Digital Storytelling

My video made with iMovie:







Movies I watched:
Leslie- Charolette's Web
Angela- Who Am I ABC's?
Caroline- A Tasty Alphabet
Megan- Messy Room
Celecta- Winnie the Pooh
Nina- It's Raining, It's Pouring

I really enjoyed the movie making process. Something that I think might be hard for my students, since I am doing ECE, is having them self guide this process. Teacher aid, parent volunteers, of myself will need to help small groups of students complete the project. The students can collaborate on what they want to do and whoever is helping them can help create the project, allowing the students to do voice commentary. I also think it might be difficult to upload the videos. I had a very hard time getting my uploaded and found it frustrating. So as my little students try to do this project, I can see why it might be easy to get frustrated.

Week 3- TPACK

After reading the material on TPACK, I understand it to be a way teachers can implement and use technology in their teaching methods to support content-specific goals. So, if a teacher, for example, were trying to teach about planting seeds and how a garden grows, they could should a video of a seed sprouting in an accelerated fashion. The teacher could also use an excel sheet with their students to track how tall the plant is each day, measuring the growth. They could then have the students use a word processing application to write about the plant growth process. These would be all ways the teacher could utilize technology to enhance their students' understanding of the topic, allowing the students to see it visually, mathematically, and linguistically.
I think it is a great idea to use technology as much as possible and appropriate in the classroom. As students are themselves using more technology, it allows them to expound on the knowledge being taught in a different ways, catering to different types of learners and learning styles.

Story Board

Here are scans of my ideas for the story. I have all the pictures saved in a folder on my computer, plus a document with all the documentation of where these pictures were found. I am using a poem entitled "Mr. Wig, Our Guinea Pig" by Stephanie Calmenson, which I have rented a book from the library so I can pay tribute to it's source. I plan on finding a clapping noise and some sort of subtle background music as well.

Frames #1-3

Frames #4-6

Frames #7-10


Video Effects that I intend to use:
Ease In
Fade in from black

A few pictures that I will be using:





http://www.davecurlee.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/uhoh-01.jpg

http://artfulparent.files.wordpress.com/2008/03/melissa-and-doug-easel.jpg












http://www.mommyandme.com/f/userfiles/image/blocks.jpg











http://www.qacps.k12.md.us/ces/clipart/Carson%20Dellosa%20Clipart/Carson%20Dellosa%20Learning%20Themes/Images/Color%20Images/Community%20Helpers/TEACHER_DESK.jpg

Week 2

When I first opened the agenda for this week's assignment, I was a little overwhelmed. I had no idea how to make a website or do some of the required tasks! When I started working through the directions, however, I began to feel more capable and saw how easy it was to follow the directions in order to make a functioning website. As I completed the assignment, my mind was filled with ideas of how I could implement a class website in my future classroom. The Google calendar would be an excellent way to keep students and parents informed on up-and-coming school events, projects, and homework assignments. I thought I could even post the week's homework online so that parents and students could always have access to it, ensuring success! Also, like done in the homework, I could add a page that had supplemental worksheets, videos, and guidelines for my students for their reports, homework, or class unit. There are endless possibilities!
I also think it would be great to have surveys that students could do after certain units or mid-term where they could tell me how they feel, what they need help with, etc. It would also be great for parents to be able to take the survey as well, so that I could hear their input as well (especially is they are unable to come by the classroom). I think the website would take additional work, but it would be well worth the extra invested time!

Technology Background

I remember my grandpa having an old Mac in his home where you had to place to floppy discs in separate drives. I didn't understand it, but we always had fun playing various games and creating word processor documents. My dad purchased out first computer in the home when I was in Kindergarten.He would have my brothers and I practice our typing skills on a typing program and purchased several educational and reference programs.

Throughout my school career, my teachers have always utilized technology in the classroom. During early elementary, my teachers used books on tape, music, and videos to aid their lessons. Starting in 3rd grade, my teachers used computer games like Oregon Trail to aid our learning. By 5th grade, we were expected to use word processing programs to create and complete class projects, helping us become familiar with other computer programs.

In middle school and high school, I was always interested in technology. I worked on our school's TV station for 3 years and learned how to create, film, and edit TV programs. Technology has always come easy to me and beneficial. I enjoy making presentations and using technology to enhance my learning of various topics.