Several students are drawing pictures, and others are scanning photographs into the computer. Students are composing interactive adventure stories, using HyperCard software, for others to read on the computer. Martha has been doing this project with her English classes for the past three years. She starts the three-week unit by showing her students stories composed by previous classes. After her students read these stories, they are eager to get started.
Students begin their projects by forming groups and brainstorming story topics and plots.
Each choice leads the reader down a separate story path. Every group determines how their work will get done. Some decide to write the entire story together, while others opt to break into smaller groups that will each work on a different branch of the narrative. After they have done considerable work on their stories, Martha gives each group a hypermedia template that will help them create their interactive tales on the computer. Martha created a task assignment sheet which the students used to organize their collaborative work on the project.