Review by Polly Conway, Common Sense Education | Updated August 2013
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WeVideo

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Solid editing site makes video creation simple and social

Subjects & skills
Subjects
  • Arts
Skills
  • Communication & Collaboration
  • Creativity
Grades This grade range is a recommendation by Common Sense Education and not the developer/publisher.
4–12
Great for:
Common Sense says (See details)
Teachers say (21 Reviews)
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.
Platforms:  Website

Take a look inside

5 images
Import a variety of media to create a video.
Colorful graphics can be added to each video.
Themes come with predefined music, text style, and transitions.
Import media from Google Drive, Facebook, and more.
Videos help users get started.

Pros: Fun filters and fancy fonts will keep kids experimenting with presentation style as well as putting together information.

Cons: Privacy can get convoluted with all the sharing, and the full program is somewhat costly.

Bottom Line: With three levels of tools and an easy-to-use interface, kids should have no trouble creating content here.

How Can I Teach with This Tool?

You can assign short WeVideo projects for students to create during class time; asking them to put together a report on a U.S. president or cell division is the perfect WeVideo task. Students can also collaborate with each other on videos, with one or more students working from home (if the technology is available). To prepare students for working together on a video, you could ask them to form small groups and present a subject or tell a story together.

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Put this tool into practice:
Standards:

WeVideo is a video creation site (and Chrome app) that lets students create, edit, and share video content in one place. It's cloud-based, which means that multiple people can collaborate and work on the same video from different locations.

After you sign up, WeVideo will ask you about your video-editing experience; it will then recommend one of its three editing modes: Storyboard, Timeline, and Advanced Timeline. Storyboard is best for beginners, but you can switch between modes using the Settings wheel in the upper right corner. Timeline allows you to add extra features like custom fonts and effects. You can upload images or video clips and put them together with voice-over or text. Themes lets you put a stylish filter over the entire video, while the Invite feature makes it possible to grant others access and editing capabilities.

Students can learn basic through advanced video-editing skills here; to create content, they'll gather information, photos, and clips from online sources or from their own work. They'll learn to visualize information and organize their stories -- from personal tales to reports on historical events -- into impressive presentations. 

WeVideo makes it easy to create professional-looking videos quickly. The themes are really fun to experiment with, and students will enjoy changing their video's tone with the different filters. Users have the option to upload media directly from other websites like Flickr or Dropbox, or from their own computer. There could be a more intuitive way to get help (it's currently located on a separate page that's hard to find), but overall, WeVideo is a solid editing program whose focus on collaboration sets it apart.

Overall Rating
Engagement Is the product stimulating, entertaining, and engrossing? Will kids want to return?

Once you get started, the video-making process is very engaging, and kids will be drawn to fun extras like filters and fonts. The simple design highlights video content and allows it to shine. 

Pedagogy Is learning content seamlessly baked-in, and do kids build conceptual understanding? Is the product adaptable and empowering? Will skills transfer?

By collecting data and organizing information, kids will learn skills they can transfer to future projects in school and beyond. By collaborating, they will learn social skills and how to work together.

Support Does the product take into account learners of varying abilities, skill levels, and learning styles? Does it address both struggling and advanced students?

Tips are given along the way, but the main FAQ list is located on a separate page that's slightly hard to find. Data can be kept private within the account or can be shared.

Common Sense Reviewer
Polly Conway Classroom teacher
About our ratings and privacy evaluation.

Key Standards Supported

Reading Informational Text

  • RI.4.7

    Interpret information presented visually, orally, or quantitatively (e.g., in charts, graphs, diagrams, time lines, animations, or interactive elements on Web pages) and explain how the information contributes to an understanding of the text in which it appears.

  • RI.5.7

    Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources, demonstrating the ability to locate an answer to a question quickly or to solve a problem efficiently.

  • RI.6.7

    Integrate information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words to develop a coherent understanding of a topic or issue.

  • RI.7.7

    Compare and contrast a text to an audio, video, or multimedia version of the text, analyzing each medium’s portrayal of the subject (e.g., how the delivery of a speech affects the impact of the words).

  • RI.8.7

    Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of using different mediums (e.g., print or digital text, video, multimedia) to present a particular topic or idea.

  • RI.9-10.7

    Analyze various accounts of a subject told in different mediums (e.g., a person’s life story in both print and multimedia), determining which details are emphasized in each account.

  • RI.11-12.7

    Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words in order to address a question or solve a problem.

Writing

  • W.4.6

    With some guidance and support from adults, use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of one page in a single sitting.

  • W.5.6

    With some guidance and support from adults, use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of two pages in a single sitting.

  • W.6.6

    Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of three pages in a single sitting.

  • W.7.6

    Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and link to and cite sources as well as to interact and collaborate with others, including linking to and citing sources.

  • W.8.6

    Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and present the relationships between information and ideas efficiently as well as to interact and collaborate with others.

  • W.9-10.6

    Use technology, including the Internet, to produce, publish, and update individual or shared writing products, taking advantage of technology’s capacity to link to other information and to display information flexibly and dynamically.

  • W.11-12.6

    Use technology, including the Internet, to produce, publish, and update individual or shared writing products in response to ongoing feedback, including new arguments or information.

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Teacher Reviews

(See all 21 reviews) (21 reviews) Write a review
Featured review by
Tara H. , Classroom teacher
Classroom teacher
Gretna Middle School
Gretna, United States
A fun alternative to PowerPoint presentations.
One thing I really liked about WeVideo was that it allowed each student to work at his/her comfort level - or just beyond it. Some students had no experience with video editing, and they were able to use WeVideo to essentially make a narrated PowerPoint. Other students were more comfortable with the technology, and they imported videos and music into their presentations, which took their projects to the next level.
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