If you’ve been looking for a way to make book reports more interesting and fun with interactive video, mysimpleshow may be the answer you are looking for. Keep reading and I’ll explain more.
*Disclaimer: I received a free subscription and was compensated for my time in exchange for an honest review. As always, my reviews reflect my true opinion, and I was not required to write a positive review. For more information, please read my disclosure policy.
How to Make Book Reports Fun with a Video Presentation
This year I have been on a mission to make our homeschool full of fun, interactive, and hands-on. I’ve also been trying to make the older girls more independent with their studies so I could spend more time with Lil’ Sis as she’s learning the basics.
To do that, I’ve been ditching a lot of curriculum and worksheets.
Since my girls love to read every chance they get, I wanted to find a way to turn their fun-time reading into a more educational experience whenever possible. I wanted to avoid typical book report worksheets, so I was excited when the opportunity arose for me to try My Simple Show.
What is My Simple Show?
So, what is mysimpleshow, anyway? Basically, it’s an easy way to make engaging videos (or as they call them, “explainer videos”) to send a message to your particular audience.
Anyone can use their simple online tool to make professional quality videos in any setting, including professional, educational, and personal.
Videos can be created using pre-made templates, or designed completely from scratch. There are also pre-made scripts you can use to simplify the process or create your own.
Other features that help make the videos professional and engaging include:
- Use your own voice as a voice over
- Music backgrounds
- Subtitles
- Scribble effects
How We Use mysimpleshow for Book Reports in Our Homeschool
Whenever my girls finish reading a book, I have them use mysimpleshow to make an explainer video book report. I give them the book report check list (more on that below) complete with instructions on how to make the videos. Then, I set them loose to work on their own!
When they are finished with their videos, I receive an email letting me know. When time allows, I check them to see how well they did and then discuss anything that may need to be added or edited from their video.
By creating the explainer videos, the girls get practice in many different areas such as typing and writing, in addition to practicing the different parts of the story such as the plot, main idea, characters, conflict, etc.
KK chose to do her book report on “Thea Stilton and the Hollywood Hoax”, a book from the Geronimo Stilton Adventure Series.
This is currently her go-to book choice, and I can’t complain since there are a lot of educational references peppered throughout the story. I think the colorful pages are what really drew her in, along with the element of mystery.
Thea Stilton and the Hollywood Hoax: A Geronimo Stilton Adventure (Thea Stilton #23)
Check out KK’s book report on this book below using mysimpleshow:
Moe chose to do her book report on “Into the Wild”, a book from the “Warriors” Series.
She’s more into fantasy style books these days, and her love of cats made this series the icing on the cake for her.
Warriors #1: Into the Wild (Warriors: The Prophecies Begin)
Check out Moe’s book report on this book below using mysimpleshow:
Tweet ThisWould I Recommend mysimpleshow?
In one word – absolutely! My children ask me daily if they can make a new video for books they’ve read in the past. They enjoy picking out the different pictures to include in the different stories, and love listening to themselves tell a story.
If you are a homeschool mom trying to add a little more fun to your homeschool, mysimpleshow is definitely a tool I would recommend.
How to Subscribe to mysimpleshow
Signing up for a subscription to My Simple Show is easy! They have a few different subscription levels ranging from free all the way to professional. For paid subscriptions, you can choose to pay monthly or yearly, so it will be easy to fit into your budget.
You can also follow mysimpleshow online on Youtube, Facebook, and Twitter.
Book Report Checklist Free Printable
Remember earlier when I told you I made the girls a book report checklist? Well, I wanted to share that with you today as well! Anyone who subscribes to my newsletter can download a free copy of the template to use anytime they need.
Simply download, print, and laminate for durability. Laminating is completely optional, but makes it easy to use over and over again with dry erase markers.
Click here to download your free printable.
Have you made a book report using mysimpleshow in your homeschool? If so, what was your experience? Share below in the comments.
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