App: Puppet Pals HD (Free)
Subject: All
Grade level: All
What it is: An animation and story-telling app for the iPad that comes with several characters and backgrounds. Students select characters and backdrops, then create a movie by moving the characters with their fingers while recording narration or dialog.
Upgrading to the Director’s Pass version ($2.99) provides access to many more characters and backdrops from the developer and also allows users to create their own puppets and scenes.
Educational applications:
- Demonstrate understanding of a lesson
- Create a news story about a current or historical event
- Provide opportunity for ELL students to use language in an engaging way
- Create presentations for classroom projects
- Reader’s theater or poetry reading for fluency
- Persuasive writing
- Many, many more; please share in the comments if you have a wonderful idea
How to share with the outside world:
- Save your project
- Export it to the Camera Roll
- Open it in the Camera Roll and email it or upload it to YouTube
Key for success:
Planning! Students can re-record while working on their project, but there is no option for editing saved work. Students working on more sophisticated projects should decide beforehand which characters they will use and what will happen. If they are working in groups, having a script, or at least discussing who will say what and when is important. Having a storyboard would be very helpful.
Download printable directions for using Puppet Pals HD.
Additional links:
Introduction to Puppet Pals HD
Practical Lesson Plans Using Puppet Pals HD
Persuasive Writing and Puppet Pals HD
Originally published on Technology at Chaparral.
