How do we maintain interest? Students develop a new initiative to learn when we can keep their attention. One of the best ways to keep their focus is by engaging them with a relevant story, building a concept with a climax, resolution, and possible twist. Offer students a challenge to create their own digital story leading them toward the potential for success when the project is complete. These elements make up the ARCS Motivational Model.
This week I tried to delve into the realm of digital story telling using PowerPoint. I am not perspicacious when it comes to using this program. In fact, this was only the second time that I have ever made a PowerPoint. I am more comfortable with using Keynote, but I thought I would change things up a bit and introduce myself to a new software. Prezi is another software I became aware of after I created my PowerPoint. I watched several videos on it and I am very excited to try to create my first presentation on it.
In creating my digital PowerPoint story I discovered firsthand the importance of storyboarding and preplanning. Being a little unfamiliar with PowerPoint I just dove strait in to creating slides. This caused me to spin my wheels for a while figuring out the program. Just before getting frustrated and giving up I just wrote down a brief outline of my story. Then bam! The presentation was made. See it posted below.
It may be a bit elementary in its design but making this presentation has planted a new found interest in developing assets like these into my teaching to make my class more entertaining as well as engaging. Incorporating the use of my digital camera is my next goal. Taking pictures and incorporating those into the slides, and after that finding a digital video camera would be the next logical step in incorporation. I especially like what can be done with cut outs, a little artwork, and a video camera like in this video of Digital Story Telling. Videos like these definitely can maintain interest by the viewers always wondering what is coming next. Hopefully with a little practice and determination I will soon be making digital stories like these.
Rick,
ReplyDeleteThe slide show is definetly cute and brings in lots of elements. I know what you mean about spinning your wheels due to story mapping. It took me a while with my Prezi to get it to look somewhat like I wanted it to. And even then it was after quite a bit of tweeking. I discovered that I need to plan where the 'camera' zooms to better. :)
I'm glad you dove right in and did it thought. Sometimes I feel like that is the only way to really get to know the basics of a program. You can get little details later from the help menue or a manual, but nothing beats getting your hand dirty and figuring out some of the buttons. After all, the beauty of a computer is that you can erase it if you don't like it, and all you've wasted is a bit of time.
I look foward to seeing your future works,
Alex S.
For a first-time PowerPoint user, I am impressed with your presentation and what appears to be the ease at which you put it into Slideshare and embedding that into your blog post. Your PowerPoint is colorful and "bullet-proof" (that is, you didn't bore us with solely bullet itemized text).
ReplyDeleteNot being a Mac convert (yet...the iPad is tempting...), I have never used Keynote and understand it is more feature rich than PowerPoint. If that's true, I also want to get to know Keynote when I make it to "the Mac side".
I've used PowerPoint for several years and continue to learn new tricks with it. I have also successfully used it with elementary school students to create their own digital stories. Even with kindergarten students! It is a great tool for motivating reading and writing. They can insert pictures, clip art, even video. They can record their voice as narration to the story, as well as include audio clips. It's highly engaging!
I encourage you to continue with PowerPoint
"In creating my digital PowerPoint story I discovered firsthand the importance of storyboarding and preplanning. Being a little unfamiliar with PowerPoint I just dove strait in to creating slides. This caused me to spin my wheels for a while figuring out the program. Just before getting frustrated and giving up I just wrote down a brief outline of my story. Then bam! The presentation was made."
ReplyDeleteI think you really captured the essence of the importance of planning/storyboarding. It's not a constraint. Instead, it can set you free to create. :-)
Thanks for the insight!