XTRANORMAL

Xtranormal allows students to type in a script and it will automatically turn it into an animated movie . You can then set camera angles, camera changes, choose characters and even accents. It is a great tool for getting students to work with and creating dialogue or even to get them to see two points of view.

It takes a little longer to get the hang of all the available features of this program but you can still create scripted animations in minutes.
I have used this tool to create business scenarios for my students so they can analyse and interpret the needs of customers.

http://www.xtranormal.com/

The green screen in action.

Hi Staff,
Here is a video students from year 11 IPT prepared using the green screen technology. The girls created a storyboard to plan the video and had to target the video towards primary school students. They created their own logo using flash and audio using garage band. The aim of the task was to develop the students skills in movie making (imovie), audio manipulation (garage band), flash animation (Adobe Flash) and to raise awareness of about climate change (environmental stewardship). The background clips were downloaded from youtube using www.catchyoutube.com and www.keepvid.com. These links are free websites that allow you to download videos from youtube so that you can keep an offline copy.

CLAYMATION

Claymation uses clay, a digital camera, a computer, and video software (imovie) to engage students in active learning. Students create clay figures and make them come to life by posing them in multiple frames and creating a mini-movie.

At Bethlehem staff can access the clay resources, camera's and laptops to get the students to tell a story, explain how scientific concepts work, studying relationships in PDHPE, building characters in English, creating a play. It encourages cooperative learning and use of multiple intelligences. With Claymation, your classroom will become an active learning environment.

Using the Green Screen in the classroom

Hi,
I have been inspired by many projects used in other schools that involve the green screen. Both my year 10 and 11 classes have started a small imovie project using the green screen and flip camera's. The green screen is located in E4 (For BC staff). The green screen is a large green screen and a subject (e.g students) is shot in front of a green screen. Imovie then removes this color from the video clip, and fills in the empty space with the picture from another video clip, or a still picture. A good example is the weather reports shown on television. The video is created by combining a video with an animation. The video shows weatherman standing in front of a green screen while the animation displays maps and graphics. The green background of the video is replaced by the animation of the weather.
Example of student infront of green screen and then using imovie an image of the Nile River is inserted. The image can be replaced with a video also.

Once i have finished my class projects I will upload the final movies. In the mean time below is an example of a primary school using the green screen. The video describes a project focused on the ANZAC theme that integrates ICT skills with a range of classroom activities. iMovie 09, Ken Burns and green screen effects in particular.

The green screen is a great way to get the kids to present a news report, tell a story or make a documentary.

Please let me know if you would like a tutorial on how to use this technology.

Happy green screening!

Glogster

Hi Again,

Thanks to Scott Hansen (CEO Primary E learning Adviser) I have discovered Glogster!
Glogster is a free online application that allows students to create digital posters / collage's. Collages that include images, text, video (self created or you tube), animation and audio (self created or imported)
Great for summarising a unit of work, introducing a new topic or any class activity that requires students to gather information or create information using a variety of data sources. Students could be given a component of a topic and be asked to present their findings using a glog. They can present their glog using the data projectors to the class.

The site is: http://www.glogster.com

I will be using this site during the week and I will let you know how it goes.

IDEAS PAINT

I was searching the internet today about more ways to create an engaging classroom and I came across this product called IdeaPaint (Goes well with our IDEAS program!). School's are starting to use this paint instead of ordinary paint. It can be applied to anything you can paint – walls, plaster, chalkboard, whiteboard, desks etc. IdeaPaint works with virtually any dry-erase marker and eraser. We can draw on the walls and rub it off ... similar to the splash back.

Maybe department heads may like to invest in this idea when planning next years budget. Very 21st C Learning.

To learn more visit: http://www.ideapaint.com

Setting Engaging work - when your sick!

Hi Staff,
The past couples of days I was home sick, so I searched the Internet for some activities my class can do with a relief teacher. I stumbled across a free online crossword puzzle maker (http://www.crosswordpuzzlegames.com) . I gave the students a list of words (relating to the topic) and they had to define each word in order to make the crossword. I gave them 30 min to complete the task. All crosswords needed to be printed in pdf (electronic) and emailed to me for checking. Very easy to use and the students enjoyed the task. When I returned, I gave the students random crosswords to complete and we discussed some definitions. Walla!

The site also has other puzzle games.