Digital Storytelling: Tips, Tools, and Examples for Teachers

The Power of Digital Storytelling, With Kathy Schrock (plus a Zillion Resources!) “A story can put your whole brain to work. And yet, it gets better …” – The Science of Storytelling It was my great pleasure to meet the amazing Kathy Schrock this week, and to experience her wonderful keynote presentation, “Telling the Story: Lessons Learned from the Outside World“, at the TLIPAD 2014 Conference. Isn't it amazing how there are always more things to learn about in the ever-changing world of digital technology? Kathy explained and illustrated many fun, engaging possibilities using storytelling techniques to create lessons that provide powerful learning experiences. If you're not already familiar with Kathy's work, you're missing out on a wealth of resources from one of education's most informed technology advocates. Why Storytelling is so Effective and Some Fun Examples A few of the insights gleaned from these resources and references that they cite: “If someone tells us about how delicious certain foods were, our sensory cortex lights up. Don't you find this fascinating?

27 Meaningful (and Fun) Ways to Use Technology for Teaching and Learning A Cavalcade of Inspiring Ideas for Kicking up Learning and Enhancing Engagement in Your Classroom! There are enough ideas, resources, and (mostly) free tools here to keep you exploring and learning all year long. Have at it! 1. There is just no limit to the way that students can use the endless free resources available on the Web to create! 2. If there are devices at your student's disposal, using them to let students provide real time feedback has never been easier. 3. Collaboration is a vital 21st century skill, and collaborating via the web with your students can be free and easy! 4. 2015 was an awesome year for Augmented Reality tools for the classroom. 5. We've all heard the buzz about “gamification”. 6. The Maker Movement and Maker Spaces got a lot of attention over the last year, and deservedly so … when students create, they learn! 7. 8. One of the funnest ways to use collaborative tools in the classroom is to create with them! 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21.

Great ideas for first animation projects Frames has tools that make it perfect for stopmotion, cartooning, claymation, and digital storytelling. While there are a lot of features, it doesn’t have to be difficult to get started. Like all our tools, you will find Recipe tutorials that can help you learn enough to have the confidence to start with your students. Create a visual poem Visual poetry is a fun way to analyze word choice and explore meaning and vocabulary. While poems like Frost’s “The Road Less Traveled” are favorites of teen angst, poetry that speaks to student’s lives, like “We Real Cool” by Gwendolyn Brooks or “Last Night I Drove a Car” by Gregory Corso, can help motivate them to dig deeper. Students love their favorite songs, so consider using lyrics as a form of poetry. To implement with students, have them read, reread, and explore the words in each line of the poem, discussing meaning and author’s intent. To get started: • complete the Visual Poetry tutorial• download the Visual Poetry lesson plan

8 first projects to get students using technology The beginning of school is always a fun and crazy time. Kids are winding down from summer break (as are you) and schedules and classes are still getting settled. But with all of the business, setting the tone for a year of making with Wixie is important. Wixie might be just about the easiest tools for elementary students to learn! Primary Students Sorting Activities - Click and drag If you are working with primary age students who do not yet know how to use Wixie, have them begin with some simple sorting activities to evaluate their knowledge and understanding as well as ability to use a mouse. Introducing My Family - Paint and add clip art Whenever you introduce new technology skills, you need to stay light on content. Wixie contains an entire folder of All About Me templates students can use to practice with paint tools and stickers. The Training tab in Wixie also includes a tutorial for creating an All About Me table tent. First Week Greeting Card - Web cam, paint and type text

7 smart ways to use technology in classrooms istock Elementary school teacher Kayla Delzer’s students tweet, post on Instagram and watch YouTube in class. Here’s why she thinks all kids should do the same. Many schools and teachers have an uneasy relationship with technology: they decry its power to distract young people but see it as a necessary evil to be tolerated, or at least strictly limited. It’s way too late to try to keep tech out of classrooms — or children’s lives. Tech tip #1: Something boring on paper is still boring on a tablet or a laptop. “Using technology simply for the sake of using it is wasteful,” Delzer says. One way that Delzer’s students learn math is by playing an augmented-reality geometry board game called Cyberchase Shape Quest. Tech tip #2: How tech teaches is as important as what is taught. Delzer avoids any software that relies on drills and repetition to educate. Tech tip #3: Let students sometimes be the teachers. Tech tip #4: Find technology that lets kids learn from themselves and each other.