Selby licks a lollipop: a Candyland adventure

The book rappers of 2RM came up with a delightfully imaginative digital story concerning the featured character of Duncan Ball’s “Selby” books: Selby the talking dog.


Selby licks a lollipop: a Candyland adventure

Comments from viewers around the world came in thick and fast, including one from Duncan Ball himself!

Duncan Ball
Ian McLean with children’s author Duncan Ball at the 2007 NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge ceremony, Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney.

Pupils make most of web in storytelling adventure

Stage 1 students create digital stories

Stage 1 students are media stars again! The full article by Jessica Aquilina is HERE, courtesy of today’s Penrith City Star newspaper. Above photo courtesy of Gary Warrick, Penrith City Star.

Our digital stories are here:


Champions read!


Superheroes are champion readers!


How the whale got a hole in his head


Selby licks a lollipop: a Candyland adventure


Lovely library limericks


The elephant’s child


The three little pigs

Superheroes are champion readers

Announcing another Stage 1 digital story based on the Book Week 2012 slogan. As mentioned a few weeks ago, I’m spending two weeks with each class group (about twelve selected students), identified by each class teacher, for 30 mins per day. In this particular example, the teacher wanted every student in her class to have the experience, so Year 1 students of a composite class started a story (theme, character building, some photos) and the Year 2 students finished it (more photos, sequencing, caption writing, editing, etc).

Here is their effort, “Superheroes are champion readers“, hot off the virtual press:
photopeach.com/album/78xb36


Superheroes are champion readers!

Remember that Photo Peach requires the latest version of Flash to view the digital story.
ABOUT PHOTO PEACH:
Please remember that Photo Peach is blocked for student use by the NSW DEC’s web filters. For good reason. It has some very unsavoury stuff on it. Similar to Youtube, no one rates the material. Search “What’s popular” or “What’s new” on the site and you’ll find lots of other… inappropriate stuff. Just like Youtube and other Web 2.0 tools, such as wikis and blogs.

Every time I’ve used the Photo Peach site, it’s under MY username and (secret) password. We work on brainstorming and storyboarding offline, then upload photos or graphics under my direct supervision, edit in small groups, and view our finished products the same way. My username and password, and no one else can change it. No open browsing. Unless you close off open comments, these, too, have to be previewed before each use with students if you notice a new comment has been added.

I’ve written several articles about strategies for use. Click HERE to download a PDF from Scan teacher librarians’ journal (NSW DEC).

or our Guided Inquiry site, featuring lots of Stage 3 persuasive slideshows

or other articles ‘iInquire… iLearn… iCreate… iShare: Stage 1 students create digital stories’ in Scan 30(2) May 2011, pp 4-5.

or a similar idea using PowerPoint instead: ‘Have blog, will storyboard!’ in info@aslansw Issue #2, May 2010, pp 5-8.

Recent NSW DEC book raps have excellent online instructions for using Web 2.0 tools with students. Scroll down on the PDF linked HERE.

On the “Guided Inquiry” site, I have the following warning:
“Teachers and parents: By the way, just a few points to consider with Photo Peach: Use it as judiciously as you would a series of Youtube clips. Don’t permit students to do open browsing; Photo Peach is a Web 2.0 facility that is open to anyone, and the slideshows are ‘unrated’. Also, if you notice that new comments have been added to a slideshow you’ve made, please preview the slideshow again before using it with students so you can monitor (and moderate/remove) unwanted comments. (Or close off comments altogether.) Consider a subscription to Photo Peach, which enables you to add your own or Creative Commons music, a wider range of transitions, and the capacity to download slideshows to your hard drive, web space or a CD.”

While there is some inconvenience with using Photo Peach, it’s still an amazing resource and the benefits outweigh the problems. Small group work enhances opportunities for talking & listening, negotiating and other skills.

How the whale got a hole in his head – resources

As part of our literacy cycle, students in Stage 1 and Early Stage 1 investigate Aboriginal dreaming stories in Term Three.

To accompany this week’s dreaming story, “How the whale got a hole in his head”, here is a useful website that shows an old Aboriginal rock shelf engraving of a large sea creature at Tamarama in Sydney.

A closeup of a humpback whale spouting is here:


Humpback whale footage: extreme close up blowhole


Star fish walking, you can actually see his legs.


Zombie starfish – Nature’s weirdest events: series 4 episode 3 preview – BBC Two

In the version of the Dreaming story we use, Whale’s friend, Starfish, offers to help remove “mulas” from Whale’s skin. Here is a Youtube clip explaining about barnacles:


SeaTalk – Barnacles

STOP PRESS:

The student book rappers of 1G created a digital slideshow on Photo Peach to accompany this Aboriginal Dreaming story:


How the whale got a hole in his head

Champions read!

Flash learns to hop

A group of Stage 1 (Year 2) students have been working on creating a digital story about the Book Week slogan, “Champions read”. We have spent 30 mins per day (for 2 weeks) watching stimulus material, such as The hare and the tortoise (2009) fable. Also brainstorming, character building, storyboarding, taking digital photos, caption writing, editing, and selecting music. They have discussed their effort on the book rap, Join a reading adventure.

Easter Carnival hopping race

See this exciting digital story on Photo Peach!


Champions read!

Photo Peach message

My great QR code adventure

About a year ago, I started hearing references to QR codes, and noticed the distinctive, square barcodes turning up on advertising posters, business cards and websites. I did a little further investigation when I received my upgraded iPhone4 in late 2011 – and even uploaded a recommended QR code app, I-nigma, from iTunes – but, apart from a few tests, I haven’t really done very much with this aspect of technology.

But it certainly seems to have some clever possibilities.

In preparation for my presentations at Friday’s MANTLE conference, I created QR codes for the websites I would be referencing in my talks. For example:

QRCodeBooked Inn blog

Blue

GoldQuest

QRCode
GoldQuest blog

Blue

Penrith PS Library wiki

QRCode
Penrith PS Library wiki

Blue

Penrth PS rappers and bloggers

QRCode
Penrith PS rappers & bloggers

Blue

PhotoPeach

QRCode
My PhotoPeach profile page

Blue

QRCode
PMBW TL professional learning group

QRCode
QR codes Kaywa generator

QRCode
NSW DEC CLIC raps and book raps

Blue

Endangered animals

QRCode
Stage 3’s Endangered animals: beyond the rainforest

Blue

More digital stories roll in!

The book rappers in 2B at Caddies Creek PS created this digital story of “The terrific teacher and the twenty-two kids” for the Book Week 2011 book rap on Photo Peach. It is inspired by the shortlisted picture book, “The tall man and the twelve babies” by Tom Niland Champion, Kilmeny Niland & Deborah Niland.

Meanwhile, Class 2H at Caddies Creek PS created this great digital story of “Snappy the crocodile” for the Book Week 2011 book rap on Photo Peach. It is inspired by the popular picture book, “Edward the emu” by Sheila Knowles & Rod Clement.

The book rappers in 2P at Caddies Creek PS created their digital story, “My uncle’s donkey on holidays”, for the Book Week 2011 book rap on Photo Peach. It is inspired by the shortlisted picture book, “My uncle’s donkey” by Tohby Riddle.

The Secret Forest Hero by bpsbookworms on Storybird

Bankstown PS’s Book Rap Heroes (Year 3) created their amazing digital story, “The secret forest hero”, on Storybird. Click HERE to view their online eBook made for the Book Week 2011 book rap.

The book rappers at Kingswood PS also created a digital story, “My teacher’s gorilla”, for the Book Week 2011 book rap. Featuring a huge stuffed gorilla toy and other library friends, it was compiled in Photo Peach. They based it upon the CBCA-nominated picture book, “My uncle’s donkey” by Tohby Riddle.