elements, with the teacher serving as mediator. Once students understand these elements, they work individually to create their outlines and preplanned materials. Students then come together again as a class to discuss with the teacher the materials concerning photography and the use of the digital camera. Students take this knowledge and move out of the classroom, if needed, to take their digital shots. Once all shots have been created, the students work as a class to discuss with each other and the teacher how to incorporate the images into the story. The final project, when finished, will involve a festival where students interact with community members and share their projects. |
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STANDARDS To identify the curriculum standards for your state that correlate to this student project, select the state in the popup menu below and then click the Go button. View Detailed Standards in |
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SITUATIONS Students work in the classroom, in the computer lab, and in the community. The project, including class discussion time and photography, will last two weeks. Prior student knowledge of the software used to create the digital story will significantly cut down on project time. Allow time for student editing and critiques of written and digital work. |
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ASSESSMENT The teacher assesses student writing based on elements of writing and the linear construction of the digital story. The teacher also assesses student designs based on their creativity and detail, the understanding they demonstrate of the concepts and process of digital storytelling, and their overall clarity and organization. |
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Many times we try to add life to the stories we tell; in today's digital world, this is easier than ever. When students create digital stories and allow the viewer to interact via classroom presentation or, better yet, integration on the Internet, they begin to establish a connection between the creator and the viewer. During this unit, students get the opportunity to both share stories that exist in their lives and, using technology tools and their own creativity, bring those stories to life. |
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Phase 1: Organization and execution During this phase, students plan an organizational strategy for creating a storyboard that follows the chronology of a well-told story. Students can use Inspiration to begin the planning stages of the story. The storyboard can be a beginning script, an outline, or a visual representation of the outline. The outline should contain as many pieces of the story as possible: remind students that it is always easier to cut material out of a project than to try and add more at a later time. Create a checklist for students to use during this phase that includes the basic elements of a story (exposition, rising action, climax, and falling action) along with outline techniques. Review and check off each area of the checklist before students begin to create their digital stories. |
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Phase 2: Using the tools Work with students to help them decide what program or programs they plan to use in developing their story. Much of the story can be created in different application programs; students may decide to integrate many files from different programs for the final product. One of the appealing features about digital storytelling is the ability to use a variety of tools. QuickTime Pro is very useful for creating digital stories if the student is not ready to move to Final Cut Pro. The slideshow feature in AppleWorks can be used if demonstrations are planned within the presentation. Use SmartSound to add narration or music to your slideshow. If the final project is to be posted on the Internet, QuickTime Pro and Final Cut Pro are recommended. During the process of image-taking, students might want to use Photoshop LE or Photoshop Elements for any graphic manipulation or touch-ups before the images are imported into the presentations. |
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Phase 3: Taking the shots Prepare students with a basic knowledge of graphics and how they work in the digital medium. A clear understanding of graphic file types, file size, and pixels is an important phase of the student's learning. Students can then begin to scan or shoot the images they will need for their story. Quality images are extremely important and students should use a digital camera when possible. The camera can be a still digital camera or a digital video camera with a Photo option. If these options are not available, students can use a regular 35 mm camera and then scan the images into the computer. Consider the following issues when using a digital camera: If possible, choose a camera with high resolution and large pixel proportions. Prepare examples of different images, file sizes, resolutions, and image sizes in order for students to understand the differences between cropping a picture for quality and improved resolution versus stretching an image and the limitations of pixelation. Pixelation occurs when an image is enlarged to a size larger than the original image. This tends to distort the image, leaving it with a blurred and square look. Megapixel cameras allow for improved image quality because of the large image proportion. If students are going to use a 35 mm camera, a convenient workaround to scanning is having the film developed onto a Photo CD. In most cases, for an additional charge, Photo CDs can include multiple scanned resolutions. |
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Phase 4: Processing and adjustment Students need to consider what source the intended medium will be for playback of the story. Will it be posted on the Internet? Is it for presentation purposes only? What is the speed and resolution of the computer the student will use for presentations? How much storage space does the student have? Will it be played across a network? With these factors taken into consideration, help students decide if the images will need to be processed and if so, how. In most cases, images need to be processed and adjusted whether they are scanned of taken with a digital camera. Students use Photoshop LE or Photoshop Elements for the processing and adjustments. They may need to crop images, touch up image flaws, and resize. Using some of the Photoshop tools: Unsharp Mask, auto levels adjustment to even out tonal discrepancies among images, add text and many other possibilities. Remind students that the purpose of this phase is to make the best quality image (usually 640 x 480) for multimedia production that will serve as a master file. Students will then use different codecs (compressors/decompressors) to make copies of master files for the Web. It is important that students know to never compress the master file. They should always make copies of the master file and then compress the copy. Once the graphic files have been created, students should store all files in a single folder with a unique name. Suggest that students name the files in a numbered sequence. For example, a series may include numbers like 00, 01, 02, and so on. Notice the number sequence begins with 00 in order to keep the logical sequence in order when a student reaches ten images. Also notice the numbered sequence does not include any names for the files. In order for QuickTime Pro to read all of the files as a numbered sequence, the files must be named with numbers only. Students should begin the first image with the number 02 if there will be a title page or introductory page added later. Please refer to the Step-by-Step Card Creating a Slideshow With QuickTime Pro for further instructions. |
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Phase 5: Additional features? During this phase, students decide the effect the story may have on viewers. Is it important that the viewer see only images? Would sound add another dimension? What about a title? Does the student need to incorporate text on top of the images in Photoshop LE or Photoshop Elements before the images are put into a numbered sequence? Are 3D graphics important? Will they enhance the story or provide clutter? Does the student want to do a voice-over and add the track as an overlay to the images to tell the story, or will text serve its purpose? |
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PREPARATION
Make sure students are comfortable using software applications such as QuickTime Pro, Photoshop LE or Photoshop Elements, and Inspiration. Collect examples of digital storytelling and discuss its relevance with students. Use Sherlock to locate and bookmark relevant Internet sites that discuss and show examples of digital storytelling. Prepare your own digital story to share with students. If you do not have cameras available, check with the media center or journalism club. Collect royalty-free audio CDs for students to use. |
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OPTIONS AND EXTENSION ACTIVITIES
Consider inviting a professional storyteller or local community historian to your classroom. Share short stories with students to spark their interests. Invite the school board to view the finished products. Share the final stories with students' families and community members. Challenge the entire class to create a story together that passes on from one group to the next. |
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 BOOKS Digital Fictions: Storytelling in a Material World (New Directions in Computers and Composition Studies) by Sarah Sloane |
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INTERNET RESOURCES
The Annual Digital Storytelling Festival
The Center for Digital Storytelling
Digital Storytelling @ Creativity Café
JM Communications
Apple Masters - Dana Atchley
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