Sharing End of the Year Photos with Parents

As the year comes to a close, many of you have memory-making trips and events planned, like field trips and plays, and you may want to easily share photos of these events with parents.  In my classroom, I loved making photos into simple slideshows to share via email or on my blog, rather than sharing several individual pictures.  Here are a few of my favorite tools to use to share these photos:

This isn't a slideshow tool, but it is an easy way to share photos in a safe, private manner.  If you use Seesaw, and you allow parents access to Seesaw, you can upload photos, videos (or a slideshow) and share with all of your students.  When parents logon, they'll be able to view these photos that you've shared.

The tool I used most often in my classroom for quick, easy and fun slideshow creation is Smilebox. I really love the cute themes that Smilebox offers, and it's so easy to use.  I had a paid version for years, until I discovered Smilebox Teacher's Toolbox, which allows teachers to apply for free FULL versions of Smilebox to use in their classrooms.  CLICK HERE to see the Teacher's Toolbox info!

Animoto is a super easy free tool that can be used to make short slideshows.  Animoto can also be used as a student presentation tool (Mrs. Romei's first graders made some awesome solar system videos using it - CLICK HERE to view!), but it's a quick, easy way to share classroom photos as a slideshow.  You can make videos from a computer, or using the iPad app.  With the free version, you (or students) can create 30-second videos.  Here's an example:

The Mixed Up Chameleon Part 2

Flipagram is a free app that can be used to create slideshow videos.  You can incorporate 60-second clips of popular songs for free, or connect to iTunes to purchase songs to use in the background.  For teachers who use Instagram in their classrooms, Flipagram shares super easily to Instagram. Flipagram allows you to add text to the photos in your slideshow.  Here is an example:

Another fun idea you may want to try using is Periscope - this tool allows you to live broadcast footage from your classroom.  This would be a fun way to involve parents in end of the year trips, plays, and activities.  Click the image below to read my previous post about using Periscope in the classroom.