I wanted to share something that I have done for the past couple of years and it has been very effective in my classroom. Each week, I find a unique 2 - 7 or so minute video from the web. It can be on You Tube, or any other type of site. I find something that is very unique, different, from another culture or time, or something that I think the kids didn't know existed and probably haven't seen. I will lay the foundation out for you in hopes that you can try this out in your classroom. I hope that you have as much success with writing as I have in my classroom the past couple of years.
Materials Needed:
- Preferably an interactive whiteboard with a projector, but a projector, or even a T.V. hooked up to a computer would be okay also.
- Writing Journals for students. (I have my students use a 70 page spiral notebook for their weekly video journal prompts.
How it Works
Step 1: Find a Video. I can provide a couple links that I have used in the past for some of my videos. I have a Promethean Board with ActivInspire software. I make a weekly video prompt flipchart and embed the video from You Tube into the flipchart. Step 2: Watch the video FIRST before showing it to the students.
This may seems like a no brainer, but I wanted to stress the importance of viewing the video at home or on your own first. Make sure the content is appropriate for your grade level and you are certain the video is free of things kids shouldn't see.
Step 3: I NEVER tell the students what the video prompt will be about. It is ALWAYS a surprise. I do however, go over key vocabulary that the students need to know prior to watching the video. If there are words that the students may not understand I go over these first and we discuss the words.
Step 4: I play the video. The students watch and listen if there is sound. Some of the videos I have shown didn't require it.
Step 5: I turn to the next page in my flipchart lesson (on my Promethean Board) and start the timer. Depending on the time I have that day and the length of the video, I give the students time to journal about what they saw. They can write about their feelings, wonderment, thoughts, ideas, or even questions they may have that arose after watching. I give them anywhere from 5 - 10 minutes to write.
I encourage them to use their best writing such as: All I's are capitalized that stand alone, capital letters and ending punctuation in sentences. Indenting for each paragraph, etc......
Step 6: I call on each student and ask if they would like to read their journal entries. They can pass if they want to, or come up and read. It's different for each video. I find that different students participate for different videos. I give them the class microphone (through my Activsound) and they stand in the front of the class and read.
Reading aloud also helps students work on their activlistening skills and also helps when they edit their work. Sometimes when they read aloud, they realize they need to make corrections.
I will post the flipchart that I used for this past Monday's weekly video prompt in my classroom so you can use it. I will also post the link where I found the video. I am sure it is copyrighted, so I will not include it in my flipchart that I am posting on here. You will have to insert the video yourself.
I will also post the sequencing activity that I made to go with the video. My students were struggling a little with sequencing, so that's what I created to tie in with this video.
I will try to post other videos and activities that I do on Monday's, but I won't promise that it will be every Monday so don't hold me to it.
If you have success, questions, or comments let me know. I would love to hear them.
The video I used on Monday is about the Koh Panyee Football Club. This is such an inspiring video and can be implemented in any classroom. It is also a great video to have a discussion about teamwork and working together. Here is the link below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pesjdAry8I
Click on the picture of the flipchart below to download it. If you have Promethean ActivInspire you can open the flipchart. READ the notes by clicking on the yellow post-it note on the top right of each page. It will tell you what to do on each page.
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| Promethean ActivInspire Flipchart |
Below is the Smart Notebook Version of the file if you have Notebook. Click on the picture below to download it.
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| Smart Notebook Version of the file |
Click on the picture of the sequencing activity to download this to use after your students have watched and written their journal reflection about the video.
I would love to hear if you were able to use this in your classroom! If you have any questions, just ask! I would love to help!
Enjoy!
