Arts, Culture, & Digital Storytelling

STRATEGIES

1. From Google Drive, have students create a custom My Maps based on a theme/prompt (historic locations, travel destinations, etc.). Students can search for locations and pin a location to the map. Students can edit title and description and can add an image to pinned locations. Map “share” settings should be set so that “anyone with the link can view.” Maps can be shared with a link or can be collaborative, just like any other Google Drive file.
2. Have students use Google Earth's Voyager tool to take a virtual tour of an historic or culturally relevant location.
3. Have students create a custom tour in Google Earth by first creating a custom My Map and exporting it as a .kml file. The .kml file can then be imported into Google Earth. Alternatively, use Google Tour Builder to create a custom tour than can be exported to Google Earth.
4. Task students with creating a Google Site that includes an embedded My Map as well as other arts and culture features.
5. Task students with creating visual displays relevant to arts and culture using Google Slides, Google Drawings, Piktochart, Canva, or Padlet.
6. Insert an image of a map in Google Drawings and add shapes to indicate historical markers. Insert a link on each marker to a web address that expands on the historical event or cultural context associated with the location on the map.
7. Task students with using Sketchpad to recreate works of art relevant to world cultures. Augment the assignment by having students write about their chosen work of art using Google Docs.
8. Assign long-term projects to students to demonstrate their understanding of a topic. Offer a variety of digital media platforms for students (presentation, graphics, websites, video presentations, etc.) to create and share their research. Provide a specific rubric of your expectations and grading. See some suggestions below.
   • Task students with using PowToon to create an animated video presentation about a given topic. Links to their work can be shared via Google Classroom.
   • Task students with using WeVideo to create projects that demonstrate their understanding of a given topic. Links to their work can be shared via Google Classroom.
   • Task students with creating a narrated slideshow using Google Slides and Screencastify to demonstrate their understanding of a given topic. Links to their work can be shared via Google Classroom.
   • Task students with publishing a virtual magazine using FlipSnack. Have students create a Google Slides presentation and download it as a PDF. Next, have students upload their PDF to FlipSnack to create a virtual magazine publication. Links to their work can be shared via Google Classroom.
   • Task students with creating an infographic or poster using Piktochart to demonstrate their understanding of a given topic. Links to their work can be shared via Google Classroom.
   • Task students with creating narrated digital stories using Adobe Spark, offering the choice of creating posts, pages, or videos that include still images, video, text, and narration. Once Adobe Spark projects are complete, students can download video as .mp4 and upload to Drive for sharing or they can share the link to their work via Google Classroom.
   • Task students with creating digital comic strips using Pixton to demonstrate their understanding of an historical event or topic.
   • Task students with creating a virtual bulletin board using Padlet to share notes, links, and multimedia to demonstrate their understanding of an historical event or topic. Students can work independently or collaboratively and can share a link to their Padlet using Google Classroom.
   • Task students with creating a podcast (.mp3 file) using Soundtrap, Vocaroo, or RecordMP3Online to roleplay historical figures, or demonstrate their understanding of history, arts, and culture. MP3 files can be saved and stored in Google Drive, then shared to Google Classroom. Mash-Up Opportunity: Students can create musical soundtracks using Soundtrap and audio can be imported to WeVideo for custom movie scoring.
   • Task students with creating collaborative multimedia presentations using VoiceThread by adding images and audio comments as well as inviting others to share audio comments about their work.