Techno-Haiku

[barclay_barrios]

One of my favorite classroom activities is the argument haiku, where students summarize a reading or the argument for their papers in that super-condensed Japanese poetic genre.  My assistant Mike, ever younger and thus ever hipper, has introduced me to a tool that I think could bring this exercise to a whole new level—Vine. Vine is like twitter as video or a moving instagram.  Users make 7 second looping videos.  The fact that you can start and stop recording allows for a crude editing and composition component.  I think it would be an interesting assignment to use Vine in the classroom.  Though it does require a “smartphone,” that doesn’t seem to be a huge issue for my students these days. What I find intriguing is the time constraint, which both forces conciseness and inventiveness.  Imagine a 7 second video that acts out the argument of a reading or paper.  It can be fun and engaging while also prompting students to focus on the core ideas of whatever they’re doing. Vine.  I’m putting it on my to do list.