Abe Lincoln

When I was in 3rd grade I had to write a report about Abraham Lincoln. I remember falling asleep in the library at school while reading a book about him. Not because the book was boring, but because the new couch was really comfortable.

Zoe, my niece, is in second grade. Not only does she have to learn about Abraham Lincoln, but she has create a fact sheet and a puppet. Aunt Dani is making her turn the fact sheet into a PhotoStory, but that's just for fun.

We're using netTrekker to find the web resources and images. But I found another great source for her to get some great information, and she didn't fall asleep watching it.

It's BrainPop, Jr. For those of you haven't seen it lately, go check it out. Not only did Zoe watch the video, but there were other goodies too. One of the things I liked about the video was that it gave tips on how to take notes. On the side of the video was a notebook and Annie used it to write the question that segment was answering.

The other thing I liked was that it gave Zoe suggestions for what other age-appropriate books she should read, a cute little joke, a comic (which was the only thing she went "hmmm" on) and other activities. I liked the activity that was designed to get the class to start talking and the writing activity. Zoe on the other hand liked the craft activity and said it was perfect for the puppet that she has to make.

She has also decided to create her digital story with a similar touch as BrainPop. She's going to draw the pictures either on the computer or by hand and then scan them in. They won't be animated like BrainPop, but at least she'll have the concept available to use.

Joey and I wrote to BrainPop this afternoon and asked what were seizures. He wants to share the video with his classmates. I hope they answer!

Voices

I love digital storytelling and am hoping to teach a class on it soon. I learned of a new tool today, thanks to my Twitter friends, that I am going to have to test out though before I do teach that class. It's a tool that I had heard of before, but hadn't checked it out until tonight's reminder. It's called Voice Thread. Watching the little demo video gave me all sorts of ideas! One is a family idea. We have some pictures that everyone knows a piece of the story, but not the entire story. I think I'll scan a few of those in and then ask my family to leave a comment. The fun comments will be from my older Cousin Alice. I think she's in her early 70's but she still acts like she's 21. She's down here for a bit from Pennsylvania and I think it would be fun to get this type of a conversation going.

Another possible use is to let students collaborate on a story together. String the images together and sort of like choose your own adventure- each person leaves a section of the story. I'll bet that would be confusing and fun! Or collaborate on a project and give comments on what's going on in the picture, thoughts, and then use those comments and thoughts to create the final digital story project.

I can also see it used for a high school yearbook project. Let the class leave comments and vote on a couple of the photos. Those comments could be the captions for the book. Allows participation and ownership. I can see some problems with that, but it's got potential.

Worth looking into!

School Tube

Are you ready for another tube? YouTube is not always accessible for school purposes. TeacherTube is for the teachers. But what about the students? They want to share their creative rights of passage? Where can they go to upload videos that are school approved? Your answer...........SchoolTube! Just a baby now, but look out! I have a good feeling about it!

North Star

One of my favorite authors is Peter Reynolds. He's nothing like the other books I read, but I find his stories to be inspirational and uplifting. His artwork is just right (not scary like those David books).

But his website! WOW! I'm there now and the first book I read by him is available! Woo Hoo! You can choose your character and even read it in Spanish if you so choose. Then scroll down a bit and there's a link to the AUDIO VERSION! They have their own Fable Radio! This is just too cool!

You have to go and explore Fable Vision. You might also be interested in checking out Peter Reynold's site. I want even more of his books now! I also encourage you to check out the Client Services side of Fable Vision. There you'll find an inspiring He Was Me. Use this for the next creative session or a professional development class that needs to release the inner child.

Digital Story Telling

I love a good story. Some day I may actually sit down and write my own, but not today. Other things to do than to share the characters and their stories that run through my imagination.

Anyway, my love for a good story is well known. I enjoy them in paperback form and in movie form. I haven't read a good book in awhile, not since I finished a Judith McNaught book on December 6th at breakfast. I was to start a new book, Sign of the Cross by new author Chris Kuzneski, but couldn't get past the tears. Those of you who know me well, know the importance of December 6th in my personal (or should I say professional) timeline. I finally talked myself into seeing two movies, one which is the point of this post. The other, Night at the Museum, was absolutely fun and I'm willing to see it a second time.

The movie that inspired this post is actually The Holiday. Yes, it's a romantic comedy and I'm not here to report I finally have romance in my life. Now I'm too busy looking for employment that I can continue to share my passion with technology in education with others. And no I'm not looking for someone to trade houses with me in another country so I can enjoy a well deserved holiday. Instead, it's about something that kept happening to Cameron Diaz's character, Amanda. Amanda was this great Hollywood Movie Trailer maker, and after her little breakdown, a movie trailer about her life kept running through her head. After each event the trailer changed to reflect her decisions. It made me think - what would a movie trailer of my life look like? Also -can Kate Winslet play me in my movie?

This is a great lesson for your students as they return from the Christmas Holiday. As they start the new year, ask them what they think is their greatest moment in life so far, or worse, that helps define who they are. They can use the site from the Holiday (there's a little movie tralier maker built in) or they can use this other site that does almost the same thing, Tech Story. Or better yet, have them use their own pictures and build it with your favorite software, such as ImageBlender or PhotoStory.

I've rambled enough here. Since I'm back in the swing of things, I've finished one book and am reading another. Therefore, I have a book to read (Sign of the Cross is really good - pick up a copy today and support a Florida author) and a house to get ready for a pre-New Year's Party.

And maybe it'll be a celebration about the job offer I just received today. :-)