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Ed Tech

The standard lecture has plenty of detractors, and rightfully so. Done poorly, it can be an uninspired stream of facts, delivered in sit-and-get style that get forgotten quickly.

However, we can turn the standard lecture - and its tool of choice, the presentation slide! - on its head.

The result can be students actively working with new ideas. Hands-on. Right away.

Presentation slides can be a drag.
But when students (and teachers!) have something interactive to do with them, it changes the game.
That's what I love about Pear Deck. And, of course, the best news: much of what I show you in this post can be done with the free plan!
(Note: I have no official relationship with Pear Deck, and I'm not being paid for writing this post. I'm just a Pear Deck user who loves the potential for it and wants to share it with others! I was given a Pear Deck premium account for review.)

What is Pear Deck?

It's a way to turn your presentation slides into interactive activities for your students. (It also works wonderfully with teachers in professional development!)

If you're using Google Slides, Pear Deck makes it super easy to get started. Pear Deck has created a Google Slides add-on. This makes it SUPER easy to make your slides interactive right from Google Slides.

1. Open a Google Slides presentation.

2. Click on the "Add-ons" menu and "Get add-ons ...".

3. Search for "Pear Deck" and click the blue "+ FREE" button.

4. Load up the Pear Deck sidebar menu. (It'll look like the image above/right.)

Here's a video that shows how to use Pear Deck with Google Slides:

How do I build slides with Pear Deck?

That's pretty easy, too. If you're using Google Slides, just create the slides that you want to display to your students. Then, use the sidebar menu to add interactive elements to each slide.

(You can do all of this at peardeck.com with PowerPoint slides, too.)

The bonus with Pear Deck: You can turn any of those slides into interactive slides. Some of the options include having students ...

enter text

enter a number

choose from multiple choices

draw a response (premium only)

interact with a live web page

drag an icon to a specific part of the slide (premium only)

Pear Deck has a slide library where you can choose pre-created activities ...

for the beginning of a lesson (check prior knowledge, ask what students are curious about)

during the lesson (summarize, assess learning, gauge understanding)

at the end of the lesson (retell what they learned, share feelings)

Set up your slide deck the way you want. The next step - let's get students connected to it so they can interact!

Learn how to use Pear Deck with this FREE ebook!

Getting Started with Pear Deck is written by Pear Deck Certified Coaches Mary Alys Foutz and Mike Mohammad. This ebook will walk you through everything from installing the add-on for Google Slides, to using the Teacher Dashboard.

How do I run a slide presentation?

Once all of your slides are designed and ready to go (including interactive slides), it's as easy as clicking "Present with Pear Deck" in your sidebar menu.

It will create a screen you can display to students on your projector, interactive display or flat panel. It will prompt students go to joinpd.com (think "join Pear Deck") and enter the join code.

When you're ready to start, your slides will be displayed on the students' devices. From the teacher device, you can ...

Go to the previous or next slide

See all slides with the slide navigator

Project student responses

Lock or unlock a slide

Add a new question

Make a slide full screen (under "more")

Open the teacher dashboard in a new tab (under "more")

Open the teacher dashboard on another device (under "more")

End the session (under "more")

From there, you display the slides. Students interact. You do what you want with student responses.

Using the new Pear Deck add audio feature

The new Add Audio feature lets you record or upload audio files to lessons. Students can listen to those audio files on their devices. This is a really helpful feature for remote learning -- especially when students are using Pear Deck in student-paced mode.

Ideas for using the new add audio feature:

Give instructions verbally. Teachers can record their voices giving students instructions. This can be helpful for students who struggle with reading or students whose native language isn't English.

Do social-emotional checks. Leave students a word of encouragement. When they hear it in your voice, it means more than just reading it in text.

Explain answers. When you talk about a problem students need to solve -- or a question that needs answered -- how you arrived at your answer is important. Having a teacher-guided answer with explanation can help students understand.

Read a story. Record audio of your voice while you read a favorite story -- or a new story! -- to students remotely. Students can even download the audio file to listen to later.

Guide pronunciation. Model how to pronounce new terms and vocabulary words in an audio file.

How to use Pear Deck for remote learning

Pear Deck gives you interactive options when teaching remotely.

Gather students on a video call with Skype, Zoom, Google Meet or Microsoft Teams.

Share your screen with an interactive Pear Deck presentation.

Students join the presentation in a separate tab (or in a window side-by-side with the video call).

Students follow along with the presentation and interact with the slides. You talk through the presentation on the video call.

Student-paced mode for Remote Learning

Students can progress through interactive Pear Deck slides independently in student-paced mode.

Create slides.

Share them with students with a deadline to finish them.

Students work through the slides and interact with them.

You watch their progress through Pear Deck.

When they're finished, Pear Deck gives you results to guide your instruction.

In the video below, I gave a webinar on how to use student-paced mode. Check it out to see how student-paced mode works, how it can be used for remote learning, and for answers to common questions.

Flip through the webinar slides (below) to get a feel for how student-paced mode works.

How can I use Pear Deck?

Here are a bunch of ideas, from the basic to the geeky. On most of these, I'll default to the free question types (and will note which ones require a premium account).

Ideas for the classroom

1. Ask students what they already know about the topic with a text question. (You might be surprised what they already know ... or what they don't know!)

Use the text slide in the "Beginning of class" slide library.

2. Ask students if they're ready to move on with a multiple choice question. (This sure beats raising hands, where you don't always get honest answers.

You can reword the draggable agree/disagree slide in the "During lesson" slide library.

3. Draw out a mind map to diagram what you've been studying.

Use the mind map slide in the "During lesson" slide library.

4. Retell what you've learned that day in your own words. This is another digital version of the ultra brain-friendly "brain dump" I described in this post.

Use the text slide in the "End of lesson" slide library.

5. Ask students to create a new ending/outcome for something you've studied that day.

Create a new text slide.

6. Ask students to describe their thinking process instead of providing the answer. (A focus on the process can illuminate student understanding better than an answer many times.)

Create a new text slide or a drawing slide (premium).

7. Have students put items in order (chronological, sequential, etc.). List the items on the slide and have students write them out in the correct order.

Create a new text slide.

8. Predict what happens next in a video or a story. Show a short video clip or an image ... or stop in the middle of a story in class.

Create a new text slide.

9. Label a diagram. Add an image of the diagram (without labels) on the slide. Have students add the labels.

Create a new drawing slide (premium) to draw labels ... or, put numbers on your image where you want students to label and have them label with a text slide.

10. Create an advertisement. You add an image or two to a slide. Have students add text to the slide to create a compelling ad based on what you've learned.

Create a new drawing slide (premium) to add text ... or, use a text slide to have students write what they would put on the ad.

Ideas from the Pear Deck library

Pear Deck has some great users doing very cool things, too! Here are some from their great library of examples from the classroom ...
11. Teach parabolas / quadratics using Super Mario Bros. (via MrOrrIsAGeek.com blog).
12. Helping students understand Anglo Saxon poetry with thought-provoking guided questions (via Melissa Pilakowski).
13. Get students interacting with literature, art and music from the Romantic Era (via Pear Deck).
14. Teach coordinate graphs with draggable dots (premium) and a coordinate plane. Here are some Pear Deck math templates to give you more ideas.

15. Teach grammar with draggable icons (premium) by displaying a paragraph and having students identify different parts of it. See how in this How ELA Teachers Use Pear Deck document.

16. Display a short passage of text with a drawing slide (premium). Ask students to use the highlighter to highlight an example and the text box to explain why they picked that example.

17. Count the number of forces on the object in a diagram like the one below. Ask students to enter the number in a number slide. (via Pear Deck) See more in this How Science Teachers Use Pear Deck document.

18. Have students in a world language class translate a sentence with a text slide. Then, see how the same idea can be translated differently in a variety of ways. See more in this How World Language Teachers Use Pear Deck document.

19. Add a map to a draggable (premium) slide - or add a map the draggable slide in the "During lesson" slide library. Have students identify locations on the map. See more in this How Social Studies Teachers Use Pear Deck document.

20. Use a map like in the example above ... but use a drawing slide (premium) and have students circle / draw an outline around certain regions you've been studying.

Give me some ninja Pear Deck tricks ...

Absolutely!

1. Customize the slide library. Use the pre-designed slides by Pear Deck, but add your own customizations. For instance, instead of a simple happy/sad face to ask students how they feel, add emojis or memes!

2. Do vocabulary the Pear Deck way. Check out "Pear Deck Vocabulary" for an interactive way to do flashcards with your students. (It's part of the free plan!) It integrates with Quizlet and Merriam-Webster to create lists in a snap. Students can even help you illustrate flashcards with the "Flashcard Factory."

3. Get up to speed quick with a webinar. Pear Deck offers teachers free webinars on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 11 a.m. (lunch break!) and 4 p.m. (school's out!) Eastern time. Learn the features and best practices from the Pear Deck pros.

4. Insert a new question on the fly. Classroom discussions are organic things, aren't they? If you think of a question off the top of your head - or if your students do - you can add it to your Pear Deck presentation. Just use the "Add new question" button. (It looks like a speech bubble with a plus sign.) You can change your current question to a different type of question, re-ask the same question, or start a brand new question. See below (or here's a quick YouTube video to show you how).

LOOKING FOR MORE PRACTICAL IDEAS LIKE THESE? GET 3 FREE EBOOKS FULL OF RESOURCES!

101 Practical Ways to Ditch That Textbook, Matt's insanely practical guide full of new teaching ideas (updated spring 2018!)

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©2023 Ditch That Textbook by Matt Miller.

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20 ways to use Pear Deck to engage students

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Pear Deck flips the traditional lecture by actively engaging students in real-time. Ask questions. Students answer. Learn how to use Pear Deck in your class

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Allows for asynchronous digital conversations

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As our world becomes increasingly tech-dependent, a fundamental question will be at the heart of everything we do ...

How do we preserve our humanity?

Artificial intelligence is automating tasks in our lives. Messaging can be so easily misunderstood. And the amount of time we spend staring at a screen every day is a serious issue.

One way we can preserve what makes us uniquely human is conversation. Maintaining the art of conversation in an increasingly digital world is crucial for all of us. But it will be a critical issue for coming generations.

I've found a digital tool that can help students create audio and interact with each other digitally. It's called Synth ( gosynth.com).

Why use a digital tool to have conversations? Well, nothing beats a face-to-face conversation, but Synth can amplify those conversations by ...

Preserving them for future listening

Let others in the conversation that can't be with you face-to-face

Allow replies to come in at any time, continuing the conversation longer than face-to-face time can

Making recordings searchable

In this video, I share some of the features of this tool and how it can be used in the classroom.

Check it out, and feel free to use the time stamps below to skip forward to the parts you really want to watch!

0:35 - Why voice is so important

1:50 - What is Synth?

2:43 - A look at Synth on the screen

3:59 - Transcribe your conversations

4:48 - Leave audio comments AND text comments

5:17 - Users don't have to have an account to participate

5:58 - Safeguards for students under 16

6:52 - Synth recordings can be embedded in websites

7:17 - Getting student recordings to other people and listening

8:28 - How to use Synth in the classroom
For notifications of new Ditch That Textbook content and helpful links: Interested in having Matt present at your event or school? Contact him by e-mail! Matt is scheduled to present at the following upcoming events:
[getnoticed-event-table scope="upcoming" max="15″ expanding="false"]

Sign up for Tech to Learn online course! Just $49

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Meet Synth, a classroom audio tool to amplify student voice - Ditch That Textbook

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
As our world becomes increasingly tech-dependent, a fundamental question will be at the heart of everything we do ... How do we preserve our humanity? Artificial intelligence is automating tasks in our lives. Messaging can be so easily misunderstood. And the amount of time we spend staring at a screen every day is a serious [...]

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Tons of great ideas here - especially for using them for reading, writing and history.

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Wait ... really? An unboxing video? People really record themselves opening boxes -- and upload them to YouTube? And people really watch them?

Yes! Unboxing videos are a hit on YouTube. Videos of people opening electronics, toys, makeup, and more are viewed millions of times on YouTube.

Chances are your students have probably watched an unboxing video -- or are familiar with the genre.

Unboxing videos can be a really fun, really effective way for your students to show what they know. Instead of showing off a box full of makeup, students can open a package of items sent by or to a character you've just met, from a time you're learning about, from a location you're studying.

Open the box. Show and describe what's inside. React to the contents. Fill the viewer in on the backstory or history.

Unboxing videos have several important components that can translate into a great academic task:

The audience: Who is watching the video?

The recipient: Who is receiving the box? Why?

The sender: Who is sending the box? Why?

The setting: Where is the recipient opening the box? At what time?

The box: What does the box look like? What kind of packaging is there? Is there a message on it?

The contents: What items are in the box? Is there a note in the box? What is the significance?

While creating a video with all of this, the student is constantly asking: How does this show what I've learned?

In this post, you'll learn how to create unboxing videos with your students. (Click the links below to jump to a specific section.)

Example unboxing videos

To understand what unboxing videos are all about and get ideas for creating them in the classroom, let's take a look at some examples.

Petite 'n Pretty PR MAKEUP UNBOXING!!! by Jessalyn Grace

Jessalyn is now a 11-year-old YouTuber who has more than 50 videos with +1 million views. Her subscribers look to her for videos on clothing, school supplies, her daily routines, and more.

She does a nice job of showing the viewer the items in her box -- many times in a close-up view.

Her setting is on her bed in her bedroom, which fits with the message she's sending nicely.

She sets up her video clearly by describing what she's unpacking, why, and even why it's OK that she's using makeup as young as she is.

Unboxing The Top 10 Sneakers of 2018 by Harrison Nevel

Harrison is a sneaker and clothing YouTuber. His channel is full of videos of rare sneakers, clothing reviews, deals, and shenanigans and tricks he's played.

His introduction takes a long time and doesn't really add anything for us, the viewers. Brevity is key!

He describes each shoe thoroughly, and even makes sure to show us the packaging and anything else included.

He uses text labels in the corner of the video to show the number in the top 10. He could have added the name of the shoe to those numbers to make it more complete.

Samsung Galaxy Fold Unboxing: Magnets! by Marques Brownlee

Marques Brownlee is a consumer electronics reviewer. He creates videos showing off cell phones, cameras, headphones and all sorts of other gadgets. One of Google's senior vice presidents called him "the best technology reviewer on the planet right now."

Marques does this unboxing video without his face on camera. This shows that there are different ways to record any kind of video.

He uses a variety of camera angles: top view, side view, close up.

His audio is REALLY clear. You don't need a fancy microphone to have good audio, though. Just make sure you're close to the microphone with as little background noise as possible.

How to create an unboxing video

Now that we have a good grasp on unboxing videos, let's get to planning. Remember from before, there's a handful of key elements of a good unboxing video:

The audience: Who is watching the video?

The recipient: Who is receiving the box? Why?

The sender: Who is sending the box? Why?

The setting: Where is the recipient opening the box? At what time?

The box: What does the box look like? What kind of packaging is there? Is there a message on it?

The contents: What items are in the box? Is there a note in the box? What is the significance?

And again, while creating the video, the student is constantly asking: How does this show what I've learned?

The hardest part of the whole process is planning! A well planned video connects well to the content. It makes sense to the reader. And it looks good!

Thankfully, we've got you covered when it comes to planning ...

It's available in three formats:

Part 1: Planning the unboxing video

Before students get started recording, they have to plan. This is where they pull out all of the information and connections they've learned and find ways to apply them to the video. If this part is done well, the video becomes a great demonstration of learning. Plus, when classmates watch, the videos are great recall of previous information and show new ways of thinking about material.

1. What did you learn about the topic? Summarize it! (This is a brain dump area for everything they've learned that might be pertinent.)

2. List all the people involved with the topic (if there are any). (These might be characters or mentions in the video.)

3. Who will be your box sender? Why are they sending the box?

4. Who is receiving the box? How do they feel about it? Why? (This is the part the student plays. The recipient could be them, or they could play the part of another person.)

5. What's the setting? Where is the box being opened? Why?

6. What would the sender write in the note inside the box? (A note can help provide context and add extra evidence of learning -- especially when the recipient helps the viewer connect the dots.)

7. What items might be in the box? How does that show what you've learned? (This is a brainstorming area to list as many items as possible.)

Part 2: Pre-record planning

This is where we start thinking about the recording itself. By thinking through the recording process ahead of time, students won't spend as much time on it on the day of recording.

What items should I gather? (Items can be things found around the house, classroom, or school. But items in the box can be made out of paper, clay, Play Doh ... anything!

What box will you use? Will you cover it with paper or packaging? Will there be a message or something identifiable on the box? (If students don't have the exact right box, they can always borrow one being used for something else and return it.)

Where will you record the video to create the setting? What props, background, costumes, etc. could be used to create the setting?

What will you do about lighting? Are you, the box, and the items clearly visible to the camera? Do you want a dark setting, a light setting, a spotlight? (Many of these effects can be created with lamps or other lights you might have lying around. For good bright lighting, consider recording in front of an open window for natural light.)

Will you include music? (You can always play music through speakers on another device while recording. Remember that you can't publish a video with copyrighted music in it without permission. The YouTube Audio Music Library has thousands of songs and sound effects you can use in your videos for free. Just do a web search for "YouTube Audio Music Library".)

How will you set up your camera? (Remember that your camera can be the webcam on a computer, Chromebook, tablet or smartphone. Think about what camera angle you want to use: top view, high view, low view, eye level, etc. Set your camera/device on something that will give it that angle.)

Do a practice recording to make sure your audio is good. (The closer you stand to your microphone, the better your sound quality will be.)

Part 3: Record the unboxing video

It's showtime! In this part of the planning guide, students "storyboard" their video, writing out how the video will go step by step. They can describe their actions here, too. Instead of scripting out every word they'll say in this part, they might just summarize what they'll say. (They can always type a word-for-word script in an online document.)

Here are some ideas to think through ...

Character introduction: The recipient introduces himself/herself. He/she gives any history or backstory about themselves and provide any context for the time and place where he/she is.

The box: The recipient shows the box. He/she might talk about how it was received, who delivered it, etc. The recipient discusses how he/she feels about receiving the box and why it's important (or not important) to him/her. He/she looks the box over, describing the packaging as well as any writing or marks or stains on the package.

The opening: The recipient opens the box and describes what he/she sees (and/or smells!) at first glance. He/she might show the viewer an overview of the inside of the box before pulling items out. If there's any packing material, that might be relevant to the story.

The note: If the sender included a note in the box, the recipient pulls out the note and reads it. The recipient can also describe anything he/she notices about the note, if it has a scent, etc. As the recipient reads the note, he/she can always pause to fill the viewer in on any context about a specific sentence or point before moving on. After reading the note, the recipient can share reactions or feelings about it.

The items: The recipient starts pulling individual items out of the box. He/she pulls each item out of the box. The recipient's immediate reaction (excitement, fear, disappointment, etc.) can be another way the student can show understanding. He/she describes the item, its significance to him/her, and his/her feelings about the item. Keep working through the items until the box is empty.

The review: The recipient looks over the contents of the box as a whole. He/she can comment on the items as a whole, why certain things are particularly useful, important, etc. The recipient might also notice that something is missing or wasn't included and can talk about why he/she wishes that was included. Now that the box has been opened, what does the recipient want to do? Act differently? Think differently? Do something for the sender? Send something back? How does the box change things?

One of the keys to making a successful unboxing video is to play the part of the character! The student can think about how the character would talk, move, act, react, etc. This works even if the student is playing himself/herself! Get into the role and think deeply about what the character would actually do in that circumstance ... then do it!

20 creative ideas for unboxing videos

How can you use unboxing videos your class? Here are some ideas to jump start your thinking ...

The back to school "get to know you" box

Students pick four things to put in their boxes that represent them. They can decorate the box to add even more personality. A note can be included as a letter to classmates telling them what they need to know about you.

The end of the year reflection box

Students pick several items that represent their journey through the school year. As they unbox those items, they explain their significance, talk about successes and struggles, and describe what they learned from them.

A box from the past

Someone from the past sends the student a box. The student unboxes it, providing context on why the person from the past would send that and what it means.

A box from the future

Similar to above.

A box from a historical figure or book character

This box can be received by the student or by another figure/character (as played by the student).

A time capsule

The student opens a box that has been buried since a specific time (i.e. 20 years ago, 100 years ago, pre-COVID times, etc.) The student, living in the future but looking back to the past, describes where the box was, what was around it, and the significance of its items.

A design thinking box

The student creates something (or envisions or prototypes something) and shares it with the specified audience through an unboxing video. During the presentation, the student tells why this was designed as it was, how it will benefit the user, and more.

The invisible box

The viewer can only see the student and not the box. The student has to describe what's in this imaginary box so well that the viewer can picture it. This is great for descriptive, creative writing.

The travel suitcase unboxing video

Students unpack a suitcase (or a box is OK, too) with artifacts, souvenirs and important items from a location they just visited. This can be a real life trip, an imagined trip, or even a recap of a virtual field trip. ( See this post on easy virtual field trip ideas.)

A book unboxing video

Students can unbox items that relate to a book they just read. Their video can serve as a book trailer, letting other students know why they should read that book. (But be careful not to give any spoilers!) Teachers can also make these unboxing videos to get students excited about reading an upcoming book.

The "coming next" box

Teachers can box up items that represent something students are going to learn in the next chapter, unit or lesson. The teacher can reveal lots of details about that upcoming unit (preview vocabulary, topics to cover, etc.). Or the teacher can be vague and mysterious, leaving students curious about what's to come.

The "wrong address" box

This is a box full of items that seemingly don't go together. It's the students' job to make sense of the box or try to figure out why the sender put those items in the box.

The healthy (or unhealthy) lunch box

Students unbox a lunch with foods they've chosen that are healthy or unhealthy. They can explain their choices and why they should or shouldn't eat them.

The "show and tell" box

Students pick a few items that they'd like to share with the class and talk about why they're important to them, where they came from, how they use them, etc. Students can describe the items as they unbox them -- or they can describe them before unboxing to see if others can guess. Show and tell is fun for younger students, but you also may be surprised at how much older students enjoy it, too!

The fitness and workout box

What items do students need to stay healthy and fit? They share what they use, why they use them and how they use them. For remote learning, they can create an at-home workout box to share how they can stay healthy while at home.

The math problem box

Students can write the parts of a math problem on various slips of paper and put them in a box. When they unbox them, they can put them in order, look at the step and talk about their process for doing that step, and their overall tips for solving the problem.

The self care box

What items do you use to help yourself feel better and live your best life? Students can unbox them and give their best self care tips and tricks. (They can even unbox a device so they can play music that helps them feel good!)

The sentence box

Put individual words on slips of paper in a box. In the video, students unbox the words, put them in order, talk about the part of speech, and share sentence as a whole when they're done. The sillier the sentence, the better!

The creative writing box

Use this box as a writing prompt. The teacher unboxes several items and the students write a story about the character -- including the items from the box!

The biome box

Students collect items that are featured in a given biome. If they don't have actual physical items, they can create them with paper, clay, aluminum foil or something else. Students describe these items and why they fit in a given biome.

FREE tech tools to make an unboxing video

There are LOTS of great FREE video creation tools to use in the classroom. Some possibilities include Adobe Spark Video, Educreations Interactive Whiteboard, Screencastify, Screencast-O-Matic, and Windows Video Editor.

For these unboxing videos, I'm going to focus on Flipgrid ( flipgrid.com) because it's a great fit for what we're doing.

Students can record from any device (laptop, Chromebook, tablet, smartphone).

It's easy for students to watch each other's videos when they're done.

There's lots of video editing they can do on the fly while they record and after they're done.

Oh, and did I mention it's FREE?

The Flipgrid camera is a winner when it comes to recording unboxing videos! Students can select from a variety of effects to include in their recordings, such as ...

Colored filters to give their videos the right feel

Unique frames to put around their videos

Emoji stickers to add personality and fun

Text boxes to add details and context

Photo stickers to add images to their recordings

Plus, they can pause the recording and start back up as much as they'd like. This lets them create the "jump cuts" that they see in their favorite YouTube videos very doable in their unboxing videos.

When they're done recording, your students can see each other's videos. From there, they can leave video or text replies to each other about what they've seen.

(You can turn this off by enabling moderation when you create the topic. But hey, if students are going to create cool unboxing videos, they should be able to see each other's work, right?)

Top Flipgrid tips for unboxing videos

1. Keep the camera steady. If you're using a laptop or Chromebook, set it someplace stable. If you're using a tablet or smartphone, prop it against something (like a stack of books) or use a tripod.

2. Use the pause button to cut from scene to scene. After a student presses record, he/she can pause the recording and then start again. While the video is paused, the student can move items around in the camera frame, go to a different location, change costume, bring in a prop, etc. Then, the student can just click record to continue on.

3. Use text to add context or label. The text boxes can be very helpful! Add them at the top or bottom of the video to label who is speaking, what you're pulling out of the box, where you are, etc. The more you can tell your viewer, the less the viewer will have to guess.

4. Show everything to the viewer up close. When you get the box, when you open the box, when you pull an item out, show them to the viewer! Put it close enough to the camera that the viewer can see it clearly. Rotate it around if necessary. If you're talking about a small detail, put it close enough to the camera so the viewer can see the small detail, too. Help the viewer to experience what you're experiencing!

5. Use filters and frames to set the scene. If you're pretending to be in the past, the "old town" or "black and white" filters might help your video feel that way. The "duotone" filter has an effect that looks like night vision goggles. The "breaking news" frame makes your video look like a TV news report. Use filters and frames only for a good reason, though ... not just because they look cool!

6. Do a whiteboard segment to recap details. Your viewer wants to see your face, your expressions, your reactions, etc. But you can use the whiteboard with some text/images to present important details or recap what you got in your box. It also provides a bit of visual contrast -- a whiteboard scene is different than seeing your face.

Ready to get started?

Your students will love this unboxing video activity!
How can you use this in your classroom? Share your ideas and tips in the comments below!
Also, if you have used it and have an example you can share, drop a link in a comment below. (But be mindful of student privacy when you share.)

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The Unboxing Video: A fun classroom video activity - Ditch That Textbook

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Wait ... really? An unboxing video? People really record themselves opening boxes -- and upload them to YouTube? And people really watch them? Yes! Unboxing videos are a hit on YouTube. Videos of people opening electronics, toys, makeup, and more are viewed millions of times on YouTube.