2-4 kids and a Smartphone... Nice and easy but powerful. The ticket to awesome.

Check it out.

As teachers, we often do too much and the kids too little. We give a lot of information, but little processing time in class. Luckily, there are easy ways to change that. Check out my other posts on using tech to make instruction more student centered: School Isn't The Movies: Unlecture Video Instruction and I Stopped Lecturing, Because I Want My Students To Learn.

Today, we talk 30 second videos. The idea is to record a 30 second or shorter video explaining, or comparing, or contrasting, or giving examples of whatever it is you’re learning.

3 Ways To Do It

1. Lecture

Cover a concept and have elbow partners discuss/process it first, pull out a phone second, and record a 30 second video third. Have them Tweet it to a hashtag of your choosing to conserve time, increase accountability, and check for understanding later.

2. Station Rotation

Have a group of students record a summary of a concept or compare/contrast concepts. Typically, I direct my kids to first discuss, then write a script and practice it, and then record the video and post to Twitter using hashtag #CymDogChem. It could be part of a review or during initial learning of the concept(s).

3. Gist of Something Longer

Ask students to watch a presentation (flipped/blended etc.) or a video on the material they are learning and give the gist of it in a 30 second video.

Benefits

processing. Processing. PROCESSING.

That’s what learning is all about. Give your students the information they need to know. Then, give them TIME TO PROCESS IT IN CLASS. Do not just count on them doing it at home. I sometimes feel that’s the curse of high school education. We spend the whole hour covering concepts and then we expect students to know and practice them at home. What if we slow down and let them uncover these concepts for themselves in class? Just saying…

Oh, and you’re using tech in a meaningful way and students like it. Is that so bad?

How can you use 30 second videos in your classroom? What are some other uses you can think of? Share, because Spongebob Squarepants taught us that Sharing Is Caring! Actually, I’ve never seen a single episode of Spongebob. Is that bad?

You Have The Power To Change The World. Just Do It.