At our school, a junior must take either US History or AP US History during the junior year. Because of the demands of the AP curriculum and the emphasis on writing, students in this class often do not get a chance to utilize alternative ways to develop their narrative voice. Because of the success of our Vietnam project, Kevin Randolph and I have been trying to find the right time and the right project to allow these students to create a digital story using pictures and sound.
Because of the timing of their coverage of the AP material and our vacation schedule, we found ourselves with the opportunity to schedule a three day mini-project before our mid-Winter break next week. The students have been studying the Civil Rights movement and so they will be creating 2-3 minute movies around the metaphor of water. Martin Luther King once stated, “No, no, we are not satisfied and will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
You can take a look at project definition and a week from now, the final projects of the students at the wiki site we have developed for this project. The students face a daunting task, to develop a story, find supporting images, and putting it all together in four days/three class periods. I look forward to see what they will create.
Vinnie, I have been reading your blog and viewing the wiki’s for your digital story projects. Well done! These are wonderful experiences for students to immerse them in the powerful medium of sound and image. You are developing a vibrant and flexible program at your school.
I have a grade 10 digital storytelling unit and have also been working through the process of communicating using multimedia for the past 2 years. Some (less recent…needs updating) examples of my students work can be found on my blog at http://123digitales.blogspot.com.