iMovie in the Classroom

by Sarah Rink

What is iMovie?

iMovie is a video editing software that Apple Inc. provides. It is meant to be used on their hardware (Macs, iPhone, iPad, iPod touch).

With iMovie you can import raw video footage in order to edit, or record directly within the application if you are working with a device that is video recording capable.

What can you do with iMovie?

With this particular software, you can do an array of video editing techniques, including…

• Recording video
• Importing pictures
• Skim video clips
• Zoom
• Shorten and cut clips
• Fix shaky filming
• Adjusting brightness, exposure, contrast and saturation
• Editing the video’s filter and effects (black and white, sepia, etc) 

Also, it is capable of creating movie and video projects with features including…

• Adding text
• Creating voice-overs
• Making transitions
• Adding music tracks and theme music
• Creating an animated map

These features open up a world of possibilities of things to create. Such as…

• Movie trailers
• Home videos
• Documentaries
• Newscasts
• Sports Reel

How does iMovie work?

How to can you use iMovie in the science classroom?

Newscast

• Have the kids take on the role of a Newscaster and news team and report out a scientific event.
• For example: Give the students a natural disaster that they must document. Have them create a scale model of a created town, then have them make their force act upon it as if it was a real occurrence. Once the footage is taken, have them create characters and a script to use in their video. Export to youtube so parents can view as well.
• An example of this type of project from my sixth grade class...
•  

Experiment Documentation

• Rather than working on just one type of experiment, you can have different group simultaneously working and recording what is happening through iMovie.
• For example: Have the whole class working on the affect different solutions have on a penny. Each group can be assigned one of these solutions: coca cola, vinegar, and lemon juice. Have each group record what is happening on iMovie then edit. Later, you can view them as a whole class.

Record observations/Nature show

• When going out and about making observations in nature for scientific purposes, students can use iMovie to record and edit footage of their subject and comments about it.
• For example: Send a group of students out on the playground to record and make observations about different types of trees and how to identify them. They can show footage of different trees they found, record themselves making observations and look back on it later to precisely identify what the tree is. 

Resources: 

Apple's iMovie Page...

http://www.apple.com/ilife/imovie/what-is.html

iMovie in the Classroom...

http://www.edapps.ca/2011/11/13-ways-to-use-imovie-in-the-classroom/ 

http://a2.mzstatic.com/us/r1000/065/Purple/v4/3f/25/2c/3f252cba-4785-c951-bd74-bf9c3d466ed9/mzm.mmjmeaaw.175x175-75.jpg

http://edweb.sdsu.edu/sciencetg/ie/ 

http://www.teachingwithtech.net/imovie/

Video Resources: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktztb-BDiggg (my student's video)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YbA-g1meCg (from magheads)