JOHN C. KINCHELOE Northern
Virginia Community
College
A Day in the Life Video Research Project
Purpose
Learners will create a digital story from the
point of view of a historical figure to demonstrate their
knowledge and comprehension of a historical period/era/event.
Description
Students
will create a video about imagined historical figures' daily
lives in one of the cultures, societies, or groups studied in
the course . The journal must be presented in a publicly
accessible video on Youtube or Vimeo.
Important: Video files or
unapproved postings will not be accepted for grading.
Details
Project proposal
(1) Choose a time period and region that
pertains to the course.
Examples: Roman Republic, Medieval England,
Renaissance Italy, etc.
(2) Choose an imagined person within that
time period and region from different classes or stations in
life (These should be composite characters or actual
historical figures).
(3) Use at least 10 sources, both primary
and secondary, to research what their daily lives were like
(at least 5 of the 10 sources must be primary ones).
Appropriate history-related websites and databases
(not Wikipedia)
Historical documentaries
History textbooks
(5) Write scripts for your subject's 3-4 minute
videos in the “Day in the Life” style often seen on YouTube
and Instagram. Here are some tips:
Introduceyour subject and make the
purpose of the video clear.
Keep your subject’s class/station in life in mind when
writing their script, e.g., a medieval serf wouldn’t have
spoken in the same way as the Archbishop of Canterbury would
have.
You can be creative here and use slang or poor grammar
if it makes sense for your historical figure; just be
consistent.
You can add additional actors to your video if you’d
like your character to meet someone during the course of
their day, as long as the person they meet makes sense
within the historical context, and your focus remains
primarily on your character.
(6) Choose set(s) and gather props,
costumes, and/or images you’d like to use in your videos.
(7) Review your script. If you are unsure of the
pronunciation of any of the words or names in your script,
please look them up on forvo.com prior to filming.
(8) Start filming your videos.
(If using a smartphone,
do not forget to turn your camera sideways!)
Here are some suggestions for software to use:
iMovie
Movie Maker
Final Cut Express
Camtasia
WeVideo
(9) Edit your 3-4 minute video for quality,
consistency, pacing, and adherence to the time length
requirement.
(10) Upload your videos to YouTube or Vimeo.
Important: All
final project videos must be posted on YouTube or Vimeo. You
must upload the link for the instructor to grade. Do not set
your video to “private” or select any other access
restrictions. It must be public for the instructor to grade.
(11) Submit your video link and script
When you have completed your project, you will submit it on
Canvas.
Group Project = If completed as a
group project, NOTE:
-The project must reflect the efforts of multiple
people in both length and depth.
-The videos can be filmed separately , but there should be
consistency in style, graphics, and editing.
-Each student's grade will be assessed on the
complete project, not just the sections completed by an
individual student.