.StoryCorps: Every Voice Matters.

This weekend I've been working like a madwoman on the Appalachian class I'm building for one of my courses (we're starting our final week of the quarter tomorrow so needless to say it's nearly finished...or should be).  During one of the units we're supposed to have the students interact with people in some way.  In my class they'll be interviewing people in their community about the impact modern technology and media has on their place and heritage.  But, before they conduct these interviews they'll need to learn some interviewing skills.

To do this, we'll be watching the following animated clips, discussing interviewees' roles as 'living' sources and the interview process as a type of 'research.'  These clips are from a wonderful resource called StoryCorps, a non-profit organization that records and collects interviews to share on their website.  The librarian at my school introduced it to our class as a resource to use while generating ideas for our course designs. I wanted to share it on my blog because I'd never heard of StoryCorps, but I've enjoyed exploring the site.  I think it's an amazing resource that could be used and adapted in just about any classroom; it could also be a great family heritage project for anyone wanting to collect and share family stories.  You can see more animations of the recorded interviews here.

Source: storycorps.org via Jade on Pinterest

The Icing on the Cake: A young woman interviews her mother about their immigration to the U.S. from Mexico (have a tissue handy).

Source: storycorps.org via Jade on Pinterest

Q and A: A boy with Asperger's syndrome interviews his mother about the mysteries of life.