This is the first post of a new monthly series on Apps My Kids Use, keeping a tune to what’s keep our kids amused in our mobile world.
I will sometimes see my kids using a new App that I have never heard of and the next thing you know, all of their friends are using it and soon after the app becomes a big deal and a household name. My kids are currently in high school, by the way, for a bit of age context here. Later we shall get Erica adding to this column with apps that her much younger nieces and nephews use. Some Apps ignite a strong addiction while others are over and done with and deleted quickly. One App that has been used consistently in our house for over a year now is Video Star. It has become a means of creating memories of family vacations and momentous outings, not to mention the great babysitting tool it has been for them to entertain kids!
Within the Video Star App you create a music video. You select a song from your own iTunes account, select a special effect to use for your scene, record a little action and stop when you are done. When you are ready to record your next scene the App will automatically continue where you left off in the song. This is amazing, because it allows you to film at different locations, even days apart and not have to do any editing!
Here’s a video that I made for Erica on the occasion of her birthday. In her honour I was as silly as I could be!
You can see how this would be perfect for travel, as you can take a short clip of each place you go and end up with a music video showcasing memories from your whole vacation. I feel you could even take this App into the business world. For example, if you are working on a film, TV, or theatrical show, you could use Video Star to get some fun behind the scenes clips to share with everyone at the end of the show. You could certainly prepare some fun material for presentations, and get students up and active during workshops.
The only downfall with Video Star is that for sharing purposes you need to upload it to YouTube in order to maintain the digital quality. Sharing with others via email or messaging sends a very grainy low quality version. I hope you give yourself permission to have some fun and maybe capture a video to paste a smile on the face of your family, friends or staff this Christmas, Hannukah, Kwanza, or other winter holiday! As Erica will tell you, it makes the perfect gift!
