TOP PICKS | 28 TOOLS
Websites and Apps for Making Videos and Animation
Top Picks
RELATED
Print list
Video Editing and Remixing Tools
TeleStory
Direct and star in zany TV shows with fun, easy-to-use movie maker
Bottom line: What this fun, creative storytelling tool lacks in depth, it makes up for with pizzazz.
PlayPosit
Simple design makes it easy to jump into interactive video
Bottom line: With features that are both basic and useful, it's an easy tool to learn; adding interactivity to video is a snap.
Grades: 2–12
Price: Free, Paid Basic accounts are free. Optional premium features are $96/year and include the ability to copy and edit other teachers' content, the ability to crop video, more question types, student-created content, printable worksheets, grade exporting, and advanced student data.
Coach's Eye - Video Analysis
Robust video analysis for sports, science, fine arts performances
Bottom line: Cool video-analysis tool is great for the sports field and beyond, but prepare for an onslaught of hidden costs to access all features.
Green Screen by Do Ink
Versatile, easy-to-use moviemaker yields great results
Bottom line: High-quality movie maker has numerous uses for students projects.
Recap: Video Response and Reflection for Education
Multimedia reflection app puts a new spin on class discussion
Bottom line: By promoting regular self-reflection and inquiry through Recap, teachers can support more authentic learning and self-assessment among their students.
Screencastify
Easy screen-recording tool facilitates outside-the-box instruction
Bottom line: If you have access to Chrome, Screencastify is an easy instructional tool that lets teachers and students communicate in new and creative ways.
Grades: 3–12
Price: Free, Paid Free version offers up to 50 watermarked videos per month and a maximum length of 10 minutes per video; premium version ($24 per year) removes the watermark and unlocks more features, including trimming and exporting capabilities. Bulk pricing is available for groups of teachers and districts.
Binumi
One-stop shop for creating and assigning beautiful video stories
Bottom line: Set students up for storytelling success with quality content and tools in a safe environment.
Grades: 4–12
Price: Free, Paid $1 to $2 per user per month, depending on the feature set; district volume pricing available.
WeVideo
Solid editing site makes video creation simple and social
Bottom line: With three levels of tools and an easy-to-use interface, kids should have no trouble creating content here.
Grades: 4–12
Price: Free, Free to Try, Paid Premium personal accounts are $4.99/mo or $49.99/yr, Education accounts (up to 30 users) are $199.99/yr. A free trial is available for teachers.
AndroVid - Video Editor
Versatile must-have creation tool for classrooms using Android devices
Bottom line: Easy-to-use tool enables Android users to create movies or slideshows.
iMovie
Pro-quality HD movie maker is easy enough for beginners
Bottom line: This extraordinary tool for making movies anywhere is easy enough for beginners, yet has lots of headroom for advanced users.
EdPuzzle
Crop, customize, and remix online videos for your classroom
Bottom line: If you're using online video in your classroom, you'll want to look into EDpuzzle as a way to layer in more learning opportunities while students watch.
Grades: 3–12
Price: Free
Adobe Premiere Clip
Decent on-the-go video editor shines when using other Adobe tools
Bottom line: It's a good tool that gets better when using other Creative Cloud apps, but the limited features make this a hard sell for anything other than introductory editing.
Flipgrid
Pose questions, spark thoughtful video responses with stellar tool
Bottom line: A simple way for students and teachers to create online discussion, as long as your classroom culture is mature enough to use it wisely.
Grades: 6–12
Price: Free to Try, Paid Free for 1 grid, $65 per year for a teacher, $400 per year for up to 10 classrooms.
Adobe Spark
Super-flexible design tool for crafting fabulous images, videos, and sites
Bottom line: This free, one-stop shop for creating sleek graphics, web stories, and animated videos is incredibly easy to use and challenges students to think critically about visual presentation.
Grades: 8–12
Price: Free
Clips
Create and share videos with cool effects, tons of language options
Bottom line: This slick video creation app is fun, empowering, and accessible in lots of languages, but be careful with sharing.
MediaBreaker/Studios
Free video-remix tool boosts media literacy, presents some challenges
Bottom line: It's not without its challenges for teachers, but at its core MediaBreaker is an easy-to-use and free tool for teaching critical media-making and literacy.
Grades: 8–12
Price: Free
TouchCast Studio
Cool tool takes videos to next level, but some privacy concerns
Bottom line: TouchCast is a creative tool for students to use to present information, but teachers should monitor use.
Animation and Slideshow Tools
Easy Studio Stop-Motion Studio
Ideal, easy-to-use way to help kids learn basic animation
Bottom line: This introduction to digital animation offers lots of opportunities for creativity for young students.
Toontastic 3D
Flexible tool hands kids the reins for creative animated storytelling
Bottom line: Despite some lack of variety and simple drawing tools, Toontastic 3D remains a terrific, versatile storytelling tool.
Shadow Puppet Edu
Resource-rich video slide-show maker a gem for a variety of classrooms
Bottom line: Easy-to-use free tool is a must-have for elementary classrooms; just keep an eye on sharing and privacy.
LEGO® Movie Maker
Stop-motion animation app has limited features, may inspire creativity
Bottom line: Despite its limitations, a robust, easy-to-use tool for creating stop-motion animation.
Animatic
Ultra-simple starting point for animation has its uses
Bottom line: This animation app can be a great starting point for learning the essentials of animation (sequencing frames of drawings), but ultimately it has a small feature set compared to others.
Animation & Drawing by Do Ink
One-stop animation tool for beginners through experts
Bottom line: Accessible entry into animation for beginning students, but with enough depth to satisfy more advanced artists.
Explain Everything Whiteboard
Refreshed version of the original presentation tool still excites
Bottom line: While this app lacks the options of the full-featured Explain Everything app, teachers and students can still make powerful presentations.
GoAnimate for Schools
Make professional-looking animations with easy-to-use tool
Bottom line: This highly engaging animation tool is a fun way for students to experiment with storytelling and digital creation.
Grades: 4–12
Price: Free to Try Subscriptions start at $79 per year for just a teacher account. For teacher and student accounts, plans vary (e.g., it's $124 per year for one teacher and 30 students).
Explee
Build slick, engaging whiteboard animations with Web-based tool
Bottom line: A stellar -- if somewhat pricey -- creation tool for the classroom.
Grades: 6–12
Price: Free, Paid A teacher account costs $30 per year, while $150 a year buys access for a teacher and up to 40 students.
Animoto
Create snazzy video slide shows with simple, flexible features
Bottom line: Slick music videos and slide shows are easy to make, but students need more controls to personalize them.
Grades: 7–12
Price: Free, Free to Try, Paid 14-day free trial. Special free teacher subscriptions available; three pricing tiers for consumers ($8 to $34 per month).
Vidcode
Cool coding tool tuned to teen girls' passions aids creativity
Bottom line: Learn-to-code programs for youths often too narrowly define what can be done with code; Vidcode expands the options, helping girls see code's value in culture and express themselves.
Grades: 8–12
Price: Free to Try, Paid Free introductory projects; contact for pricing for intermediate and advanced projects/lessons as well as training and support resources.
