Archive for January, 2010

Download this zip file to add a stunning set of images to your iPhoto library. These can be used for writing prompts, enhancing a Keynote presentation or as starting points for discussion of a world event or location.

Download this zip file for a set of step-by-step tutorials to improve your iLife 09 skills.

Easy-Add transitions to text and other objects.pdf
Novice-VoiceOver GarageBand.pdf
Easy-Magic Move Keynote.pdf
Novice-Animate 3D chart Keynote.pdf
Novice-Digital Storytelling-with-Garageband-and-Keynote

Select a challenging vocabulary word from the SAT list. Think of at least three scenes that would illustrate the meaning of the word. Take a look at a few of these student-produced videos @ gotbrainy.com

How would you show the meaning of  “abrogate” or “abscond?” Try to keep the length to around 2 minutes.

Remember to include the word and its definition at the beginning and end of the movie.

Great video showing how to use a video camera for recording footage that doesn’t look like junk. For middle school students, the first minute of this video is what’s most important. Learn how to record the ESTABLISHING SHOT, LONG and MID RANGE-SHOT and the CLOSE-UP. Students who skip over learning these types of shots will produce films where the camera follows the action and will often record much more footage than necessary. Learning how to frame a shot takes practice. Before moving onto filming fight scenes or recording a chase scene, students need to have a solid understanding of these basic shots.

Try this. Before throwing students into the deep end of creating a short film, make sure you give them some experience in creating a film that already has a clear story line. Also, make sure it can be filmed at school or with a minimum of actors and props. For this activity, all you need is a FlipVid camera or still camera that has video recording.

Download this story outline: Go to the Dance with Me story outline

For another story outline, check out these: Film This Story

DO THIS:

1. Give trio of students the story outline.

2. Students review the outline and make any modifications to the story.

3. Students create list of scenes for the story (or give students a Sample Scene List or Completed Scene and Shot List).

4. No dialogue.

5. Film in classroom, hallway or other nearby location.

6. Delete scene(s) you don’t need.

7. Plug camera into computer (MacBook with iMovie 09) and import your scenes.

7. Drag and drop these Events (scenes) into a New iMovie Project.

8. Each group shares their film and looks for how each group filmed the scenes.

Most often beginning film students will record much more of a scene than necessary. The film from the above activity lends itself to another activity where each student is given a scene and told to re-shoot it using a minimum of camera angles and no sweeping moves of the camera.

Find more videos like this on Teaching with Technology

Here are three resources that will help you plan to tell an effective story. While these are intended for Digital Storytelling, they apply to all forms of story writing.

7 Elements of a Digital Story (PDF)

Tools for Visualizing Your Story (PPT)

Sample Completed VPS of Stories (PDF)

Newbery Book Story Snap-shots (PDF)

Try this. Watch these short pieces of work and then answer the question is it a movie for each one. I did this activity with a group of middle school students and the results were very interesting.

“A movie is a continuous video that tells a story:)” – Mae T.

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Many people often think that anything that appears on a screen is a movie. You’ve probably watched thousands of movies already in your lifetime, but you’d be surprised that finding two people who share the same definition of a “movie” is rare.

Leave a comment with your definition of a movie.