Watching videos is fun and engaging. But creating them yourself is even better! With Adobe Spark Video it’s easier than ever. Here are some video project ideas for using this FREE software with your class.

This post is written by Claudio Zavala Jr., an Instructional Technology Coordinator with Duncanville ISD in Duncanville, Texas. This is the first in a series on creating in the classroom with Adobe Spark. You can find Claudio on Twitter @ClaudioZavalaJr or on his blog: iamclaudius.com.  

Video is a powerful medium for storytelling. And creating videos has never been so simple. You and your students can easily put a story together on your mobile phone, laptop, PC, or Chromebook.

How?

With Adobe Spark Video, you and your students can create compelling videos in just a few minutes using professional looking themes and music. Adobe Spark Video is a free online video making software that allows you to easily combine images, video clips and icons into a beautiful, shareable movie. Add text, music and your own voice to personalize your video.

To begin, simply head to the website spark.adobe.com or download the app to your iOS device. Both web and iOS apps have the same functionality with the differences being in the format.

The interface is very intuitive! Want to add video? Click the plus sign and add a video. Click Preview to view your video in progress. Very easy to follow. What you see is what you get!

Ready to learn more about how to use Adobe Spark Video? Here is a tutorial that walks you through each step in creating a video.

So how can you get started using Adobe Spark Video in your classroom?

Here are 5 video project ideas for your students.

Invitation

Hosting an event at your school? Use Adobe Spark Video to create a stunning invitation to a school event such as first day of school, meet the teacher night, curriculum night, sports events, concerts, etc.  For added value, have your students create invitations to send to their parents or guardians for Open House event.

• Welcome to Taylor Elementary School

Book Report/Reviews

Do you assign students write book reports or reviews?  Instead of writing book reports or reviews in worksheets, have students create a video.  Students can talk about Plot and Theme of the book. Depending on the grade level, you can break the book into sections and have a one group create a video about the Plot, other groups can do Theme, Story Elements, etc.  Students can create a video analyzing characters in a book.

• Character Analysis

Classroom Highlights

How do you share the happening in your class with parents? A great way to share classroom activities or events is by creating a highlight reel.  With Adobe Spark Video you can do that by choosing the “Tell What Happened” guide. Perfect way to show off your classroom and students.

• Week in Review

Step-by-Step (How To Videos)

Need to create a step-by-step video? Use the Story Guides found in Spark Video to help you and you share a lesson.  Students can also use Spark Page to teach each other how to do solve a math problem, build a project, pass a level on a game, cook, etc. The sky’s the limit!

• Math Tutorial

Field Trips

How many of you enjoy looking at photos or videos of vacations or trips? Create a video of a recent classroom trip or outing.  Use the “Tell What Happened” story guide to share what transpired. Better yet, have students create a video of different parts of the field trip. For example, task them with creating videos of different sections of the zoo (lions, tigers, and bears…oh my!)

• Panthers

Things to Know

Projects (Spark Videos) are automatically synced so you can work whenever inspiration strikes.

Adobe Spark Video is available across the web or the iOS app. Unfortunately, at this time Spark Video isn’t available on an Android device. 

Adobe Spark Video is available to all teachers and students. Even better, schools get Premium features that usually cost $9.99/month per user absolutely FREE! Read more about Adobe Spark EDU here.