YouTube has been around for quite some time now, and I often forget about how useful it can be to enhance instruction in the classroom. I recently utilized a video of a rap about the Pythagorean Theorem to introduce the topic to my 8th graders and I was amazed at how engaged they were throughout the entire lesson. I was so happy to see how effective this video was, not only were they interested throughout the video but they remained engaged through the rest of the lesson. It was awesome. I often think I need to reinvent how to introduce different topics to my students but I need to remember there is a wealth of resources on websites like YouTube and its derivatives like YouCubed.
I am currently brainstorming ideas of how to enhance learning through the creation of videos by our students. I think it would be fun for the students to showcase their learning through the planning and recording of videos. I know traditional papers and reports can get boring and it would be nice to give the students some creative liberties with their learning and change up the routine. We are just wrapping up a unit on geometry and I'm hoping to offer some extra credit to students who would like to summarize the unit through making a video on what they learned.
I plan to continue using videos from sources like YouTube to enhance my instructions and am excited to see if giving students an opportunity to produce a video highlighting what they've learned will add to their experience as well.
I'll report back to let you all know how the videos come out. I look forward to seeing what my students come up with!
