Storytelling using StoryboardThat

In writing second graders are writing like scientists.  We started by asking a question about how the world works, recording our hypothesis (a guess), determining how the experiment could be tested by writing precise procedures, conducting multiple trials, recording and analyzing our results, and finally writing a conclusion.

Our recent experiment involved students building catapults out of LEGOS and then launching a ping pong ball and cotton ball to determine which would go the farther.

To infuse technology into the writing process students used a storyboard to help visualize the process.  Essentially a storyboard looks like a comic strip.  We used StoryboardThat.com which allowed students to combine images from their scientific experiment to sequencing the steps used in conducting their experiment. Here is what Grace wrote:

The entire writing process touched on several different learning styles:  visual, tactile, and kinesthetic. The students remained engaged throughout the lessons and the experiment. They’ve learned new ways to think, new structures in which to write, and new lingo for communicating how the world works.