Friday, August 2, 2013

Technology of Choice: Go!Animate

                Technology can be a very useful tool in a teacher's arsenal. In today’s digital-age, teachers are being given the responsibility to introduce and provide opportunities to students that incorporate technology and subject matter. Go!Animate is a very simple tool that teachers and students can use to create animated videos. The website is very easy to navigate and gives numerous options of settings, characters, and dialogue. This allows the teacher or student to be more creative in expressing themselves as well as the lesson or material. Teachers can use this as a quick substitute for lecturing that adds an entertaining quality to any lesson plan. 

Our group thought this tool would be a very inspirational tool for students. Go!Animate is a great way to introduce students to a safe digital environment, while expressing themselves and their understanding of the material. It can be used as an engaging tool that encourages students to interact with the subject matter and collaborate with their peers. Lastly, it is fun and can inspire enthusiasm in learning. 

One of the negatives that we found about Go!Animate was that a membership costs $8 per month. It's free if teachers want to make their own, but the only way to guarantee safe and appropriate use is to purchase it. The other downside is that older high school students may not find this tool as challenging as other video options on the web. Those very minor details aside, we recommend Go!Animate as a useful teaching tool. Listed below are links to Go!Animate, our Go!Animate example, and a how to use Go!Animate video from You Tube. 

If you like this idea, explore it for yourself at: http://goanimate4schools.com/

Here is an example of a Go!Animate we created to discuss World War II:
WWII by conno035 on GoAnimate


Like it? Create your own at GoAnimate.com. It's free and fun!


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