Author: Pete Koutoulas • First Posted: Monday, October 12, 2009

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Fourth-graders at Julius Marks Elementary used laptops and Windows Movie Maker in their latest literature project.

Instead of writing book reports, budding filmmakers at Julius Marks Elementary created movie teasers about their most recent classroom reading assignment. From the pages of Lois Lowry’s novel “Number the Stars,” fourth-graders in DeAnna Branham’s class developed “coming attractions” worthy of a theater near you.

“They took the book and represented it in music and pictures in a movie style – something they’re familiar with,” Branham said, adding, “It’s the new age of kids. They want to do things that are hands-on, that they have control over.”

Past classes have made their own books and written plays based on Lowry’s story of a 10-year-old girl who helps shelter her Jewish friend during the German occupation of Denmark.

“This group is really high thinkers, critical thinkers. So I needed something that would expand their learning,” Branham said, explaining why she turned to movie making this fall.

Students said they found the technology – and the process of editing photos, writing copy and piecing together their film previews – well worth the challenge.

“The most fun part was working with our groups. You’d mess up, but eventually you’d all laugh about it,” said Liv Russell, who with fellow students presented their Windows Movie Maker projects last week.

After the students read “Number the Stars,” Branham divided them into small groups to work on the film projects, which averaged about three minutes apiece.

“The kids are pretending there’s a movie coming out in the theater, and they’re trying to draw in the audience,” she explained.

Students came up with various ways of promoting the story, including voiceover narration.

“My group didn’t want too much detail,” said Keiarra Hayden-Jackson. “We found the main parts that were important.”

They also searched the Internet for compelling images of the main characters and Nazi soldiers (as portrayed in theater productions) and incorporated strong symbols like the Star of David on the girl’s necklace and the German swastika. Even the music they chose fit well with the dramatic feel of a movie.

Visual creativity also came into play as the children designed the storyboard elements and text.

“We could change the font, the color, the background,” explained Laura Mendenhall, who said she was comfortable with the processes because of her experience in the Student Technology Leadership Program at Julius Marks.

Branham said aside from the technology opportunities, improved reading comprehension was a beneficial outcome.

“They had to go back in and find details they might have forgotten,” she said, noting that her students concentrated on the sequence of events and the characters’ motivation.

“All the things that make a good story make a good movie,” she said. “They’re making that connection.”