App #5: Many of us have our students write stories and then illustrate the text. While the artists in the bunch do flips and cartwheels (and I’ve had those students), what happens to those who struggle with drawing the simplest shapes. You know what I mean… somehow my tree just doesn’t quite look like a tree. Having a teacher say, “just do your best” doesn’t make me feel any better when I stare at my ‘stick tree’. How about giving the gift of storytelling without the struggle of drawing?
Storybird is a site that captures the imagination and allows a writer to focus on writing. Starting with selections of beautiful images (drawn by artists), you craft your story. The images serve to anchor your ideas as they unfold. A slider at the bottom of the screen shows the sequence of each page – handy for keeping the flow of beginning, middle and end. The finished products are short, art-inspired pieces of text that can be shared on any device.
Teachers can create free class accounts without the need for emails (please be careful about using student names). Options for sharing allows the story to be published on the site or embedded in blogs, wikis, or other platforms.
How can you use this site to grow your writers?