* Strengths:
*This program offers so many possibilities to work with various levels of students like:  the pictures to symbolize words for students who have a hard time spelling or reading, shapes, allows freedom to choose style of writing which is great for all levels, has the big "buttons" with pictures to help those students who have difficulty reading, etc...
-allows for lots of writing practice
-uses pictures to illustrate certain words so children just beginning to write can use the pictures in sentences to represent words
-the pictures can also by pushing a button be transformed automatically into that word written out
-allows child to make a "shaped" book, like a barn, school bus, house...
-there are many text options
-can paint pictures to go along with story the child has wrote and that also works on hand-eye coordination
-gives the child lots of choices for creativity and individualization
-the text can be put beside or on top of pictures chosen from a menu
-there is also the ability to animate (choose from movie clips within the program)

* Weaknesses:
-there are to many buttons with pictures and no description of what they do or stand for
-the directions are unclear, one just has to experiment with the program to know what is available on it
 

Materials:
-program for Kid's Media Magic
-prompt for child if desired (good if working on a particular type of writing or if the child working has a hard time deciding)

Goals:
-to encourage writing and make it enjoyable for student
-to strengthen students writing skills
-use pictures to help student not become discouraged with his lack of spelling abilities and just enjoy writing
-work on sentence structure and making complete sentences

 Launch:
-Provide opportunity for child to play with software and explore what they can do, like write with pictures.  Show this to student and all available resources.
-Let student have fun and write whatever they want to, illustrate, paint,...
-Ask student what kind of story they might want to write about

Explore:
-Give student time to write their story.
-Print off story with pictures and have the student read it to you.
-When finished, talk about what they have wrote and why they wrote it.
-When reading see if there is anything they would like to change and give them opportunity to do so if they want to.
-Talk about writing complete sentences.
-If they have complete sentences, encourage them to think about another way to write that sentence or thought.  (Do not be concerned with spelling at this time- we just want to encourage writing.)
-Print story with pictures and with words.