Digital Storytelling

Hello Ladies and Gentledudes,

    This weeks blog topic is Digital Storytelling! Before we go on I must admit that I am a novice in the realm of digital storytelling. I had never heard of the topic until I was doing a previous assignment for this class. However, after doing some research I think I have a pretty good grasp on how it works. In this post I will  be answering the following questions:
 What kind of digital storytelling project would I want my students to be able to turn in as part of my curriculum?

1. What media elements does it include? 
2. How would this project relate to your curriculum? 
3. What resources would my students need to review in order to produce the digital story? 
4. What extra web resources may I require the students to use? 
5. Are there any teacher created resources for this project? 

       Lets just start at the beginning and work our way down! To begin I would want the students to create a digital story based off of their Math story. At the beginning of each year I give the students an activity where they tell me their “Math Story”. I give them a template and they have to fill out the sheet of paper with Math Facts about themselves. For example, one student wrote 2017- 2006 = 11 and this was their age. They are allowed to put as many interesting facts about themselves as long as it deals with math. After a couple of months in school I would have the students revisit these stories and turn them into digital stories. Since I work at a school with a digital curriculum this would help me touch on the TIM matrix that we use at our school for technology.

      The layout of the assignment would be fairly simple because I know that most of my students have never heard of digital storytelling as well. I would begin by having the students watch a short video on storytelling. Next, they would be required to answer a short google form on what digital storytelling as a check for understanding. The layout and instructions for the project will be posted on google classroom. One thing I would stress is that they don't have to stick to their original story from the beginning of the year but they can use it  as an outline for their digital story. I would have my students create one of the following: a prezi, e-maze or pal toons of their Math Story. The students use these presentations websites in their social studies classes so I would use these that way the students already have some practice with the websites.

       How would I relate it to my curriculum? I have two ways as to how it can be related to my curriculum. The first way is through the TIM Matrix. Teaching at a digital schools means I have to incorporate technology into my assignments on a regular. This would be a way for the students to create a digital project using different creative digital programs. The second way I would integrate it into my curriculum would be through the math. One of the requirements for the assignment would be to describe and work out an example problem from their favorite math concept that we have covered so far along with their story. This way they can show me what they know or pick a topic that they are strong in.
Lastly in the instructions that I create for the assignments I would provide many resources for the students. It would be in the form of a google doc and I will give a sample of how the document will be broken down.

Resource Page

Digital Storyelling:

• What is digital Storytelling -  http://digitalstorytelling.coe.uh.edu/page.cfm?id=27&ocid=27 

Prezi:

• How to vidoe’s on prezi - https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL09A34EF19596B7BB 
• 8 Tips to Make Prezi Better  - https://prezi.com/m/gx2bm0n9u01f/8-tips-for-an-awesome-prezi/ 

The page would have many more resources but this is an overview of how I would incorporate digital storytelling in my classroom.

Thanks!
Christiana Cotter

Check out my Prezi on Digital Storytelling!

Hello Ladies and Gentledudes,

This weeks post is a little late but better late then never right?! So this week's (well last week's) topic was about Hardware for teachers. Now we all know as teachers we get introduced to many different types of hardware. There are some programs that after we see it we never use them again and then there are some that we see that blow our minds. This blog is going to be dedicated to talking about a few different programs that I use or have been introduced to because of this assignment.

First up on the list........ FORMATIVE!!!!! This website is simply amazing. Formative is a website where you can create online assessments, classwork and homework. Some of the features I really enjoy are the fact that you can get see the results in live time, there are questions that align with the standards (or you can create your own) and you can put some real time interventions in your assignments. The students can submit there through multiple choice, typing, showing their work with drawing or even submit an image. Lastly, the best thing about this website.......IT'S FREE!!! Yes, teachers and students can create an account for free. Its a must see, especially if you are a math teacher. I have started using it in my class and I love it. 

Next, Khan Academy! I am pretty sure that most educators have heard of Khan Academy. If you have not you are in for a treat. This website offers videos, lessons and practice on math, science & engineering, test prep, computing, arts & humanities, and Economics & Finance. The math portion is set up by grades and goes through almost every concept in math up to college. One aspect of this website that I enjoy is the fact that with every video there is a practice section so you can practice the concept that you just wrote. Teachers can set up accounts for themselves and invite there students. Teachers can also assign practice lessons to students.  Lastly the students earn points for everything they do in the program. This could be used as an incentive in class. If the student gets so many points they get a reward or grade. Just a suggestion! This program is also FREE!!!

Last program for today is...... Explain Everything. This program is a collaborative and interactive whiteboard program. You can post videos and drawing. The students can create work on here and present. I have not worked much with this program but I recently went to a PD where this program was discussed and it seems really nice. I am not quite sure how I can use it in my classroom but I plan to play around a bit and find out!

And thats all that we have for this week!!!!! See you soon! 

Cotter!