Documentation:Stop motion/DIY Media/Plan

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CHECKLIST:
Search for existing content on your topic. (Do you need to create or can you curate?)
Identify potential impact. (Why am I doing this? Who will benefit? What will it change?)
Define objectives. (What will people learn?)
Develop an assessment plan. (How will I know if I achieved my goals?)
Gather equipment. (See the What Do I Need? section)
Create a test file to practice using the software.
Export test file formats and import in editing software to ensure you can work with the files.
Determine what the timeline is.


Questions to ask

Curate or Create? Does a similar resource (to the one you're envisioning) already exist online somewhere? You may want to check Creative Commons licensed sources as well as resources in the Public Domain to start with. If there are images, slide sets, or other works you want to use that are appropriately licensed, ask yourself if you can use them and build some context around it specific to your goals. In other words, can you curate content by building some activities or context around resources that already exist, or do you need to create something new? Here is an example of curated content (discussion questions, self-assessment, etc) around a YouTube video describing MOOCs.

What are the objectives? Identifying broad goals can help you define what your students should learn and understand, while the objectives provide specific and measurable outcomes (Gagne, Wager, Golas & Keller, 2005 in Frey and Sutton, 2010). Consider:

  • What do you want your audience to learn while watching your presentation?
  • What approach is best suited to support that learning (i.e. a narrative, an explanation, an animation, etc.)?

What should the impact be? Consider the potential impact your project will have on the learning environment. How will learners use the video/slides? Will you need to create some guiding questions, things to watch for, and follow up activities so that learners can use what they learned? You may want to consider what activities the presentation may replace (eg. tutorial, lecture) and how you can use that time for other activities to support the learning from the presentation. In addition, knowing the needs of your learners helps you target the content and approach to them - making it more likely that you will be producing a useful learning resource.

How will the resource be assessed? Consider the measures you will be using to see if your presentation has had the desired impact on learning (test scores, performance in collaborative activities, etc.). A good instructional design principle is to ensure alignment between learning objectives, assessment and the activity (associated with the presentation).

What's the timeline like? Check with colleagues who have made stop motion videos to get a sense of timeline. If this is your first time, allow a lot more time for recording, editing, re-recording, and tweaking the entire presentation, than you think you need.

Testing your equipment

Once you have gathered your equipment and software, experiment with it. Test everything: create a test presentation and audio track, and export them to your editing software to familiarize yourself with the process and reveal any issues with file format or audio quality you'll want to fix before production. Make sure your chosen tools can do what you need them to.

Planning Resources

Forms

TIPS:
  • Consider the aim of the video and limit yourself to what's possible in a 3-5 minute time frame.
  • Consider what your viewers will need in order to obtain the message or story the video is sending.
  • Plan out the timeframe for scripting, recording, and editing. Allow a an additional 20% to account for unexpected delays or issues. Assuming you're familiar with the software and tools, a good rule of thumb is to allow 3-4 minutes of pre- and post-production work for every minute of footage. (From Penn State's Instructor's Guide to Media Activities.)
  • Test out your equipment beforehand to ensure that recording goes smoothly. Make and narrate a five-second video. You might catch computer, audio, or file format issues which you can solve before recording, as well as ensuring that you have all the required equipment, and that it all works properly.