I know digital storytelling is all about “the gift of your voice”, but after listening to my recording I fear the “gift” might not be an especially good one. Unlike Kathrin, I haven’t realized I “did” something specific to make my voice sound as it does. I am reminded of that scene in the movie Juno when the characters make fun of a girl in their high school for giving everyone “the stink eye.” Turns out, her face was just like that. I think that’s what I’m dealing with.

Anyway, this is giving me a greater appreciation for the act of recording. In my classes where students have created DSTs I designate a class period to listening to all the digital stories without video. My decision to do this was almost entirely content driven — I wanted to make sure the stories made sense without visuals and that others who were not familiar with the content could understand the story, too. Thinking back on this class period, my students were extremely good sports about listening to themselves (even students who were reluctant at first). Granted, I didn’t give them a choice, but no one really resisted. I suppose ultimately I am thinking more about the sort of personal implications of creating a DST that I hadn’t considered. Even if the story itself isn’t personal per se, the performance/recording surely is. Putting oneself out there in this way is different than producing a paper — a different type of performance of identity. Good stuff.

I second Kathrin’s use of the word “humbling” to describe today’s experiences, particularly with video recording. Given that I forgot to put a mic on myself for part of the interview, recorded a “ghost” in the interview room, and lost sound for half an interview (at least those were the more glaring mistakes), today was an important reminder of what could go wrong (and often does) when trying something out for the first time. Frustrating, for sure, but I’m gearing up for another try. Day three, here I come!

I appreciate the low stakes nature of this assignment and am thinking that such an exercise would be really helpful in the classroom. When a grade hangs in the balance the atmosphere changes immediately, so practicing when it doesn’t “count” helps maintain focus on skills. I have been thinking about documentary as an option in my media history class, for instance, so today was a great primer and practice.

Today’s session also has led me to think more about the blogging possibilities and a reminder that there’s a lot that I could do. I’m still thinking through what that would look like in my classes more concretely.