Activity
Butterflies part 3: Note taking from videos
Build note taking strategies using videos with and without audio descriptions!
As mentioned in part 2 of this series, the goal of this series is to help TSVIs support lessons that are being taught in the classroom. The butterfly life cycle is a popular subject and general education teachers will use a variety of resources to teach this concept, including videos. This post will talk about the progression of note taking skills when taking notes from a video. We will use audio described YouTube videos about the butterfly life cycle. TSVIs are responsible to pre-teach how to take notes from an educational video.
The first post in this series, Butterflies part 1: Caterpillars used tactile graphic images and facts about caterpillars to build caterpillar concepts. Students also practiced reading/listening skills and basic tech skills through The Very Hungry Caterpillar book and caterpillar poems. The second post in this series, Butterflies part 2: Butterfly life cycle included raised line tactile graphics and several butterfly life cycle crafts which encouraged students to create their own tactile butterfly life cycle diagrams. Activities also included tech skills such as creating a slide presentation with butterfly facts, simple note taking and activities to increase screen reader listening speed.
Educational videos
In this digital age, educational resources have moved away from the traditional paper textbook. Educators use multimedia – including educational videos – to support or supplement traditional lectures and textbooks.
How can students who are visually impaired fully access educational videos?
YouDescribe is a free audio description tool for making YouTube videos accessible to viewers who are blind or low vision. Anyone can access this free, web-based platform for adding audio descriptions to YouTube content. YouDescribe also has a searchable library of videos that have been described and shared.
Note: There are mainstream video editing tools that can be used to audio describe videos. YouDescribe was specifically developed for quickly adding audio descriptions (without learning more complex editing programs) and once the video is audio described with YouDescribe, it is available to everyone.
Educators who are creating their own videos can create educational videos without needing to use YouDescribe – as long as the teacher verbally announces what is happening in the video including any critical pieces of information that are given through the images. Students with visual impairments may need extra descriptions that describe objects in detail. For example, a young student who is blind, will need a detailed verbal description of a chrysalis in a video about the butterfly life cycle. The TSVI should pre-teach the concepts by supporting the lesson with tactile graphics.
YouDescribe butterfly life cycle videos
When looking for an audio described video on the butterfly life cycle, I found two educational videos available on YouDescribe:
- The Butterfly Life Cycle by American Museum of Natural History
- Metamorphosis: Caterpillar to Butterfly by Free School
Note: As of May 1, 2024, YouDescribe is currently going through a system upgrade. Phase 1 has been completed and users can resume creating audio description. Phase 2 of the upgrade will begin in a couple of weeks.
While you can find videos and open the videos on the YouDescribe website using any web browser, for best results, YouDescribe videos should be opened in Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox web browsers. When using the attached link, the link opened as expected in Google Chrome, but in Safari, the specific video did not automatically load – the link went to the YouDescribed page and I had to search for “Butterfly life cycle” on the YouDescribe website. I am not able to embed the YouDescribe videos in the Paths to Technology website platform, but the link is provided below the YouTube version of the video.
Butterfly Life Cycle video on YouTube (not audio described)
Butterfly Life Cycle video YouDescribe link
Metamorphosis: How a Caterpillar Becomes a Butterfly by Free School YouTube video (not audio described)
Metamorphosis: How a Caterpillar Becomes a Butterfly YouDescribe video link
YouDescribe resources
- YouDescribe: Audio description for YouTube post by Veroniiiica
- How to create audio description for YouTube with YouDescribe post by Veroniiiica
- YouDescribe: Creating audio described YouTube videos includes how to turn on audio descriptions on iOS devices
- Creating videos with visual impairments
Types of note taking activities
Choose a note taking activity from a video that is appropriate for your student’s current level. Students should first learn to take notes while listening to the teacher (versus listening to a video). A teacher can pause and give the student time to take the notes (and prompt the student if necessary), while a video continues on unless physically paused. The goal is for the student to independently and efficiently take notes while listening to a video or to a full video lecture.
- When taking detailed notes from a video, older students should use two devices: One device to run the video and the second device open to a document to take the notes. The video can be watched on any device, including a smart phone. The note taking should be on a device with a physical keyboard or a paired braille display, or on a note taker.
- Younger students should be introduced to simple note taking. Often this begins with listening to the video and then filling out a “fill-in-the-blank” type of worksheet. Students are expected to listen to the video content and then recall the important pieces. Initially, the teacher might prompt the student by reading the questions first or verbally providing clues on what to listen for. With this type of simple note taking, the student is typically expected to listen for and retain only a few pieces of information. Fill-in-the-blank type questions are good for young students who have limited reading/writing skills.
- The next level of note taking for students is “short answers”. This worksheet will ask questions that the student will answer potentially in their own words. This can be an activity in which the student listens to the video, retains the information and recalls the information to complete the worksheet. This activity can also be done with two devices, with the student taking notes while listening to the video. If needed, the class/student can watch the video a second time.
- Note: The video can be watched as a class. The teacher can choose to let the video run or to periodically pause the video to model how the student should pause the video in order to complete the worksheet or to take personal notes. Another option is to provide the video to each student and let the student watch the video individually, allowing the student to pause the video as needed. The student can choose to switch between apps (video app and document) as desired or the student can use two devices.
- As the student’s note taking skills improve, the younger student can make a list of details he/she deems as being important. Lists are a precursor to taking notes in an outline form. As the student progresses, he/she should move from a list to a full outline format. Initially, the teacher can provide the basic outline format and the student types content into the format outline. Initially, the teacher can also talk the class through each part of the outline form. When using the outline form, Headings should be used so that the student can quickly navigate from one section to another.
- As always, the TSVI should teach the concept of how to complete the fill-in-the-blank form, how to make a list, how to answer a short answer question, how to create an outline form, etc.
Any video can be used to teach note taking skills, but be sure to find a video on the student’s level. If the student is at the most basic level, use a quick video about familiar things. These basic videos do not have to be audio described, as long as the student understands the topic and has the basic concepts, and the video announces the critical information and does not rely solely on the visual images to provide the answers. Whenever an educational video is used, the student should practice his/her note taking skills. In order to master note taking, the student must regularly take notes on a variety of topics and note taking skills should progress to move complex and longer content.
Butterfly life cycle videos – not audio described
Can a blind or low vision student access a video which is not audio described? Yes, but there are some conditions, including the student’s concept level of the content discussed in the video and whether the video has verbal language that includes all of the critical information.
For example, if the student has completed the activities in the first butterfly life cycle posts and has built strong concepts of the four stages, the student will have the foundational concepts to understand and to have a mental image of these terms when used in a video. The video does not have to describe in detail what a caterpillar or chrysalis looks like. However, the student may miss out on additional information in the video such as the pattern of how the caterpillar eats the leaf. (In one video, the caterpillar eats a round hole in the leaf while in another video – with a different type of caterpillar – the caterpillar chomps quickly down in lines from the outer edge of the leaf.) While the eating patterns is not important to the butterfly life cycle, it may be an interesting fact that the student will miss out on if the video is not audio described.
In the ideal world, all videos should be available with either great built-in descriptions or should be audio described. Personally, I do like exposing students to videos that are audio described along with videos that are not audio described. Sometimes the audio descriptions can distract from the educational content of the video – the student has to pay extra attention to what is important and what should be included in his/her notes about the video. There are many interesting YouTube videos for educational and social use that are not audio described that can still be beneficial for people who are blind or low vision.
Here is a popular, basic butterfly life cycle YouTube video that is not audio described. If your student is familiar with the content, can he/she still benefit from this short and simple video?
The butterfly life cycle for kids: Four stages of the butterfly life cycle video (not audio described)
I really like the next video as it includes significantly more details, making it an ideal video for note taking purposes. This video is geared for slightly older elementary students and contains good science content. This video includes wonderful detailed language making it easy for students who are blind or low vision to understand what is typically being displayed visual on the screen.
The amazing Monarch life cycle video (no audio descriptions)
Resources
Heading resources:
- Reading efficiently with a screen reader: Headings post
- Creating headings for a screen reader: Lesson plan post
Note taking resource:
- Note taking: Polar bear video (part of a series of posts on note taking; this post focuses on note taking strategies specifically for videos)
- Zoom and NVDA tutorial skills (and note taking skills) (Zoom meeting)
Butterfly Resource:
Butterflies part 4: Books and writing activities
By Diane Brauner
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