Pinwords

Pinwords is a pretty cool site that I learned about from Larry Ferlazzo's blog where you upload a picture or grab one from a URL and then add some fancy print using their preset font layouts.  Simple enough right?  You can then save the picture or share it socially using Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, etc.  Check out the picture below that I created using Pinwords.

Now What?

Pinwords is a great site for creating image slides for use in a digital story.  The captions are laid out cleanly on the page and are easily read.  It's kind of like Haiku Deck one slide at a time.

Zeen

Looking for a new digital storytelling application?  Zeen is a site where you can quickly create a multimedia rich story in seconds with some drag and drop uploading and YouTube/Google Image search functionality built right into the site.  After creating an account (or linking Facebook/Twitter) you can create your very own Zeen.  Users can include a variety of content on Zeen including headings, quotes, text, images, videos and links.  I liked that you could easily grab images from your social accounts such as Flickr and Picasa.  It was also really easy to grab a YouTube video as well using the built in search.  Once finished you can share your story or even embed it into a website.

H/T to Technology Tidbits

Now What?

Zeen is a great place for your students to create digital stories because it is easy to use and allows for searching from within the site.  To get started...assign a homework activity where students have to create a Zeen about a famous person or book character.  For more digital storytelling ideas check out my list of 5 animated story sites.

Phrase.it

Phrase.it is a really basic service where you can upload a picture and add cartoon style thought bubbles.  Phrase.it is a really simple idea but there are a lot of possibilities for using it in your classroom or a website.  Aside from the speech bubbles you can also add one of four different filter effects to the image as well.  Phrase.it is very easy to use and you do not need an account to create or save your image.

Now What?

I would say that Phrase.it is somewhere between clipart (static image) and Thinglink (which is completely interactive).  Teachers can use this in the classroom to have students create short stories with speech bubbles but also this could be a great quick homework assignment where students have to develop meaningful text based on a picture which could be very high level activity depending on the image.

H/T to Free Technology 4 Teachers

Mozilla Popcorn Maker

Mozilla's Popcorn Maker is a very interesting new digital storytelling site that I found a while back and it seems to be getting some exposure recently on various blogs.  Popcorn Maker is a video mashup tool that can be used to integrate several media formats into one video (similar to Meograph).  You start with a video clip from YouTube or Vimeo and then take it to the next level with news articles, images, text, audio, maps and social media content.  The potential here is crazy!  Creating a user profile allows you to save and share a finished project but you can access the site as a guest and try it out without registering.  Check out the short video below to get a more visual idea of Mozilla's Popcorn Maker works.

Now What?

Popcorn Maker is a great tool for both students and teachers.  Students will enjoy the unlimited ability to merge different media into one digital story while teachers will find this tool useful in planning lessons and engaging their students through the use of different media.  For more digital storytelling options...be sure to check out my Tech Messages website of web 2.0 tools.

Weekly Technology Assignment - Meograph

With the start of a new school year comes more neatly packaged lessons and tutorials for you to integrate into your classroom curriculum by way of the Weekly Technology Assignment here on Tech Messages.  This week the assignment incorporates Meograph which is a really simple and fun way to tell an interactive story.

Tech Tool:  Meograph

Activity:  Every person, event, or concept has a story to be told.  Think about your curriculum and what you are teaching in class right now.  How could you have your students develop a digital story using Meograph?  You could even have the students use their own images or video to create their story instead of using what is available on the web.  Check out the story of Whitney Houston's life below for an example.

Example:  Whitney Houston's Life

The Newspaper Clipping Generator

The Newspaper Clipping Generator

Looking around on Diigo yesterday I found a great website for any content area where students can create a fake newspaper clipping called the Newspaper Clipping Generator.  Students who use this site don't have to create an account...all they do is complete a form (see image below) and then click "generate".  Once the article clipping is created students can download the image file for their personal use.

Now What?

The Newspaper Clipping Generator is excellent for any classroom where students are writing (every class I hope) and gives them an authentic avenue for their story.  This would be great as a homework assignment and then you can print the stories and make your own classroom newspaper bulletin board!

One True Media

One True Media is a great website for creating video projects using images, video clips and text.  I got an e-mail recently from them asking me if I wanted to keep my old videos (forgot I had created any) which prompted me to visit the site and review it...again and I was really glad that I did.  This site is crazy for a free video editor.  You can upload a variety of images and video clips in many different formats (including .3gp which is mobile phone video) and then create your free video using lots of styles, effects and transitions.  Some of the features that I liked the most on One True Media were the ability to upload your own music, customize EVERTHING, HD style packages, and the ability to create text slides and customize captions.  You can even share your project with others so they can upload video and images.

Now What?

One True Media is a great site for creating digital stories in all content areas.  Have your students create a public service announcement to raise awareness about a pressing issue or current event.  You can also use a digital story assignment to have them explain something that you have covered in class using the caption features.

Weekly Technology Assignment 3

In this week's installment, offer your students the opportunity to create a story using a very simple editor created by Google and YouTube.  Before you proceed...each student must have their own YouTube account (comes with Google account) in order to publish and share their story.  If they do not have a Google account they will not be able to share their completed story.  Check out the assignment below:

Website: Google Search Story Creator

Tutorial: How to Create a Google Search Story

Activity:  Google search story creator is a really neat way to tell a story using something we all do everyday...Google searches (websites, images, maps).  A Google search story could tell the tale of how a scientist like Mendel created their genetics theory or trace the path of a character in a book.  You could also encapsulate a current event from start to finish (makes a great timeline) or work through a math problem (don't forget that Google does more than just word searches).  This could also be a great way to create a "how to" story.  Have fun with this assignment and let your students be the creators!

Example:  My Koala

Google Search Stories

It's official...you can create a story about anything...yup even your Google searches using Google's Search Story Creator.  This is a very exciting idea for digital storytelling.  Instead of having your students write a story why not have them narrate it through Google searches?  Before creating the story, it is important to think about how it will start and how it will end.  You can only have seven searches in your story which will give you a 30 second clip.  This max helps to focus the story and keep it moving.  The final product gets uploaded to your YouTube account for sharing with the world.  Check out my story below about buying a house...





Now What?

This is a great little activity for your students to complete.  Why not have them tell their next story through a Google search rather than explicitly on paper.  You can also include images and maps content into your search story which is all set to background music.

Top 3 Digital Storytelling Websites

Digital storytelling is a great way for students to demonstrate what they have learned through the use of digital expression.  There are quite a few great computer based programs such as Windows Movie Maker, Microsoft Photostory and iMovie for creating high quality videos but there are also some really great web based sites as well.

1.  Animoto is a site that I've written about before and I'm a big fan of it's ease of use.  Many teachers have told me how much they love this site because you can create a video start to finish in a matter of moments.  The only catch with  Animoto is that you can only create a thirty second video with the free version.  Other than that you will be blown away by the high quality effects and transitions that you can apply to your movie.  Also,  Animoto has a large selection of royalty free audio to use as a background score for your video which helps to make it a one stop shop for video creation.

2.  Xtranormal is another great site for creating entertaining video.  The tagline for Xtranormal is "If you can type, you can make movies".  This site is unique in that you get to use characters, backgrounds and props from their library to create your scene.  From there, you can give your characters lines and body movements to accompany their words.  Xtranormal is very popular and can be addictive.  The one catch with Xtranormal is that if you want to use more than the default characters and backgrounds you will need to buy credits to spend on these extras.

3.  Masher is another great site for creating video.  Using Masher you can create video using their stock images, video (BBC library of videos) and music or you can upload your own and create a custom video from your own content.  Masher is very easy to use and with the ability to add text as well this is another great way for students to create their own digital stories.

Now What?


Look at your curriculum and select a place where you would like students to create a concluding work such as a digital story.  You can also have students create a short video on Animoto for a homework assignment. As a teacher, these video creation sites are also great for creating an introductory look at a topic or unit of study.

Animoto

http://www.darcyandbrian.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/animoto_logo_lg_blackBkgd.jpg

Animoto is a website for creating digital stories and it is by far one of the easiest sites to use for this purpose. In order to create a video you choose a style (theme), add pictures and videos (facebook, picasa, flickr or upload), select music (upload or choose from Animoto library) and produce your video with preset effects and transitions.  You can also add text to your videos as well.  Creating an account is easy on Animoto and as an educator you are upgraded to a Plus account (full length videos) for FREE.  Students can register for a free Lite account and can create an unlimited number of 30 second videos.  The reason that Animoto is so popular is because it's easy to use and the quality of the completed videos is unbelieveable. Recently, Animoto unveiled an iPad app which will allow you to create and view videos on the go.  Check out the webinar below to discover how you can create your very own Animoto digital story.



 

Now What?

Animoto is an excellent classroom tools for creating exciting presentations and video.  The 30 second time limit forces students to summarize the information being presented and lends itself to focusing on the important content.  I've seen this tool used in a variety of ways including visual depiction of a vocabulary word, pictoral representation of an event in history, book trailers and more.  If you are using Animoto in your classroom be sure to leave a comment and share you experiences.