A while back I did a post on top sites for Digital Storytelling. This has been a skill that is being taught in school districts all around the world, and is a key for developing technology literacy. With the recent wave of mobile devices and technologies, a giant step has been taken in how students develop these skills (via touch screen) in a brand new way .

1. Toontastic - A wonderful free iPad that allows children to create animated cartoon stories. They can choose from stock characters or draw their own while animating them and recording their voice for narration. Also, Toontastic's built-in story arc takes students step-by-step on how to create a story.
2. i Tell a Story - A excellent free iPad that works very similarly to how Garageband creates a podcast. A user uploads a photo and then can record their voice for narration while adding stock sound effects.
3. Voice Thread App - A great free iPad/iPhone app that compliments the Voice Thread very nicely for storytelling. A user can manage their Voice Thread account as well as make digital stories by uploading photos and drawing/recording their voice.
4. Story Patch - An iPad app ($2.99) that is ideal for digital storytelling. A person can create a story from scratch or use one of their well-designed templates to complete all the parts of a story.
5. Sock Puppets - A free iPad/iPhone app that is a lot of fun for kids to create animated stories. This is done by selecting your sock, background, and props and then recording your voice as the socks talk.
6. Art Maker - A wonderful free iPad app that allows children to create a digital story from scratch. A user selects their background, characters, and props and then moves them around the screen while recording.
7. Puppet Pals - A excellent free iPad app that lets users create a story by adding characters or their own photos to a selected background. Once the scene is a setup a person can move the characters around while recording their voice.
8. Storyrobe - A fun little iPad/iPod/iPhone app ($.99) that allows a user to upload a photo and then record their voice for narration.
9. Strip Designer - An app ($2.99) similar to Comic Life for the iPad/iPhone/iPod. A user can create a digital comic by selecting a layout, adding pics, and then stickers and speech bubbles to enhance their digital story.
10. Comic Book - Another digital comic creator app ($1.99) for the iPad/iPhone/iPod that is similar to Strip Designer. A person selects their layout, adds their photos, select some effects/stickers/speech bubbles for their finished product.
    
    David Kapuler is an educational consultant with more than 10 years of experience working in the K-12 environment. For more information about his work, contact him at dkapuler@gmail.com and read his blog at cyber-kap.blogspot.com.