Using Imovie for the first time – Learning Project

For this weeks post and prompt I explored using Imovie for my first time ever to make a trailer kind of video from braiding process as I continue on my journey to improve my skills. (video in the post below!)

So for my first time using Imovie I used it on my Ipad which is about 5 years old now so it may be the old version of Imovie. Anyways, for a first time user I have to say it was very easy and user friendly in my opinion. All the controls and functions of the app were easy to find, easy to use and easy to use with each other as well which goes a long way to making a good user experience. Having the ability to use my Ipad to record, edit and format my video into a trailer style clip is a great convenience and I think that is a bonus for those looking to use this app. In Imovie you can use any video or image saved throughout your Icloud or apple devices to create different movies or clips.

I  believe Imovie would be a good tool to use in classrooms where you are learning the video making process or trying to get your students to dip their toes in making their own videos because it is very user friendly. It could be used by students for many other subjects and projects once they are able to build their skills using the application. On top of that many young kids here in North America are already very familiar with the apple ecosystem and functions so for those people they might be able to pick it up that much quicker. While there are many awesome things about Imovie I think one drawback would be that it is exclusively an apple product. This means if you want to be able to use these in your classrooms with your students then you will need access to multiple Ipads or imac or macbooks which could be a significant hurdle for classrooms where resources are already thin. Unless you are in a classroom that already is using mostly apple products, which is unlikely, then mostly having PC’s means you are not able to use this software without an investment of resources.

—- Here is my video, had to upload it to youtube to be able to post it here 

I think that Imovie would be able help students in all facets of the SAMR model depending on the grades you are teaching and how complex the use is. For example in the substitution section, a student could create a video essay in replacement of doing an oral presentation for their report, this way the change that is happening is we are replacing the live presentation with a video format. In the Modification section, you could have students create a specific type of film on their report, like a horror or documentary film. They would be asked to use Imovies many editing features to create their final product, so they are changing how they are completing their project.

Using Imovie to document my braiding this week was a cool change of pace and watching the videos back also helped me see some of the places I was going wrong.  As we are a few weeks into our learning journeys, I am happy to notice some improvements in my braiding. Starting the process is now fairly easy for me but once I get to the middle I still tend to struggle with keeping the hair apart and keeping the strands pulled tight. Still confident though that by the end of this semester I will be miles ahead of where I started.