Goal of your Video

A Talking Head Video

This refers to a video style where the video is recording a person talking to the camera.

Instructional Uses

Instructional uses vary, but here are a few:

• welcome/introduction video
• video announcements
• feedback to individual students

The simplest way to record this style of video is to use the camera that we have in our pockets. The benefit of using our smartphones to record is that it gives us more mobility and flexibility in where we record. It also lets us find a recording spot with good lighting. 

A Screencast Video

Sometimes you want to record what's on your computer screen while adding an audio narration. This style of video is called a screencast. You can decide whether or not to also include your talking head video alongside the screencast video.

Instructional Uses

Instructional uses vary, but here are a few:

• providing a tour of your Canvas course
• demonstrating how-to steps for a computer program
• adding narration to slides

Then you'd be using either Screencast-o-Matic or Zoom to record your screen and your webcam. These allow you to record your computer screen while simultaneously recording your voice narration of what's on the screen. Then you can decide 

A Whiteboard Video

In the classroom setting we may find ourselves drawing on the whiteboard at the front of the classroom. A whiteboard video is one that captures the drawing/writing on video while recording an audio narration.

Here's a lower tech version of a whiteboard style video. This one was drawn with notebook and markers and recorded with a smartphone. 

Instructional uses

Instructional uses vary, but here are a few:

• a visual lesson
• explaining while drawing
• sketchnote style video

You'll have to decide what you'll be using as your drawing application. If you're drawing digitally, then you can record your screen as you draw. In the example above, OneNote is used for drawing while being recorded in Screencastomatic. If you're drawing on a physical surface, then you can record it with your smartphone. 

• OneNote
• AWW App Links to an external site.
• Zoom has a whiteboard tool

Telling a Visual Story

Stories have powerful potential to connect us to our learners. In the classroom we can animate our stories with our body language, our tone of voice, and our eye contact. If you're wanting to tell a story online, consider using a video tool like AdobeSpark to do so.