Using Animated Videos in the Classroom

I am always a big fan of using pictures and videos in the classroom with my students. Using videos in the classroom has many benefits. Today’s students are used to so much visual stimulation that they respond well to visual supports and visual activities. I found it a great way to teach concepts, and engage students in creative activities.

Here are some of my favorite animated videos and some suggested activities I liked to do with them. I liked to expose my students to different artistic forms, it helped expand their horizons a bit.

1. Simon’s Cat – (Series) short videos that depict a hilarious relationship between a man and a cat. You can check out the YouTube channel here.

2. La Linea by Osvaldo Cavandoli– (Series) The character, created from a long, unbroken line, reacts to the off stage cartoonist, and encounters a variety of different things.

3. The Red Thread by Kazuhiko Okushita – A single line animation depicting the story of a boy growing up, getting older, and in the end going full circle.

4. Eat by Jeff Liu – A short film about exploring new things.


5. The Hardest Jigsaw by Eric Anderson


6. Acorn by Madeline Sharafian


7. Omelette by Madeline Sharafian


8. The Mew-sician by Madeline Sharafian


9. A Cloudy Lesson by Yezi Xue

10. Red by Hyunjoo Song

11. Clocktower – by Cara Antonelli

Activities:

• Using these videos as a writing prompt, have students write the story.
• Have students write a story about what happened before or after the videos.
• Have students write a script or internal monologue sharing what characters are saying.
• Practicing Inferences – as a discussion or in writing, students make inferences and use evidence from the video to support their inferences.
• Practice inferring Character traits and using evidence from the videos.
• Align videos with concepts taught, imagery, theme, etc. Have students discuss these elements in the videos before delving into larger texts.
• Choose videos with shared themes to a story and compare and contrast how it was developed.
• Using them as a brain break – a teacher I work with uses Simon’s Cat at the end of the day as she passes out homework folders.
• With beginners and low levels – using it as a vocabulary tool. Brainstorming vocabulary words that we know and I add to the list new words. Practicing with vocabulary by pausing the video and labeling things on the smart board.