Two many themes arose when I read and thought about these articles. I really struggled with how to connect the Parker article into my classroom. The main message I got while reading the article was the importance of relationships. These students had to work very hard to earn the trust of the people they were interviewing and keep an open and positive message around an issue that is polarizing for many people. I think this layer of relationship is an extra challenge to students and people alike. This project became more than just school work.
In the Emert (2014) article I was struck by this quote, "In essence, there are two narratives in a digital story-the overt narrative (the words in the story) and the covert narrative perceived by the viewer with the images" (p. 404). This quote was early on in the article and really did help me summarize my experience with digital storytelling. The quote helped me see the big picture and set a focus for my own classroom.
It took many days of thinking about the Parker (2014) article to really make it relatable. In second grade, my students are lucky to remember that the world is more than just them. This is a fun developmental milestone that many 8 year old hit while in 2nd grade. Realizing there is a world just beyond them is what makes 2nd grade so much fun, but also challenging. How do we build their relationships when they are learning to be kind and care for one another?
I think the next step in my classroom would be to build interview questions as a class. We have a poetry unit coming up and usually students do a poem about themselves. I would like students to learn more about their classmates. They can interview each other with the class generated questions and then develop an, "I am" poem about their partner. This creating of the questions I think would emulate the power and engagement discussed in the Parker (2014) article.
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| This is a template I am considering using in my classroom |
Lastly, I have been thinking about digital storytelling all semester. We just presented our own videos in class. For me, this was an very private part of my life that I have struggled with. The support I received from my classmates meant a lot. I was able to really connect with my classmates in a different way. I want that for my students, but still and trying to figure out how. I have considered having students send in photos of themselves. They then could tell a story based on the photo. I worry that this photo might not connect to them as much as it connects to their families. I also have considered being better and taking photos throughout the year (I am awful at it). I could then create the memories for the students to write about. I would do this in order to support the families that might not have photos or for the students that struggle to remember the past.
Digital storytelling took a ton of work for myself. I think logistically it would involve a ton of planning, easy access to technology, and more than just one classroom teacher for support. I have not yet decided how to best support this in my classroom. I think for now I would like to work with one photo, and have students provide audio for that photo. I would do this in a more simple way this year by taking a photo of the student. That student then would have the poem that their partner wrote played while we saw the photo. I found a link about some potential recording apps here.
I love the audio piece of this. My students love hearing their voices and I would like to see more of their voices come into our classroom. At the end of the day, it is important to feel connected, challenged and heard. Students are important and so are the stories they carry with them. It is our job to make sure we help them share their stories.
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