Cartoon Story Maker

A quick look at the Cartoon Story Maker

File Options: You can open and edit stories aswell as preview, print and save.				Frame area: Drag and drop items here to compose each frame of your story.
Image Libraries: These include different characters with different expressions.
Picture tools: Enlarge, rotate, flip or delete images.				Frame controls: Add, delete, copy and paste frames.
Text tools: Change text colour, make bold, italics or underline.				Audio bubbles: Add your own voice recording using the built in voice recorder. Also add pre recorded sounds.
	Background library: Aa range of common scenes	Import You can add you own foreground or background images.	Text bubbles: Add text to your story. Use the 'drag handle' to move bubbles or to apply text formatting

Features

Features list

• character and background libraries
• import your own images
• text bubbles and information boxes
• accent key panel
• import voice recordings
• built in recorder to add your own voice recordings
• unlimited number of frames
• copy and paste frames
• preview
• print function
• saved stories can be opened and edited
• copy and paste text from other documents
• help files (available online and included in the program)

See the Help files for more details.

Cartoon Story Maker in the classroom

• Teachers can make cartoon stories to model language and cultural conventions.
• Students can make them as a stimulating and engaging way to practice their language skills.

The Cartoon Story Maker has been designed with a focus on applying language learning. It is easy to use with simple controls so students spend less time manipulating tools and more time on the language. Within a few minutes of opening the Cartoon Story Maker students can be typing text or adding their own voice recordings.

Students can:

• create dialogues with their own text or voice recordings to demonstrate proficiency
• create using digital photos of themselves acting out a situation and add either text or voice recordings to the photos
• search the web for culturally authentic images and import them into the Cartoon Story Maker as backgrounds to a story.
• Students can place pictures of themselves in front of culturally authentic images: they can imagine they are really there!

Teachers can:

• provide a script or storyboard which students use to create a story
• create partially completed stories which students can then open and complete
• provide text only and students must add their own matching voice recordings
• provide text in English for students to translate into the LOTE
• provide questions to which students generate appropriate answers in the story
• use Cartoon Story Maker in other subjects!

Cartoon Stories can be used:

• as a medium for students' writing in a number of modes: conversation, narrative, persuasive or informative.
• to revise a language topic
• as an assessment task
• to practice pronunciation and spelling
• as a collaborative task
• as a window into culture

Installation and operation

To install and run the Cartoon Story Maker the computer must have the following:

• Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 (all require '.net framework 2.0'. This is standard on 'Vista' and Windows 7, and common on XP. If it is not installed on the computer, a prompt will appear allowing the download and installation of the file. It is free.)
• a sound card
• screen resolution of at least 800 x 600
• 256 colours or greater

Installation of software in school systems is often restricted. This may mean that only your IT technician is able to install software. Talk to your IT support about how the software is best installed in your school.

When a cartoon story is saved a new folder will be created with the name and in the location specified by the user. The folder will contain:

• A html page (with the same name as the folder). Open this file to view the cartoon story.
• A 'data' folder which contains all support files:
  - two swf files; the player and a shared library
  - an xml document
  - a 'media' folder with any imported images (jpg, gif or png), or any voice recordings (MP3) used in the story.

Some schools' IT systems prevent students from saving these files. Check with your IT support that students are permitted to save these files in their folders on the server. If not, it may be possible to create a new folder without these restrictions where students can save their games.

The default save path for completed games is 'My Document'.

Further Information and help

See the Help files. (these are also available by clicking on the 'Help' button in the top bar of the program.)

For further assistance contact the Languages Online Team (languages.online@edumail.vic.gov.au)