Digital Storytelling Reflection

Reflection Requirements

In the body of the document, reflect on your experience using PowerPoint to create this digital
story project. A well-developed reflection will be about a page long.

1. What did you learn? Describe any new skills you developed.

I learned the importance of copyright when it comes to using images for a project and that there
are websites that allow you to access images for free. I also learned how to use a fair use
checklist when obtaining images from other sources such as Google.

2. What is the purpose of your story? What message do you want your viewers to understand by
viewing your story? How is this message shared and reinforced through your images and
accompanying narrative script? How did the concept of “economy” come into play as
you developed your narrative or selected your images? 


The purpose of my story is to create engaging content for my students and the audience by
telling a story that holds importance to my life. When viewers see my story, I want to convey the
importance of friendship and how making memories can ultimately be more valuable than
having a perfect, adventurous day. This message is reinforced when the girls take pictures at
each place they visit so that they can remember this day later and when the realization that even
though their idea of a perfect day did not pane out the way they hoped, it was still fun. The
images accompany the script by adding the visual component and allows the reader to see the
emotions and various aspects of the story. Economy comes into play with “using just enough
content to tell the story without overloading the viewer.” I made sure that I was giving
information to help tell my story but not fabricate it with trivial information that would not help
the story progress. However, I feel I will need to add some more details to not only make the
story longer, but also more engaging.

3. Is there a dramatic question in your story? Is there an important “big idea” you are trying to
share? While we are not yet at part two where we add audio to our projects, share some
thoughts as to how “emotion” and “gift of voice” might be used in your narration.

The dramatic question in my story is, “Where can one find the best Gouda cheese?” The girls in
my story are on a quest to find a place that has the best tasting, most authentic German cheese.
The big idea that I am trying to convey through this story is how important friendship is and that
making memories is more valuable than having everything go according to a plan throughout the
day. This idea shows itself when at the end of the day, the girls are disappointed with not finding
the perfect German cheese. However, they realize they have pictures from during the day that
serve has a reminder of how fun the adventure was. Even though they end up discovering the
perfect Gouda cheese on pizza, it is just an extra bonus that completes their day. In regards to
conveying “emotion” and using “gift of voice,” I will be able to add depth when recording the
audio. However, emotion is allowing serious content to “come alive in a personal and powerful
way and connects the story to the audience.” Through my big idea, the reader will hopefully get
a sense of the meaning in my story and relate it to their personal lives and possible similar
situations they have experienced. Throughout the story, the girls also go through phases of
excitement, anticipation, and disappointment. By using the gift of voice and “personalizing the
story to help the audience understand the context” these emotions will be enhanced and the
reader will get a better understanding of the feelings and what is occurring. Where did you
locate most of your images? Did you take original photos, or did you use one of the image
databases that were suggested in class? If you did use the image databases, did you find what you
needed? Which database(s) were the most useful to you?

I located most of my images from Morguefile and the AP Images database. There were a few
pictures that I obtained from Google. With these images, I did the fair use checklist to make sure
that the images were already in print, that I was only using 10% of the resource, that it was for
educational purposes, and it would not affect anyone’s ability to make a profit. Finally, I am
going to obtain a few pictures from home because this story is loosely based on my experience
with my own German-exchange student. I found the databases partially challenging to find the
right images. However, the ones I did find will work well and I feel that the Morguefile database
was the most helpful for my project.

4. Think about how you could use this project in the future. Is your digital story an example of
something you intend to have your students create as a classroom assignment, or is your
story more appropriate for use as an instructional resource that you will use, or does it
have another purpose altogether? Share your thoughts in your reflection. 


My digital story will be used as an example of something I will have my students create as a
classroom assignment. Because this is more of a personal story that has significance in my own
life, I can have my students create a story that shares something exciting and meaningful to their
life. In addition to this activity, I can use this story as an instructional resource to discuss
fractured fairytales. Because of the resemblance to Goldilocks and the Three Bears and the “too
hot, too warm, too cold” analogy, I can show my students how to create their own types of
fairytale stories that are like the originals but different.