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Creating screen recordings can enhance your teaching, presentations, and digital content creation. Whether you’re capturing a tutorial, demonstrating a process, or providing feedback, the ability to record your screen allows you to communicate ideas more effectively.
Luckily, with tools like Nimble Screenshot, Educreations, and built-in editors on both Mac and Windows, you don’t need to be a pro to get started.
In this post, I’ll walk you through a few user-friendly video creation tools, highlight their features, and share how you can easily get started with them.
Nimble Screenshot Chrome Extension
Nimble Screenshot (formerly known as Nimbus) is a powerful Chrome extension that allows you to take screenshots or record directly from your browser. Perfect for capturing tutorials or web-based demonstrations, Nimble offers built-in annotation tools so you can highlight key points while recording.
How to use it
- Install the Nimble Screenshot extension from the Chrome Web Store.
- Open the webpage you want to record.
- Use Nimble’s built-in editing tools to annotate your video while recording—add arrows, highlights, and notes in real time.
- Once finished, export your video. Keep in mind that if you’re using a Mac and want to further edit the video in QuickTime, you’ll need to convert the file to an .mp4 format first (more on that below).
Mac: QuickTime
If you’re working on a Mac, QuickTime is a simple and accessible tool for recording and editing. With QuickTime, you can create screen recordings, capture webcam footage, and trim your videos with ease.
Steps to edit in QuickTime
- Open QuickTime and go to File > New Screen Recording or New Movie Recording to start capturing your video.
- After recording, you can use the basic trimming tools to cut down your video and save it in a variety of formats, including .mp4.
Windows: Clipchamp
For Windows users, Clipchamp is a versatile video editing tool that comes pre-installed on Windows 11. It allows you to record and edit videos seamlessly, with easy-to-use editing features like trimming, adding effects, and even integrating audio.
Getting started with Clipchamp
- Open Clipchamp and select the Record & Create option to start capturing your screen or webcam.
- After recording, you can quickly edit, add transitions, and export your final product in high resolution.
Educreations
For iPad users, you can use the Educreations app is an interactive whiteboard and screencasting tool that’s simple, powerful, and fun to use. Annotate, animate, and narrate nearly any type of content as you explain any concept.
How to get started with Educreations
- From the My Lessons screen of the iPad app, tap the “+” icon to start a new lesson. Then tap the record button and write on the whiteboard as you explain any concept, just as you would when tutoring a friend. The app records your voice and iPad screen as you teach to create a video that you can share.
- Get started by making a short recording to see how it works. Pause and resume recording whenever you like. If you need to take a break, you can save a draft of your work-in-progress and come back to it later.
- Once you get the hang of it, try adding images and text to the page.
- When you’re finished, tap the exit button at the top-left of the whiteboard toolbar. Give your lesson a name, choose a privacy setting, and save it. Share your finished lesson with anyone, even if they don’t have an iPad.
Cloud File Converter
If you’ve recorded a video with Nimbus but need to edit it on a Mac in QuickTime, you’ll need to convert the video file from its default format to .mp4 first. Online converters like CloudConvert can help with this process in just a few steps.
How to convert your file
- Upload your Nimbus video to a converter like CloudConvert.
- Choose the output format as .mp4 and download the converted file to edit it in QuickTime or any other video editing software.
Looking for assistance in integrating educational technology into your classroom? Visit the EdTech website for resources or reach out to our team!
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