At the end of the 2018 school year, we shared a story about the San Ramon Valley Education Foundation and their exciting plans to incorporate video creation into their summer enrichment program with an eye toward developing curriculum opportunities for the future. They recently wrapped up their summer activities, and the WeVideo team was thrilled to capture the action. Watch what teacher, Jon Williams and Program Manager, Cecilia Brear had to say about their initial experience with WeVideo:
In the video, Jon explores how video creation helped him establish a safe and supportive environment for students as they explored their inner stories and expressed ideas without the immediate pressure of performing in public. He also talks about the value of creating scaffolds for learners and explains how features within WeVideo such as templates help “ensure that I’m going to get the learning I want to see.”
Cecilia Brear leads the Imagineering program, an enrichment program of San Ramon Valley Education Foundation whose aim is to promote STEAM exposure at the earliest grades so students are excited about these topics when they move on to middle and high school. She spotted the unique value of web-based video creation, particularly when it comes to access and effort, saying, “teachers need something that works across multiple platforms, and I feel like WeVideo has figured that out.”
Cecilia also noted, “students have all kinds of tools they can use to communicate, but they don't always know what they're communicating and why they're communicating it. I think the storytelling is a missing element. My hope is that this program builds a curriculum that other teachers in the district will see as a great way to teach kids how to communicate through storytelling.”
During the program, students used WeVideo for their digital storytelling projects, honing their communication skills while gaining confidence in their ability to develop and share a compelling idea. Jon kicked off the week by asking his students to think about a BIG idea that was inspired by a little moment in their lives. Students were enthralled with their video creations as they worked together and independently to build their stories while learning video skills like stop motion, screen casting, green screen, and more. Here’s a glimpse of what students had to share about their projects and about the program. Check it out!
You can watch a collection of all the amazing student projects that were created during the Imagineering program here. And, if you missed the original story, you can read it here.
You too can experience the power of video creation. Try WeVideo in your classrooms today.