Animoto

=Animoto=
 * * ======Screencasting Home====== || * ======A+ Signature====== || * ======Educreations====== || * ======Animoto====== || * ======Blurb Mobile====== || * ======Explain Everything====== || * ======ShowMe ====== || * ======Apps and Resources====== ||

What and Why:
This app lets you create, edit and share video slideshows from personal photos. Pick your photos, video, add text and music, and watch it, share it, or save it for offline viewing. You can apply different effects, backgrounds and transitions. Animoto uses "cinematic artificial intelligence" to create finished videos.
 * **Free:** The Lite account includes unlimited videos, a 30 second max length and access to video greetings. (The Plus account adds themed video styles, unlimited length, and ability to download to your computer and DVD. A Plus account adds additional video styles, more music tracks, HD upgrades and a white label option for your own branding.)
 * **Educators Account:** educators can apply for an Educator's Account. This provides a Plus account for 180 days and codes so up to 50 students or colleagues can update to a Plus account. You can use my update code of: a4emann0531c6 if you prefer to not create an educators account and simply upgrade directly to a educator supported Plus account. Animoto requires students to have an email account, however, they support the use of the "extended" email account option through a Gmail account. See directions on their educator help for student emails page.
 * **Style:** from one of 8 preset styles
 * **Song:** Choose from their large library by top 10 favorites, album, artist, genre, or song
 * **Photo:** Take photos or add photos from iPad's photo albums or photo stream
 * **Text:** a text slide can have a heading (22 characters) and sub heading (30 characters.) No options for size, font or color.

Activity:
“Flash Learning” - learning MTV style with text and images with Animoto. Create an Animoto presentation which reviews the vocabulary and/or the vocabulary with images for a topic you are covering in class. The free version of Animoto has a limit of 12 slides including text slides and is limited to 30 seconds. The Plus version allows more slides and the time is unlimited. You can check out Carolyn's Badger Fun.
 * 1) Create an account at @http://animoto.com This account can also be created through the app, however, to upgrade to the Educator account you must be on the website.
 * 2) Download the Animoto app Lite (free)
 * 3) If you want to do the image and text option, find and save 6 images around a content area you want to teach about. If you want to do all vocabulary word, all you need is to create 12 slides with text.
 * 4) Create 6 slides with text or vocabulary words which go with the images you saved.
 * 5) If you want to crop an image, or modify it in other ways, this can be done using another application such as: PhotoShop Express. To text to a slide use an application such as A+ Signature Lite,
 * 6) Rearrange the slides so that they images and text are alternating.
 * 7) Pick your Style and Song.
 * 8) Title your video with a title and subheading as desired.
 * 9) It takes a few minutes to render (create) your finished movie. Your finished movie will also be available on the Animoto website. Use Share, to share a link to the movie from the app to Facebook, Twitter, email or SMS. Use the gear, you can also save the movie back to your camera roll.
 * 10) Share.

Other:
There are other apps which have some similar features. Some of our favorites are listed below. Animoto is a standout because it can create an MTV like video with the built-in styles and over 600 songs...and they have an educators version which supports student accounts.
 * [|Splice] - free - //though made for the iPhone or iPad, this little app provides a lot of editing power for a free app (multiple sound tracks, transitions, video editing...)//
 * [|FlixLab] - free - //just images and music, no audio//
 * [|iMovie] - $4.99 //- a bargain for what it provides//
 * [|InaWorld...Drama] - $1.99 //- create movie trailers using preset text and voices (warning - there is a PG option with non school appropriate language)//
 * [|InaWorld...Humor] - $1.99 //- create movie trailers using preset text and voices (warning - there is a PG option with non school appropriate language)//