One Picture--A Thousand Words

At the Art of Storytelling web site sponsored by the Delaware Art Museum users are treated to a visual feast.  By selecting one of three tabs at the top of the initial web page, Experience a Story, Tell a Story or Picture a Story one can view or use pieces of art to inspire.  By selecting the first tab those stories written by others can be read or listened to along with viewing a single piece of art.  The second tab offers various pieces of artwork which can be chosen.  Write and then record the story which has been prompted by the selected illustration.  Picture a Story is the tab best suited for students.  First choose a genre from either adventure, romance, fantasy, comedy, fairy tale, drama, mystery, western or horror.  Next from eight backgrounds which are actual artwork make a selection.  Users are allowed to choose from 31 characters and 31 props which can be positioned on the background and sized accordingly.  At the fifth step they are reminded of their choices, given space to write their script and then it can be recorded.  Having produced their story they can have it emailed to three others including themselves.  An email address must be entered and persons using this site under 13 years must have parental permission. 

This site not only gives our students a glimpse at artwork that they might not ever see but are guided through steps in generating their own stories which can be saved and shared.  As with many tasks/projects it is not the final project that is important but the true value lies in the ability to know what to do to get there.