Thing #20 - YouTube, TeacherTube and Zamzar

I love Zamzar. It has helped me get around YouTube when I'm developing a professional development session. I'd love to be able to preview the video before I send it for conversion, but it's worked well. I use the free service and get a pretty fast turn-around.

I'm working on adding some more media elements for a class I'm teaching on June 11th - Great Books for Gifted Kids. I've got 100 registered and a waiting list of 20, so the class needs to be really good. We'll be talking about books that are of interest and social/emotional benefit to gifted kids. One such book is The Mysterious Benedict Society. I found two videos by students on the book. The first is a teaser for the book. The second is a book report.


The Mysterious Benedict Society_Jackie, posted on TeacherTube by miskanicsphotoshop




This is a book report on YouTube. I used Zamzar to convert it. It's difficult to give appropriate credit for YouTube videos because you can't get to the site to get all the particulars.

Through Blinkx I found a spot on the Today Show on the book. It includes input from kids and the author, Trenton Lee Stewart!

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Video adds a whole new dimension to teaching. I primarily teach teachers. I've always been a very visual person and that means I'm also a very visual presenter. I love PowerPoint because I can provide visual prompts for my audience. (I'm registered for a FlipChart class this week.) I've always used a lot of graphics in my presentations. The ability to add other media elements is incredible! I can give my students a much more complex experience that addresses a more of their brains when I use rich media.

I rarely use YouTube outside of my professional life. However, I highly value the access it gives me to every day folks around the world.