Some talented students from Kingsbury Country Day School in Addison Township got to showcase their technological wizardry March 19 during the Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning (MACUL) Conference held at the Cobo Center in downtown Detroit.
A group of Kingsbury second-graders showed off how they used computer software to manufacture ‘audio folktales? complete with sound effects, while some third-graders displayed educational web pages they created about geographic landforms such as basins and archipelagos.
Exhibiting a variety of projects, students from 21 public and private schools around Michigan demonstrated how technology is helping them achieve in the classroom and prepare for future careers.
Prior to the conference, Kingsbury students read and recorded a script derived from West African folktales about a spider called Anansi, who goes around tricking people.
The students then worked with the school’s music teacher on developing some ‘soundscaping? to create a mood.
Once they recorded all the reading and sound effects on different days, they spliced it all together in the computer lab using special sound editing software called Audacity.
‘They could edit out (the sound of ) any pages turning or mistakes they made while reading,? explained David Scovic, director of finance and technology at Kingsbury. ‘If one student was more quiet, they were able to amplify their voice or if one was closer to the microphone, they could de-amplify that.?
Scovic said the conference attendees couldn’t believe such advanced work was done by elementary students and not middle or high schoolers.
‘It was definitely, for second-graders, some pretty sophisticated sound editing.?
The audio folktales will be used to educate and entertain students in Kingsbury’s kindergarten and junior kindergarten classes.