Screen Cast: What a Blast!

For this task, I chose to teach my students how to find our course vocabulary on Quizlet. For various reasons, I do not require my students to have an account, so often they have difficulty locating the course and flashcards. For the screencasting, I selected Screenr, as I felt like it was the least complicated. My recording did complete with only one try! A miracle for me! Although, I did muck up the audio a bit by repositioning myself about halfway through the presentation. I will continue to use Screenr and post it on my website for students who need several exposures or explanations to course content.

Digital Storytelling

After spending considerable time on the Zooburst site, I decided to go with Storybird. I adored the idea of Zooburst and the pop-up style, but I found it difficult to create. In addition, I became frustrated that I had to pay for additional images, sounds, and other creative techniques.

Storybird is amazingly fun and inspirational. For any writer who gets plagued by writer's block, the vivid imagery and themes are sure to remedy the most severe cases. Plus, how much fun to first have the pictures and then write the story! I love the flexibilty this process permits.

Typically, the Storybird process is used to create fictional works, which are already reflected in mass quantities at the site. However, I was curious to see if the process would work with nonfiction writing.  My story titled, "Why Must We Learn to Navigate the Sea of Media" explains the relevance and purpose for learning in my class. I hope to use it at the beginning of my course to set a purpose and motivation for learning.

"Why Must We Learn to Navigate the Sea of Media?
Why Must We Learn to Navigate the World of Media ? on Storybird