Story Bird
In the autumn holidays I had the opportunity to go on short lectures on “teachers resources” online. This suited me perfectly as we would look at different resources. What I understood during these days was that there is unlimited with resources online. There is an infinite treasure online; you just have to find the gems.
A resource that I fell for is called Story Bird ( http://storybird.com/ ) and it's free. The only requirement is an Internet connected computer. Story Bird is a site for creating digital stories. Story Bird offers a range of images to illustrate your own texts and images that can also help those of us who have a poor imagination to create stories. Of course it’s also good for those of us who are not very good at creating professional pictures and stories. Another great feature is the ability to have an on-line collaboration.
To create a story in Story Bird you need to select a theme. Then drag and drop the images where you want them in your story and then you add your text. When the story is finished, it can be published online so that everyone can see it, or you can choose to keep it in your own private archives. It is also possible to invite other partners to take part of the story.
As a teacher, I can write custom stories to pupils depending on their progress in their reading and writing skills. I’m thinking especially in the subjects English and Swedish. I think this is strength, since a class has so different maturity levels. I can even do stories that fit into a theme work.
When the pupils got started with their writing skills, I think (because I have not tried this site yet) that younger pupils can be introduced to the resource. In the beginning we can also print them and have texts in the class’ "library". These stories can be stored in the pupils’ portfolio through the school year so that they can see their writing skills developing.
My class enjoys fairy tales and stories in various forms so I believe this resource will suit them well.
