Introduction

Digital video creation is another way for you to present material in your classroom. Rather than using posterboard, paper, pencils, crayons and all those fun tools that clutter up your desk, we're going to use a digital still or video camera, a computer, a few props and your incredible imagination!

You will also be getting a lesson in Kidspiration to help you organize your thoughts.

All of your instruction will take place in the computer lab. We must finish in eight days. Are you ready for the challenge?

Keep this question in mind as you work:

Your task is to create a three minute video on a topic of your choice. In class we will look at some examples and discuss what an appropriate topic consists of.

You will need to skip the following instructions because I thought I could customize them and I can't.

Instead, you will be receiving all of your instructions in class.

Instructions

1. Explore the Internet sites linked below. You're looking for facts, quotes, examples, images, sound clips, videos, and animations that you think are important aspects of the topic.

2. When you find something you like, check its Web page for a copyright notice. Often, students are encouraged to copy things that will only be used in the classroom. Sometimes people don't want their work copied at all. A good practice is looking for an e-mail link on the page and then using it to ask permission.

3. Copy any text you want by dragging across the words, then using the Edit - Copy command on the menubar. Paste what you highlighted into a basic text editor, word processor, desktop publishing program or multimedia program.

4. Save images you like by downloading them. Paste the images you've downloaded into a multimedia, paint or desktop publishing program (like HyperStudio, Clarisworks, or PageMaker) or use one of the graphics viewers listed as Tools on this page to display your collection of images.

5. Be prepared to cut anything that copyright owners tell you they don't want you to have.

6. Once you have collected your information, go over it carefully so that you can give clear and thoughtful reasons why you found the things you collected especially important.
   

The Internet Resources

Standards

• NETS for Students, Standards 3 & 4 - The National Educational Technology Standards for students is a national framework followed by school districts across the country as they formulate technology curriculum.

• Technology Curriculum, Sarasota County District Schools - Sarasota County Technology Curriculum Standard 4, Goal 4.1, Use technology tools (i.e., multimedia authoring, presentation, web tools, digital cameras, scanners) for individual and collaborative writing, communication, and publishing activities to create knowledge products for audiences inside and outside the classroom and Objective 4.1.1 use an imaging device (i.e., camcorder, digitized camera) to record events and produce classroom projects and 4.1.2 develop projects using multimedia software with sound, graphics and multiple sources of information.

Teacher Help

• Teacher's Guide to Making Student Movies - Please download and print the Movie Planning Sheet (pdf). This will help you plan your movie.

• Teaching TV-Film Production: Who Does What? - This excellent resource provides teachers with a concise explanation of tv/movie production and how to teach the process.

• Apple Learning Interchange-Tips for Making Movies - This is an excellent graphical representation for remembering the steps to making movies.

Student Examples

• Digital Video Examples - Here are some excellent examples of student projects. You should have the latest version of Quicktime installed on your Mac or PC before attempting to view these examples.

Tools

References

Roget's Thesaurus

Find words that have similar meanings to words you run across.

Grabbing Web Images

Follow a friendly step-by-step tutorial on how to grab images from the Web.