Using video: Personal Response Activities

These kinds of activities are designed to allow learners to express and share their personal impressions and reactions to the content, just as they would if they were at home watching a video with friends. This is an important part of the learning process as it allows students to assimilate what they have learned from the content of the video into their lives and this enables them to make a deeper and more lasting connection to the materials.

Here are some simple examples of personal response activities you can use.

1. Ask students to discuss what they learned from the video. What is it that they now know that they didn’t know before they watched it.

2. Ask students what parts they liked or didn’t like.

3. Ask them if they agree with the message and if there was any parts they disagree with.

4. Ask them why they thought the video had been made.

5. Ask them if there is anything they still want to know which wasn’t included in the video.

6. Ask them how they would change the video if they made it.

7. Ask them if anything surprised them about the video.

8. Ask them if they would recommend the video to someone else and if so who and why.

Procedure 

Procedure for setting the activities

1. Try not to be too demanding in eliciting responses from your students. You could get them started by giving some of your responses to the video.

2. Make sure you give the students time to think about and digest what they have watched.

3. It might be easier for students to speak in pairs or small groups rather than open class as they will feel more comfortable expressing their opinions to each other.

4. Remember there are no wrong or right answers to these tasks, this is just an opportunity for students to express themselves freely.

Procedure for using the activities

1. These kinds of activities are best used once the learners have had time to absorb and understand the content of the video, so they could be used towards the end of a lesson.

2. Be sure not to dominate the discussion and try to avoid correcting students during this part of the lesson. The real aim is for students to express what they think.