Hey, guys! Another brainstorming thread... I'm the GATE teacher (gifted and talented), which is afterschool for 8-10 weeks twice a year. I get to choose my topic, and I'm given about $500 for supplies. While these supplies technically belong to the program, I am the only teacher/coordinator for the site so they just stay in my room with a GATE label on them. I try to choose topics that would be interesting to students outside of GATE as well, as the supplies can be re-used. Last year we did Greek Mythology the first half of the year, and Crime Scene Investigation the second half. This year I've been told we have a bit more money. No exact amount given, just 'tell me what you want and I'll see if I can fund it'. I'm thinking of doing movie/podcasting creation for the first half of the year to get technology into the classroom, and 3D printing for the second half of the year. If you were going to build a movie or podcasting production area in your classroom, what would you want? I do have iPads, but I'm not sure if I should get a different video camera for better quality. I'm thinking I should get a green screen. And I'd like a cool microphone for podcasting. Other ideas? Anyone have a cool set-up? I tried to Google it and couldn't find anything.
Because it's GATE, it doesn't have to be linked to the curriculum. It's after school, and basically we choose topics that kids are interested in and we don't have time to do during the day. So it's like an enrichment class, but free for the students that qualify.
We just do very basic intro to video editing so we just use the cameras on our Chromebooks and a free cloud based video editing software. It's slow as heck, especially some days when the wifi is wonky... But I got a Snowball microphone and a nice computer webcam. I was thinking of setting it up with a desktop computer in one of the small offices in our computer lab so that some kids could use it. I'm thinking of green screens now and wondering how far I'd get with cheap lime fabric and tacks...
I am very familiar with GATE, and I get that. I thought you meant was your goal was to use the materials/supplies in your class after the fact. Though, still wondering - what WILL you do with the kids and the 3d printer? I know it makes cool stuff, but how do you extend beyond this.
Engineering challenges. Design a better windmill blade pattern for a village in Africa, create a prosthetic, etc.
Yeah-that's why it's on the docket for spring. I haven't thought too much about it. I read some articles about iPad apps that allow you to engineer using the printer, and the kids would create items and then have to go back and re-design the parts that didn't work. I've never used one, but I thought it sounded like a project they would be in to. I only have an hour with them once a week for 8-10 weeks, so it's something they can work on each week and come back to. I guess? Not sure. But movie making, I can do now. So that's my fall focus.
TinkerCAD is a great CAD app for students to learn using. (To design things for the 3D printer--for future reference)
I actually was thinking about this and I thought it would be a fun project to build a film studio on the cheap. I am making my green screen out of PVC: I need to figure out what to line it with that is large enough and doesn't have seams.
Great idea! These are the items I've come up with so far: Podcasting-microphone, iPad holder stand, script stand, 'We're Recording' light, sound panels Movie making-Green screen, clip on collar mic, boom mic, teleprompter, hard drives, tripod
Here's my DIY ideas for these: Microphone - Probably just going to have to purchase a nice one, or use a cell phone. iPad holder stand - There are too many ways to make this on your own out of regular office supplies or other materials. Script stand - Use a broken music stand from the music department. Green Screen - Get a flat green queen sized sheet from Kmart for 12 bucks. Get some A-clips from Home Depot at 50 cents a piece, and clip them to a PVC frame. Teleprompter - Use a Chromebook open to a shared Google Doc. What's typed using another Chromebook will appear, or you can have it pre-typed and use a wireless mouse to slowly scroll down. I probably wouldn't use a boom mic (or attach a microphone to a broom handle - broom-mic, haha), but I could probably get clip on mics for cheap, or again use cell phones. Hard-drives - What do you mean by this? Like computer storage? We have a million hard-drives and ancient computers that just get e-wasted. I could probably get a few of these from my tech guy. But we'd probably use cloud storage. And a tripod could again, probably be made on the cheap using more broken music stands.
