Interactive Storytelling
The appealing mix of elements – technology, narratology, and children issues – has triggered the development of a new, multidisciplinary research field: ‘interactive storytelling for children’ (ISC for short).
ISC has witnessed a rapid advancement in the past few years. ISC draws significantly on the principles, approaches, terminology, and technology of two more consolidated disciplines, Interactive Digital Storytelling (IDS), and Interaction Design for Children (IDC). IDS has been described as “a form of interactive entertainment in which the player plays the role of the protagonist in a dramatically rich environment.” The development of storytelling technology in the IDC community is subsumed to the imperative of “taking into account children’s abilities, interests, and developmental needs” An important aspect of research in ISC and child technology design highlights the integration of physical objects from the child’s familiar environment. Remarkable advancements of this approach have been done since the 1970s by Seymour Papert’s research group at the MIT, whom have practiced a “learning by doing” approach.
From primary to high school, storytelling activities are proposed to students in order to improve their linguistic and literacy skills, and to foster their ability of interpretation, analysis, and synthesis. Theme parks and museums often offer storytelling opportunities to engage young visitors and make their visit more educational and enjoyable. Drawing on cognitive and developmental psychology, the role of narrative in child development can be summarized as affecting three levels: the cognitive, the social and the emotional. Storytelling activities can also be regarded as a means to promote participants’ attitude towards social issues, or as a process that can be integrated into existing social development programs, or as an opportunity to involve the community beyond the immediate storytelling participants, such as for example the family.
Where are some successful examples of interactive storytelling? What do they have in common?
- Some examples are:
- The Boat
- Peugot's Hybrid 4 Graphic Novel
- The Museum of Mario
- Inception Explained
- The Grey Tales
- Babel the King
- Some common elements are:
- Beautiful, non-standard page layouts
- Scrolling
- Decluttering the page
- Massive pictures
- Non-standard typography
- Animation (or the feeling of movement)
Storytelling activities are proposed to students in order to improve their linguistic and literacy skills, and to foster their ability of interpretation, analysis, and synthesis. Theme parks and museums often offer storytelling opportunities to engage young visitors and make their visit more educational and enjoyable. However, these stories are limited to books. A digital platform allows me to utilize other skills and senses such as seeing, hearing, and acting. Giving children the opportunity to choose the next step in the story encourages them use their critical thinking skills. They are forced to think about how the character will achieve the goal and the consequences of their choices.
The next steps can be viewed here