Digital Storytelling and Literacy

Digital storytelling is a means of telling a story with digital audio/video. This can be done by teachers, who can model a creative use of technology as a way to share information, or by students who can express ideas about various topics in an inventive way. As a means of incorporating technology in the classroom and fulfilling the NETS for students, digital storytelling is an effective way to teach language arts, encourage literacy, and develop technological knowledge.

The merits of digital storytelling as a reading and writing tool are described in detail by Regina Royer and Patricia Richards in their article “Digital Storytelling” (2008). The authors break down the five pillars of reading instruction (phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension) into success strategies and explain how digital storytelling projects can relate to each one. They go on to describe five additional pillars (writing; access, choice, and collaboration; differentiated reading instruction; classroom organization; expert tutoring) and the relation to those as well. Royer and Richards emphasize opportunities for creativity, choice, and collaboration that will aid in developing literacy. One specific example of the literacy benefits of digital storytelling can be seen in the example of English Language Learners. In his article “Toontastic Makes Storytelling Fun!” Juan Carlos Venegas shares how he was able to use a digital storytelling app called Toontastic to get his ELL students engaged and excited about creative writing. Prior to this method, he struggled to get them to complete creative writing projects that were vital to his assessment of their learning. With this app, his students can create cartoons and then record their own narration of the story. Venegas describes the pride his students exhibit in sharing their work and the ease with which they discuss their stories. He is able to see where they are linguistically and enjoys seeing their creativity shine in this low-pressure setting.

What stood out most in these two articles was the level of engagement possible in the creation of digital storytelling projects. From writing the script, conducting peer reviews and edits, and asking questions, to the actual filming of the project, there is a big emphasis placed on collaboration between students and the benefits of that collaboration on developing literacy. Influence from peers, as Royer and Richards point out, can be a big step for learning, “Literacy development is social and cultural. Expert peers can provide a zone of proximal development that fosters literacy development in less capable peers who struggle in reading and writing” (2008).  For students who are not as strong in reading and writing, digital storytelling can offer an opportunity to collaborate with a student who is stronger in those areas. It can also be a moment for some students to shine, whereas in traditional writing assignments they might not. I look forward to using digital storytelling in my classroom to encourage creativity and collaboration, and to introduce new technologies to my students. For older elementary students, I will create a group video project in which they will write an original script, assign roles and responsibilities, act out and film the project, and then present it to the class. The theme could center around our current science unit, like water conservation, or the period of history we are studying, like colonial history. The students would be reinforcing science or history knowledge while writing creatively, using technology, and working together. For younger students I might design a digital storytelling lesson in which each student illustrates one page of a story. Then I would scan in the illustrated pages and assemble them into a digital book. I would dub a recording of myself reading the story over the digital book and then share the finished project with the class. Students would benefit from seeing the words on the page, illustrating the action of that page, and hearing the words read aloud as part of the whole story. These are just two ideas, and the possibilities are endless with digital storytelling. I look forward to putting it to use in my own classroom.

Royer, Regina. Richards, Patricia, (2008). Digital Storytelling. Learning & Leading with Technology, November 2008. Volume 36 (Number 3) 29-31. http://www.learningandleading-digital.com/learningandleading

          Venaga, Juan Carlos (2013).Toontastic Makes Storytelling Fun!. Learning & Leading with Technology, February 2013. Volume 40 (Number 5), 39. http://www.learningandleading-digital.com/learningandleading