Most teachers have exhausted PowerPoint and are tired of creating the same old slide shows. So what else can you create with PowerPoint software? You can use it to create an interactive PowerPoint e-book! The following lesson plan will teach you step-by-step just how to create a storyboard, interactive hyperlinks, record voice-overs, and develop cooperative group strategies. You can use the lesson plan to create group e-books that your students can use to publish their original stories. The e-books can be published on Web sites or Emailed to parents.

The best part of the lesson plan is that all of the required tools are readily available and come standard with PowerPoint!

OBJECTIVE:

To create an electronic book using PowerPoint. Each slide in the slideshow will represent a page in the electronic book.

MATERIALS:

Digital cameras, USB cables, PowerPoint application, computers, Internet access, storyboard worksheet, index cards to create storyboards, printers, story prompts (Aesop’s Fables)

ANTICIPATORY SET:

The teacher will show student e-books that have been published using PowerPoint. The teacher will read an e-book and show the students the digital pictures and the graphics images that were used to enhance the storyline.

TEACHING:

1. Teach students how to create a storyboard using index cards.
2. Distribute Aesop Fables and allow students to read and select an appropriate fable.
   http://www.pacificnet.net/~johnr/aesop/aesop1.html

GUIDED PRACTICE AND INDEPENDENT PRACTICE

1. The students will divide into groups based on the fable they would like to create. Students will collaborate and create a storyboard.
2. The students will use a digital camera to take photos and insert the photos into a PowerPoint slideshow. Each student will have a photo of himself or herself in the slideshow. The students will take one group photo that will be used as an Author Page.
3. The students will collaborate and create the e-books. Each page will contain a digital image, sound, text, and a graphic image.
4. Upon completing the e-book, the students will create a rubric for grading their e-books. The students will also brainstorm ideas for using e-books in their classrooms as teaching and learning tools.

CLOSURE

1. As a culminating activity, the students will present their e-books to the class. The students will Email their e-books to each other to be used for future reference or lesson plans.

STORYBOARDING

Storyboarding provides students the opportunity to pre-plan their e-book. The better the book is planned the less time the process will take. Use the following steps as a guide to assist you with this process. On page 3 you will find a draft of a fable that has been modified and divided into pages. On page 4 you will find a draft of a storyboard index card that details the text, graphics, and photos for page two of the e-book.

1. After selecting an Aesop Fable, the next step is to change the characters in the story and modify the story as appropriate. The group members will decide upon their individual roles in the story. Each student will have a role (this provides the opportunity for each student’s photo to be placed in the e-book).
2. Read the fable and divide it into sections; each section will be used as a page.
3. Decide on the photos you should take in order to represent the storyline.
4. Decide on graphic images that you will insert on each page to enhance the photos.
5. Based on your decisions create the storyboard. This can be completed individually, in pairs, or as a group.

The Bat and the Weasels
A bat who fell upon the ground was caught by a weasel and pleaded to be spared his life. The weasel refused, saying that he was by nature the enemy of all birds. The bat assured him that he was not a bird, but a mouse, and thus was set free. Shortly afterwards the bat again fell to the ground and was caught by another weasel, whom he likewise entreated not to eat him. The weasel said that he had a special hostility towards mice. The bat assured him that he was not a mouse, but a bat, and thus a second time escaped.

Moral: It is wise to turn circumstances to good account.

EXAMPLE OF A STORYBOARD:

Below you will find an example of a storyboard for slide two of Joey and the Hungry Weasels. The storyboard indicates the following:

• text
• graphics
• photo content

Email: Cynthia Gautreau