Functional Closure Part 2: Recording and Sharing Digital Resources
Two days ago, I wrote a blog post trying to help people understand what a functional closure was and I added some resources to help with planning. I hoped it would help a few people. As of the time I am writing this blog post, it has been viewed over 7 000 times around the world. This website of mine is only four months old and I am grateful for the impact one post had.
The feedback I have received has made it clear that using digital resources and finding the digital resources all in one place is really valuable to help reduce stress. So this is me helping more. We can get through the possibility of a functional closure together.
Functional Closure Part 2 Recording and Sharing Digital Resources (This post): I will share how to screen record on both computers and tablets. This is a very useful technique for helping YOU share information with families AND for helping students share learning with you. I also go over how to use YouTube to share videos—it is easier than you think.
Functional Closure Part 3 More Digital Resources (I will work on next): I will share some of the resources that I forgot in the last post AND go over some parts of Office365. In the Surrey School District, every single student and adult has an account. Check with your district to see if you have access as well.
My goal again is to help you feel more confident when you are dealing with a functional closure or helping families learn how to get online while sharing learning digitally.
Screen Recording: QuickTime Videos
QuickTime allows you to make screen recordings. These videos allow you to share very quickly how to login and/or use websites or digital resources. During the last shutdown, I also used screen recordings to make math lessons or read anchor texts.
You can use tablets or computers. Knowing how to make screen recordings will reduce YOUR stress and allow you to share information easily with students.
How do I plan the content for a video?
I think about the general points I want to share (1-5 ideas) and write them on a sticky note.
I have any websites or resources OPEN so I can easily move them onto the screen or start using them.
I am okay with mistakes. Just like in a regular lesson, if I say the wrong word, I just correct myself. Screen recordings are not ‘perfect’. They are about conveying information quickly and visually to support learning. They should take no longer to make than a lesson you are teaching.
I keep them short.Thirty seconds to five minutes. Sometimes, I will say ‘press pause on the video and ______, then unpause to finish the lesson’. This works well for reading an anchor text. You can divide a story into three chunks and students can work on specific reading strategies at different points in the story.
Screen Recording on a Computer
On a computer, use your launchpad or finder to open QuickTime.
Select ‘File’ and choose the appropriate recording. In this case, I chose screen recording (see photo below).
A bar will show up with options (middle photo). You can choose to record all of the screen (solid lines) OR part of the screen (dashed lines). You can adjust the size of the square. This is useful because if you wanted to show different documents, you could have them lined up to the side and drag them into view when you want to talk about them .
IMORTANT: If you want sound, you need to make sure the internal microphone is on. On the computer, you do this by clicking ‘options’ on the menu bar and selecting the microphone (see photo below).
When you are ready, press record. Up in the top right hand corner of your screen, a circle with a square will appear. This means you are recording. When you want to end the recording, press the circle with the square ands the video will save to the desktop (See the video below).
Screen Recording on a Tablet/iPad/iPhone
On an iPhone or iPad, use your control panel to start a screen recording (see the video on how to make the screen recording icon show up on your control panel)
2. When your control panel is open, press DOWN and hold for a moment on the screen record button (circle within a circle)
3. IMORTANT: If you want sound, you need to make sure the internal microphone is on. When you press down and HOLD on the screen record button, another screen will pop up. Make sure you select microphone on before you start recording (see photo for what microphone OFF looks like).
4. When you are ready, press record. Up in the top right hand corner of your screen, a circle within a circle will appear. This means you are recording. When you want to end the recording, press the circle within a circle ands the video will save photos or wherever you directed it to save.
YouTube
So now you know how to make a screen recording. How can you share it with your parents and students? There are a few ways: upload to your blog, add to a class SWAY if you have Office365, or add to an email. The problem with some of these options is that video files can be big.
I use YouTube to share content for my blog and if we go into a functional closure, I will do the same for school. It is easier than you think! The video walks you through uploading a video and talks about the options for safety.
Some important considerations when uploading videos:
Do not have photos or videos of your students to keep everyone safe. You can use this as a way to talk about digital citizenship with your students.
Make videos ‘unlisted’ or private and ask that the students and parents do not share them outside the class. Unlisted videos can only be found if someone is sent the link.
There are copyright issues if you are reading entire books or poems. If you wanted to read an anchor text for a lesson or use materials that might have copyright make sure:
You make the video unlisted.
Leave the video up for the week or two weeks of the lesson and then delete it.
Teach a lesson about copyright and why you are using the materials the way you are.
Final Thoughts
Being able to make quick little videos can be a powerful way to share information. Videos can help your visual and auditory learners.
If you give important instructions in the video, make sure they are provided in written form as well because we all know that some kids really need to see text in order to process learning.
Again, I wanted to express gratitude for the response to my first blog post about the functional closure. I am grateful to everyone who read it and has shared it. I have received wonderful feedback. This response and feedback inspired me to share more digital resources, which I hope will be helpful.
If you are wondering how to do something, comment below and if I know how I can help, I will add it to a future blog post.