Internet Storytelling 

     One of the most important skills I teach my creative writing students is the power of storytelling.  Each person has his or her own stories to tell.   If I can find ways to help my students tell their stories, then I have helped them to tap into the natural storytellers within themselves.
      Although storytelling has been considered a form of oral communication for centuries, a new way of passing along stories has been quickly developing as the internet has become a part of our everyday lifestyle.  In her article "Digital Storytelling:  Effective Learning Through the Internet" (Educational Technology March-April 1999), Constance Mellon described how she used the internet as a tool for her storytelling class to post their stories online.  Mellon  was originally resistant to the idea of using the internet in her storytelling classes.  She saw storytelling as an oral form, and did  not believe the internet would be a useful tool to her.  Then, one semester, she had
an especially large class, and decided to try Digital Storytelling
(an online format in which the students write personal stories in response to prompts) for students who would be willing to take part.   She was happy to find that her students wrote more personal and heartfelt stories online than they told orally.  When she questioned her students as to how they felt about the process, she received positive feedback.  They all said they enjoyed it, they liked being able to edit what they said, they liked being able to avoid standing in front of others to tell their stories, and they enjoyed the convenience of being able to write and respond whenever they wanted to do so.  One student commented that she felt that she was part of "a storytelling family" and Mellon noted that she felt a greater sense of community with these students than those she met with face to face.
     I think this idea could be useful in a creative writing class as an activity to be done at the beginning of the year.  It would help to create a sense of "family" within the classroom, plus it would be relatively non-threatening to those students who are uncomfortable sharing their writing or comments aloud.
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