Digital Cameras and the World!

In this project, children will be given a camera of their own to take pictures of their environment, their city/town, or of items that interest them. Children will be making a digital journal of their year at the Primary School. They will also be investigating their town and how it changes throughout the school year. When children have enough pictures or feel they are finished with their composition, they will upload the photographs in the program Kid Pix. The children can then create a slide show or a story using this computer program. Once the children have their story ideas, they may add words to the pictures. The pictures will allow the children to be more expressive and creative in their writing.
The children will also be making a map of the town through their pictures. They will be able to explore their city and become more familiar with it through this project.
The goal of this project is to have the pictures lead to written expression. When the children are taking pictures of things that are interesting to them and that are non-fiction, they will be better equipped to use descriptive language in their writing. The picture progression will give them a story frame in which to write!

Members of the community will benefit from this project in a variety of ways. The pictures taken by the children will be used for many purposes. Children’s photographs will be published as journals in the Crestwood Comments and the local newspapers. The children will be sharing their experiences with family members, community members, and other students. Townspeople will see how the area is viewed from a child’s eyes!
The children will have a day at the end of the year when they will invite the community to see their final projects! They will explain why certain areas or places are important to them and why the town needs things such as a police station, gas station, etc. The students will present their stories to the group in attendance. Projects will be displayed at the Primary School for members of the community to view during Open House Events, Conference Nights, and community events such as the Earth Day Celebration and many other open nights.

Children will work together to learn how to use the cameras and computer programs. They will also work in pairs at times to take pictures. Children will be able to teach others to use the cameras and learn from more experienced peers (1st and 2nd graders).
The children will also conduct a survey on their town with the students in the older grades. They will be developing the questions at a later date. Results will be presented with the final projects.

This project would continue from year to year. The cameras would be used by many classes for a multitude of reasons. The students’ pictures and journals would be used in newspapers and publications such as the Crestwood Comments and the Community Journal.
I would keep a copy of the projects from year to year. The students’ maps would serve as a history of the town! Each year the students could see how the town is changing and what is new. Future students will be able to look back and see how their city has changed.