Oregon Regions: iMovie, Music & Memories

I don't consider myself very tech-savvy, especially in the classroom. But it's easy to get excited when you look at the potential for what even a little tech can do.  If you have iMovie and a camera, your kids (school, homeschool, or on summer break) could do their own version of a project like this.

As a final class project, some of my students gathered to make an Oregon Regions music slideshow/video using the song from our Oregon Regions class last term. We brainstormed photos/scenes that might capture the regions. In groups, students then chose a region and planned photos to depict each verse.

I explained how they needed to "set the scene"...i.e. they couldn't just take a picture of a tree or a shell...they needed to think about angle, background, set-up and what would look good in a photo. With limited equipment (no class set of iPads here!), they planned the photos and set the scenes and called me over to snap the pictures. They ran all over the place, trying to figure out what would make the best pictures. They built a sandcastle, dressed up, got their toes sandy, posed dolls and bears and skulls,...and had a great time! We recorded the song on GarageBand and I synced their photos with it using iMovie. They would love to share their hard work with you here:



(If anyone knows how to change the picture that YouTube automatically chooses to represent the movie, let me know. A skull would not have been my first choice!  Update: FIXED! Thank you, helpers!)

Although my equipment is limited, I want to do another project where the kids take all the photos and do the project independently. I just saw this idea on arrays in a blog entry and can't wait to try it!

Note: If you are interested in the "Oregon Regions: I Love to Go a Wandering Song," (original text by my mom & co-teacher, Carolyn Hockman), it's included in the Explore Oregon Regions Unit.