I decided to explore characters and their feelings and motivations for this particular assignment. To facilitate this exploration, I selected Blabberize as my web 2.0 tool. Blabberize allows you to upload a picture of your choosing and then add recorded sound to give the picture a "voice." You also define the mouth to create the animation of the picture actually talking.
Here's my interpretation of Rosa at the start of the story, as she's looking ahead to her experience at Oranje Primary:
Photo credit: vagawi (Flickr)
You can also view this by following this URL: http://blabberize.com/view/id/238785.
There are many applications of this tool as a means to study a character. A teacher might assign characters from a novel and ask students to write a narrative and then use the tool to create animated versions of the characters to share with the class or display on a web page or blog. One student might create several animated photos of the same character to reflect changing feelings and attitudes over the course of a story. Or a student might select two opposing characters (foils) and create animated photos as a variation of the standard compare/contrast assignment.
One of the most intriguing possibilities for Blabberize, in my opinion, is the ability to give voice to lesser characters or those who lack a voice within a text. It could be used to retell a story from a different point of view (similar to the True Story of the Three Little Pigs that we read earlier in the quarter) or to explore the impacts of gender and/or ethnicity on a particular tale.
Now for some technical considerations. Using the tool was free; saving the image required the creation of a free account (which could be done by the teacher). The user first must upload a photo stored on his or her own computer, which adds a level of complexity to the assignment. Teachers could use this opportunity to teach and practice web searching skills and copyright awareness, or simply require students to search within the Creative Commons. Or teachers might preselect a variety of images and allow students to choose from the smaller set. While this is definitely a timesaver, I feel that image selection is important as it forces students to visualize their character and look for an image that fits their understanding.
The second step is to define the mouth area, using a free form shape that can be enlarged, shrunk, or otherwise modified to fit the picture. (I didn't do mine correctly the first time - I selected her entire mouth instead of just the lower portion - and had to go back and redo it after previewing the image with the audio.) It is also helpful if the image has a clear view of the mouth, which facilitates the selection of the correct area in this step.
Finally, the user must record audio. I recommend preparing a script first, so that students can practice and have a coherent recording the first time. You may use a pre-recorded message that you've saved, record using a microphone, or record by calling in from your phone. I used the phone option and found it very easy to use. You are given a phone number and PIN, and it's not any more difficult than setting up a voicemail greeting.
From there, it's one quick save to generate the final product. You can edit as needed, or save and share via a web link or by embedding in a page. You also can make your product private, or mark it as mature as needed.
While the finished product is kind of goofy and silly at first glance, I think students would really enjoy using this tool. Based on the technical requirements, I'd use this with students in fifth grade and up.
No comments:
Post a Comment