Mary Hess

There’s a lovely piece up at The Atlantic introducing a new documentary film about Ken Burns that is premiering. I can’t wait to see the film itself, but in the meantime, there’s a short excerpt available: Among other notable comments, Ken Burns suggests: The kind of narrative that I subscribe to trusts in the possibility […]

GiveMN has launched a video contest in which they are making available a free download of a Mint Condition song, and asking people to use it to create a video about an “unsung hero.” The prizes include $1000 that you can give to an organization of your choice. It’s a fun idea, and a great

Here’s a fun contest that’s being offered by Loyola Press. As the Cyber Pilgrim notes: Loyola Press is inviting catechists and their students to be part of a contest that encourages children to explore the inspiring and sometimes-surprising ways they experience God’s presence in their everyday lives. Catechists and students can team together to create

Here’s an interesting take on Mark 7, done by a youth group (with a little help from their youth ministry leader, Craig Mitchell):

Here’s an interesting essay about the ways in which narrative shapes learning, and how important transmediation has become in that process.

Renee Hobbs and Anu Vedantham have a great presentation available through CNI on “online video creation by undergraduates: consequences for media literacy.” They make the case that what is essentially digital storytelling creates lots of opportunities for collaboration and synthesis, not to mention tons of engagement for students. It’s a long lecture, but worth listening

In the wake of YouTube viral sensation Jefferson Bethke’s “I love Jesus but hate religion” video, NPR reporter Barbara Bradley Hagerty reports on the impact of digital stories — particularly music videos — in religious contexts. An excerpt from her story: No matter what you think of Mitchell’s interpretation of Christianity, one thing is clear.

Thaler Pekar is a talented and innovative consultant who works with a variety of organizations and causes, using the tools of narrative. Here she writes about the “benefits of building a narrative organization,” and here about “working with stories.”

Here’s a handy little guide for using digital storytelling in project-based learning settings. While this was created for high school teachers in the public school setting, it’s also useful for those of us working with other age groups in faith formation settings.

Caroline Cerveny, the “Cyber pilgrim,” points to this nifty free site that supports adults in helping kids tell stories and share them digitally. It’s called Little Bird Tales, and Caroline suggests some simple ways to use it in religious education.