Obviously I have spent time on YouTube before – hasn’t everyone? It runs the gamut from funny to embarrassing to learning videos to entertainment in its various forms. It has a variety of languages, although English is the primary language. I looked at all the YouTube sites listed on the assignment page; the first ones were amusing (loved the MISD version of Nextel’s ad and remember when it first hit the schools a couple of years ago) and interesting, but the three about student learning and Web 2.0 were riveting in terms of what it means to be a teacher today. Watching them brought lots of questions about my own teaching and how I should/can change to be more relevant, to be technologically-inclusive, to learn where my students are, and then to help them build with the right tools to reach their goals.
I started looking at videos, and went to the music arena fairly quickly (no surprise there!). Looking for 60’s music, I found 2,090 on Roy Orbison, 60,300 on Elvis, 187,000 on the Beatles . . . and went on from there. YouTube will be a good source for our school’s 60’s music – with the caveat that student exploration (at school anyway!) will need to be guided to ones I have previewed. Everyone knows there are videos and posts on YouTube that are not meant for children, and teachers need to be extremely careful in allowing access. I also enjoyed watching and hearing Mario Lanza, one of my favorite tenors from the past. I saw “Classical Gas” – a great 60’s piece by Mason Williams to teach my students about the guitar. Of course, nothing beats my favorite: Pavarotti singing “Nessun Dorma” from Puccini’s opera, Turandot! Magnifico!! (that means "really cool!) Then I had a really special find: a childhood favorite of mine, the Swedish children's hymn, "Tryggare kan ingen vara" or "Children of the Heavenly Father," in Swedish with the words on the screen. It has a very special meaning to me, especially on this day, July 16. The problem with YouTube, at least for me, is that it is so addictive – it’s hard to sign off once you’re on. I wasn’t sure everyone would like Pavarotti or understand Swedish, so I embedded good ol’ Elvis, singing “Hound Dog.” Not as sublime, perhaps, but still a form of music!
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You might consider embedding YouTube clips that you want students to see in a blog, like you did with Elvis, so they can watch without actually being in the YouTube interface.
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