Youtube & Oolong

Welcome back!

The caffeine question of the week is this: What is your favorite tea or decaffeinated coffee to drink when winding down for the day? I usually have a cup of chamomile or the Snooze & Snuggle tea from Target. Comment your answers below!

Today we are going to talk about Youtube, and how it can be utilized in the classroom! Specifically, channels that can be used in class, and project ideas for students to do. Let’s get to it!

To start off, a little fact about me, I love Youtube! Whether it’s watching a coffee video, an alternate history video, or a “day in the life” video, I always find myself watching an episode or two in the morning while I’m getting ready for the day. Youtube is a great platform that can be used by teachers and students when it comes to learning about history. Today I will cover a few channels that are great resources and ideas for class discussions and activities. The first one is a classic favorite of history teachers: Crash Course

Created by the brothers John and Hank Green, Crash Course is an independent video brand dedicated to providing educational videos for those interested in learning more! Ranging from different subjects, such as history (of course), theater, literacy, and science, Crash Course provides quick videos for those at the high school and college levels. I remember watching a few videos in a history class back in high school. One of the ways they were incorporated was as summaries of either the subject of the week or as a wrap-up video after lectures. This is a great way to allow visual learners in the class to get a feel of the material before the lesson begins or to have a refresher at the end of one. And of course, these videos can be used as quick study tools for students to refer back to when studying for quizzes and tests. Due to Crash Course’s success on YouTube, they now have a website dedicated to providing these same videos for the eager learner! The link to their website is: thecrashcourse.com/courses

The next channel is OverSimplified. Created by Stuart Webster, OverSimplified provides quick, comedic overviews of historical events and figures. This is a great resource for those ranging from the middle school to college levels, and classroom friendly! I usually watch a few videos in case I need a refresher on a historical figure. If you are interested in using this channel, this is a great option for those planning on introducing students to historical figures or wars, such as the American Revolutionary War. This can be done anytime in a lesson when a new subject is coming. Whether it is a quick intro before a lecture or a refresher after the lecture, these videos can help with your students’ understanding of history. And, with the comedic aspect and animations, students will be interested, and the best part, engaged in class!

A new one to my list, and my fiance’s favorite, is The Infographics Show. There are a variety of videos relating to education, military, celebrities, etc for students ranging from middle school to college. Created by Andrej Preston, these videos are great to use in classroom discussions or even debates to get the students to really use their thinking caps! There were a few days when I would find my fiance glued to the tv screen with a cup of coffee in hand, learning about different parts of history or military comparisons. We love watching a few and then debating afterward on how things may have looked like in an alternate history setting!

This now brings me to another great channel for debates and critical thinking in class: Alternate History Hub. Created at the high school and college level, Alternate History is a channel that explores the “What if?” that many of us ask while in history classes. Just like the previous channels, this is also an animated channel, dedicated to providing that “what if” possibility to their viewers. This can be a great resource to use after a lesson as a way to get students to really think and work together to see how complex history is to the grand scheme of things. This has been another one of my favorites to watch in the morning, as it makes me really think about how the outcome of history could’ve changed in a split second.

Along with these channels, there are tons more out there that are engaging and classroom-friendly! Some more would be: Free School (elementary – middle school level), TED-Ed (middle school – college level), Extra Credits (middle school – college level), Simple History (middle school – college level), & A Kid Explains History (upper-elementary – middle school). Once again, these are just a few resources, as historians and history buffs alike are continuing to provide more and more access to history via platforms such as YouTube!

I hope you enjoyed this week’s post about the many ways YouTube can be helpful in the classroom. If you have any ideas on other digital resources, comments about the post, or a fun coffee drink that I should be aware of, comment below!

Until next time!