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Table of Contents
Everyone has a story to tell and the way one tells his or her story matters. Storytellers need to present their stories in a creative and engaging manner to capture their audience, which is a why digital storytelling is a popular choice among modern storytellers. This type of storytelling is rich in multimedia elements like images, audio, texts and more.
See the fact file below for more information on the digital storytelling or alternatively, you can download our 24-page Digital Storytelling worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.
Key Facts & Information
The Evolution of Storytelling
- As humans, we are social beings who seek to connect with others. It is natural for us to share pieces of our lives with others.
- The ways people tell their stories have changed so much over time.
- The paintings and engravings found inside the Chauvet Cave in southern France date back 30,000 years. The artists filled the cave walls with various markings βranging from geometric forms of red dots on the walls, to handprints, to more than 420 animal representations.β
- Five thousand years ago, ancient Egyptians used hieroglyphics for religious documents and monumental inscriptions. It was their peopleβs way of communicating with future generations.
- Oral tradition is common in most, if not all, cultures. Storytelling played a huge role in the lives of Native Americans. They used powerful narratives to share their history, values, and rituals. Myths and legends helped the people make sense of the world around them.
- In most cultures and traditions, songs, chants, and poetry were also used to tell stories and were eventually written and recorded for future generations.
- These stories were transcribed on paper, clay, and stones.
- The transition from oral to written culture was evident in ancient Greece. Homerβs famous work called βThe Illiadβ is from their oral tradition and was seen in the earliest inscriptions found by scholars from 770 to 750 B.C.
- Johannes Gutenbergβs invention, the printing press, contributed to one of the most significant changes in communication history in the 15th century. Mass printing helped increase lay people’sβ literacy during those times as information was made accessible to all.
- As modern technology started to emerge and develop, communication practices slowly started to change too.
- New media created more ways of communicating and it became easier for people to share their thoughts, emotions, and personal stories to others online.
Digital Storytelling and Its Multimedia Elements
- Digital storytelling is defined as using digital or computer-based tools to create and share stories.
- Any person who has been online can say that he or she has encountered some form of digital story, whether it is through a blog, a status on Facebook, a tweet, a video on YouTube, or an Instagram post.
- This type of storytelling helps people connect with a wider community online, even others that live halfway across the world.
- It empowers people to share their life events and experiences that might help inspire or warn others.
- One advantage of digital media is that there are so many accessible tools and resources people can tap into to support their storytelling.
- When multimedia elements like images, text, audio, and videos are incorporated into a digital story, it enhances the audienceβs overall experience.
- With the emergence of smartphones and other hand-held devices, any person can easily create and share a digital story in a cost-effective manner.
- A good story idea is the foundation of any storytelling project. If you do not know what to write about and feel stuck in the process, you can do these activities to help you get your creative juices flowing:
- Create an idea box. Write down any random thought that comes to mind.
- Read and view other peopleβs work to get inspired.
- Look through memories from photos and videos.
- Listen to podcasts and music.
- Talk and share stories with friends and family.
- Plan your story. You need to be able to organize your thoughts and list resources that you need for this project. It is important to think about your goals and how you will connect with your audience. Defining your purpose for this project will make your storytelling meaningful and more effective.
- Write an outline and script. A well-thought out and organized story is easier to digest and believe. You need to think about the essential details that you need to share with your audience.
- Storyboarding. This step also helps us organize various multimedia elements used in the digital story. This way, storytellers can visualize how the story goes from beginning to end. Most storytellers simply sketch their story frame by frame on paper. You can do this or try other digital tools like Microsoft PowerPoint and Canva.
- Make your digital story. After planning and organizing your story, you can start creating your digital story using computer-based tools available.
- These are some ways you can present your digital story:
- Live or recorded videos
- Slideshows
- eBooks
- Podcasts
- Animations
- When you are working on your visual and audio parts, make sure you are using free resources when you are downloading from the internet. Most of these are protected by copyright. If this is the case, you need to ask permission from the artist before you use the material in your story.
- Check and finish your story. Go through your digital story and make sure that everything is in place. Start your editing process here. Choose the right tools that fit you and your capabilities. If you are a beginner, a good choice is to use any beginner-friendly app for editing. Most beginners use their smartphones or tablets since there are several drag and drop editing apps available for download.
- Publish and share your story. Most digital stories take up a lot of space in your deviceβs memory. It is good to store your work in a digital storage site like Google Drive, Dropbox, or Apple iCloud. This way, you can easily share your file with your audience online. You can share in other platforms as well, like Facebook and YouTube. However, it is very important to secure yourself online. For more details about this topic, visit this site: https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0017-kids-and-computer-security
Digital Storytelling Worksheets
This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about the digital storytelling across 24 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Digital Storytelling worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about the digital storytelling which is a popular choice among modern storytellers. This type of storytelling is rich in multimedia elements like images, audio, texts and more.
Complete List Of Included Worksheets
- What Is Digital Storytelling?
- Steps In Making A Digital Story
- Idea Box
- Planning Your Story
- Outline And Script
- Storyboarding
- Digitize Your Story: Animation
- Digitize Your Story: eBook
- Digitize Your Story: Podcasts
- Digitize Your Story: Video
Link/cite this page
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Link will appear as Digital Storytelling Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, June 4, 2020
Use With Any Curriculum
These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.