CE14 ~ Digital Storytelling

Students love to share their stories. As they enter the classrooms on Monday morning, they are eager to share with their classmates and teachers what happened over the weekend.

Storytelling does not have to only occur in a verbal fashion.  That is where technology comes in!  Digital Storytelling is telling a story with a digital tool.  It can be a simple as recording your voice or a little more in-depth, like making a stop motion movie.

Here are some great digital resources your students (and you) can use to create digital stories.

Web 2.0

Animoto is a resource you can find online as well as on iOS devices.  Animoto allows the user to create videos by adding images, video, sound, and text. They do have pricing options, but free is good!  Free allows the students to create a 30 second movie.  Here is an example of an Animoto movie. Animoto is a great way to allow students to showcase information gathered from a mini research session.

Little Bird Tales and StoryBird are two web resources students can use to create digital books.  Little Bird Tales allows the students to add their own voice to the story as well as their own art work using the drawing pad. This is great for younger students who may not have strong keyboarding skills. Little Bird Tales has a free and premium teacher account. StoryBird is another great digital book creation website. This site has the most amazing artwork the students can select from to create their story. StoryBird also offers a free class account. This is a great resource students can use to create a variety of stories just any topic/subject.


iPad/iPhone
There are some great apps out there that allow you to create digital stories.  You have to find the one that meets the needs of your students, but enjoy exploring while you do!

ScreenChomp is one of those apps that can go into the hands of Kindergarten and older!  ScreenChomp is a free app created by TechSmith Labs. ScreenChomp allows you to record your voice while working in the white space area. Here is a recent blog about ScreenChomp and how it connected to ISTE*S and CCSS.

Sock Puppets is another one of the those, any age can use apps.  Sock Puppets does have a free, but does contain in-app purchases.  The free version gives you the ability to record a 30 second movie. Don't think of this as a limitation. Think of it as a planning tool.  Students must plan a 30 second something in order to use this app. This is great for mini student generated lessons and presenting shorter research topics. The movies can be shared via Facebook and YouTube.  The best part is listening to the movie -- the voices sound hilarious and will get the attention of your students.


 Here is a previous blog post about how students (and teachers) can record what they are doing.

These are not the only digital storytelling options.  Below are two more great resources you can use to learn more about the topic!

Kathy Schrock's Guide to Everything - Digital Storytelling
National Writing Project - Digital Storytelling with Teacher Consultants