Thing 12- Video Sharing & Creation

Not too many years ago, only those with expensive equipment and advanced technical skills could produce digital video. That began to change as equipment became available to the average consumer. Today, equipment is cheap and ubiquitous – we can even capture video on cell phones – allowing just about anyone to produce digital video, anytime, anywhere, about anything.

Enter YouTube -- the premier video sharing site which made posting video to the Internet as simple as possible. Users create free accounts and, with a few mouse clicks, are able to share their videos with a worldwide audience.

YouTube is the first and largest of the “tube” sites, all of which revolve around the idea of the general public uploading and sharing videos. It was created in 2005, and later purchased by Google. It just celebrated its 5th birthday! Users have watched videos on the site more than 6 BILLION times since it started. It is in the top 5 most visited websites, and shows no sign of slowing down.

Anything that can be put on video is likely to show up on YouTube – family videos, political statements, instructional videos, amateur news reports, music, film clips, animation, etc. Frequent uploaders can even establish their own “channels.” Some movie and television production companies have started uploading selections of their work, as well. Note that user-submitted videos must be no longer than 10 minutes in length and 2 GB in size.

In the spirit of Web 2.0, YouTube is about more than just posting video. It’s also a community. Users provide feedback by adding ratings, typed comments, or “response videos” to the videos they watch. The result is a worldwide community that is connecting, collaborating, and communicating through video. And this community is having influence beyond the Internet as YouTube videos are often featured on news and entertainment shows.

Schools are using YouTube in unique ways. Some create their own book trailers, while others use the website to promote their upcoming events. Some sponsor teen video-making contests. Of course, there are memory raps and lots of videos to explain things- kind of like the Common Craft videos we've been watching in 23 Things!

Spend some time watching  videos on YouTube. Some good ones to get you started are:
Irving Cowgirls Book Cart Drill Team 2010
Free Hugs Campaign

In My Language by an autistic woman
Carol Burnett Outtakes
Laughing Baby
Water Cycle Song Wayne RESA Science Consultant Dave Bydlowski
Dramatic Cat (short)
Potter Puppet Pals

Teacher Tube
In addition to YouTube, there are other video sharing sites, some designed for a specific audience. Have a look at TeacherTube and SchoolTube, both of which feature school-friendly user-created video for teachers and students.

Click the "sign up" link at the top of these two sites to create your own account. Then, rate and leave a written comment on at least one video.

In your blog, talk about the videos you saw. What were they trying to accomplish? How effective were they? What do you like or dislike about YouTube? Did you find videos that would be useful for teaching and learning? Is YouTube restricted in your building? Think you could make a great video to post for other educators to use? Well, I 'd be remiss if I didn't suggest a few Web 2.0 sites for just that purpose! Check these out:
Animoto- a web application that produces videos from user-selected photos, video clips and music. Watch a sample I made: November booktalks

Voicethread- A VoiceThread is a collaborative, multimedia slide show that holds images, documents, and videos and allows people to navigate pages and leave comments in 5 ways - using voice (with a mic or telephone), text, audio file, or video (via a webcam). You can watch the "What is a VoiceThread Anyway?" video to see how it works.
GoAnimate- On GoAnimate you can make your own animated characters, direct your own cartoons and watch others' creations. Go ahead and Watch the Demo!