- Maker Danielle case
- Genre Eversion/Audio
- Level Grad
- Program Composition Rhetoric Digital Media
- Course WRIT5400
- Course Instructor Dr. Eric Mason
- Semester Created Fall 2021
Keep Calm and Read On!
Dive into a WILD world of adventure as you and your child learn the endless possibilities of what it would be like “If You Were…” a wild animal. Over the years reading has becoming a daunting task to students and they don’t find the joy in it anymore. However, this interactive audio book will not only change your young one’s mind on how fun reading can be but it will also have you turning from one page to the next. So grab the book “If I Were, ” jump into your favorite comfy corner and read along with me as I read aloud. Don’t forget to press the animals to hear what sound each one makes.
Tools
- Board
- Wires
- Alligator clips
- USB cable
Where it All Began
Believe it or not my eversion project wasn’t going to always be an interactive audiobook. The idea for the audiobook came about after I expressed my concern to Dr. Mason about wanting to focus my project on something of substance and that would have longevity in my career and be purposeful research. With that being said we hit the drawing board and came up with a concept that allowed new and old technology to coexist with each other in a digital and physical space.
The Why Behind the Wires….
As an educator, I observed and realized that my students perform and learn better using a digital or interactive space. Which brings me to why I decided to unite my passion for broadcasting and education into a physical and digital modality that connects the two worlds of new technology and old technology. An interactive audiobook is designed to encourage kids to interact with the story and get them excited for reading. Interactive books can provide a lot of educational benefits. One of the greatest things that kids can get from reading sessions is a positive emotional connection to reading. I’ve monitored my niece’s interactions with her tablet and noticed that she has made tremendous learning gains at the expense of not being able to find the same pleasure of learning from a book. Whoever said new technology cannot exist alongside old technology is wrong. In actuality, the two depend on one another to enhance the learning experience and bridge the gap.
How Does it Work?
I hacked the wonderful children’s book “If I Were” published by Leap Frog and used it to demonstrate how different technologies can work together to achieve rhetoric in composition . I used wires from a Makey Makey kit to connect from the book to the control board to the computer. I found the audio clips via online or Scratch and imported them into Scratch where I assigned the sounds to the number keys by using the “remap Makey Makey” function. Originally, I envisioned using the book to share facts about how environment change (global warming) impacts various animal species. Instead I created a project that could also be used to create a multimedia book that reads to you and has sound effects.
