Go!Animate (goanimate.com)
I'm teaching Multimedia Communication this semester and had assigned a short animation project with Xtranormal. This free software was used to explain everything from quantitative easing to switching to Geico, and I had a hunch the students would enjoy using it as much as I did. I designed the course in May and was horrified to find out that Xtranormal was quietly turned off at the end of July, and my course began mid August.
Immediately I began searching the Internet for another user-friendly, free, cloud-based animation tool. Since the Multimedia course has no prerequisite, I needed to find something that students of all technical abilities could learn very quickly. After trying a few, I decided to use Go!Animate as a replacement for the Xtranormal assignment.
Go!Animate is similar to Xtranormal in that it allows you to easily open a free account and create a simple cartoon (we blogged about Xtranormal a while back). You can choose scenes, characters, and add text that the characters will automatically speak. The free version of Go!Animate has a limited selection, but there's enough free stuff to facilitate a wide range of creative stories.
I knew right from the start that students would catch on to the platform easily because there's a tutorial that automatically pops up when you begin your first cartoon. A little character shows you step by step how to use the basic tools and navigate the program. The popups asking if you'd like to upgrade your account is a little tiring, but I can't blame them for wanting money.
Go!Animate allows you to have characters interact with objects and walk/slide/appear on to and out of the screen. You can also easily change facial and physical expressions and zoom in as characters speak. (These options were not available with Xtranormal.)
To test Go!Animate, I created a video for students explaining Bellarmine University's move from Blackboard to Moodle:
The Moodle Move Movie by apostels on GoAnimate
This video took about an hour to rough and another hour or so to revise. I used only a few of the many tools, but this project helped me feel comfortable enough to have the class give Go!Animate a try for an assignment. Since this was the first time using it in class, I kept the topic open to see what they could do with the program. Many of my students are working with clients, participating in internships, or helping in family-owned companies, so naturally they wanted to use the program in conjunction with that. Some students just wanted to share a story or try something creative. A few used my storyboard to help plan their animations.
Students had one week to create their cartoon and share them with the class. We had some class time to spend designing our animations after class discussions (our class is in a computer lab), and this time was valuable as students shared what they found with those around them. I heard statements like "How did you do that?" and "This is cool!" a few times. None of them had used the program before, and they all seemed to enjoy the process. A few students ran into problems with the special effects and some had issues with characters not showing up in previews, but we didn't run into any devastating problems.
When the assignments were due, we all watched them together as a class. We were pretty amazed at the range of genres represented: music videos, video games, PSAs, sitcoms, advertisements, classic children's cartoons, and scenes from movies are the ones I remember off the top of my head. I'll be using Go!Animate in the Technical Communication class I'm teaching next Spring, but I can also see Go!Animate used in classes across the disciplines.
There are some limitations with the free version of Go!Animate that may affect an assignment. First, videos must be less than two minutes long, so it's probably not a good alternative to a 10 page research paper. Second, free versions can only be embedded or viewed at the Go!Animate site. (You cannot download or post free versions to YouTube.) Third, the range of voices, accents, and characters are pretty limited. However, the range of scenes, characters, and objects increases greatly when you open up your wallet.
I really liked that Go!Animate allows you to revise a project while it's posted. The URL to the animation stays the same when you save changes. (Of course, if it's posted on YouTube you're out of luck on that one.) Students submitted URLs to their animations, so it's easy for me to view the projects when I'm grading. I also like the storyboard function in the animation process. You can change scenes or simply copy a scene to create a new action. This display reminded me of YouTube Video Editor and Microsoft's Movie Maker, two programs I feel very comfortable using.
Next time you want to have a creative and fun project as part of a classroom experience, try Go!Animate.
Friday, September 20, 2013
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Prezi Revisited: Using Zooming Technology to Flip a Classroom
Prezi (www.prezi.com)
Now I know that Emily and I talked, briefly, about Prezi in one of our first blog posts, but this incredible website continues to evolve. I have found a few ways to use this site to flip my classes (using online environments to "lecture" to students and class time to discuss, problem solve, and create projects), and students--for the most part--enjoy the program so much they use it in other classes.
First, just to make sure we are all on the same page, Prezi (www.prezi.com) is a free, cloud-based program that allows a user to create dynamic, "zooming" visual presentation aids. Think PowerPoint meets Google Earth. If you've watched many TedTalks, you've probably seen a Prezi in action. So we know it's used to help the visual learners in the audience; that's a given.
What's really exciting, though, is that this website can be used to facilitate class presentations, brainstorming sessions, and questions and answers both inside and outside the classroom.
Prezi Meeting allows all of this to happen through the ability to share a Prezi with a group of people who can then edit the display in real time. As one person enters the Prezi, a little avatar (see left), appears with the person's name. The avatar moves to wherever the person is editing. Right now, up to ten people can join a meeting at the same time (like a night club with a strict fire code--only ten can dance at a time).
You might think a ten person limit is a problem, but it isn't really. It depends on how you set up the assignment. Here's how I've been doing it. I'll create a visual presentation aid to structure a classroom session using Prezi. This Prezi can have an embedded lecture or TedTalk as well as some main points to think about from an assigned reading.
Once the Prezi is created, I'll invite the students to "edit" it. (Tip: make a copy of the lecture and share the copy with your class.) For homework, students enter the Prezi, watch the videos and post questions based on their assigned readings next to the place where we will be talking about that topic in class. Students can even add topics to the Prezi if they find something interesting.
Before class begins, I like to keep the Prezi open on my computer screen. I can see students popping in from time to time to write questions. I can read the questions before class, and other students can see what questions are being posted as well. Since students can visit the Prezi at their leisure, there never seem to be more than four or five in a Prezi at a time, so the ten limit doesn't bother me.
To keep tabs on participation, students are required to put their initials or names by their questions. Then, when I'm using the Prezi to guide our class time activities and discussions, I have the questions posted right on the screen. I can answer the question or ask the class to answer the question when I get to that place in the Prezi.
I also use Prezi to facilitate brainstorming sessions. I divide students into groups of four or five. One student creates a blank Prezi and invites the group (and me) to edit. Students can then post their ideas and offer feedback. I can drop in and provide feedback as well. Emily and I really like how students can post images and videos as well as text.
Here's a Prezi that discusses how I used the program to facilitate a brainstorming session outside of class. (This is from a conference poster session. Yet another way to use Prezi.)
Those are just a few ways to use Prezi Meeting in your class to facilitate more online activity. Feel free to share other ways you are using Prezi to flip a class.
Now I know that Emily and I talked, briefly, about Prezi in one of our first blog posts, but this incredible website continues to evolve. I have found a few ways to use this site to flip my classes (using online environments to "lecture" to students and class time to discuss, problem solve, and create projects), and students--for the most part--enjoy the program so much they use it in other classes.
First, just to make sure we are all on the same page, Prezi (www.prezi.com) is a free, cloud-based program that allows a user to create dynamic, "zooming" visual presentation aids. Think PowerPoint meets Google Earth. If you've watched many TedTalks, you've probably seen a Prezi in action. So we know it's used to help the visual learners in the audience; that's a given.
What's really exciting, though, is that this website can be used to facilitate class presentations, brainstorming sessions, and questions and answers both inside and outside the classroom.
 |
| My (customized) Ninja Prezi. |
You might think a ten person limit is a problem, but it isn't really. It depends on how you set up the assignment. Here's how I've been doing it. I'll create a visual presentation aid to structure a classroom session using Prezi. This Prezi can have an embedded lecture or TedTalk as well as some main points to think about from an assigned reading.
Once the Prezi is created, I'll invite the students to "edit" it. (Tip: make a copy of the lecture and share the copy with your class.) For homework, students enter the Prezi, watch the videos and post questions based on their assigned readings next to the place where we will be talking about that topic in class. Students can even add topics to the Prezi if they find something interesting.
Before class begins, I like to keep the Prezi open on my computer screen. I can see students popping in from time to time to write questions. I can read the questions before class, and other students can see what questions are being posted as well. Since students can visit the Prezi at their leisure, there never seem to be more than four or five in a Prezi at a time, so the ten limit doesn't bother me.
To keep tabs on participation, students are required to put their initials or names by their questions. Then, when I'm using the Prezi to guide our class time activities and discussions, I have the questions posted right on the screen. I can answer the question or ask the class to answer the question when I get to that place in the Prezi.
I also use Prezi to facilitate brainstorming sessions. I divide students into groups of four or five. One student creates a blank Prezi and invites the group (and me) to edit. Students can then post their ideas and offer feedback. I can drop in and provide feedback as well. Emily and I really like how students can post images and videos as well as text.
Here's a Prezi that discusses how I used the program to facilitate a brainstorming session outside of class. (This is from a conference poster session. Yet another way to use Prezi.)
Those are just a few ways to use Prezi Meeting in your class to facilitate more online activity. Feel free to share other ways you are using Prezi to flip a class.
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