1. Determining a Good Digital Story Tech539 Grand Canyon University Susie Kozak May 25, 2011

2. Digital Story The Mountain by Amy Johns http://www.storycenter.org/stories/index.php?cat=8 A digital story of growing up on her family’s land as a child and the devastation that the coal mining caused to the land.

3.  Point of View  Author’s point of view  Main purpose of digital story  A Dramatic Question  The main question that holds the viewer attention for the provided answer at the end  Emotional Content  Serious issues which the authors brings to life through the digital story  The Gift of Your Voice  Is the author able to personalize the digital story through the use of their voice  The Power of the Soundtrack  The enhancement of the music to the storyline  Economy  Excellent content which flows smoothly without overdoing it  Pacing  The time required to get through the story should be appropriate for the story. Make sure not go to slow or fast. 7 Elements for a Good Digital Story

4. Point of View  The main point of the story is how the electrical companies ruined the land she grew up on so they could mine coal for their plants.  Since the story is told in first person, the author is telling the story from her own personal experience. She explains how her and her family enjoyed the land before the miners. She then explains how angry and upset they became after.

5. Dramatic Question  How does the choice to supply communities with electrical power effect our environment?  Amy Johns answers this by explaining what happened to their family land when the electrical companies decided to mine it for coal, and asks others to compare the devastation of mining compared to wind sources.

6. Emotional Content  This digital story discusses the issue of how mining for coal and other minerals is destroying our beautiful mountains.  She brings this issue alive with her emotional story about the land her family had owned for hundreds of years. The found they had as children playing on the mountain side as well as the beauty it held.  She then explains how her grandfather sold the mining rights in order to keep the land in the family, and how he didn’t think they would ever go to the trouble of mining it.  She ends it with pictures of what the land looks like today and how sad they are that the beauty of it is gone. Leaving it so no one else may enjoy it and all that is left for them are their memories.

7. The Gift of Your Voice  She definitely uses the gift of her voice. You can feel the joy in her voice as talks about her childhood on the mountain and all the fun they had as a family.  She then brings the tone of extreme sadness and some anger when she discusses what the companies did to her beautiful mountain, especially when there were other options that would have been used instead.

8. The Power of the Soundtrack  The music that was chosen for this digital story really help impact the emotion contained it.  The song that plays throughout is about a mountain. They sing about how all they see is the mountain which goes well with her story. Amy explains what she saw before and how the mountain is viewed today.

9. Economy  The pictures add to her story helping you visualize what she experienced growing up and how devastating the mining was to the mountain. There are not a lot of graphics, but enough to really make you feel her pain of the situation.  The combination of her soft spoken voice and music adds intensely to her story. The combination of everything really makes you feel her emotions. It makes you stop and think about what is happening to our countries beauty.

10. Pacing  The Mountain is only 2:52 minutes. This digital story has a smooth rhythm. It speeds up when needed and slows down when she wants you to feel her emotions.  Amy Johns is able to plead her case effectively in a limited amount of time. The digital story conveys the information in a timely manner without rushing through it.

11. References  The Center for Digital Story Telling – The Mountain http://www.storycenter.org/stories/index.php?cat=8  Educase. (2007). 7 things you should know about digital storytelling. http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7021.pdf