Rock the House with Animoto!!

Digital video projects are a great way for students to creatively express themselves. Our digital savvy students enjoy making movies because the media they choose for their movies typically comes from web resources they use in their private lives such as YouTube, PhotoBucket, Flickr, iTunes, PlayList.com, etc. Because digital videos can be shared with the world through sites such as SchoolTube or TeacherTube, these projects create a "real audience" that motivates student learning. If you are fan of video hosting sites such as YouTube and TeacherTube, you know that videos can be designed to fit any subject and grade level.

Videos are a snap to make using Animoto! Free for teachers, Animoto.com is a web application that creates MTV-style videos with the click of a button. "Animoto videos have the emotional impact of a movie trailer and the visual energy of a music video." Users can upload their own pictures, videos, and music, or can use Animoto's bank of media resources (images, videos, and royalty free songs donated by the artists themselves)! Animoto does most of the work so students can focus on learning the content, instead of focusing on how to use the application.

Teachers can apply for a free Animoto for Educators account that comes with a few more "perks" than the standard Animoto account. Teachers can create group accounts allowing them access to monitor student's progress. In addition, these account holders have unlimited video creation rights!!

Below is a video I created on Animoto entitled "From Seed to Flower". It took all of 5 minutes to make (after I found the images, video, and song).

Click here to see some case studies of how educators are using Animoto with their students. Or, check out this one entitled: "Top 100 Children's Books".