Christchurch, New Zealand October 2008

Digital Edventures

Students telling stories with ICT

Turning On the Lights

Marc Prensky takes a look at boredom in schools. "The reality is that students are, for the most part, bored. Pick an average kid, with an average schedule, and shadow him or her for a day in school-go where the student goes, sit in on all his or her classes-and see if you can stand it." Students today, he writes, learn more outside school than inside. Educators need to "give students the opportunity to use technology in school... find out how students want to be taught... connect students to the world... [and] understand where kids are going-that is, into the future-and help them

get there."  Marc Prensky, ASCD, March 25, 2008.

Objectives• Use ICT tools to create student stories

which reflect understanding and appreciation of setting, characterisation

and narrative structure.• Develop communications skills by learning

to ask questions, work collaboratively, construct narratives through dialogue and

present for an audience.• Increase computer skills using software

that combines a variety of multimedia  including: text, still images, audio, video

and web publishing.

Tasks and strategies

Brainstorm - stories you loved in the past and whyStoryboard - use your cellphone/camera to record images for settings and character-use Comic Life software to create a draft storyboardMoodle Learning Management System-use to provide instructions and links to possible image and idea sources e.g. setting, character, narrative structure Email- use to provide and recieve feedback and feedforward between students and virtual teacher

Internet /WWW-use to locate  image and idea sources e.g. setting, character, narrative structureText edit - use to write and 'autocue' script for dialoguePhotoshop -  use to manipulate imagesMarvin animation software- use audacity or Marvin too record students' own voices as dialogue for character- use to create and present final story with narrated characters

..tasks & strategies ctd

Blog reflections

Recorded in student individual blog at end of each session

Date: ___________ What did you personally work on this week during today's digital story session? What have you enjoyed the most about this project to date?What have you found to be the most challenging?

What do you personally plan to work on or develop next time?

Addressing 5 Key competencies

Capabilities for living and lifelong learning in the New Zealand curriculum

Thinking - learners use creative, critical, and metacognitive processes to make sense of information, experiences, and ideas. - through digital storytelling learners are developing understanding, making decisions, shaping actions, and constructing knowledge. - learners reflect on their own learning through blogs.

Using language, symbols, and texts- learners work with and make meaning of  codes to represeny and communicate information, experiences, and ideas. - learners use language, symbols and technology to produce imaginative texts - learners  confidently use ICT  to access and provide information and to communicate with others.

...Key competencies ctd

Managing self- learners establish personal goals, make plans, and manage their projects through blogs

Relating to others - learners interact effectively within a specific  context  to listen actively, recognise different points of view, negotiate, and share ideas. - leaners take different roles in different situations to come up with a final product

Participating and contributing -- learners contribute appropriately as a group member, to make connections with others, and to create opportunities for others in the group.

Link to student self-reflectionsOther software - free downloadable:

Animoto - online photo showcasing software, make your own movie trailerAssessment Rubrics Audacity - open source  sound recorder and  editor

Gimp - open source photo editor

Irfan View - open source  photo editor - great for taking and editing screenshots as well as many other toolsZenCub3D - animation software programmeDigital Edventures Blog

(updates of web 2.0 apps and links to elearning sites)

Christchurch, New Zealand October 2008