1. Creative Culmination Project:
Essay 2
IAS 108
Writing a Narrative for Digital
Storytelling

2. Essay 2 – Write a narrative essay for
your Creative Culmination
• For Essay 2 you will put
your thoughts in writing
and figure out what story
you want to tell.
• This will be the basis for
your Creative Culmination
Project.
• It is the first step in
Digital Storytelling.

3. What is Digital Storytelling?
• Digital Storytelling is a
narrative that is told in
written words, spoken
words, and images –
similar to a
documentary.

4. What is a narrative essay?
• A narrative essay is a
personal account of
connected events
presented to a reader in
a sequence of written
or spoken words.
• Narrative is often a
synonym for story.

5. More about Narratives
Sites with tips for writing
Narrative Essays
1.
http://www.roanestate.edu/owl/
Describe.html
2.
https://owl.english.purdue.edu
/owl/resource/685/04/
http://www.wikihow.com/Writ
e-a-Personal-Narrative
3.

6. First, Select Your Topic
• Remember those topic
questions a few weeks
ago?
• The ones you were asked
about in the survey?
• You had to name your top
2 choices – sound
familiar?

7. Just in case….Here they are again!
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
My Gallery of Favorites - What
works in art, music, theatre, and/or
dance have impacted me and why?
Where do you find art?
My journey toward understanding
the arts
How do the arts celebrate cultural
traditions?
What elements do artists use to
create works of art?
How do teachers bring the arts into
the classroom?
When I become a teacher, how will
I use the arts?
What can I discover about an art
form by studying the life of a
favorite artist, dancer, musician, or
dramatist?

8. Narrow Your Choice Down to One Topic
1.
Hmm…I think I will
choose…. “When I
become a teacher, how
will I use the arts?”
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
My Gallery of Favorites - What
works in art, music, theatre, and/or
dance have impacted me and why?
Where do you find art?
My journey toward understanding
the arts
How do the arts celebrate cultural
traditions?
What elements do artists use to
create works of art?
How do teachers bring the arts into
the classroom?
When I become a teacher, how will
I use the arts?
What can I discover about an art
form by studying the life of a
favorite artist, dancer, musician, or
dramatist?

9. Writing Your Outline
Where do
I begin?
This week we
will start with an
outline to begin
the creative
process.

10. What Do You Find Interesting?
Chances are, if
you find it
interesting, so
will your
audience!
(For example:
Your Professor
loves frogs…)

11. Tell a Story
• The best teachers are
often great storytellers
(just look at the TED
videos!)
• Stories are the best way
to get your audience
interested.

12. Brainstorm ideas!
• Try using first person
sentence frames to get
started…
• I see…
• I think…
• I feel…
• I wonder…
• I discovered…

13. Express your own point of view!
This is NOT
your professor.
Besides the
hair is all
wrong!

14. Make it Personal
• Think in terms of your
own personal viewpoint
or experience
For example• What can you discover
about an artist or art
form? How does that
change your
understanding?

15. Write several drafts
• You can change your
outline and ideas as you
research images, facts,
etc.
Revision is PART of the
creative process.

16. Remember –
Research=Looking and Thinking
One example - If your
topic is “Where Do I
Find Art?” try
something as simple as
walking around campus
and noting all of the
visual and performing
arts you see in one
day…
You could even take
photos!

17. Then look at what you have found
Where did I find art around
me?
I found art –
Listening to the radio on my
way to school
Salsa dancing with my
friends
Watching a funny video on
YouTube
Walking by a statue in the
Peace Garden by the
library…

18. Don’t Panic! Ask Questions!
Here are some FAQ’s from other students

19. FAQ: How do I limit my topic?
• After you brainstorm –
find what looks most
interesting.
• Often a single artist, a
single element, is a
good starting place.
• Think of going on a
journey or
investigation.

20. FAQ: How Do I Write a Story About a
Topic Like “The Elements of Art”?
One exampleFind a painting that
you have a strong
connection with then explain how
the artist used the
elements of art
(line shape, color,
etc) to
communicate that
story or meaning.

21. Another example…
Choose one element and
explore your personal
response to it.
• For example- COLOR• What color or color
combinations do you find
most pleasing?
• Where do you find those
colors?
• How have artists,
designers, or advertisers
used them for an effect?

22. FAQ: What do I do with a broad topic like
“How do the arts celebrate cultural
traditions?”
• The topics are broad on
purpose. It is up to you
to think critically and
decide what story you
want to tell.
• Tip: Choose one
cultural tradition that
you are passionate
about and find ways
artists or performers
have celebrated it.
El Dia de Los Muertos

23. Cultural Traditions Can Mean Many Things
Football can be a cultural
tradition – How have artists
celebrated football traditions?
Cultural traditions can also refer to a
time period or society. For example- How
did artists celebrate culture in the time of
the Renaissance?

24. Give Yourself Time to Think
Don’t put it
off until the
last minute!

25. Submit your Final Draft
• Final Draft for
your Narrative
Essay is due on
ETS Criterion by
Monday,
November 25.

26. Take Some Time to have Fun!