Chapter 6: Digital Storytelling in a Middle Level Classroom: Traveling Down a Bumpy Road

This chapter explores how digital storytelling motivated one middle level writer and contributed to his understanding of visual literacy, a recognized requirement for the twenty-first century. This narrative inquiry reveals Troy’s complex adolescent individuality as he travels down a bumpy road learning how to create digital stories. This two-year study focuses on Troy’s insightful journey from resistance and reluctance to creative expression using a powerful storytelling voice. The narrative speaks to the need for creatively combining intellectual stimulation, social involvement, and support from teachers and peers in middle level classrooms.