Digital Storytelling Lesson Plan

I) Goals, Standards and Objectives
Unit Title: Digital Storytelling and Increasing Literary Skills
Lesson Title: Digital Storytelling
1) Goal: Students will demonstrate their understanding of Digital Storytelling and the elements that make it up.
2) Objective: The students will discuss the characteristics in Digital Storytelling and then demonstrate their understanding of the concept by completing their own Digital Story with less than five errors in it.
Objective: Given a Digital Storytelling assignment the students will express their emotions, physical, and spiritual well being of their own life story with a two to four minute story.
3) Standards:
N.Y.S. Standard for E.L.A. # 3 Language for critical analysis and evaluation
Performance Indicators
A) Students will listen, speak, and write for critical analysis and evaluation.
B) As listeners and readers, students will analyze experiences, ideas, information, and issues presented by others using a variety of established criteria.
C) As speakers and writers, they will present, in oral and written language and from a variety of perspectives, their opinions and judgments on experiences, ideas, information and issues.
N.Y.S. Standard for Technology #6 Interconnectedness: Common Themes
A) Students will understand the relationship and common themes that connect mathematics, science, and technology, and apply the themes to these and other areas of learning.
N.Y.S. Standard for Technology #7 Interdisciplinary Problem Solving
A) Students will apply the knowledge and thinking skills of mathematics, science and technology to address real-life problems and make informed decisions.
National Standards for English Language Arts
Strand 3: Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textural features.
Strand 6: Students apply knowledge of language structure, language convections, media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and non-print texts.
Strand 9: Students develop an understanding of and respect diversity in language use, patterns, and dialect across cultures, ethnic groups, geographic regions and social roles.
Strand 12: Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
II) Materials and Resources
4) Materials Used
· Internet
· Computers
· Wiki
· Blog
· Discussion forum
· Media
· Each others prior knowledge
· Anticipatory Set
· Learning Activity
· Digital Storytelling software
5) Use of Technology
· Computers
· Internet
III) Teaching and Learning Strategies
6) Introduction:
· The purpose of the anticipatory set is to have the students think about whom they are as people, where did they come from, and how did they become who they are.
· At the end of the lesson the students will understand how to use Digital Storytelling and the process that it involves.
· Ask students about their prior knowledge and assess where their own computer literacy skills lie.
· Ask students what are the elements that make an engaging and effective story.
· Make sure the class has common knowledge of how the concept of what Digital Storytelling is.
7) Development
· By showing the students the elements of a Digital Storytelling on a wiki they will understand exactly how to develop a Digital Storytelling assignment.
· By showing the students an example on a wiki they will be able to use their visual and auditory learning to have a better understanding of how the process of production of Digital Storytelling.
· Make a list of the seven elements of Digital Storytelling and have each element in a on a wiki.
· Students individually will develop a paragraph demonstrating what it is that the teacher is asking them to do and post it on their class discussion forum.
8) Guided Practice
· While students are working in groups the teacher will walk around the room: listening, speaking, and making sure students are on task.
· The teacher will help students who are stuck or who have incorrectly identified the concept of Digital Storytelling by posting links to what Digital Storytelling is.
· By exploring students will use search engines on computers to find out more about Digital Storytelling and what it means.
9) Accommodations and Modifications for learners with special needs
· Have students make a poster of what Digital Storytelling means to them online.
· Have a higher level learner be a guide/mentor to a challenged student by commenting on others blogs.
· Have students watch multiple videos on Digital Storytelling that are posted on the discussion forum by the teacher.
10) Closure/ Wrap-up
· Have students describe what they know about Digital Storytelling by posting it in their blog.
· Have students describe the seven elements of Digital Storytelling by putting it in their blog.
· Make sure each student has an understanding of how to set up, process and complete their own Digital Story.
11) Independent Practice
· Students will make an individual Digital Storytelling assignment over a couple of days and will submit in a completed assignment in a drop box on the class website.
IV. Evaluation
12) Methods of Evaluation
· Students will submit their copy Digital Storytelling that they have completed and will be graded.
· Students with special needs will submit their own poster of what Digital Storytelling and will be allowed extended time to work on their Digital Storytelling project online.


Anticipatory Set
As an individual assignment, I would have each person write two paragraphs telling someone who is living in the times before the industrial revolution what life is like in present day. In those paragraphs I want the students to express their feelings, wants, needs, and desires in the current century. I also want the students to reflect on what life was like for people before the industrial revolution. I want the students to think of how different life will seem to people before 1865. I want the students to explain the usage of a computer, the internet, and what it means to be digital in the world they are currently living in. This activity would be able to stimulate the class for an in-depth look at what it means to be digital. Each student’s view will be posted on a wiki page for viewing and understanding the view point of others. This will be a great tool to have collaborative learning in an online classroom.

Activity
This activity is focused on understanding the seven elements of Digital Storytelling. The seven elements of Digital Storytelling are: point of view, dramatic question, emotional content, gift of your voice, power of your soundtrack, economy, and pacing. In group wiki’s students will look up the terms and discuss with one another in a collaborative effort. I would encourage the students to get in groups and discuss their own interpretation before there is a whole class discussion on the classes blog. I would use the blog to create an atmosphere that will enhance student learning. I would post links for resources that I would think to be useful and effective for my own students. I would have each of the groups write a sentence explaining each element and what it means to them. I want students to learn from one another and interact in an active learning environment. After the groups have discussed their ideas and thoughts the teacher will make corrections wherever needed in the learning process by using a wiki. Once each element has been correctly identified the students will have a better understanding in their Digital Storytelling assignment that they will complete