1. Digital Storytelling
Providing New Insights Into What Students’
Know and Can Do
Sid de Haan
Consulting Services
EPSB
1

2. Speaking
Listening
Reading
Writing
Viewing
Representing
2

3. 3

4. Changes in society and
technology have affected, and
will continue to affect, the
ways in which people use
language to think, to
communicate and to learn.
4

5. Viewing and representing are
integral parts of contemporary
life. These skills allow students
to understand the ways in which
images and language may be
used to convey ideas, values and
beliefs.
5

6. Many of the comprehension
processes involved in reading, such
as previewing, predicting and
making inferences, may also be
used in viewing.
Representing enables students to
communicate information and
ideas through a variety of media.
6

7. Think-Pair-Share
“If people aren’t taught the language
of sound and images, shouldn’t they
be considered as illiterate as if they
left college without being able to read
or write?”
~ George Lucas
7

8. Learning Goals
• Explore the power of story/digital expression
• Develop a shared understanding of the term
digital storytelling
• Investigate two methods of digital expression
• Discuss ways of formatively & summatively
assessing these projects & products
8

9. “Humans are not ideally set up to understand logic;
they are ideally set up to understand stories.”
~ Roger C. Shank, cognitive scientist
9

10. “Humans are not ideally set up to understand logic;
they are ideally set up to understand stories.”
~ Roger C. Shank, cognitive scientist
10

11. The Importance of Story
Stories go beyond fact; they delve into the richness of
details and emotion, and provide a context for our words.
11

12. E.M. Forester observed that a fact is “The queen
died and the king died.”
A story is “The queen died and the king died of a
broken heart.”
That’s the difference.
12

13. As Don Norman puts it in his book Things
That Make Us Smart, “Stories are important
cognitive events, for they encapsulate, into
one compact package, knowledge, context,
and emotion.”
13

14. The story - from Rumplestiltskin to War and
Peace - is one of the basic tools invented by
the human mind for the purpose of
understanding. There have been great
societies that did not use the wheel, but
there have been no societies that did not tell
stories.
~ Ursula K. Le Guin
14

15. For sale: Baby shoes. Never worn.
15

16. 16

17. Activity:
1.Reflect on your first year of teaching. Try
to summarize that experience in 10 words
or less (shoot for 6!).
2. Next, jot down some images or music that
you could possibly use to add to your
words to communicate this “story” to a
partner.
17

18. What is Digital
Storytelling?
Digital storytelling is using 21st century
technology to tell our stories. Often this
involves combining story, images, and audio to
maximize emotional impact and effect.
18

19. What is Digital
Storytelling?
“Digital Storytelling is the modern expression
of the ancient art of storytelling. Digital
stories derive their power by weaving
images, music, narrative and voice together,
thereby giving deep dimension and vivid color
to characters, situations, experiences, and
insights.”
--Leslie Rule, Center for Digital Storytelling
19

20. What is Digital
Storytelling?
Typically a digital story is personal
Can also refer to interactive stories– games,
hypertext, personal blogging, etc.
“conversational media”
20

21. My Grandma
http://files.wlcsd.org/aal/ds/lakianbb.wmv
21

22. Brain Dump
What “worked” in the story
you just watched?
22

23. Why Might I Use Digital
Storytelling in my Classroom?
Digital Storytelling can be a very powerful medium, and one in
which our students have a lot of experience and feel very
comfortable.
23

24. Why Might I Use Digital
Storytelling in my Classroom?
The current generation has grown up in a rich environment of
image and sound. Communicating in this way is natural for
them, and digital storytelling provides students with a
“modern” way of telling their stories.
24

25. Why Might I Use Digital
Storytelling in my Classroom?
Students are engaged through the use of technology and
empowered by their ability to create a quality product.
25

26. Why Might I Use Digital
Storytelling in my Classroom?
Digital storytelling is also powerful because it
gives all students an equal voice. Students who
tend to be marginalized or overlooked in
literate, story rich settings are able to tell their
stories – to feel valued and heard.
26

27. The 21st Century
Classroom
Digital storytelling is a classic case of integrating
technology in the classroom; it extends the
writing and takes it to a place where it could not
go alone. Students develop a keen sense of voice,
audience, pacing, economy, and the interplay
between story, image and audio.
27

28. The 21st Century
Classroom
Students begin to develop visual literacy skills and
they begin to think critically about the media they
produce and consume. But most of all, they tell
their stories.
28

29. http://www.bringingtheoutsidein.com/
movies/threadsofgratitude.mov
29

30. http://www.bringingtheoutsidein.com/
movies/connor_T1.mov
30

31. Digital Storytelling:
6 Key Elements
• Story
• Use of Voice
• Economy
• Pacing
• Use of Images
• Music
31

32. Story
We live in an era of high velocity media,
which creates the illusion of energy &
vitality. Much of the content we encounter
is malnourished (which is why it needs a
barrage of image and audio).
32

33. Story
But well crafted stories DO NOT use
malnourished content; rather, well crafted
stories are rich and engaging. When
crafting a strong digital story, we can slow
down because we have strong content.
33

34. Story
Stories that are crafted strive to bring the
audience to a place where their primary
awareness is of the story. The author
intentionally leaves “spaces” for the
audience to fill in. In so doing, the audience
becomes an active participant in the story
(not a passive “recipient”).
34

35. Use of Voice
We can enhance the effectiveness of a digital
story through the use of voice.
Technology allows us to rehearse and edit our
voice for maximum effect (something oral
storytellers did not have the luxury of!).
Pauses are very powerful when used properly.
Make room for silence.
35

36. Economy
Less is more. Leave spaces which require
closure from the audience.
Allow the audience to use their imagination
and to interact with the story to generate
an understanding of it.
36

37. Pacing
Digital storytelling is like taking your audience
on a journey. The preparation of your digital
story is like packing for the trip. The delivery
of your story is like unpacking.
Unpacking the story slowly is like allowing the
audience to relish the contents of the suitcase
one item at a time. This is called pacing.
37

38. Use of Images
Let the images do some of the talking for you.
Try to use images that will engage the
audience.
In a 2 minute digital story, you should use +/-
10 images. Less is more.
38

39. Music
The temptation is to have a soundtrack
thundering through from beginning to end.
To be effective, background music should only
be used in one or two places. The music
should never drown out the narrator. Your
words are the focal point and the digital story
shouldn’t make sense without your voice.
39

40. Things to Keep In Mind
Be cautious when using flashy transitions
between images. “Overdone” transitions pull
the viewer out of the story and into the
“Oooh!” factor.
40

41. Things to Keep In Mind
A transition’s job is to be invisible. You always
want the focus to remain on the story and the
audio. Use only cross dissolve and maybe fade
in/fade out.
41

42. Things to Keep In Mind
Avoid the use of sound effects (they sound
“cheesy”), dramatic digital transitions, and an
overenthusiastic soundtrack.
42

43. Street Hockey
http://video.google.com/videoplay?
docid=-8642912020527176466&hl=en
43

44. Rituals
http://www.storycenter.org/stories/index.php?cat=4
44

45. Digital Storytelling
Process
The process of digital storytelling can be
broken into a series of steps.
• Steps 1-3 are done in the classroom
• Steps 4-5 are done in a computer lab
• Step 6 can occur in the classroom, or any
other venue, including online
45

46. Step One:
Prewriting:
• Generating an idea for a story is the first
step
• Thinking maps or other graphic organizers
are helpful
46

47. Step Two:
Writing:
• The most effective digital stories have
their genesis in good writing
• Emphasize multiple drafts
47

48. Step Three:
The Storyboard:
• Visual map of the story
• Contains text + visuals + any other
information necessary (camera angle,
transitions…)
• Essential step for making the connection
between communicating meaning and for
locating visuals
48

49. Step Four:
Locating Multimedia:
• In this step, students use search tools to
locate still frame pictures or video
• Students may also use their own content
(digital pictures, video footage, scanned
images…)
• Copyright needs to be discussed prior to
locating media
49

50. Step Five:
Creating the Digital Story:
• Demo the software to the class (+/- 40
minutes)
• Students learn quickly
• Online tutorials
• MS Moviemaker
• Photostory 3
• iMovie
50

51. Step Six:
Sharing:
• This is a crucial step
• Students are generally immensely proud of
their creations
• Can strengthen classroom relationships
• Can be uploaded/shared globally
• FOIP considerations
51

52. Digital Storytelling Rubric
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*When work is judged limited or insufficient, the teacher makes decisions about appropriate interventions to help the student improve.
52

53. Music Video Project:
Expressing Understanding of
the Text Using Visual Images
53

54. Examples
54

55. Imagine*
*Unable to post student video due to FOIP and/
or copyright restrictions
55

56. Where Were You When The World
Stopped Turning?*
*Unable to post student video due to FOIP and/
or copyright restrictions
56

57. Music Video Project:
Scope & Sequence
1. Introduce project
• discuss communicating understanding in a
variety of ways
• share an exemplar
• discuss what works/what doesn’t
• build criteria
57

58. Music Video Project:
Scope & Sequence
2.Model the process
• Choose a song and work through from start
to finish
• Ballads with a clear story work well, as well as
lyrics centered around a clear event, theme or
emotion
• Discuss how mood is conveyed in music and
how this affects the message; connect mood
of music to mood of images used
58

59. Music Video Project:
Scope & Sequence
3.Classroom work
• Find a suitable song; print off lyics
• Read through lyrics several times. Determine
theme, message, purpose, and identify
figurative language.
• Deconstruct lyrics and brainstorm images
59

60. Music Video Project:
Scope & Sequence
4.Meet with peers (small group)
• Share ideas and receive feedback on
project work
• Students provide feedback that deals with
criteria only
• All comments must be phrased positively
(ie. “If this were my project, I might...”)
60

61. Music Video Project:
Scope & Sequence
5.Storyboard
• Create a storyboard that matches images with
lyrics (MS Powerpoint)
• Teacher/student conference to determine if
ready for next step
61

62. Music Video Project:
Scope & Sequence
6. Computer Lab
• search for images on reputable sites where
copyright restrictions are clearly posted (ie.
www.sxc.hu, www.wikimedia.com)
• download appropriate images
• “rip” music from cd and save to network
drive
• Use video editing software to create video
(MS Moviemaker, MS Photostory 3, iMovie,
etc.)
62

63. Follow Up:
Self-Reflection
Question: How has your understanding of the
song changed as a result of the work you did
on this project?
63

64. Follow Up:
Self-Reflection
Answer: "My understanding of this song has
changed because when I listened to the song I
didn't understand most of the questions in the
song. When I researched it I understanded it like
when Common (rapper) asked why is Bush
acting like he's looking for Osama, we should
impeach him and elect Obama.
64

65. I didn't understand this question then I thought
of it and asked myself why is Bush in Iraq instead
of Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan and the part of
the line where it says we should impeach him and
elect Obama.I didn't know who he was so I
searched his name and found out he was a
senator of the USA. In conclusion, if I didn't do
the project I wouldn't have understanded the
song."
65

66. Follow Up:
Self-Reflection
"I have gotten a much better understanding of the
song and lyrics, thanks to the work with the
storyboards. Breaking down the song line by line
made it easier to understand. I also found out that
words or phrases may have double meanings. "I'll give
a little bit of my life for you" may not be talking about
just sacrificing yourself for a family member or friend.
It may mean something like donating blood. I also
can't get this song out of my head because I
memorized and listened to it almost everyday for a
month."
66

67. The End of War*
*Unable to post student video due to FOIP and/
or copyright restrictions
67

68. Digital Storytelling
Resources
Sid de Haan’s Blog:
http://sdhedtech.wordpress.com
sid.de.haan@epsb.ca
68