Digital Storytelling

Digital storytelling is …
What is the most important thing in
digital storytelling?
Writing or technology?
Words or audio, visual, media effects?
Objectives
Upon completion
of Day 1 , the
1. explain universal elements of story and
participants are digital storytelling
expected to be
able to:
2. identify some Sundanese cultural aspects that
are relevant to middle year students

3. sequence logical stages in presenting the chosen

cultural aspects for non-Sundanese audience
(Australians) through digital storytelling
Agenda
Time Activities Key Learning
09.00-09.30 Introducing the nature of story genres, sharing some stories Characters, setting, plot

09.45-10.15 Identifying universal elements of a story The plot

10.15-11.15 Exploring elements that make a story engaging Human interests
11.15-12.00 Defining a good digital story Characteristics and skills
13.00-13.20 Mapping out ideas for our digital storytelling Sundanese culture aspects
13.20-14.10 Creating our digital storytelling (first draft) Create and feedback

14.10-14.30 Writing up the action plan (follow up as homework) each Planning

school
What’s your story? My name
and my
.
personality
1. Complete your flower
2. Share your story with A very
your group (A, B, C) important Story My
3. Note what is similar event in my about hometown
hometown me
or different from your
story
4. Write the results on My concerns
the flipchart about my
hometown
coffee - break
That’s good! That’s bad!

So I put the voucher

In a wedding party in my silvery purse.
during the ‘bride But when I was home,
I just realized that
shower’ (siraman), I
there was a hole in the
won a IDR 500.000 purse and I lost the
voucher voucher.
Let’s discuss and create!
5’
Class
Take turn to tell Class Compare and discuss the
a story with flow of the stories (the
one using flower) and Discuss and
good and bad Discuss how the the one that has good create some
patterns patterns and bad patterns indicators for an
contribute to the interesting story
Big group plot of the story Small
group
10
10 5’ ’
’
Common pattern of a story: the narrative

Climax
Challenge
Conflict
Setting
s0lution
s0lution
Resolution
35’

Chris King
http://www.creativekeys.net/storytellingpower/article1037.html
 It touches it includes
human’s a point, It contains
What interests dramatic beginning,
makes a that others questions, middle, and
story can relate emotional end.
engaging? to content

5’
what do you have Who are involved?
in your mind when
you see this
Who?
picture?
Is it something
related to your
experience? What’s doing?
What
Or else? What’s happening?

In what situation?
Where,
Small When?
group
3’
5’
In Cairns we spent all our time at the pool.
The situation (status What is expected? What actions?
quo) ‘spent’ is general term

One day, Mum crashed into Billy on the water slide

What is expected? What actions?
The conflict ‘crashed’ carries negative/bad meaning

and got banned for the whole afternoon.

What is expected? What actions?
The solution (a
different status quo)
‘got banned’ involves the authorities of
the pool. Is it universal?
 Are we there yet?

Process, A different
Establishing B conflict, E
M situation
a situation challenge
Powerful stories rest on powerful writing

verbs Action verbs

Sensory terms
Stories observation
and description

Right into the

Less background story in the first
sentence
Uluru is the heart of
Australia. A huge
red heart, right in
the middle of the
country.
Personalizing
One day we got up the
early in the cool of description
the morning, and
walked around the
rock.
I felt as tiny as an
ant.
Description of a cat sitting next to you

The cat lounged on the couch.

You help readers create a mental picture

The cat was relaxed.

You tell the readers what you think about the cat
What is your meaning?

His nostrils flared, his teeth clenched, and his eyes

bulged.
Powerful verbs: definite and descriptive

He was mad.
Meaning is given by the writer
THE BEGINNING OF A
STORY
I had one student who wrote about My legs tensed as
an incident at a dance camp she
attended. Her story initially started I waited for my
with an entire paragraph explaining
location, how she got there, when cue; after all the
she went, and so on
sweat at camp, it
was Showtime
• http://creativeeducator.tech4learning.com
/2012/articles/Getting_Started_with_Digit
al_Storytelling
Powerful stories rest on powerful writing

verbs Action verbs

Sensory terms
Stories observation
and description

Right into the

Less background story in the first
sentence
Treasure hunt!
What makes a story
A DIGITAL STORY?
Treasure hunt!
Search for key
words

Read and discuss with

your trainers

Reformulate and add

to your criteria of a
good story
 What’s a good digital story?
• Living Inside Your Story—The perspective of each story is told in first person
using your own storytelling voice to narrate the tale. Rather than a detached
telling that this happened and that happened, viewers experience you living
inside this story.
• Economizing the Story Told—A good story has a destination—a point to make—
and seeks the shortest path to its destination. The art of shortening a story lies in
preserving the essence of the tale—using the fewest words along with images
and sound to make your point.
• Showing Not Telling—Unlike traditional oral or written stories, images, sound,
and music can be used to show a part of the context, create setting, give story
information, and provide emotional meaning not provided by words. Both words
and media need to reveal through details rather than named or simply stated.
• Developing Craftsmanship—A good story incorporates technology in artful ways,
demonstrating craftsmanship in communicating with images, sound, voice, color,
white space, animations, design, transitions, and special effects. Ask yourself
whether your media resources are decorating, illustrating, or illuminating.
What is the most important thing in
digital storytelling?
Writing or technology?
Words or audio, visual, media effects?
http://creativeeducator.tech4learning.com/2012/articles/Get
ting_Started_with_Digital_Storytelling
 Characteristics and skills
Using
universal
story writing
elements

A good
Economical digital Concise Technical Skills Speaking
and visual
story

Personal
personal develop-
ment
Lunch - break
http://creativeeducator.tech4learning.com/v06/articles/Advanced_Thinking
Our digital story
Why do we share the story?
What story will be engaging?
How will we tell the story to achieve this goal?
Let’s brainstorm and design!
20’
Small
10
Class
Select one idea and group Write an action plan, ’
determine what the focusing on ways to
Write the search and select Wrap up:
audience should narrative:
know and feel as a relevant Discussing the
a. elements of a a. Information
result of watching good story
action plan to
b. image, media, make the story
the story b. story chart sound effects
Small engaging
group Small
group
5’
15
’
Tips
Writing the narrative

Select : Decide: Write:

first

second

third
a. who, what a. the situation
a. an event/ a
place b. what’s b. process, conflict,
doing/happening challenge
b. a point to tell c. where, when, c. solution, a
for emotional how different situation,
content d. what/how to personal comments
personalise the
story
place

event
To Be continued…
References
• http://www.schrockguide.net/digital-storytelling.html
• link to other digital storytelling resources
• http://creativeeducator.tech4learning.com/v04/articles/Take_Six
• http://www.creativekeys.net/storytellingpower/article1037.html
• http://www.storybird.com/read/
Ideas to get started writing your story
http://creativeeducator.tech4learning.com/v05/articles/What_Makes_a_Good_Project
Indicators of good project design
http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/story-starters/adventure-writing-prompts/
How to brainstorm ideas for stories
http://www.tech4learning.com/workshops/kolk/digitalstorytelling#samples
Samples of students’ stories
http://boingboing.net/2013/03/07/pixars-22-rules-of-stor.html