Teachers may recognize the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) brand as one bearing a strong reputation for trustworthy news and information on wide-ranging global topics, including many relevant to the American audience. So when I learned (in Edtech Show & Tell August 2025) that the BBC had launched new preK-12 teaching resource, I took a close look at its offerings.

The BBC Learning Hub website is easy to navigate and features plenty of colorful previews that are sure to engage students. While the number of resources (~1,700) is relatively modest at this time, it’s likely that many more will continue to be added. Given the BBC’s trustworthiness as an information provider, and the fact that the site’s resources are fully free, educators are well advised to check it out.

How does BBC Learning Hub work?

To access all resources, users can quickly create a free account with email, or log in with an active Google account. To locate resources, simply click on the Classroom Resources in the top menu and enter a keyword in the search box, or click on the convenient list of resource types: Videos, Collections, Lesson Plans, Blog Posts, Student Articles, Printables, and News Clips. Clicking a resource type leads to a filtered search page, where users search by type, grade range, subject, and topic.

Teachers can save resources to their account, assign via Google classroom, print, or share as a link or pdf.

The Learning Hub’s strongest subject is clearly science, with more than 1,000 resources, and social studies, with more than 300. Math, English language arts, and social-emotional learning are sparsely represented at this point, but I would guess more will be added in the coming months.

What are the best BBC Learning Hub features?

Science and Nature Videos
It’s no surprise that the science and nature videos on BBC Learning Hub are top notch. Many are excerpted from the BBC’s vast library of high-quality nature and educational series, and include segments narrated by the best in the nature video business: Sir David Attenborough.

Explore the world of polar bears, penguins, turtles, sea otters, reptiles, strange predators of the deep, and many more fascinating animals and ecosystems. Even better, the Learning Hub has turned each video into a lesson plan, which includes questions, activities, vocabulary, writing prompts, and printable worksheets.

To find related videos grouped in a single sharable link, filter your search by "Playlist." Teachers can also create their own playlists of related resources.

Student Articles
"Student Articles" aren't written by students, but rather for them. Nearly 150 leveled reading passages cover diverse topics from the life of children in the Middle Ages to microplastics. Each passage is available in two to three versions suitable for students reading at Lexile levels from 400L-1400L, or grades 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12.

While the brief articles aren't a complete lesson plan, these can serve as a source for homework assignments or as a supplement to relevant curriculum.

News Clips
Comprising high-interest topics such as Minecraft, esports, and teen wrestling, the Learning Hub's news clips are brief, engaging videos that examine important, interesting and occasionally obscure news stories. With the accompanying printable worksheets, news clips can become the core of a complete lesson plan.

How much does BBC Learning Hub cost?

The BBC Learning Hub is fully free for students, teachers and all other users. A free account is required to access resources.

• New Teacher Starter Kit
• Best Tools for Teachers

PlayPosit makes video interactions far more rich and engaging thanks to an easy-to-use setup. This is designed for use in education, and as such, can be picked up by teachers and students with ease.

The company behind this tool, WeVideo, is a video-editing specialist and consequently offers some very powerful tools designed to be used by those with little-to-no experience. The idea being that nearly any video or audio file can be used as a base from which to build learning experiences.

PlayPosit can be used both digitally, sharing online for example, as well as in the class as something to work through as a group -- or be re-used multiple times as needed. But it's so much more, which this guide aims to explain.

What is PlayPosit?

PlayPosit is a video-editing tool that works as a way to take pre-created video content and mold that into a structured learning event. That can mean for use in the classroom or digitally from wherever a student is.

The idea behind this tool from WeVideo is to offer videos that are less about the students being talked at and more about being interactive. When a student knows they could be asked a question about what they are listening to, it can help to keep them more focused and engaged, aiding in uptake of learning.

This tool works using a browser for both for teachers creating content and for students interacting with it, so no special equipment is required, making it very accessible.

How does PlayPosit work?

PlayPosit lets teachers login via a browser and upload videos or work with links to get started. That can mean uploading your own videos or using pre-created options from websites such as YouTube.

It is then possible to edit these videos, or audio clips, by inserting interactivity along the way. That could be as simple as creating a pause at a certain point with the intention of discussing it in class, or adding in a multiple choice question for students to answer on their own time.

Teachers are able to see student responses live in real-time or use the analytics tools that can provide an individual, group, or class-wide view of data at a glance.

What are the best PlayPosit features?

PlayPosit not only lets you make all the many videos of YouTube interactive, in a personalized way, but also offers already created content. To save teacher time it's possible to search the already-created resource list and find interactive videos that may suit the needs of your class. If these are not quite right, you can always simply edit what is there and share as needed to still save time on the bulk of the creation.

The ability to control playback is a powerful tool. For example, you may wish to remove the ability to skip forward through a video to ensure all students watch every part. Usually by adding in quiz-style questions as interval points, this is enough to compel students to watch and take it all in, but it's helpful to have these extra measures if needed.

The option is available to add in multiple choice questions, open-ended written responses, or polls. A poll can be a useful way to assess where the class is and help spark discussion as you work through the videos as a group.

How much does PlayPosit cost?

PlayPosit is free with unlimited videos to use but that is limited to 100 learner attempts at working through these, per month. If you want more you'll need to pay to unlock that option.

A K-12 specific pricing tier is available with a few options that include Single Teacher at $89/year, which gets you 50GB cloud storage, a single seat of control, Google Docs integration, and more.

Go for the Classroom option at $374/year and you get all the above plus use for up to 30 seats, as well as interactive elements with real-time feedback, project management tools, analytics per users, more security and customization options, LMS integrations, and more.

The District plan option is charged at a quote basis and offers wider admin controls and enhanced security.

PlayPosit best tips and tricks

Start a discussion
Use the video breaks to hold discussions about what's been seen and either move back or keep debating as it progresses.

Assess
Create a video on something you've learned and use questions to asses knowledge within that video and of what was learned in class.

Poll up next
Use polls to assess what is of interest and in which areas students want to learn more about before planning future lessons.

• New Teacher Starter Kit
• Best Tools for Teachers

In February 2021 a study was published in the Review of Educational Research that found students learned better from video than an in-person lecture, and learned best from a combination of the two. 

Two years later, the study, which compared video lectures to in-person lectures, continues to have an impact. “Educators were clearly surprised by the findings,” says Dr. Michael Noetel, lead author of this research and professor of psychology at The University of Queensland. “That paper has been very influential in the field. It is in the top 1% for citations. It’s been cited 16 times more than the average education paper.”

The implications of the research are also changing the way educators view recorded lectures. “For a while, I think educators saw videos as the lazy way to teach, or they thought students only liked videos because they found reading hard,” Noetel says. “That’s starting to change. Educators are starting to see that video serves a really useful function. Sure, we want to make classes interactive and engaging, but when we need to explain a concept in the first place, then videos are some of the best ways of doing that.”

Why Is Video Learning Effective?  

“There are times when lectures and workshops are better than videos,” Noetel says. But much of the time video learning is more effective. “Probably because we cut out all of the rubbish and we edit ourselves to be more concise. We lose all of the irrelevant stories, and students can skip the parts of our lectures that they think are boring. That was really surprising, and a little bit of a hit to the old ego to find out that they prefer to be able to skip parts of my lecture rather than have to sit through my stories.” 

Having the learner be able to control the learning materials is a really important process, Notel adds. “When students can self-pace, they're much more likely to be able to catch up if they miss something,” he says. 

Additional research also suggests humans are hardwired to learn best when they are processing both auditory and visual information.  

What the Research Found

For the study, researchers looked at more than 105 prior studies with a combined sample of 7,776 college students and found promising results for recorded lectures. When students learned from video instead of the usual forms of teaching, the average grade increased from a B to a B+. When students received video lessons in addition to an existing class, the impact was even greater, with their grades rising from a B to an A on average.

“I expected going into this review that videos would be fine, that they would be okay, they’d be as good as a lecture from me, for example,” Noetel says. Instead, video learning outperformed in-person learning, a finding that confirms earlier research on the topic.

Can Video Learning be Effective for Teaching Skills as Well as Facts?  

In addition to facts and figures, video learning is effective for teaching more complex skills and behaviors. “I teach counseling,” Noetel says. “It's really hard to demonstrate proper counseling, in a lecture, because I can't bring a client and do that in front of a group of 400 students. And if I do a roleplay, it feels really contrived. But when I've created videos of counseling sessions that can be much more real, they can be practiced, they can really focus on what I'm trying to do. And you can much more easily stop them, and sort of annotate the video with important parts of the skill to say, ‘Hey, did you notice there how I use this type of question?’” 

He adds, “That's not to say that you can fully learn counseling from videos, because obviously, you need to practice and obviously, you need a chance to get feedback. But when it comes to first picking up a skill, it seems like video is really well optimized for the way that our minds learn.” 

Is Video Learning Effective for K-12 Students?

While Noetel’s study did not look at younger learners, and there are unique challenges to keeping K-12 learners engaged, he hasn’t found any literature suggesting that he and his team’s findings wouldn’t also be applicable to K-12 students.

“Kids’ brains in the way that they learn are no different to the way that adult brains learn,” Noetel says. “They still benefit from not getting overwhelmed with too much information.They still benefit from having a combination of visual and auditory stimuli so that they've got sights and sounds, things to look at and to hear. They still benefit from interactivity. That's really well established.” 

What Are The Limitations of Video Learning Research?  

"The study we did really focused on the highest kind of quality research to make causal claims,” Noetel says. “So we're fairly sure that if you randomize people and give them videos, instead of most other types of learning, they do better. The thing that we don't know is how that works in practice, and how that would work around the globe or in areas where there isn't ubiquitous internet access.” 

He adds that in recent years the education system has seen how so many learners don't have the privilege of high-speed internet, or even their own device. “So I don't think videos are a panacea because at the moment they can't get everywhere and to everybody.”

How Can Educators Respond to Video Learning Research?  

Since the initial study two years ago, Noetel has conducted additional research on how educators can best make use of multimedia. He has also taken video learning’s potential to heart by upping the quality of the video he offers for his classes. He has learned how to edit video, and has purchased better recording equipment, including a high-quality camera and a teleprompter. 

He has also embraced a flipped classroom. “My classes now no longer have anything that looks like a lecture,” he says. “The classes are all students doing things, students hands on, making mistakes, getting feedback, trying the things that they've seen online.” 

He hopes that in the future universities and other education institutions will consider prioritizing spending decisions around video learning. 

“Universities would spend hundreds and thousands of dollars on a perfectly acoustically calibrated lecture theatre that could hold 500 students at once,” he says. “All of those lecture theatres are now empty. But what we've given students instead is the experience of watching a $20 webcam with someone who doesn't know how to edit a video. And I think the best universities have started channeling some of that infrastructure funding into creating video labs and into creating dedicated multimedia producers who can support the academics who don't know how to use Final Cut Pro or Premiere Pro.” 

• Best Practices for Using Video with Students
• Flipping Virtual Classrooms for More Impact
• Why Zoom Fatigue Occurs and How Educators Can Overcome It

It's hard to believe that one of the top tools for learning – YouTube – recognized as No. 1 by the Center for Learning & Performance Technologies, is blocked in many schools today. Fortunately there are a few good ways to access YouTube even if it's blocked by the school.

These solutions are worth seeking as YouTube is a very powerful resource full of educational information in a format that's easily digested by students of all ages. A special education-focused channel is available just for teachers and students.

But if a school has blocked YouTube specifically it can be difficult to get access. We say difficult and not impossible as there are a few key workarounds that can get you up and running with video support.

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1. Use a VPN to get YouTube

One of the most powerful tools for gaining access to blocked YouTube content is a VPN, or Virtual Private Network. These use servers, dotted about the globe, to effectively bounce your internet signal. This means your IP address on the device you're using is hidden behind another on the server of the VPN. 

The result is you can appear to be logging on from a different location, which can keep you anonymous and secure while online. Yup, VPNs can be very useful tools even beyond getting YouTube access.

In fact, a VPN will let you pick the location from where you want to appear. So if you want to take the class on a virtual Spanish-speaking trip, for example, you could set your location to Mexico or Spain and have all the YouTube results local to those countries, as if you were really there.

There are plenty of free VPN options out there, though you will need to download and install one before trying this option.

2. Work with Blendspace

Blendspace is a digital tool that allows you to create virtual lessons online. As such, you can pull in all sorts of helpful media to use as resources for the digital lesson. One of those sources is YouTube. 

All you need to do is go to the Blendspace site, sign up for a free account, and start creating a lesson. The platform uses templates so it's quick and easy, with lessons ready is as little as five minutes. The site will pull in any YouTube videos you need, and since the school connection sees you as using Blendspace, rather than YouTube, you shouldn't have to worry about being blocked.

3. Download the YouTube video

Another option to get around YouTube restrictions is to simply download the video from another connection before the class. This could be at home, allowing you to get the video lined up when planning your lesson. You then don't even need to worry about an internet connection of any kind since the video will be stored on your device.

Depending on which device you use, there are lots of software options you can download. For Mac and PC there's 4KDownload, for Android there's TubeMate, for iOS you've got Documents, and if you just want to get the clip via a browser window – no app install required - you can always use Clip Converter.

4. Tether your smartphone

Another quick and easy way to unblock YouTube is to tether the device you're using in the classroom with your smartphone. Say you want to get YouTube on the big screen via a class laptop -- you can set your smartphone to have its wireless hotspot on and then connect to that from the list of WiFi options available on the laptop.

This will then use your smartphone's data – be warned – so it may cost if you've not got plenty of free data included in your plan. But it's a great option if you're stuck and need access in that moment.

5. Watch with SafeShare

SafeShare is an online platform that is created for the safe sharing of videos. Yup, that name's a giveaway for sure. What this means is that you can copy a YouTube video URL, place it in SafeShare, and have it ready to view via the platform.

Not only will this get around restrictions but it will also strip the video of any ads and block any inappropriate content. 

6. Get your admin to unblock you

For most schools there is going to be an IT admin in charge of the YouTube block. Often it can be easiest to go to them directly to have your machine unblocked for access. In the case of schools using Google Classroom via the G Suite, this is very easily done and can be for specific users, browsers, devices, and more.

This will also mean that in future you won't need to ask for permission again, presuming the unblock remains open for you. Just be cautious of giving the class access as the responsibility will now lie with you on making sure inappropriate content isn't viewed by students on your device.

Read on to learn more on the legalities of all these methods for unblocking YouTube, below.

• What is YouGlish and How Does YouGlish Work?
• 9 Top YouTube Channels to Boost Classroom Lessons

Before using these tools consider this

According to YouTube's terms of use, you're not supposed to download a video unless you see a download link, in order to protect video creators’ rights. However, the fair use clause in the Copyright Law of the United States allows the use of works without permission for teaching. 

All of this can be a little confusing. If you are going to download a video, your best bet is to contact the video owner for permission and to properly cite the original link. Not only is it a good practice, it is a great idea to connect yourself and your students with the creator of content. They might even be willing to join your class via Skype or Google Hangout to share more.

Also note that in some of the resources mentioned above (i.e. Blendspace), you are not downloading the video, but rather showing it in container that is not blocked by schools so that it can be viewed.

Another option is that YouTube now offers Creative Commons-licensed videos, which are safe to use. To find them, enter your keywords into YouTube’s search bar (such as "How to make a paper plane") then click on the "Filter & Explore" tab to the far left. In the middle of the drop-down list are the words "creative commons." Click here and all the videos that appear under your search term will be Creative-Commons licensed.

To share your feedback and ideas on this article, consider joining our Tech & Learning online community. 

This past March we were all thrown into a world in which video became the main connecting force for learning. Districts across the country scrambled to find a video conferencing platform that worked for them. Whether it be Zoom, Teams, Google Meet, or others, districts invested time and energy in making sure teachers could maintain that connection with their students.

As schools begin to open this fall (in either virtual, hybrid, or in-person models), video will play a key role in student learning going forward. During Tech & Learning’s recent Virtual Leadership Summit, Chrtistine Ravesi-Weinstein and Dr. Melissa Lizmi shared two different perspectives around the use of video to engage students. 

See the entire discussion

Multimodal Delivery 

Content can be consumed in a variety of formats; students learn in an equally varied manner. 

When shifting to an online instruction, there is an opportunity to make education much more accessible. These new methods, including the use of either live or recorded video, offer a chance to differentiate instruction for each learner.

Creating these opportunities doesn’t have to be an either/or approach. Many schools are choosing between models, which means a teacher who has to provide instruction in a hybrid environment (teaching both in-person and virtual) could be stretched thin between their actual and virtual self. 

A “3-in-1 Teaching” model allows an educator to teach the lesson once, but it can then be utilized in three different formats, said Lizmi.

1. In-person - The most traditional instruction happens in person. However, in-person learning might look slightly different with smaller and more socially distant classrooms.

2. Live video online - Using tools like Zoom, Google Meet, Skype, etc, teachers can share their computer screen and audio from the classroom in real-time. Questions asked of in-person students would also apply to those viewing online. 

3. On-demand - The lesson can be captured by recording the live instruction and then posting the video to a website, YouTube channel, or LMS so that those students who missed out live can replay the day’s learning at another time.

Vlogging

If you’ve been on social media at all the past couple of years, you’ll notice that short form videos are all the rage these days. Whether it be an Instagram story or Qwibis, or even the controversial TikTok, students tend to enjoy small bite-sized content when it comes to video consumption. As educators, creating hour-long videos may not be an ideal way to engage our students in learning.

But how does an educator get started when it comes to short-form vlogging? 

Turns out you might have most of what you need in the palm of your hand. It really comes down to content and what you are trying to communicate. Creating a short one- to two-minute video message on your phone and then posting it to your class LMS or YouTube can be a simple task or a major production, depending on the goals you want to achieve. 

While everyone has their own strategies, Ravesi-Weinstein outlined a few best practices when creating vlogs for your classroom:

Write out a script or general outline - This will help you organize your thoughts and main points you want your audience to takeaway.

Use a teleprompter app - Don’t feel the need to memorize everything. There are a few teleprompter apps on the market that can help you get to your main points in a timely fashion. 

Check your lighting - No need to purchase fancy lighting as you can use natural light when filming outside (make sure it’s not too bright or you’ll squint), or even some lamps in your house. 

Keep editing simple - Using programs such as iMovie and the mmhmm app, you can quickly put together some vlogs without a lot of knowledge or experience. You can also use a web-based tool such as FlipGrid or Screencastify to record and upload your vlogs in moments.

Of course, many of these comments are intended for teachers. However, as stated during the presentation, this could easily be converted into an activity for students as well. 

Here are some of the components that could make vlogging a powerful learning tool for students.

Tips for Teaching with Video

In summary, the two presenters shared many tips around best practices for teaching with video. Aside from those already mentioned, they also recommend the following tips PRIOR to teaching your first online video class.

Practice, practice, practice - Online video conference software has a lot of similarities between products, but also many differences. Learning how to share your screen, annotate, and manage participants are some common things you’ll want to learn prior to your online experience.

Open the session early - Opening the session early by about 10 minutes will allow you to have those informal discussions with students that are important when trying to build relationships remotely. Ask them about their weekend or something fun they might be doing outside of school to build those connections and trust.

Be honest - Especially the first few times you try a new resource or video chatting software, you’ll figure out quickly that some things don’t work right even with practice. Be honest with your students and tell them that you are trying something new that might not work the first time.

Build in tools for interaction - Using polling tools and mini-assessments throughout your presentation, as well as smaller break-out discussions, will help keep your learners engaged in their learning throughout the video experience.

Whether it be vlogging, live streaming, or learning on-demand, video will play a major role in connecting with your learners during this coming school year. The tips provided during this session can help prepare educators for this future by scaffolding tools and strategies for making video instruction a success in your classroom. 

Just because your school went remote doesn’t mean students need to ditch their phys ed momentum. If anything, during times of stress within the family and community, getting up and moving is critical to both body and mind. Even before coronavirus reared its ugly head, one PE educator knew how to get tech into his teaching game for remote phys ed classes.

Who: Derek Blyzwick, Elementary Physical Education Teacher

Where: Brooks/McCormick Elementary (Moon Area School District), PA

What: Using tech to enhance PE, in the classroom and at home.

I have always loved technology. Students now are consumed with tech, so showing them how tech and movement work together helps find common ground in creating a new generation of movers. Some of the ways I have incorporated tech into my classes are by using pedometers (students have to get so many steps to each class), projectors (for PowerPoint lessons on new sports and activities as well as Dance Videos), iPad to use Plickers (easy assessment app), and iMovie/KineMaster (for video editing).

I have a Dance Club in school and we record our dances. I then project them on the wall and use it as a station for students to dance too. Another really cool thing I use is barcode scanners. I use them for my running club. Each student gets a card with a barcode. They get their card scanned every time they complete a lap. I upload the stats onto an Excel spreadsheet to keep track of miles for each students. The students receive little tokens when they reach certain milestones (2 mile, 5k, 5 mile, etc.) I find tech and movement are so intertwined now that students gravitate toward technology that gets them moving.

Positive Results

Using the projector, I can go over a skill and then put a video up on the projector repeating that skill. I can then go around and either asses my students or help make corrections while everyone is still actively engaged. It is kind of like having another teacher in my class.

The pedometers have been a huge success. Students work so hard to get steps in my class to get the best possible grade. The students will even jog in place if they are waiting to perform a skill, keeping them active. They would have less of a tendency to move at that time without the tech motivation.

Biggest Challenge

One big obstacle is tech is not perfect. Things break down. Items need new parts. The big thing is staying ahead of it, with grants and self funding.

Pro Tips

Implement slowly. Adding an app to your phone, projecting a video on the wall, or playing around with iPads is a good start. Being completely dependent on tech for every part of your lesson can make it difficult when it doesn’t work. Striking a balance between traditional and tech is what I think works best.

I think the more you use tech, you develop a comfort with it which will make it easier to teach remotely.  There is a real strong physical education presence on Twitter and YouTube where amazing teachers provide free resources. 

Finding Funding

I have received a grant from Highmark High Five to purchase equipment for my schools, as well as funding from PTC at both of my schools. 

I have also self-funded by selling apparel for my running club to purchase barcode scanners and charms.

Tech Tools

iPad apps

   - iMovie, kinemaster (video editing) 

   - Interval Timer (timer for stations)

   - PowerPoint 

   - Team Shake (make teams, randomizes teams)

Barcode Scanners - Opticon opn -2001

PE Central—online resource

Twitter/YouTube - great for finding the most recent and up-to-date physical education lessons.

Derek and his fellow Physical Education teacher-wife, Jolene, (and a certain mini-dance pro) offered some movement dance tutorials to keep students and their families moving during the district’s face-to-face instruction shut down due to the coronavirus. 

Share these engaging lessons with your students: 

High Hopes Dance

Boom Dance

Tightrope Dance

Entertainment's Here Dance

When pro athletes want to bring their game to the next level, they go to film. They see what works, see what needs tweaking. Why should teachers ignore such a valuable resource? Edthena helps teachers make the most of professional learning by recording and uploading videos of classroom practice, model lessons, and coaching conversations into a video library.

Who: Justin Taylor, Assistant Director of Educational Initiatives and Innovation, Office of the Deputy Superintendent

Where: Hartford Public Schools, Hartford, CT

What: Using Edthena in “Lab Classrooms” for Professional Development

As a former teacher, I often watched videos of others teaching in order to improve my instructional practice. While these videos rarely reflected the specific context and unique assets and challenges of our district, they were formative tools in my own professional learning. 

This year, our district’s instructional coaches identified 66 K-12 classrooms where teachers were exemplifying high-quality instructional practices. These “lab classrooms” provided an excellent opportunity for us to celebrate and elevate effective practice within our own district by using video to capture best practices.

We first on-boarded a small group of instructional coaches as Edthena early adopters. These coaches were excited about the prospect of capturing and using video for professional learning and also were comfortable with technology. From November to January, they recorded and uploaded videos of classroom practice, model lessons, and coaching conversations. By February, after all 66 lab classrooms had been identified in the district, we provided training to all elementary, math, and Humanities instructional coaches on how to use the platform to record and upload video of lab classroom teachers. Instructional coaches were tasked with recording and uploading at least four videos for each of their lab classrooms.

Biggest Challenge

While we have yet to face any considerable adaptive challenges, our greatest technical challenge to date is determining how to capture high-quality video with low-cost technology. Currently, instructional coaches are using their cell phones for video recording. While generally okay, the audio quality may sometimes be compromised by excessive background noise or distance between the observer and the teacher. Moving forward, we plan to invest in technology that will improve how we capture video and/or audio in classrooms.

Finding Funding

We paid for Edthena and offered small stipends to our lab classroom teachers through grant funding from the Barr Foundation.

Pro Tips

By starting with a small group of instructional coaches as early adopters, we were able to generate interest in Edthena with those who were already eager to capture video of teacher practice. In addition, using instructional coaches absolved teachers of any responsibility in recording video, eliminating a potential barrier to participation. Moreover, since we focused on capturing video in lab classrooms, teachers understood that by agreeing to serve as a lab classroom their practice would be recorded and shared for professional learning.

Tech Tools

Edthena

Chromebooks

IPhones/Android for recording

Virtual Nerd

Flip a classroom with these free video math tutorials

Pros: Tutorials are high-quality and easy to follow; they cover a wide range of math topics.

Cons: Learning can be repetitive as all videos follow the same format; there's no active engagement for students.

Bottom Line: High-quality but monotonous math tutorials can be a good classroom supplement.

Read more 

App of the Day picks are selected from the top edtech tools reviewed by Common Sense Education, which helps educators find the best ed-tech tools, learn best practices for teaching with tech, and equip students with the skills they need to use technology safely and responsibly. 

By Common Sense Education

NOVA

Compelling science videos have high-quality classroom applications

Pros: Documentaries and their supporting activities let students experience science as scientists.

Cons: NOVA's vast resources could be overwhelming.

Bottom Line: Stellar simulations, teacher guides, and other activities can stand on their own, and they're enhanced with high-quality video content.

Read more 

App of the Day picks are selected from the top edtech tools reviewed by Common Sense Education, which helps educators find the best ed-tech tools, learn best practices for teaching with tech, and equip students with the skills they need to use technology safely and responsibly. 

By Common Sense Education

ACT Academy

Personalize and differentiate with expansive multimedia resource library

Pros: With nearly a half-million free resources of all types, teachers will easily be able to find plenty of ways to differentiate instruction.

Cons: Kids of all ages will likely be exposed to advertisements, and school or district filters might block some content.

Bottom Line: Whether it's skill-building, test prep, interactive lessons, or games you're after, this extensive site has it all in an easy-to-use platform.

Read more 

App of the Day picks are selected from the top edtech tools reviewed by Common Sense Education, which helps educators find the best ed-tech tools, learn best practices for teaching with tech, and equip students with the skills they need to use technology safely and responsibly. 

By Common Sense Education

LearnZillion

Pros: It's super customizable, which means you can assign kids the lessons they need to work on most.

Cons: Lacks an element of fun, which could make using the site feel like work for some kids.

Bottom Line: An innovative way to enhance lessons and tailor learning for individual needs.

Read more here.

Site of the Week picks are selected from the top edtech tools reviewed byCommon Sense Education, which helps educators find the best edtech tools, learn best practices for teaching with tech, and equip students with the skills they need to use technology safely and responsibly. 

By Common Sense Education

Last month, I was part of the Teach with Tech conference. I was asked to give a twenty minute overview on what makerspaces are and how teachers can get started with making. I wanted to share my video here for anyone who may be interested. In this video, I cover the basics of what a makerspace is, show off my makerspace, and give you some tips for starting your own makerspace. If you use this video along with the Edtech List, you’ll have a good idea of what’s in my makerspace, how I use it, and how you can get started with making in your classroom, too.

Enjoy!

cross-posted at Teched Up Teacher

Chris Aviles presents on education topics including gamification, technology integration, BYOD, blended learning, and the flipped classroom. Read more at Teched Up Teacher.

PowerMyLearning Connect

Create playlists and differentiate with quality third-party content

Pros: The breadth of learning material is almost staggering, especially for a free resource.

Cons: Content is mostly pulled from other educational sites, and school resources and filters may limit what teachers can assign.

Bottom Line: A curation of some of the best educational content on the web made easily accessible, both for students and teachers.

Read more here.

App of the Day picks are selected from the top edtech tools reviewed by Common Sense Education, which helps educators find the best ed-tech tools, learn best practices for teaching with tech, and equip students with the skills they need to use technology safely and responsibly.

By Common Sense Education

How do students share their learning in your classroom? Perhaps there is a bulletin board full of fantastic student writing on display or maybe their are pictures with science experiments featured outside your classroom. There are so many ways to share and celebrate student learning. Video portfolios are an excellent option for encouraging students to reflect on their learning and showcase their accomplishments this school year.

Student Portfolio Tips

In past blog posts, I’ve shared strategies for creating portfolios with students and thinking about student branding and storytelling. As we think beyond a text- or link-based portfolio, let’s consider video. You can use video with students to build a portfolio of their growth over the course of the school year.

Regular readers of the blog know that I’m a big fan of the Adobe Spark tools. Ben Forta and I even wrote a book about it. The book is titled 40 Ways to Inject Creativity in the Classroom with Adobe Spark. In addition to the 15 graphic organizers in the book, I have five extras for you to download for free using this link.

So when talking about video portfolios today, we’ll look at what you can do with Adobe Spark Video. It’s free, easy-to-use, and gives students a space to create. If you’re new to Adobe Spark, I have a blog post full of quick start videos you can check out here.

Video Portfolios

A video portfolio can take many forms, and there isn’t only one way to do it. In this blog post, I’ll take you through one example of how you could use video portfolios this year. The example outlined below shows how each month students add to their Spark Video.

Students can share a success and a goal for each month of the school year as they build a video portfolio. They can update their Spark Video project each month so that it is a living document of their school year. I hope that you’ll customize this activity so it fits best for your students.

First, have students create a title and introduction slides. You might ask every student to respond to the same prompts to introduce themselves. Or you can give students a few ideas and then room to be creative. In the example below, you can see that I’ve set up a title slide. The title slide is followed by a few slides for an introduction.

Then, students can make a slide for each month. They can follow it with more slides that share one thing they are proud of and one thing they are working on during the upcoming month. Imagine a student is proud of a literary essay published on the school website. They can search for an icon to represent their writing. Then they can hold the orange button to record their voice talking about their success from the month.

Updating Video Portfolios

At the end of each month, students can use the Share button at the top of the screen to share their video portfolio. They might share the link to their video just with you. Or students might post the link in an online space where their classmates can give feedback.

As each month of the school year finishes up, have students pause and add more slides to their video. Spark Video lets you publish and update your videos as frequently as you like. So students can publish and share a link to their video at the end of September. Then they can add more slides in October and update the link. The link will then take viewers to the new version of their video.

The screenshot above shows the options students will see when they make changes to their video and want to update the link. This update feature can help illustrate how a portfolio is a living document of student successes from the school year. You might “finish” the video portfolio in May or June but the final product will go through numerous iterations throughout the school year.

Adding Videos to a Video Portfolio

Video portfolios can include a combination of images, icons, text, and narration like you see in the screenshots above. You might also want students to add video clips. Students can use the camera on their device to record short clips where they discuss success stories and goals for the month.

Spark Video lets users add 30-second video clips to any slide. So even if students first submit a video clip using a tool like Seesaw or Flipgrid, they can download that clip as a file and upload it to Spark Video. This combination is an excellent opportunity to make the most of the other tools your students might use during the school day.

If you’re looking for a way for students to capture and chronicle their learning this school year, try making this video portfolio idea your own. You might set a specific structure. For example, you can carve out one afternoon a month on your planning calendar. Alternatively, you can give students the freedom to celebrate their learning in any way they like.

Head over to Spark of Education’s website to learn more about this powerful (and free!) tool for student creators!

I've had the pleasure of working with this company. All opinions are my own.

cross posted at classtechtips.com

Dr. Monica Burns is a former classroom teacher, Speaker, and Curriculum & EdTech Consultant. She is the author of Tasks Before Apps (ASCD) and #FormativeTech (Corwin). Visit Monica's site ClassTechTips.com for more ideas on how to become a tech-savvy teacher.

Blackmagic Design today announced that High School Nation is using Blackmagic Design’s URSA Mini Pro as their main cameras with the organization’s nationwide high school outreach program. The URSA Mini Pro cameras were recently used by High School Nation to film interviews at the NFL 2019 Pro Bowl and Major League Baseball’s 2019 Spring Training events.

High School Nation was founded in 2014 by Jimmy and Mike Cantillon when their efforts to help their younger sibling’s band find a place to perform evolved into a nationwide effort to support schools and young artists. 

Cantillon and his team regularly takes student broadcasters to such events as the NFL Pro Bowl, NBA Summer League, MLB All-Star Week and more. But their beginnings were much simpler. At the start, HSN focused on radio broadcast by encouraging young, up and coming musical artists to stop by high school radio stations for an interview. Often this was followed by an on campus performance during lunch. From there, it seemed a logical extension to move into digital production.

HSN Videographer Ryan Slattery welcomed the upgrade to the Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 4.6K, simply because it gave them professional options. “The footage quality is amazing. After shooting S-Log 3 for years, we found codec transition relatively smooth, but the 10-bit color depth is an important improvement. As a package, the URSA Mini Pro did give us an easier set up, by already having a monitor (with LUTS), having the XLR inputs, and the built in shoulder mount already in place,” said Slattery.

Moving from DSLR technology into an URSA Mini Pro was a leap, but one that was welcome by HSN and the students, who had the opportunity to put the systems together and experience the setup as they prepared for their interviews. “They all commented, including the teachers, on how much better their on campus departments would be if they had access to gear like this,” said Cantillon. “They were blown away.”

High School Nation hopes to continue expand their programs, and intends to push further into digital production.  “We want to help schools start classes and eventually full departments that focus on these careers,” said Cantillon.  "We want to help them set themselves up for life after high school, and head off to college or careers with as much familiarity with new technologies and gear as someone who is in their mid late 20's.”

Kid-friendly STEM-focused videos spark interest, encourage learning 

Pros: Informative, kid-appropriate videos include written background information.

Cons: Content is divided into general categories, but isn't sorted by age or specific topic.

Bottom Line: Regularly updated visual content stimulates interest, learning; adding better sorting capabilities would make it a stronger resource. 

Read more here.

Site of the Week picks are selected from the top edtech tools reviewed byCommon Sense Education, which helps educators find the best edtech tools, learn best practices for teaching with tech, and equip students with the skills they need to use technology safely and responsibly. 

By Common Sense Education

In a sea of storytelling apps, Storybird stands out. It makes it easy for kids to turn their imaginative ideas and narratives into books. But it also has its limitations. Is it right for your classroom? This short video will let you know.

[Adaptive Math Curriculum Earns High Marks From Teachers]

Wondering if Zearn is the right math curriculum for your classroom? This video gives you everything you need to know about this popular digital tool in just 30 seconds.

For more on Zearn's unique take on video-based instruction and interactive activities, make sure to check out full review from Common Sense Education: https://www.commonsense.org/education/website/zearn

[Free Platform Provides Simple Way to Discuss & Analyze Videos]

Wondering if Kahoot! is right for your classroom? This super quick video gives you the need-to-know info about this popular formative assessment tool.

For more, make sure to check out the full review on Common Sense Education: https://www.commonsense.org/education/website/kahoot

Stopping in at the Barco booth at ISTE 2018, Kevin Hogan spoke with Christine Hunter, business development manager at Barco, to discuss their collaboration tool, wePresent. Going beyond the bare-bones of typical screensharing, wePresent now features a moderation function, giving educators even more control over and flexibility with how content is shared in the classroom.

Kevin Hogan stopped by the Netsupport booth at ISTE 2018 to discuss their school-wide IT management system. Managing director Marcus Kingsley highlighted the system’s ability to manage a wide-array of ed-tech but emphasized a focus on digital citizenship and a changing narrative in online student safety.

Kevin Hogan interviews Gisela Albuquerque Weise, Marketing Specialist for Canon US, about Canon’s Intelligent Grading Solution. Their new cloud-base product allows teachers to save time when uploading test scores and exporting data so they can focus on the parts of teaching that matter most. Educators are stretched thin, and this solution helps them maximize their resources.

[Create and Deliver Interactive Lessons With Powerful Platform]

Check out this simple way to turn homework into a legit feedback loop with FreshGrade. Whether your classroom is completely paperless, or if you’re just moving in that direction, FreshGrade’s dashboard makes it easy to manage students’ work and offer great feedback.

Get more classroom management tips from Common Sense Education.

A new Cisco corporate social responsibility (CSR) educational initiative introduced at ISTE, Global Problem Solvers: The Series (GPS: The Series), helps educators like Edgar Ochoa, a history teacher at the Roosevelt Elementary School District, introduce middle-schoolers to in-demand skills like complex problem solving, critical thinking, creativity, people management, and coordinating with others while emphasizing social consciousness, entrepreneurship, and the potential of technology to accelerate impact. Watch the video.

Research projects strike fear into the heart of most students. These big projects also strike fear into the hearts of teachers because they require a lot of planning and take FOREVER to grade!

Grading complex, long term assignments is overwhelming because there is so much to do all at once. Google Classroom can help.

Instruct your students to copy and paste that portion of their assignment from Google Docs (or whatever they are using) into the question you created in Google Classroom.

[Six Ways to Use Google Photos in the Classroom]

The result is a nice, neat list of student work right in Google Classroom. You don't need to open up 25 different Google Documents (big time saver)! You can now provide feedback directly from Google Classroom which students can apply to their paper during the next class period.

If you do this for each component of your assignment, by the time your students turn in their final project, you have provided feedback on each individual component. The final grading process should be relatively quick.

cross posted at electriceducator.blogspot.com

John Sowash creates useful resources for educators on his blog, The Electric Educator. John is the author of The Chromebook Classroom and founder of the Google Certification Academy. You can connect with John on Twitter (@jrsowash) and Instagram.

YouTube has given life to some unique genres and types of videos. One of these -- the video essay -- can be a great tool for media-literacy education. Here's why: Video essays ground their arguments in important cultural or political topics. For instance, some video essays might expose the way media represent gender or race. Others may look at how media evolve over time and interact with the world at large. Almost all of them present compelling questions or topics, then dig into them using media as evidence and explication. Most importantly, video essays model for students how YouTube can be a platform for critical communication.

Learn more about what video essays are and how to use them in your classroom.

[Get Students to Self-Assess After A Quiz with Kahoot!]

“A problem well put is half solved.” – John Dewey

Now that my semester has ended I have some time to share some of my students’ projects. I teach English and students are required to complete at least 4 essays throughout one semester. I add a digital component to each writing, because our students need to learn how to read, write, and conduct research with technology. These are critical skills needed for learners surrounded by technology, which is the focus of my new book, Hacking Digital Learning with Edtech Missions. One of my favorite projects is the problem solution essay and video. Students investigate a problem of their choosing and outline specific steps for others to follow to help solve the problem. Below is a description of the project with resources, a few examples of my students’ videos of their solutions, and recommended video editors.

Get your copy of Hacking Digital Learning, The 30 Goals Challenge, or Learning to Go. Ask me about training your teachers, ShellyTerrell@gmail.com!

Project Details

Students were introduced to this assignment by watching the New York Times OpEd video, Texting While Walking, by Casey Neistat. In this video, Neistat outlines simple steps for people to follow so they don’t text while walk and run into people or cause accidents.

Students were then asked to choose any problem that mattered to them, conduct background research, identify an audience to propose solutions, and outline steps for a solution they came up with. Students used Google Scholar to find at least 4 peer reviewed articles and annotated this research using the free Kami app.

Students were asked to outline a few steps for their solutions just like in Neistat’s video. Students were allowed to use any video editor to create their problem solution videos. I recommend students use the following free online video editors, which have templates and a library of free effects and stock images to help students quickly finish their videos- Biteable, Genial.ly, and Powtoon. Some other video creators, include Kapwing, Wideo, WeVideo, Touch Cast, My Simple Show, and RenderForest.

Student Videos

This video offers steps for ending technology addiction! The student created this video with his own video editor and decided to star in it.

This student video created with Powtoon lists some great ideas to prevent littering, such as playing a basketball game where the trash can is the basket and the litter is the ball.

This student video created with Biteable offers steps to persuade other college students from texting or Snapchatting while driving with apps, such as Safe Driveand Drive Safe Mode.

Safe Driving Jada Hernandez on Biteable.

Assessment

I assess the following criteria:

• Problem- The problem is clearly, concisely, and convincingly presented.
• Solution- The solution is clearly and concisely presented. The steps of implementation are outlined in a clear and concise way.
• Production- The visuals and effects work to present a strong solution. They do not detract from the overall message of the video. The production shows innovation and creativity.
• Respecting Copyright- The student respects copyright by using only Creative Common and Public Domain media, images, and content. Content is properly attributed.
• Grammar/Mechanics/Spelling- The student makes no errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation, and mechanics.

Challenge: Get students to propose solutions for a problem.

cross posted at teacherrebootcamp.com

Shelly Terrell is an education consultant, technology trainer, and author. Read more at teacherrebootcamp.com.

Vialogues

Targeted discussions can help make video content more interactive

Pros: The platform provides an easy and safe way to create discussions around online videos.

Cons: Tools to organize or curate comments could help teachers manage the threads, which can sometimes become pretty long.

Bottom Line: This time-based video discussion tool increases interaction for traditional, flipped, or blended classrooms, but might offer more in the way of built-in instruction and assessment features.

[Annotate, Bookmark, Cite & Highlight With One Tool]

Read more.

App of the Day picks are selected from the top edtech tools reviewed by Common Sense Education, which helps educators find the best ed-tech tools, learn best practices for teaching with tech, and equip students with the skills they need to use technology safely and responsibly.

By Common Sense Education

I was honored to give the below interview for Flipped Learning Network. In the video I share my journey from early adoption to development of a more comprehensive inquiry pedagogy.

[Mass Group Google Doc Editing During Class]

cross posted at www.cyclesoflearning.com

Ramsey Musallam teaches science and robotics at Sonoma Academy in Santa Rosa, California, with the aim of fostering inquiry-based learning environments fueled by student curiosity. He presents widely on sparking student curiosity and teaching with technology. Musallam is a Google Certified Teacher, a YouTube Star Teacher, and a Leading Edge Certified Teacher. Watch his TED talk here and read his blog at www.cyclesoflearning.com.

Check out this simple formative assessment tip designed to make the most out of Kahoot. Go beyond quiz games and explore how Kahoot's polling and surveying features can get students reflecting, self-assessing, and figuring out next steps for their learning.

[App Offers Comprehensive View of Student Achievement]

Find more formative assessment strategies and resources.

Check out this really simple way to get more out of a quiz with Formative. After a quiz, get students to take ownership of their learning by using Formative to send out exit tickets prompting students to document what questions they still have that they want to explore.

Find more formative assessment strategies and resources from Common Sense Education.

[App Offers Comprehensive View of Student Achievement]

[3D Design Hub Engages Kids With STEM, Literature and More]

A great way to get students excited about STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math), is to show them the ways that popular media uses -- and misuses -- the concepts you teach daily. Used as part of a lesson, clips from movies can reinforce topics, spark discussion, and promote new perspectives.

Find tips on using these films in your classroom from Common Sense Education.

A new generation of web monitoring and filtering software uses machine learning technology to improve student safety, cut down on lost instructional time, and help teach responsible Internet use — while reducing administrators’ time by more than half.

Putting a digital device in every student’s hands opens a world of possibilities for learning, but educators have to ensure that students are using the Internet safely and appropriately. This means monitoring students’ web use, blocking access to inappropriate material, and following up with students when they break the rules or engage in dangerous online activity.

Traditional approaches to Internet monitoring and filtering have been problematic. For instance, the ever-changing nature of the Internet makes filtering websites by their domain name or URL largely ineffective. And keyword flagging can’t account for the context in which a word or phrase appears, which results in a large number of false positives.

• 67% of teachers say the number of students who are distracted by technology in the classroom is growing.
• Nearly half of young people (47%) have received intimidating, threatening, or nasty messages online.

However, a new generation of software that uses artificial intelligence (AI) could help solve these problems. Instead of looking for certain keywords, or blocking a website based on its URL, the software analyzes the entire content on the page in real time to determine what it’s about and whether it’s appropriate for the student.

Here’s how it works: Developers show the software thousands of examples of web pages that are appropriate for students at different age levels, as well as pages that are not appropriate—and the software “learns” how to distinguish between these by recognizing patterns between the words and the content on the page.

What’s more, the software continually improves as it receives feedback from users, becoming even smarter over time.

Not only can AI improve web filtering, but the automatic notifications that K-12 leaders receive when students try to access explicit web content—or post inappropriate content to a social media website, or otherwise misuse the Internet—also become more accurate. This helps administrators enforce their school or district Acceptable Use Policy (AUP).

Sorting through a list of flagged activity to determine which instances are harmless and which need further action can be onerous, especially when there are many false positives to account for. Busy administrators don’t have time to engage in this process.

But if AI can reduce the number of false positives and improve the accuracy of these alerts, “this results in a huge increase in productivity,” says Tyler Shaddix, head of products and innovation for GoGuardian. “It actually makes it possible for administrators to manage their notifications. And every time they check these alerts, they have actionable activity they can use to make real changes in their district.”

Feedback from administrators suggests the use of AI technology can reduce the number of false positives by a factor of 100 when compared with traditional keyword flagging algorithms.

“Having an AI-based solution that can analyze the contents of a web page before our students even see it has been one of the best things we’ve done to ensure that our kids are getting only age-appropriate material,” says Brian Seymour, director of instructional technology for Pickerington Local School District in Ohio.

Seymour’s district of 10,000 students has gone fully 1:1 with digital devices. Students in pre-kindergarten through second grade use iPads that are stored in carts after school. Students in grades three and four use Chromebooks that stay at school, and students in grades 5-12 receive Chromebooks they can take home at night.

“We needed a way to assure parents that if students were taking the devices home, their Internet access would be safe and educational even from home,” he says. With GoGuardian’s intelligent Internet monitoring and filtering software, “we can ensure that students are using their Chromebooks for learning—which has relieved parents’ fears.”

Before using an AI-based solution, “I would probably get 100 emails a day (reporting inappropriate online behavior), and maybe about five were something I needed to follow up on,” Seymour notes. “Now, I very rarely get any false positives—so I know that if I do get a notification, I need to look at it and take care of it immediately. It has made a very big difference in my ability to take action and shape students’ online behavior.”

Additional Resources on AI

How Artificial Intelligence Supports Safer Learning

A new method has emerged that uses artificial intelligence to analyze the actual content on web pages in real time, allowing students to see only material that educators deem safe and productive. Content-based filtering marks a different approach to keeping students safe online—one that’s proving to be both more accurate and easier for educators to manage.

Click here to download the full white paper.

A recent Tech & Learning survey of over 500 teachers, principals, and district administrators revealed noteworthy disparities between the realities of teachers’ assessment experiences inside their classrooms and the perceptions of principals and district administrators outside the classroom.

While a certain degree of disconnection is to be expected, particularly given the limited interaction and physical distance common between teachers and district administrators, some of the most striking differences in perception occurred between teachers and principals working together in close proximity.

These gaps in understanding, concerning everything from the type and volume of assessments being administered to the effort and time involved in creating and grading assessments and analyzing the data gathered, can be a challenge, but they offer an opportunity to bring expectations and performance in line with one another.

Check the resources below for the full findings of our comprehensive survey.

Additional Resources

Click here to download the full white paper.

Understanding the Classroom Assessment Gap: Eight Important Takeaways for Principals & Administrators

Tech & Learning Content Director Kevin Hogan interviews Marcus Kingsley, Director, NetSupport, on latest the issues faced and solutions provided for schools this year.

Bett or The Bett Show (formerly known as the British Educational Training and Technology Show) is an annual trade show in the United Kingdom marketing information technology in education organised by Ascential. The first Bett show was held in London, England in 1985, and since 2013 it has been held annually in January at the ExCeL London. Tech&Learning makes the trek each year to cover the latest and greatest products, services, and trends at the show.

Are you empowering your students as creators? One of my favorite ways to set a purpose for learning is to have students show off what they’ve mastered. You can use technology tools to create how-to videos! Students can demonstrate what they’ve learned and share their knowledge with others by creating how-to video clips.

This list of favorites includes movie-making and slideshow tools that give students the power to create how-to videos. You might have students create a slideshow that shows the steps for a science experiment or make a screencast that demonstrates how to solve a math problem. The favorite technology tools on this list can be used for a wide range of tasks.

If you’re looking to connect students to authentic audiences the creation tools on this list are definitely worth checking out!

Create How-To Videos for Students

iMovie:Perfect for iPad and Mac classrooms, iMovie lets students create movies with all sorts of options. Students can combine still images, video and narration for a fantastic how-to video. Teachers can also earn an Apple Teacher badge for iMovie – learn more.

Explain Everything:This amazing screencasting tool is tablet and Chromebook friendly. Students can draw on their screen and create their own animation to show off the steps of a procedure.

Spark Video: One of my favorite iPad and web-browser friendly tools is Spark Video. They’ve recently added a video clip feature to this movie-making tool so students can demonstrate their understanding of lots of topics.

30hands: This slideshow tool can be used by students who capture steps of a procedure. Students can record their voice over each step to explain how-to do something.

Buncee:I’ve shared Buncee many times on ClassTechTips.com because it’s a terrific creation tool for students. You can use Buncee with students to have them show off how-to tackle a math problem or how-to get along with others.

mySimpleshow: mySimpleshow can be used by students to create explainer videos. With this tool students can create a shareable video that explains how to do something.

ShowMe: This screencasting tool designed for iPads lets students draw on their screen to show off their thinking. Students can use this tool to bring a concept to life.

Shadow Puppet EDU:This slideshow creator is definitely a favorite. Students can search for images within the app, add text or stickers to their image, and record their voice to show off how-to do something.

Do you have a favorite creation tool for how-to videos? Or a special student activity for how-to videos? Share it in the comments below!

cross posted at classtechtips.com

Monica Burns is a fifth grade teacher in a 1:1 iPad classroom. Visit her website at classtechtips.com for creative education technology tips and technology lesson plans aligned to the Common Core Standards.

Discovery VR

Immersive videos let students enter the magical world of VR

Pros: Exciting videos will pull users into virtual worlds that are hard to leave behind.
Cons: Some content may not be appropriate for younger audiences, and there isn't a way to limit what students see in the app.
Bottom Line: VR videos will grab the viewer's attention; just be sure to carefully select the content for your class.

Read more here.

App of the Day picks are selected from the top edtech tools reviewed by Common Sense Education, which helps educators find the best ed-tech tools, learn best practices for teaching with tech, and equip students with the skills they need to use technology safely and responsibly.

By Common Sense Education