In Using Storyboards in the Classroom: Writing Tool for Visual Learners and Classroom Collaboration, Tammy Andrew introduces you to the world of storyboarding. This technique is not only used for those in graphic arts, set design or the movies, but teachers are using storyboarding as a visual outlines in the classroom. In this article, the author explains that storyboards are useful in the classroom setting because they provide a type of “graphic organizer” for writing projects or presentations. Further, they allow for visual and flexible development of a project, as well as, helping to facilitate a concrete understanding of sequence. Storyboards typically use images or choice words to represent an idea or scene.
Andrew highlights that storyboards are great for reaching different learning styles; for example, they are extremely effective planning tools for visual or creative learners. Also, storyboards can be used as a tool in classrooms of any grade or ability. She writes about storyboarding being ideal for kindergarten-aged students to illustrate the ideas of beginning, middle and end in a story. At the same time, storyboarding can be used as a great way to promote cooperative learning in groups with older students. For example, these visual organizers can promote a flexibility of ideas, as scenes can be moved and rearranged easily and without consequence. This can allow for increased group collaboration and stronger intra-group participation. Andrew also points out that storyboards can also be wonderful planning tools for individual projects, as they offer a visual tool in which to brainstorm or edit ideas. Is there anyone storyboarding can’t help?
It seems storyboards can be a helpful organizational tool for all ages and grades. As I was reading the article, I automatically thought of how I could use storyboarding as a future teacher, not just to help my students, but also to organize my own ideas or plan my own presentations for the class. I have never done a storyboard before, but the more I do power point presentations, I am seeing how beneficial it would be to organize oneself visually prior to actual set up. A visual organizer of these ideas could make planning more precise because it could allow for a visual rough draft of a visual final project. That said. I do love a traditional outline. I wonder if I am ready to go visual?
Thoughts and Questions
1. Does the use of pictures to create scenes in the storyboard allow for a more descriptive outcome? Could this “graphic organizer” help to foster more creativity, even if it were a written work?
2. What if you are not artistic and feel frustrated when drawing, as the finished product does not represent what you could say in words? As a teacher, how do you handle that? Obviously there has to be flexibility on how the scenes are constructed for this reason.
3. What if you are not a visual learner?
If you’d like to see this article, check out…
http://teachertipstraining.suite101.com/article.cfm/using_storyboards_in_the_classroom
At the bottom, there are also sample scene sheets for you to check out.
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Great, interesting article. I feel that Storyboarding is a great tool to use with students in the classroom. It is definitely true when Edwards says that Storyboarding is like a "graphic organizer" it definitely helps students to organize their thoughts for writing in a visual way.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great article. I think that this approach can be used in teaching and will help students of all ages. Storyboarding is just another tool that teachers can use. I agree with the author that visual learners will benefit from this type of technique. The great thing about using this approach it that it can be used in any grade. A very simple form of storyboarding can be utilized at the kindergarten level enabling our youngest learners to organize their thoughts in a concrete way and it can also aid in putting together complicated projects for the upper grades.
ReplyDeleteThis was a good article. A lot of what you said in this article I read in my own. I totally agree that storyboarding is a great tool to be used in the classroom. I was already trying to figureout how i was going to incorporate it into my classroom.
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