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Saturday, September 18, 2010

The 5 Minute Recap

by Tara Seale
Recently, I used a flip video camera to create a quick recap of what happened in class. I messed up a few times, but I kept going. I knew that if I could quickly create and post short video clips as reminders for students who need additional explanation or students who are absent, then I would make it a part of my routine, but if I spent hours editing and making it perfect, then I would become frustrated with the time involved.
The short video clip below did not take long to create. After I finished recording, I connected the Flip Video Camera to a macbook and imported the video into iMovie. I uploaded the movie straight to YouTube from iMovie. It took less than 15 minutes from beginning to end to have this video on YouTube. I also put a link for students and parents on my Teacher Google Site page.


If you are interested in the directions for the essay, you can view the assignment at The Most Dangerous Game Mood Essay and the rubric is at The Most Dangerous Game Essay Rubric.

5 comments:

Debbie Shoulders said...

Stupid question - where did you put the flip camera while you were modeling? I have been looking for quick ways to have for students who need extra.

tengrrl said...

Great technique, Tara! Not only can this year's students use it for review, but it will be out there for those students as they move on to other classes and for other teachers to tap.

Well-done. Makes me wonder how long of a video I could film with my cell phone. Plus: maybe students could get in on the action and film recaps of group discussion -- or use the model to recap other events entirely (e.g., how I study for an exam, or how I prepare to write an essay).

Tara said...

Debbie,
I filmed this short clip on my prep. I held the flip in my hands as I stood in front of my board and discussed what we did that day. I stumbled a few times over my words, but I did not consider this clip as a final, edited product for serious publication... it is too time consuming to create one after teaching all day, so that is why I think this idea will work.
@tengrrl Awesome idea to use your phone. I have filmed some of my students presenting about tone for our last essay, but I know it needs some editing, that is why it is not on my Google Site yet. I do plan to use students in videos for the future, but editing is an issue. In this case, I just talked and reviewed what happened without any editing, very easy to upload quickly in a time crunched situation.

Kay Parks Haas said...

I appreciate your incorporation of the flip cam to capture your lesson/modeling for this assignment, and I like your rubric. My question is why is there a need for students to format their essay into exactly 11 sentences? Couldn't they accomplish all the expected skills/components without formulaically conforming to a specific amount of sentences?

Tara said...

Kay,
I completely agree with you that a formula is not necessary for most students. I started using the 11 sentence idea because I teach a 9th grade remedial English class. My students didn't know where to begin. I plan to wean my students off of formulaic writing during the course of the year. I had several students that did not need the 11 sentence formula because it limited what they could write, so I differentiated my instruction for the students who were ready to move past this type of writing. The plus side of formulaic writing is that students who have been unable to write successfully can use this formula to write well-written sentences so that they can experience writing successfully. As students write, I constantly circle around and encourage them to explore outside the boundaries of this essay, and for a teacher, this formula is helpful as a starting point and guideline get students' writing and answering the prompt.
Tara