Digital Stories and ebooks

Digital Storytelling and eBooks
The first I had heard of digital story telling was this course. I asked some friends if they knew what a digital story was. They did not! I told them I didn’t either but I had to make one so I guessed I would learn! In the article, Seven Things You should know about Digital Stories, a digital story is defined as a combination of “narrative with digital content including photos, sound, and video to create a short movie, typically with a strong emotional content”. It is further stated that “digital stories can be effectively applied to any subject and can be instructional, persuasive, historical or reflective”. The potential use of resources is virtually limitless.
In The Educational Uses of Digital Storytelling, the authors state that a digital story generally lasts between two and ten minutes. Daniel Meadows defines digital stories as “short personal multimedia tales told from the heart.”
Under the create tab in The Educational Uses of Digital Storytelling, the necessary sequence of steps are outlined as follows:
A Step-By-Step Approach to Creating a Digital Story from Material Found On the Web
PART ONE: Define, Collect, Decide
1. Select a topic for your digital story.
2. Create a folder on the desktop where you can store the materials you find.
3. Search for image resources for your story, including: pictures, drawings, photographs, maps, charts, etc. - Save these resources in your folder.
4. Try to locate audio resources such as music, speeches, interviews, and sound effects. - Save these resources in your folder.
5. Try to find informational content, which might come from web sites, word processed documents, or PowerPoint slides. - Save these resources in your folder.
6. Begin thinking of the purpose of your story. Are you trying to inform, convince, provoke, question?
PART TWO: Select, Import, Create
1. Select the images you would like to use for your digital story.
2. Select the audio you would like to use for your digital story.
3. Select the content and text you would like to use for your digital story.
4. Import images into Photo Story.
5. Import audio into Photo Story.
6. Modify number of images and/or image order, if necessary.
PART THREE: Decide, Write, Record, Finalize
1. Decide on the purpose and point of view of your digital story.
2. Write a script that will be used as narration in your digital story AND provides the purpose and point of view you have chosen.
3. Use a computer microphone and record the narration of your script.
4. Import the narration into Photo Story.
5. Finalize your digital story by saving it as a Windows Media Video (.wmv) file.
PART FOUR: Demonstrate, Evaluate, Replicate
1. Show your digital story to your colleagues.
2. Gather feedback about how the story could be improved, expanded, and used in your classroom.
3. Teach a colleague how to create their own digital story.
4. Congratulate yourself for a job well done!
A list of rubric resources are included under the evaluate tab which includes Rubistar a free rubric creator. Under the resources tab, there is a multitude of links and sources for creating and supporting the use of digital stories. This particular site will prove to be invaluable as I continue to explore and create my own digital story.
Another great site is How to Create Simple Digital Stories at http://electronicportfolios.com/digistory/howto.html
This site has a wide variety of references and tools that can aid in the creation of a digital story.

Ebooks
My first knowledge of ebooks was during this past fall in Selection and Materials with Dr. Goldberg. She introduced us to “The Dot” in class and we were assigned to use it in some way with students and create a project of sorts. We were exposed to a variety of ebooks such as those with the ball bouncing over the words or the words highlighted. I thought then WOW, I wish this had been available for my kids. What a great and interactive way to read!
At my school, we have access to the ebooks that are available through the public library. We also have Encarta and the math, social studies, and science books are available online as well as the resources that accompany the series. We have access to an online dictionary and Encarta as well. I also found through Dr. Goldberg’s class that ebooks are available through the Gwinnett Public Library (That’s how we accessed “The Dot”).
David Lankes states in Ereaders, the iPad—Is That All There Is? that “What excites me about ebooks is not that they’re easier to carry around but that they’re digital documents. Couple that with a digital network, and now we’re talking about reinventing reading.
So what should an ebook look like? With a ubiquitous network connection, not only could I take notes, but I could access them along with cited passages and share them with colleagues and friends in real time. Or while reading a book on the iPad, Kindle, or Sony Reader, imagine engaging in conversation with the author, a friend, or coworkers as you’re reading. Picture a device that’s more a social access mechanism through text than a simple display.”
After reading this article I had to rethink my position regarding ereaders and ipads. Yes, it would be soooo much easier to take one device than a basket full of books to the beach, but would I miss the page turning and holding the actual book? The jury is still out on that one!
Resources and References
Barrett, Helen “How to Create Simple Digital Stories” retrieved from http://electronicportfolios.com/digistory/howto.html

Center for Digital Storytelling retrieved from http://www.storycenter.org/index1.html

Educause/ELI: 7 Things You Should Know about Digital Storytelling, retrieved from http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7021.pdf

Integrating Digital Storytelling in your Classroom, retrieved from http://its.ksbe.edu/dst

Lankes, David Ereaders, the iPad—Is That All There Is? Retrieved from http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/ca6723753.html

Rubistar, retrieved from http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php

The University of Houston, The Educational Uses of Digital Storytelling, retrieved from http://digitalstorytelling.coe.uh.edu/alignment.html

The University of Houston, The Educational Uses of Digital Storytelling, Getting Started, retrieved from http://digitalstorytelling.coe.uh.edu/getting_started.html

The University of Houston, The Educational Uses of Digital Storytelling, Rubrics, retrieved from http://digitalstorytelling.coe.uh.edu/rubrics.html