Now more than ever, teachers are utilizing technology in their everyday teaching. There are so many amazing technology based educational tools available to us that it can be overwhelming when trying to figure out where to start. This post highlights 3 digital tools that will promote student engagement by providing them with opportunities to authentically participate in storytelling activities.
Flipgrid
https://info.flipgrid.com/
Flipgrid is a video sharing tool that can be utilized by teachers of all grade levels and subject areas. It is quick to set up an account, and very user friendly for both teachers and students. Once the account is created, teachers create topics that students can then respond to by recording videos. In my experience, I have created topics for book reviews, writing publishing parties, and book club discussions. One thing I love about Flipgrid is that students are able to view each other’s videos and leave positive comments! The commenting feature can also be toggled on and off by the teacher for each assignment.
I have had great success using Flipgrid as a way for students to share their published writing with each other. My students were so excited to record themselves reading their stories for all of their classmates to watch and respond to. With this experience in mind, I can definitely see Flipgrid being a great tool when practicing oral storytelling as well! Another great feature of Flipgrid is the option to re-record your videos. This is awesome for shy students that may be nervous to share their stories with their classmates, as they always have the opportunity to watch their response and try again before posting it for everyone to see.
Imagine Forest
https://www.imagineforest.com/
I was so excited when I came across Imagine Forest, a great resource for teachers to use to integrate reading and writing. Imagine Forest has tools to help students create and publish their own digital stories that can then be printed, downloaded, or read online. I love that students are able to read their classmates’ published writing and leave positive feedback. This can help create a positive writing community within the classroom, where students can inspire each other through their stories.
While students can certainly create their own stories from scratch, there are also prompts and story maps available. The prompts would be great for students that need a little extra help getting started, and the story maps are helpful for students that need just a bit more structure. Use the link below to explore some of the prompts and story maps that are available.
https://www.imagineforest.com/free-resources/writing-prompts
The entire site is very visually appealing and engaging for students. On the Activities link, students can complete writing challenges to earn points. There are also other fun writing resources such as the Character Creator, Story Idea Generator and a Rhyming Dictionary.
Make Beliefs Comix
https://www.makebeliefscomix.com/
Make Beliefs Comix is a super fun resource where students can create their own digital comic strips. It does not require you to make an account, but it is a good idea to have students create accounts so their work can be saved. I had so much fun exploring this online resource, so I know students of all ages will love it as well. There are so many characters, backgrounds, and objects to choose from when creating your comic. Also, you can add up to 18 panels, giving students the potential to create fairly long stories. Below is one of the comic strips I made for fun while exploring this resource.
Sources:
Cunningham, K. E. (2019). Start with Joy: Designing Literacy Learning for Student Happiness. Portsmouth, NH: Stenhouse.
Nieves, K. (2020, January 27). 9 new ways to Use Flipgrid in the classroom. Retrieved March 22, 2021, from https://www.edutopia.org/article/9-new-ways-use-flipgrid-classroom
Smeda, N., Dakich, E., & Sharda, N. (2014). The effectiveness of digital storytelling in the classrooms: A comprehensive study. Smart Learning Environments, 1(1). doi:10.1186/s40561-014-0006-3
Thank you for sharing these resources! It's always great to get ideas from other teachers, especially when it comes to technology integration. There are so many websites and application to choose from, deciding what to use in the classroom can be overwhelming. Recommendations are so valuable!
ReplyDeleteI appreciate that all of these resources are free and very user-friendly. I've used Flipgrid with my youngest students, second graders, and it worked well. I had the students read a list of words with long and short vowel e sounds. It freed up so much classroom time! Instead of the students waiting for me to be available to hear them, each student could record their videos when they were ready and continue to move through the lesson at their own pace. I was able to listen while they recorded and go back to the recording later. I think this also made the students less nervous. I wasn't sitting across from them trying to mark a paper while they read. They were focused on reading, not on me.
I like the make beliefs comix! I have a student who loves to draw, but has limited English language proficiency. He is eager to learn to read, and if I can connect writing to pictures, like comics, I believe that would greatly enhance the experience. Comics are beneficial to all writers, especially those who are visual learners and creators. I will explore this resource in my classes!
Thank you again for sharing these websites!
Best,
Kate
Thank for for all of the websites. I've only heard of Flipgrid. I also love how most of these can be used for storytelling as well. It is very helpful to have all of these websites in our tool bin especially since most of us will be doing digital for a long time!
ReplyDeleteThe last two websites sound good specifically for those students who may be a bit more creative. Possibly for students who are ELL or who have modified assignments. It also helps that there are prompts available for those that may need help starting out. I think I may use the last one to help me with my final project for this class!
Hi!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing these resources. I had only heard of flipgrid before and I love it. It is a great way to get formative assessment data, I even used it once to connect 5th grade students in Rhode Island with students in Sweden! I used it with students before covid but now it serves as a great way for students to communicate in a forum like platform. I was able to explore the other two resources and I think that kids would really have a fun time using them during reading/ writing workshop, especially when learning remotely. Nice job!
-Grace
Hi Colleen,
ReplyDeleteThese are great new resources to me! I have used FlipGrid, and I really appreciate the ability for students to preview their videos and make any changes before they publish it - and the ability to toggle sharing on and off as necessary. The next two resources are new to me, but I am thinking about using the Make Beliefs Comix now for a project coming up! I appreciate that it allows for creative expression, but also takes away some of the pressure of illustrating a comic or story.
It seems like the Imagine Forest resource would be a great tool for writers who are having trouble getting started or staying organized, with the included prompts and story maps. What a great tool to make writing tasks more accessible!
I think the big part of all three that you mentioned is that they are all tools that help create a positive writing community that celebrates sharing stories and pride in their creations.
Hi Colleen,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing these helpful resources! Especially right now as so many of us are teaching in a hybrid or remote environment. I have used Flipgrid in the past and I agree with you that it is a really useful tool for oral storytelling! The other two tools are new to me, and I am excited to try them out after reading your blog post. I think these tools will help with student engagement as well.
-Shawna Zeisner
This was such a great blog post because it is so applicable! I have used Flipgrid myself as a student and just recently used it as a teacher with my students for the first time. It has so many great features and I believe it is very student/ family friendly.
ReplyDeleteImagine Forest is new to me, I like how it has some story maps/ prompts set up for students to use. This could be great for younger elementary ages and potentially for older students if they start one from scratch. This can make writing, summaries, and reading actives more engaging and interesting.
My students just started using the comic strip site in LLC. They took a writing piece they created and made it into a comic. This is such a great site for students especially now because so many of them love graphic novels.
Thanks for sharing these!
Hello,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing such great resources! It can be challenging to know what exactly to use in the classroom with so many resources available online. Your post definitely helps to provide information on the benefits of each of these tools. Personally, I have used flip grid really only as a student in some of my graduate classes. I definitely want to use it at the beginning of next year as a way for everyone to introduce each other. Sometimes the first day of school can be awkward and overwhelming especially at the high school level as students are going to different classes all day. I wonder if assigning a flip grid assignment where students can make a video introducing themselves would help to ease some of that first day anxiety.
I had never heard of Imagine Forest but I browsed through and I can definitely see how this could really benefit young students and help to make reading and writing more interactive and engaging.
The comic strip site is really cool. I am debating on teaching Persepolis which is a graphic novel for the end of the school year and if I do end up teaching it then this would be a great resource. I figured I could have my students create their own comic strips based on some kind of essential question that revolves around Persepolis.
Thank you for providing these great resources!
Hi,
ReplyDeleteThis post very very helpful and informative. Flipgrid is a very useful tool that we can use in our classrooms especially during this tough time in the pandemic we are currently experiencing. Use this in my social studies class and the student very much enjoy using this because it allows them to be creative and can use their words to show me what them have learned. I also like the make belief commix as well because the students like reading comics so it is a great approach for the students to have fun and show me what them have learned .
Hi Colleen,
ReplyDeleteI really loved the resources that you provided because I have never heard of Imagine Forest or Make Beliefs Comix. I think they can both be very great resources, especially as we move more into a digital world. I also like that both Imagine Forest and Make Beliefs Comix has resources for students to get started because they might struggle with structuring their work. I also have only used Flip Grid once and it was for this class! So I've never thought about using it in the classroom, but I think it would be a great way for students to share their work with their classmates, while also practicing their speaking skills.
Hi Colleen,
ReplyDeleteAwesome article and resources. I love the idea of giving students opportunities to express themselves in different ways. Now more than ever technology has become an integral part of education. Students love finding their own voice and these resources give them different ways to do just that. In my experience students love Flip Grid and will take any opportunity to use it. I know a lot of teachers use it regularly to do exit slips with their online classes and even sometimes in person classes.
-Bob
Hello Colleen,
ReplyDeleteI am glad to have these resources in my mental toolbox now! i originally only heard of Flipgrid, which I love. I have used Flipgrid in other grad courses and at the elementary school I currently intern at. I love how there are different ways to express yourself on Flipgrid, like using text, pictures, and videos. I like the recording feature the best and I find that students like this as well as some students struggle getting their thoughts onto paper, so being able to record themselves and just speak to a camera is so much more fun and effective. I like how Imagine Forest has similar tools. I like how student's stories can be e printed, downloaded, and read online. I agree that it is necessary that students support each other inside and outside of the classroom, so it is nice that students can comment on each other's work. And the Make Belief Comix sounds fun for students as well, especially those who are into art and narrative writing. This is a cool way to make students feel like real authors and give them a boost of confidence to create a fun story in a comic strip.
~Chaisen
Hi Colleen!
ReplyDeleteAs a teacher who has devoted a lot of time to trying to keep up with the latest technology trends in education, I loved this post! I absolutely love flipgrid. I love the way it allows students to get their information across without actually having a specific template. This allows students to be creative and truly voice their opinions. I had never heard of Imagine Forest before, but I am excited to try it out. I love that students are not only able to read their peers work, but they are also able to celebrate their peers writing because of the ability to comment on others work! Make Believe Comics is something my students would love! It seems like such a fun resource. Although my students might be young, this may be a fun project to work on as an entire class!
Thank you so much for sharing these resources!
Ali Lombard