Combine Makey Makey with a webcam to create candid stories about your classroom. You will write out short tableaus and create GIF prompts for so you can visualize ideas from a text or even help you remember vocabulary words. Tableaus which are visual stills of an idea (think of playing FREEZE when acting out a story.) You could use this guide to act out historical events scientific ideas, basically anything that would make a good 3-4 frame image to be turned into a GIF!
| Make a switch out of paper and foil! |
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Create a switch to use as a camera button! Electricity flows in a loop, and when you complete a circuit, the Makey Makey acts like a computer key. You've probably made a banana piano and held on the grounding wire, but what if you could remove yourself and find another way to close the circuit? To make a switch, you will use two conductive objects that will complete the circuit when you press the objects together. The top layer of your foil will be your key press (or Space key) and the bottom layer of your foil will be your ground (or EARTH key.) When the two foils touch, it will tell the Makey Makey to send a signal to your computer that you are pressing on the space key. To keep the two switches from always closing the circuit and sending the signal, you'll need an insulator (or non-conductive item). You can insulate your switch with a piece of paper! Just cut a whole to allow the switch to close. You can experiment with the size of the hole in your insulator and the thickness of your insulator! |
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| Create Tableaus! |
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How can you act out a story or a moment with just your own facial expressions and gestures? A tableau is a visual representation of a story. The term comes from "Tableau vivant" which means living picture. Think of it as frozen scenes that capture the heart of a moment in a scene or a story. To make a tableau, you have to decide what you want to feature in each frozen scene of the tableau. Each scene should include physical poses and facial expressions that represent the story you are telling. If you want, you could move in slow motion as you transition from scene to scene in your tableau. How would you act out a surprise birthday party? A scene from your favorite book? A vocabulary word?
EDUCATOR TIPS:Here are some different ideas for using tableau to go with your selected content: Discuss storytelling without words, review plot guidelines, and have students create their own GIF cards for others.
Extension: After you’ve collected enough Candid Camera GIFs from different areas of content or stories, have students watch GIFs and then create their original stories based on the GIF of their choice. Review narrative elements: plot elements, sensory details, word choice, ideas, organization, etc. You could even create a persuasive digital story with the images and overlay text and voice like this video poem by Eric Shabazz Larkin. Here is a pdf of GIF cards you can download to get started! If you want to see more examples of tableau in teaching, check out this post. Teacher Toolkit: Tableau (Elementary) Video Teacher Toolkit: Tableau Video The Youtube video above is from The Teacher Toolkit.
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| Snap photos of your Tableau! |
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Using your switches from step one, open your laptop to a gif maker like Gifpal, and hook up your switch to control the camera with Makey Makey. Be sure to hover your mouse over the "click" for the camera before attempting to take your pictures. Now you are ready to act out your tableau scenes and take pictures of each "still" from your scene! Once you snap all your pictures, turn your images into a GIF and upload to Google Classroom. Debugging Tips for Your Switch! Here are some things to look for: Making constant connections in the DIY switch. This is usually because of these three things:
Camera not activating. This is almost always because of where the mouse is on the computer!
Connectivity issues
EDUCATOR TIP:Here's a post about how I led this activity with high school students! More ideas for Tableau Create partners or small groups, and instruct students to write their own GIF as a dramatic tableau that reviews a concept from a literature book, vocabulary, or desired content. Students will then exchange GIF cards and have other groups create their GIF with Makey Makey and computer and upload to Google Classroom. Examples for GIFs:
More Extensions for Snapping Pics: For the Library: Keep a computer set up with Makey Makey by your book drop and laminated cards for students to write on. Include a sign and instructions at the desk: Like your book? Wanna share it on our library social media? Directions: Write a quote from the book that matches the theme, write examples of who you’d recommend the book, then step on the switch holding each card to make a GIF. Make a copy of this Slides Carnival for your book drop.
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Supplies
- Makey Makey
- Paper
- tinfoil
- long alligator clips from STEM pack or old Ethernet/telephone cables
Products
EDU Standards
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Download
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