Baroque Music & GarageBand

     Over the last couple of months my students have been in a unit called Revolutions! There were many different topics that the students studied over the course of the unit. We began with the Scientific Revolution and progressed all the way to suffrage in the Progressive Era. One of the assignments that the students had to do was a teach-a-class. In this assignment the students needed to teach their classmates about a topic that they were interested in. The lesson had to be 20 minutes long and needed to have some sort of activity in it.

     Two students sent me a proposal stating that they wanted to do their teach-a-class on Baroque music. They said that they wanted to do a PowerPoint presentation, play a piece of music on their violins, and the have a quiz at the end. While this wasn't a terrible idea for such a short lesson, I asked them how they could make it more interactive for their classmates. While they were starting to think about my question, I asked them if they had thought about having their classmates play the piece of music with them. They looked back at me like I was crazy, and asked, "How can that happen? Not everyone knows how to play an instrument."

     I opened up my iPad and went to my GarageBand app. I showed them the smart strings part of the app, and how they could play an instrument just by tapping a chord on the screen. Their eyes lit up and I could see their minds racing about the possibilities. They loved the idea and grabbed a school iPad to play around and explore the possibilities for their lesson. After a day or so, they came back to me and said that they were going to try and use the app in their presentation.

     A couple of weeks later it was time for them to do their lesson. I was extremely excited to see what exactly they had come up with. They came in early to rearrange the tables in the room into two rows, set up their slides, got out their instruments, and then passed out iPads to the class. As they went through their slide show, they gave lots of great information and played different parts from some Baroque composers. When it came time for the class to use the iPads, there was a lot of excitement in the room. The girls had written out the notes that each row needed to play. The first row of seats were the 1st violins, and the second row were 2nd violins. The students placed the transcribed notes for the class on the screen, and went over the instructions. What happened next was a little bit of chaos and a tremendous amount of magic.

     The class began playing their iPads on their desks, laps, and some were even pretending that they are actual violins. The level of student engagement in this activity was sky high. Several of the students wanted to keep playing the piece after the presentation was finished. The students were talking about it for the rest of the day, and other students from other classes were jealous that they didn't get that same teach-a-class. As a teacher we all want to encourage students to think outside the box, engage the multiple intelligences, and remember what they learned. I can honestly say that all students involved in this lesson accomplished those goals. I am amazed everyday at the power of student centered learning, and what a little encouragement and scaffolding can do.

Storytelling 2.0

     There have been many different versions of storytelling throughout time.  It is one of the ways that we communicate and learn from one another.  The most basic form is simply through the words of another person, as they weave words into imagery.  I always think back to when I was very young and my mother would tell stories to my brother and I.  One of my favorites was the story of the Three Little Pigs.  My mom would change her voice for the different characters and interact with us as the story went on.  It created a lasting memory.

   
     I was reminded how powerful storytelling can be during the summer when I was in class at the University of Portland.  As part of one of my graduate classes, my classmates and I shared stories about our diverse and unique life experiences.  One of my classmates, Gabe, has an uncanny ability to hold the attention of everyone in the room with his words.  I’ll never forget how he was telling us a story of his time in Japan.  When he finished his story, half the class had to take a break and leave the room.  His words permeated throughout the air and affected us so deeply.  

     During the same semester, I also became engrossed in expanding my knowledge of using technology in the classroom.  Not being an Apple person, I purchased an Android tablet.  My use of that device lasted all of about three weeks.  I became frustrated with its’ interface and I was having issues with the screen.  I decided to break down and trade it in for the new, at the time, iPad 3.  To say that I have become an iPad fan would be an understatement.

     While exploring the uses of the iPad for use in the classroom, I came across Kathy Schrock’s website.  I became both ecstatic and engrossed with the myriad of possibilities that this device could offer students and teachers in the classroom.  Her page, Bloomin’ Apps, incorporating Bloom’s Taxonomy and device apps is mind blowing.  During my exploration of that page I came across the process of digital storytelling and how it can be used with students to help them explore and gain knowledge.  The idea of combining the art of storytelling with technology in the classroom got me extremely excited, and I knew that I had to explore this concept even more. Being able to put visuals such as images, maps, and charts, together with storytelling creates a much more in depth experience that involves and stimulates more of one's multiple intelligences.

     In the midst of my exploration, I felt like a digital Indiana Jones, I came across an app for the iPad, and other iOS devices, called Puppet Pals.  This was my Sivalinga Stone, Holy Grail, and Ark of the Covenant all in one.  This app could allow for students to explore, construct, and learn with ease.  After buying the the Director’s Pass for only $2.99 I could create a digital story about any subject I wanted.  The most exciting part for me was that I could incorporate myself, friends, family, and more importantly history into my stories.  With the Director’s Pass I now had the ability to research tell a historical story with ease.  The app allows you to take, or import pictures, from your iPad and make them part of your story. Being a visual learner myself, digital storytelling allows me to experience history in a new and exciting way.

     After seeing the movie Lincoln, I decided to explore the Civil War through my own digital story.  The Puppet Pals app gave me a welcoming interface and environment to express some of my ideas and thoughts about the Civil War.  This is what I came up with.

     During the course of the Revolutions! unit, students will be creating their own digital stories using the iPad and the Puppet Pals app.  As I transition to the next step of my student teaching at Catlin Gabel, I will be coaching the students on how to use the app, and how to create their own historical digital story.  I believe that the process of digital storytelling will create excitement, intrigue, exploration, and growth in both the students and me.


Pictures courtesy of:
http://www.watchthisspace.ca/pixelpost/images/20070825165040_around_the_fire_wales.jpg
http://www.indianajones.com/site/enlarge.html?filePath=media/photos/large/991130-photo-55.jpg