finished product--a wmv file or it will not load. If you made an iMovie, it needs to be a mp4 file.
You will use the video icon on the Post Box tool bar.
4. In your blog, write a short post about your experience with digital storytelling. Include how you might have students use digital stories in your classroom.
Ready? Quiet on the set! Action!
The traditional news services such as CNN, MSNBC, ABCNews, Fox News and USAToday along with other educational and institutional sites provide current events, science, social studies and other educationally appropriate video resources. To have to go to each individual site for information would be time-consuming and almost impossible because thousands of minutes of video are added each day! Blinkx is a video search engine that brings about 150 video sites together under one search. Many of the videos will be appropriate for the classroom, but it is also possible that Blinkx may pull up things that are blocked because of content. As with any resource, these choices should be previewed and planned appropriately ahead of time.
Hulu is another resource for video that may be useful in the classroom. It stores many current television programs and movies, plus classic reruns. Several channels like Green (including National Geo environmental topics), Business, and News & Info (which includes Nova and Biography) could be sources for helpful clips. Alfred Hitchcock short stories are included in the Classics collection.
Hot links are essential to the 2.0 online world. Being able to go directly to additional information by clicking on a hot link is one advantage of the technology over print resources. Embedding information like a video brings information a step closer to immediate use. Embedding a video involves copying some computer code and pasting it on the Html page versus typing text on the compose page of your blog.
For your Tool #8 Assignment:
1. Select two videos that may be useful resources in your classroom. Upload them to your blog if they can be embedded into your blog. If they do not have embed capabilities, hot link them to your blog.
2. In your blog post for Tool #8, discuss how videos are useful resources for your students and how the 2 videos you selected will add to the learning in your classroom.
3. If it is not clear from the format, be sure and include the titles and indicate from which source you got the videos so that others may go there for additional information. Example: YouTube videos are easily recognizable and include the title of the video, but other sources listed here may be not be clearly identified.
Jing is a free program that allows you to easily add visuals to your online conversations. It allows you to capture a single screen or make a movie of several screens. The finished product can easily be stored and shared in Screencast , another free service, or shared other ways. Here is some information about how Jing can be used in classrooms and for other school-related needs.
Click on this link and then click on "Watch a Video on How" Jing works. It discusses both the free and pro (pay-for) versions, but you should be able to get the general idea of what you can do with the free portion. You will need to download Jing to be able to use it.
Another way to share information online is with Skype. You can chat online for free with Skype-to-Skype calls and either have an audio only encounter or have a video conference if you have a camera. The district Dells require the purchase of a minicam, but the MacBooks have a built-in camera. Another tool that will improve your Skype experience is a headset. The quality of the conversation will be improved, but Skype will work without a headset.
Information you need to use Skype:
Download the program. When you downoad, you will be asked to create your Skype name. You will have a Skype icon on your desktop. You click that to initiate a call.
How do I make a call? For the call to be free, each person must have a Skype account. Each person must download the program.
Here are the Essentials of Communicating with Skype
- How to Do