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by on April 15, 2015

Mock-Ups and Storyboards

This is the post for the Wednesday, April 15, 2015 class meeting.

coolstoryboardToday’s reading is about moving to the organization and planning stage for your projects. Your goal today is to organize the content portion of your project, using whatever works best for you.

Mock-up Tools

Mock-ups are usually used for websites, projects that are “static” (like posters or brochures), and texts that are primarily linguistic or visual in nature. Wireframes (if you’re familiar with the term) fall into this category. Be sure to use the Mock-up guidelines on p. 95 of Writer/Designer to guide your process.

Here are some possible tools:

Storyboarding Tools

Storyboarding is usually used for projects that move through a series of pieces, places, or points in time—like a video, comic book, or graphic novel. Be sure to use the storyboard guidelines on p. 97–98 of Writer/Designer to guide your process.

Storyboarding is, essentially, visual outlining your text, so you may be happy with creating a simple outline in Google Docs. For online tools I’ve made, I created storyboards with PowerPoint, because it was simple and I had a copy. If you do go this route, Google Slides would work too.

If you want to try something specifically created for storyboarding, take at look at these resources for creating and organizing storyboards:

Old-Fashioned Tools

Good, old paper and pencil can work for mock-ups and storyboards. There’s no reason that these planning tools have to be digitally produced. Sketch them out if you want to, but then scan them or take a photo so that you can add them to your blog on Monday.

Writing Schedule and Homework

  • Wednesday, 4/15: We’ll go over the highlights of Chapter 6, looking at mock-ups and storyboards. Write a blog post with with the usual headings: (1) What I Did, and (2) Why I Did It. Include whatever work you have done since your last post. Include a link to your storyboard or mockup (or embed it) in your blog. If you are already past the mock-up or storyboard stage, include whatever notes/outline you already had or add a screen shot of your project as is.

  • Friday, 4/17: Class will work online. You will read about how to include documentation in your projects and the requirements for your presentations. You will continue working on your project and write a blog post.

  • Monday, 4/20: Presentation sign-up and discussion of drafts for peer feedback.

  • Wednesday, 4/22: Peer Feedback Day. Have a rough version ready to share in class.

  • Friday, 4/24: In-class work day.

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by on April 12, 2015

Tools & Timelines

This is the post for the Monday, April 13, 2015 class meeting.

kkkkkkkkkkI will point out some key points from the textbook, but you will spend most of your time trying out tools and planning a timeline for your project today.

lynda.com Resources

Look for support for the tools you are using on the lynda.com site, which is free with your vt.edu login. Here are some examples, based on tools you mentioned in your pitches:

Other Tools You Can Use

There are lots of tools that you can use as you work on your remix. Use the skills you developed in the Interrogate the Interface project to decide which of these tools might be right for you. Remember that your work needs to published in a public space online, so one criteria is that the tool has to provide something you can link to or that you can upload to your WordPress site.

These tools can help if you need to fake social media updates, just don’t use them to prank people:

These web-based tools can help you publish or build your project:

We also talked about using Storify to publish a collection of social media updates as a webpage in class on Friday.

Key Points from Chapter 5

As you read and use information from Chapter 5 of Writer/Designer, pay particular attention to these details:

  1. Table of Technology Choices on page 78.

  2. The book explains that a multimodal project doesn’t have to be digital; however, what you make for Project 4 does have to be digital.

  3. As you firm up your decision on what tool(s) to use, keep in mind the same questions you used to evaluate an interface in Project 3. There’s also a case study that starts on page 79 and a technology review on page 81.

  4. Pay attention to the tips on organizing and naming your files on pages 88–89.

  5. Consider making a short style guide for your work to ensure consistency, following the suggestions on page 89.

Dates for Your Timeline

As part of your work in the next 24 hours, sketch out a timeline (page 91) for yourself so that you get all your work done. Please incorporate the dates on the class calendar into your timeline for the following:

  • Mock-up or Storyboard on 4/15.
  • Presentation Sign-up on 4/20.
  • Peer Feedback on 4/22.
  • In-class Presentations on 4/29 to 5/6.
  • Project Due by 11:55 PM on 5/6.

Writing Schedule and Homework

  • Today, 4/13: Create a timeline for your project, setting up a work schedule for yourself. Write a blog post with with the usual headings: (1) What I Did, and (2) Why I Did It. Include whatever work you have done since your last post. Also include your timeline in your blog post.

  • Wednesday, 4/15: We’ll go over the highlights of Chapter 6, looking at mock-ups and storyboards.

  • Friday, 4/17: Class will work online. You will read about how to include documentation in your projects and the requirements for your presentations. You will continue working on your project and write a blog post.

  • Monday, 4/20: Presentation sign-up and discussion of drafts for peer feedback.

  • Wednesday, 4/22: Peer Feedback Day. Have a rough version ready to share in class.

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by on April 10, 2015

Pitching Your Project

This is the post for the Friday, April 10, 2015 class meeting.

pitch-pleaseToday we will listen to pitches from everyone in class. We’ll use the entire time for presentations, so be ready to go!

Project 4 Pitch

Today, you will share your pitch with the rest of the class, following the list of questions on p. 56 of Writer/Designer. Remember this is just an informal chat with your classmates. No reason to be nervous. Just talk loudly enough for everyone in the classroom to hear you.

Your pitch should tell us the following information:

  • What story did you choose
  • How will you remix it
  • What form/genre are you using (e.g., video, infographic, animation)
  • What tools will you use
  • How are you incorporating risk/what you hope to learn

Remember this project is graded 100% on participation. To that end, as your classmates pitch their ideas, please listen politely. Your attention should be on your classmates and not on your computer screen. As appropriate, you can ask questions about another student’s project, make suggestions, and offer support.

Writing and Homework

  • Today: Be ready to give your pitch to the class, in short 2-minute max explanations, following the list of questions on p. 56 of Writer/Designer.

  • Monday, 4/13: We’ll go over tools, timelines, and the highlights of Chapter 5. Most of the class time will be spent working on the project.

  • Wednesday, 4/15: We’ll go over the highlights of Chapter 6, looking at mock-ups and storyboards. Most of the class time will be spent working on the project. I will ask you to declare the primary technologies you will use in a blog post.

  • Friday, 4/17: Class will work online. You will read about how to include documentation in your projects and the requirements for your presentations. You will continue working on your project and write a blog post.

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by on April 7, 2015

Assets and Pitches

This is the post for the Wednesday, April 8, 2015 class meeting.

Today, we will talk about gathering assets for your project and the expectations for your project pitches.

Planning for Project 4

You can check out the topics and requirements for the rest of the term by looking at the class calendar. Be sure to notice presentation sign-up day, peer feedback day, and presentation days. Also note the online work day scheduled for April 17.

Hunting and Gathering

For this project, you will need to find assets, like sound clips, video clips, photographs, cartoons, and so forth to include in your project.

  1. sources and assetsTo start, we’ll talk about sources and assets.
  2. Be sure to consult Chapter 4 of Writer/Designer, which has lots of information on gathering resources, permissions and fair use, and tracking what you find.
  3. Make a copy of the Project 4 Source List Template and track your sources there. See the assignment on pp. 62–63 (“A Multimodal Annotated Source List, Part 1”) for the information to include in your annotations.
  4. Alternately, you can use your own system, like the Winnie the Pooh Sources blog entries. You might also clip info to Evernote or use a bookmarking service like Diigo.

NOTE: Finding assets is not a requirement for this week, but you will find it pays to keep track of possible assets that you find. Nothing is more frustrating than knowing that you saw something you could use and then not being able to find it again.

Choosing and Using Assets

I have posted tips for finding assets for your projects on the FAQ site. Here’s the short version:

Most importantly, know that unless you take the photo, record the audio, or film an event yourself, you need to be sure that it’s okay to use it in your writing. Remember that assets you make yourself can be simple. Take advantage of your own creativity. Anything you make, you can use freely. Consider the approaches of The Christmas Snake or Don Quixote and the Giants.

You will probably also incorporate assets that you have acquired, rather than created. Work through these FAQs for details and resources, including places to find assets that you can use freely (as long as you credit your source):

Prepare Your Pitch

You will pitch your project to the class on Friday, April 10. As Writer/Designer defines it, “A pitch is a short presentation that explains how the what and the how of your idea might come together in the final project. . . . Pitches are sometimes called elevator speeches, drawing on the idea of a writer who is on an elevator with a publisher and has only four floors to convince the publisher to accept his or her book proposal” (55).

You will have about two minutes to tell the class the story you have chosen, how you are remixing it, what form/genre you are using, what tools you will use, and how are you incorporating risk. I will display those topics on the board/screen to help you make sure you cover everything. To prepare:

Writing and Homework

  • Today: Write a blog post that informally proposes the story you will focus on for your remix, or in the language of Chapter 3 of Writer/Designer, “the what” you will focus on. Include the following information:

    • Tell us the story you have chosen.
    • Explain what portion of the story, if relevant.
    • Identify what genre you want to use for the project.
    • Give us the bibliographic citations and/or links to at least three sources that you will use as you work on your project. You can use any bibliographic format you like, but be sure there’s enough information for me to confirm the sources.
       

  • Friday, 4/10: Be ready to give your pitch to the class, in short 2-minute max explanations, following the list of questions on p. 56 of Writer/Designer.

  • Monday, 4/13: We’ll go over tools, timelines, and the highlights of Chapter 5. Most of the class time will be spent working on the project.

  • Wednesday, 4/15: We’ll go over the highlights of Chapter 6, looking at mock-ups and storyboards. Most of the class time will be spent working on the project. I will ask you to declare the primary technologies you will use in a blog post.

  • Friday, 4/17: Class will work online. You will read about how to include documentation in your projects and the requirements for your presentations. You will continue working on your project and write a blog post.

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by on April 5, 2015

More Details on Project 4

This is the post for the Monday, April 6, 2015 class meeting.

risktakerToday we will go over additional resources and examples for the assignment.

Details on Project 4

There are three documents to consider today:

I will also talk about what class sessions will generally look like for the rest of the term.

In-Class Research and Homework

This week you need to read Chapter 3 and 4 of Writer/Designer and to be ready to talk about how the information applies to your remix. Here is a general overview:

  • Monday, 4/6: You will begin researching and planning for your project.
  • Wednesday, 4/8: You will continue gathering information and doing preliminary planning on your project. By the end of the class, you will write a blog post that gives me details on plans (more details below).
  • Friday, 4/10: You will give an informal pitch for your project (more details below).

In more specific detail, we will work on these tasks:

  1. Choose your story and do some preliminary research. Go online and find at least three different (and credible) versions of the story you will explore. Alternately, you can go to the library, bookstore, or elsewhere to gather your resources.

  2. Evaluate the credibility of your sources with the information on pp. 58–60 in Writer/Designer. Stories are told by many people and from many different perspectives. Your goal is to have plenty of source material to choose from as you create your new version. Think of the resources you locate as your inspiration, as the base from which your adaptation will begin.

    Your main source should be a text that relies primarily on the linguistic mode. Your additional choices can use other modes of communication. You may also choose more than three sources if you desire.

    Examples:

    • The person who did the Don Quixote animation choose the original novel by Cervantes, an art exhibition at Georgetown University in 2005, and a TV miniseries released in Spain about the first part of the book.
    • The person who did Little Red Riding Hood choose the original version of the story by Charles Perrault, a Disney cartoon, and the ABC TV show Once Upon a Time.
    • The person who did the Boston Tea Party video originally chose the Schoolhouse Rock BTP episode, PBS Kids show "Liberty’s Kids" BTP episode, and ushistory.org. She also used some Ken Burns documentaries to help her learn about her genre.

  3. By the end of Wednesday’s class, you should have written a blog post that informally proposes the story you will focus on for your remix, or in the language of Chapter 3 of Writer/Designer, “the what” you will focus on. Include the following information:

    • Tell us the story you have chosen.
    • Explain what portion of the story, if relevant.
    • Identify what genre you want to use for the project.
    • Give us the bibliographic citations and/or links to at least three sources that you will use as you work on your project. You can use any bibliographic format you like, but be sure there’s enough information for me to confirm the sources.

  4. On Friday, April 10, you will pitch your ideas in class, in short 2-minute max explanations, following the list of questions on p. 56 of Writer/Designer.

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by on April 2, 2015

Exploring Remix Examples

This is the post for the Friday, April 3, 2015 class meeting.

earinfectionClass will work online. I have an ear infection, and the doctor said to stay home. For today’s class, I will provide a link to the remix assignment and to several examples.

Overview of Project 4

To begin, please read all of the Project 4 assignment page. I will add dates and firm up some of the instructions next week. I will also talk about how the project is graded next week.

Sample Projects

Review these example Remix Projects, which students completed in previous classes:

  1. The Three Little Scholars Broadcast
  2. Chamber of PostSecrets
  3. Rapunzel
  4. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
  5. ‘Same Love’ by Macklemore as told through The Gay Rights Movement – final edit
  6. What Happened to Little Red Riding Hood?
  7. The Once Upon a Times
  8. Beauty and the Beast
  9. Boston Tea Party
  10. Don Quixote and the Giants
  11. The Hunger Games, Time Magazine Edition
  12. Around the World in 80 Days

Today’s Blog Post

For your blog post, I want you to respond to the assignment and the examples that you reviewed. Please answer these questions. You can use each question as a heading in your post:

  1. What makes a good remix
    Based on the assignment and the examples, list some characteristics that make for strong projects. Focus on how the story is rethought, or remixed.

  2. What makes a good digital story
    Look at the 12 examples and talk about which one you felt did the best job of digitizing an existing story. Support your opinion with some details from the examples and/or some comparisons to other examples. Focus on the technology behind the story.

  3. Stories I am considering
    Brainstorm a list of 3 to 5 stories you might focus on, and say a little bit about why you are considering them. If you feel that you already know exactly what you want to focus on, you can talk about your choice. (My goal here is to help you start focusing on your project’s topic).

Schedule

  • For Monday, 4/6:
    • We will draw some conclusions about the example projects, based on your observations. We will go over dates and talk about grading as well.
  • For Wednesday, 4/8:
    • We will briefly review some tools you can use for your projects, and I will ask you to summarize your research to date.
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by on March 31, 2015

Project 3 Reflection

This is the post for the Friday, March 27, 2015 class meeting.

Time for ReflectionToday we finish the presentations for Project 3 and work on the reflection memo for the project. Project 3 is due by 11:55 PM today, Wednesday, 4/1. The grace period for Project 3 ends at 11:55 PM on Wednesday, 4/8.

Presentations for Today

These are the people and tools scheduled for today’s presentations.

10:10 Class

11:15 Class

Write Your Project Reflection Memo and Submit Your Web Essay

Whether you turn in your project today or after the grace period, you still need to write this reflection memo to tell me about your project.

  1. Go to the Assignments tab on the left menu in Scholar.
  2. Choose P3: Interrogate the Interface.
  3. Scroll down to the text box below the headings Submission and Assignment Text. You will write your reflection memo in this box. (Alternately, you can write in a word processor and copy/paste your text into this box.)
  4. Add your memo headers (To, From, Subject, and Date). For your reflection memo, you’ll use the following:
    • Address your memo to me (Traci) and from you (use your name).
    • Add a subject line that indicates this is your reflection memo and which project it is for.
    • Add the current date.
  5. Insert a horizontal divider line using the button indicated with the red arrow in the image below: Insert Horizontal Line button in Scholar
  6. Introduce your project and tell me the following information:
    1. What is the link to first page of your web essay?
    2. What is the link to your presentation? (Use the embedding instructions to add the presentation to your site.)
    3. Talk about your goals for the web essay and the presentation. You can talk about the content, the layout and design, and any screenshots you included.
    4. Tell me anything else you want me to know about your project that you want me to know before I grade it.
    5. Add a concluding section that sums things up and tells me how well you think you met your goals.
  7. Review and proofread the information in your memo.
  8. Agree to the Honor Code by clicking the checkbox at the bottom of the page in Scholar. You cannot finish submitting the project without clicking that checkbox (and it’s easy to miss).
  9. Submit your Project, and save a copy of the confirmation and submission ID. If something goes wrong in Scholar, you can contact 4HELP with that information.
  10. You’ve finished the third project!

Schedule for the Week

On Friday, we will begin Project 4, which will focus on remixing an existing story (fiction or nonfiction). We will look at several examples in class and think about how we might use some of the tools from Project 3 to remix a story.

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by on March 29, 2015

Day 3 of Project 3 Presentations

This is the post for the Monday, March 30, 2015 class meeting.

This-presentation-will-69941fToday we continue the presentations for Project 3. Your job during this session is to pay attention, since you may want to use these tools yourself in Project 3.

Presentations for Today

These are the people and tools scheduled for today’s presentations.

10:10 Class

11:15 Class

Today’s Blog Post

After the presentations, choose the tool you saw today that you are most interested in trying out (other than your own if you presented). State what tool it was, why you found it interesting, and how you might use it.

Homework

  • For Wednesday, 4/1:
    • If you are presenting Wednesday, be sure that you send the URL to your presentation by 9 PM on Tuesday, March 31 so that I can set up Wednesday’s post.
    • We will work on the reflection memo in class.
  • For Friday, 4/3:
    • We’ll go over Project 4, the remix a story project.
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by on March 26, 2015

Day 2 of Project 3 Presentations

This is the post for the Friday, March 27, 2015 class meeting.

this-presentation-is-amazingToday we continue the presentations for Project 3. Your job during this session is to pay attention, since you may want to use these tools yourself in Project 3.

Presentations for Today

These are the people and tools scheduled for today’s presentations.

10:10 Class

11:15 Class

Today’s Blog Post

After the presentations, choose the tool you saw today that you are most interested in trying out (other than your own if you presented). State what tool it was, why you found it interesting, and how you might use it.

Homework

  • For Monday, 3/30:
    • If you are presenting Monday, be sure that you send the URL to your presentation by 9 PM on Sunday, March 26 so that I can set up Monday’s post.
    • Be prepared to listen to each presentations in class; attendance is required even if you are not presenting. You will write a blog posts for each class day.
  • For Wednesday, 4/1:
    • If you are presenting Wednesday, be sure that you send the URL to your presentation by 9 PM on Tuesday, March 31 so that I can set up Wednesday’s post.
    • Project 3 due by 11:55 PM. We will work on the reflection memo in class. Grace period ends at 11:55 PM on April 8.
  • For Friday, 4/3:
    • We’ll go over Project 4, the remix a story project.
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by on March 24, 2015

Even More Work on Project 3

This is the post for the Wednesday, March 25, 2015 class meeting.

Spongebob: I need waterBecause of the Shanks water maintenance hijinks, we will be working online today. Thanks for being flexible about the changes in the schedule.

Date Changes

  • 3/27, 3/30, and 4/1: Project 3 presentations
  • 4/1: Project 3 due
  • 4/8: End of grace period. Project 3 must be submitted by 11:55 PM.

Working on Your Projects

Spend at least 50 minutes working on Project 3, your Interrogate the Interface project, by completing these activities:

  1. Begin by working through the Project 3 Web Essay Checklist. Use the checklist to determine what you have done and what you still need to do.
  2. Work on whatever you still need to do.
  3. Write a blog post with 3 parts by 11:55 PM on Thursday, March 26:
    • Use the heading “Checklist Observations” and summarize what you learned by comparing the checklist to your draft. Tell me what is in good shape or finished, and tell me what you still need to do.
    • Use the heading “What I Did” and tell me what you worked on in addition to working through the checklist.
    • Use the heading “Why I Did It” and tell me why you worked on whatever you did or why you made the decisions that you did.
  4. If you have any questions you need immediate help with, send me an email message, I’ll reply as soon as I can.

Homework

  • For Friday, 3/27:
    • If you are presenting Friday, be sure that you send the URL to your presentation by 9 PM on Thursday, March 26 so that I can set up Friday’s post.
    • Be prepared to listen to each presentations in class; attendance is required even if you are not presenting. You will write a blog posts for each class day.
  • For Monday, 3/30:
    • If you are presenting Monday, be sure that you send the URL to your presentation by 9 PM on Sunday, March 26 so that I can set up Monday’s post.
    • Be prepared to listen to each presentations in class; attendance is required even if you are not presenting. You will write a blog posts for each class day.
  • For Wednesday, 4/1:
    • If you are presenting Wednesday, be sure that you send the URL to your presentation by 9 PM on Tuesday, March 31 so that I can set up Wednesday’s post.
    • We will work on the reflection memo in class.
  • For Friday, 4/3:
    • We’ll go over Project 4, the remix a story project.
Filed Under: Class Notes