PREPARATION
1. Determine whether student research topics are suitable for digital storytelling through images.
For example, for Social Studies:
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countries/cultures, historical events, famous people, oral history - YES
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economic/demographic data - NO
2. Determine if sufficient digital photo resources are available. Search online photo repositories ahead of time for your students' research topics.
NOTE:
- Students must use copyright-friendly photos (public domain or freely licensed) if Photo Story videos will be published on a public wiki or on SchoolTube.
- All photos used in a student Photo Story (copyrighted and copyright-friendly) should be attributed to their sources in Photo Credits at the end of the video.
ONLINE PHOTO SOURCES
3. Reserve Computer Lab time and complete Lab seating charts.
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Research, organization, and Photo Story creation has taken most classes approximately 10 days.
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Some 7th and 8th graders have done a Photo Story project and may finish quicker than others.
4. Create a folder where students will save all photos and documents for the project.
- If students will be working with a partner to create one Photo Story: Create topic/group folders in your class Group Projects folders on the Students drive.
- See example: My Computer > Students drive > Language & Reading > Culler > Period 6 > Group Projects > Amazing Places 2010
- If students will be working independently: Have them create a project older within their My Documents folder as they begin the project.
4. Create a Pathfinder, WIki Page, Destiny Resource List, or hyperlinked Research Assignment Sheet with targeted information sources, photo sources, and search tools.
PROCEDURE
1. Introduce the project and assign or have students or partners select topics; groups of three do not work well for this project.
2, Consider showing students some examplar Photo Story videos created by students in other classes as motivation: see last spring's Unsolved Mysteries videos or videos in teachers' Group Projects folders: Culler, Paul, Allred, hample, Sittner, Geotzinger
- OR, create an exemplar Photo Story video related to your research project topic; Kelly Ray and Ben Wagner created this one for Amazing Places
3. Have students do research, take notes, and cite sources in a Bibliography. Ms. Ray recommends having students use Easybib.com; most 7th-8th graders and some 6th graders have used this.
- Students can export their Easybib Bibliography list to MS Word, copy the citations, paste them onto a PowerPoint slide, and save the slide as a JPEG image file to create a Bibliography image for PhotoStory.
4. Have students use their notes to write their story narration.
- Consider having students use a Storyboard to organize their Photo Story by writing their story narration, sequencing photos, and citing photo sources.
- See examples: Amazing Places Storyboard Unsolved Mysteries Storyboard Navidad Hispana Storyboard
- You may revise on of these Storyboards for your project. Kelly does plan to create a generic Storyboard at some point, and will post it here.
- Students can print out their PowerPoint Storyboard (NOTES PAGES) and use it as a script to narrate their Photo Story.
5. Have students locate and download photos to illustrate their narration. Have students cite their photo sources for Photo Credits.
- Students can add photo source URL's to their story board to start with, then create a Photo Credits list in Easybib.com using the Digital Image template.
- Students can export their Easybib Bibliography list to MS Word, copy the citations, paste them onto a PowerPoint slide, and save the slide as a JPEG image file to create a Bibliography image for PhotoStory.
5. Model steps for building a Photo Story.
PRACTICE
1. Make a new folder on your H: drive called Photo Story Practice
2. Think of a topic in your curriculum that might be suitable for digital storytelling with images
3. Use photo sources under PREPARATION section above to locate and dowload photos
- Right-click > Save Picture As on a full-size photo
- Navigate to Save In: your Photo Story Practice folder; do not change file name; click SAVE.
4. Click Photo Story 3 icon on your desktop.
5. Follow the steps on the Directions sheet, as modeled by Kelly