I am having a blast playing around with PowToon. I am an avid Twitter follower of Richard Byrne and this is one of the tools he talked about recently. So, I got right to work and signed up and tried it out. I could lose multiple days playing around with this, it is that much fun.
I will be teaching a digital storytelling after-school club to 2nd and 3rd graders after Spring Break. I created a short introductory video of what we'll do, as a fun way to kick off our first class. Enjoy!
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
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Storytelling Class
I am preparing for a new club that I will teach, after Spring Break. I am excited, as I get to set the curriculum and select the activities. I've been checking my sources for ideas: library card catalog for good storytelling books (and examples); pinterest for ideas and activities; twitter for links to fun project ideas with the loads of free web 2.0 tools that help students tell their stories; internet for graphic organizers for students to plan and tons of websites full of project ideas.
The hardest part will be picking which projects we'll do, as we only have seven 1-1/4 hour sessions! So many great ideas......so little time!
Two of the ideas that I am most excited about right off the bat are:
1) pop-up books with www.zooburst.com (just have to get approval to upgrade for 1-2 months so I can create a classroom with the tool, be ad free and allow students to add their voice to their projects, as well as download the books when they are done.
2) using QR codes to add student voices to their artwork to create their story. I found a great suggestion about using Van Gogh's Chair painting to spark a creation from the students. They will draw (I don't think I'll get approval to buy paint supplies) their CHAIR and surround their chair with objects that are important to them, including adding a picture or two to the wall that will include someone that is important to them. Students will then create a script describing their chair and the scene that surrounds it. This audio will be accessed via a QR code attached to their drawing in our GALLERY.
So excited to get started. Oh, and did I tell you these will be very creative 2nd and 3rd graders! They are such sponges for new information and very inclined to dig deep and get creative by trying new things.
The hardest part will be picking which projects we'll do, as we only have seven 1-1/4 hour sessions! So many great ideas......so little time!
Two of the ideas that I am most excited about right off the bat are:
1) pop-up books with www.zooburst.com (just have to get approval to upgrade for 1-2 months so I can create a classroom with the tool, be ad free and allow students to add their voice to their projects, as well as download the books when they are done.
2) using QR codes to add student voices to their artwork to create their story. I found a great suggestion about using Van Gogh's Chair painting to spark a creation from the students. They will draw (I don't think I'll get approval to buy paint supplies) their CHAIR and surround their chair with objects that are important to them, including adding a picture or two to the wall that will include someone that is important to them. Students will then create a script describing their chair and the scene that surrounds it. This audio will be accessed via a QR code attached to their drawing in our GALLERY.
So excited to get started. Oh, and did I tell you these will be very creative 2nd and 3rd graders! They are such sponges for new information and very inclined to dig deep and get creative by trying new things.
Sunday, March 3, 2013
Did something right
I am enjoying a lazy afternoon, curled up on my recliner, reading an ebook from NetGalley, surrounded by my family. My hubby is out in the sunroom, which is warm and sunny on this cold winter day, doing the taxes. My teenager son is lounging on the couch (actually he is stomach planted over the arm of the couch) with his book on the floor, reading some fantasy series. My daughter is on the matching recliner pouring over a nonfiction book for a book project she will be working on over the next couple of weeks. With the Oldies playing in the background, surrounded by my readers, there is no place I'd rather be right now!
Read to your children. Take them to the library and the bookstore. Make books accessible to them. Talk about what you read. Ask them what kinds of stories they like. Have your children read to you. Listen to audiobooks in the car. Experience the world (good and bad) through books. Expand your children's horizons. Help make them lifelong readers and learners!
Read to your children. Take them to the library and the bookstore. Make books accessible to them. Talk about what you read. Ask them what kinds of stories they like. Have your children read to you. Listen to audiobooks in the car. Experience the world (good and bad) through books. Expand your children's horizons. Help make them lifelong readers and learners!
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