Topic 15: PhotoStory

If you have never used PhotoStory before, you need to try it!!! PhotoStory is a program by Microsoft that you can download for free online. The software was developed to create animated slideshows that can be saved and viewed as a movie. However the uses of this program for use in the classroom are endless.

The reasons to use PhotoStory are similar to those of using a PowerPoint presentation. They can convey information in a visual manner to reach students. They can also be played with recorded narration, animated effects, and background music. This provides a much more interesting and engaging presentation for students. A PhotoStory will also play in a movie format instead of a timed or clicked advance like the PowerPoint presentations.

I have used PhotoStories to capture important events that my class has experienced. PhotoStories are a great resource to use create slideshows from field trips, school events, or information for parents. I also like to convert PowerPoints that students create into PhotoStories to post on my class website.

Another great way to use them is as an assessment tool. One teacher that I observed used it to check understanding of her class on landforms. She created a partially completed PhotoStory by uploading pictures of different landforms that the students should know. Then she saved it as a 'Working Project'. Next she had each child open the file, label each picture with the correct name using the title feature, re-order the slides so that they were in alphabetical order, and save it as their name for the teacher to grade.

One of my favorite ways to use this program is by creating digital class books by scanning drawings that students have made to create more authentic pictures that they can narrate. My class created a movie last year on Earth Day. Each student was asked to think of a way to conserve energy and illustrate it on paper. I scanned in the pictures, had each student narrate their tip for saving energy into the microphone, and then placed them together in a digital class book.