Voice Thread: Composing with sound stitch by stitch (ci.5410.9)
I am very drawn to the simplistic sound and image layering made possible through the interactive software at Voice Thread. I think the site has much potential in terms of a classroom tool for composing, publishing and sharing work. It is one of the few sites that allows one to work with images, sound, and video in a way that is interactive. Unlike video composition which requires a camera, and editing software, it takes very little equipment to create these multimodal voice threads beyond a computer with a basic microphone. There are many different ways this software could be used. Listed below are just a few possibilities to get the wheels turning.
Layering Voice and still Images:
-- personal memoir -- students could chose 3-5 images from a significant event. They then could write small voice over scripts for each image.
-- expository slide shows -- students could chose images from a historical event and then do research to write short descriptions or narrative vignettes to describe the event. (See Hurricane Katrina Example)
-- literature response -- students could choose images to describe characters, scenes, emotions, symbols, etc. in literature. They could then use the voice recorder to document an paragraph explaining the significance (see Favorite Poems example-- This voice thread is composed of a collection of students reading their favorite poems aloud. while the image does not change, the voices rotate.)
Interactive Video Share:
Video Doodling -- this new feature, which allows one to upload small clips of video and then comment and doodle on them has huge potential for sharing video for feedback. I can see small groups of people sharing their videos with each other via this site. Unlike YouTube, Voice Thread allows one to directly engage with the video by doodling on top of the images/video. Plus there is the ability to give feedback via voice and/or video instead of print comments.
Voice Thread goodies:
What is a Voice Thread? demonstration
Jen' Budenski's posting on Voice Thread--an excellent example of archiving oral histories
Voice Thread Forum -- a space where educators and other users meet up to post questions on the practicalities of using and implementing Voice Thread into their classrooms.