Do you love to spark the creative talents of your students? The web 2.0 tool that i'm going to introduce you today will help you to do so. It is an artful digital storytelling tool called Storybird.(Screenshot 1)
Screenshot 1: Storybird homepage
What is Storybird?
Using art contributed by some of the world's best illustrators, students can quickly choose pictures and write a story by using Storybird. What so interesting is, the illustrators that the site provides are what make it stands out from anything similar to it. This tool also allows you to create a story collaboratively with other people without you and your partner being in the same place.
How to create a Storybird?
The slide presentations below show how to create a Storybird. Follow the ten steps below and publish your own story!
Below is the example of a story that I made with a friend of mine by using Storybird. Click here for a look!
screenshot 2: my Storybird
How can teachers use Storybird?
The site can work with any level of students from as low as elementary to as high as advanced students.This site works great on an interactive whiteboards. The pictures are colourful and superbly illustrated. You can ask students to work in groups and write a story collaboratively. You can ask each group to come to the board and add the next picture.
You have to bear in mind that writing is not for all students. It is also not a product but is a process. So, you should help students with the process of writing. For instance, if you are going to get your students to write a story around the topic "zoo", you might help students to brainstorm ideas about the topic. What can you do is providing your students with the topic-related vocabulary. You can then show them a few pictures of zoo and get them to work in pairs and brainstorm some ideas of what they normally do and see when they go to the zoo. Once you activate their schemata, it will be easier for them to enjoy using Storybird and start writing their unique story!
If there are students who are not interested in writing a story, you can use Storybird as a reading tool. You could send one of the stories a week to your students to read at home and ask them to share what they like or dislike about the story that they read in your class. In addition to that, you can ask them to write a summary for any story they love and send it to you for your feedback.
Advantages
- Fun and Free- It's a website that allows you to sign up for free. It's fun and engaging as students can write factual instructions, directions, explanations or even a mad fantastical story in their own creative way!
- Easy and accessible-It's so easy. on one simple interface, you drag over the picture and then type your story in the box. No saving, that's automatic. The simplicity of the interface makes the tool accessible to everyone. Students can also work on this site in school or at home because this is a web 2.0 tool.
- Creativity- This site provides a wide range of pictures. Students can select the pictures and illustrations that they like and be creative in choosing and arranging the pictures, and typing their own story.
- Collaboration- This website allow students to collaborate with their friends in writing a story. This provide them opportunity to get more ideas for a better story as two heads are better than one!
Disadvantages
- Co-operation- It's really hard to get all students to collaborate with their friends in creating the story as there might be a person who does not want to give full co-operation.
- Inadequate facilities- It will be a problem for the schools that have insufficient computers and poor connections to the internet.
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