Digital Storytelling in the 4th Grade Classroom

"Performing Arts Center, San Luis Obispo" by Malcolm Carlaw  on Flickr CC BY 2.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

Recently, in my educational technology class, I have been introduced to the world of Digital Storytelling. Right away, I knew I had discovered a learning jewel for my students and they would love this idea because my students love to tell stories! They are constantly making connections (shh..don’t tell them) with stories and sharing their own personal experiences. Most of the time, I have a hard time getting them to listen instead of speak! Another reason why I know my students would really enjoy this activity is because they already have shown a fondness of technology. Our class is extremely fortunate to have one-to-one iPads, so the students are utilizing them quite often. They create Pic Collages, participate in online discussions and use the internet to access online curriculum.

Digital Storytelling projects can be created using a variety of programs consisting of, but not limited to, Prezi, VoiceThread, Slideshare, iMovie and many more. Within the project, students can integrate text, images, and video in order to express their thoughts and ideas.

I need to plan a Digital Storytelling project for my 4^th grade students. I can relate it to any curriculum subject that I am teaching and choose the program of my choice. For my students’ first storytelling project, I would choose Prezi. It is easy to use and has high variety of visual presentations.

It will be necessary for me to model how to create a Prezi by walking through a few steps. We will discuss many items including: how to add text, how to add an image, how to add a video, how to change text color, how to change the path, etc. Utilizing “Up and Running with Prezi” will be a great tutorial on Lynda.com to show my students some of the skills previously listed. I will also show the students an example Prezi so that they can see how it works.

As for the curriculum the project will be correlated with, I will choose our language arts program. We are currently reading a novel called The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate. The students could summarize the main ideas of the story through a Prezi using text, images, and video. Prior to creating the Prezi, it is recommended that students plan, or sketch out, the story they would like to tell. My students will use the Flow Map from Thinking Maps to plan out the important events in order. They can also plan what kinds of media they would like to be incorporated into their Prezi.

I am grateful to have learned such a valuable learning tool to use in my classroom.

Prezi or Not, Here I Come!

This week in my EME5050 class, I was instructed to create an online presentation using my choice of tool. I chose to create my first Prezi. I found Prezi to be extremely easy to use and the help section quite helpful.

I also challenged myself to modify a picture from Flickr using Online Image Editor. This was another user friendly site that I enjoyed using. I have never been one to edit pictures because I didn't know how or what to use. I am glad that I have been introduced to new tools and experiencing what they have to offer.

Hardware History

"Overhead Projector" by Jim Hickcox on Flickr CC BY-NC 2.0

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/

This week in EME5050 class, we have delved into the depths of hardware. It is important to understand the terminology that is involved with technology. It is also quite difficult to remember and acquire these terms correctly. First off, there are just so many components to technology hardware. Second, technology is continuously changing and those components are changing with it. How many times have you or your colleagues been speaking with your IT department about a problem that has been occurring, but because of the lack of appropriate vocabulary, the conversation stumbles and steps to simplify must be taken in order to sort out what the problem is? I know that I am far from perfect when it comes to my knowledge of hardware terminology (I found this chapter and module quite useful) and I find myself wincing at the verbiage being used by fellow teachers who are far from up to par on their technological terminology.

Why is this important for us to examine? As educators, technology has taken a front row seat amidst our curriculum. We are integrating technology at every step of the day in order to take our instruction to the next level. Educators are ensuring that our students are learning 21st century skills in order to be ready for a 21st century workplace. It is important for us to know and understand the tools that we are teaching with. At this point, teachers almost understand less about the technology than their students. However, teachers have been growing and changing with the technology. We have seen pieces of machinery enter our classrooms as the new and improved tool and then be replaced years later. 

That being said, I had to feature a picture of an overhead projector on today's blog post. When I think of a piece of classroom technology that was the main focus of technology for years, only to be replaced in years to come with pieces such as projectors and Smartboards I think of overhead projectors. They were in all of my classrooms growing up. Now that I am a teachers, they are mostly replaced. When I started my teaching career about 7 years ago, they were still in use. However, today my students and I have an inside joke to where we refer to it as the "dinosaur". What is interesting is that they think it is actually quite neat! 

There are many people keeping the history of  hardware alive today by collecting the names and pictures of the varieties of computers, personal laptops, and gaming devices all on one website. Check out http://bit.ly/WgDgO8 for a little blast from the past. Also, another great website that I found extremely interesting that goes as early as 1972 with a Hewlett-Packard is http://oldcomputers.net/. 

No matter what age you are, you will embark on an educational journey with technology. Learning the terminology and the basics to understanding how it all works will ensure a smooth and successful road. We have a lot to look forward to in our future!