Del Sur Kindergarten Class Takes Home Two SDCOE iVIE Awards

Posted on June 25, 2012

by JENNIFER FRAKES | photos by Spark Photography

Megan Power’s 2011-12 Kindergarten class received their first taste of show business fame recently when they won two San Diego County Office of Education Innovative Video in Education (SDCOE iVIE) awards. “Our class won in the Kindergarten through 2nd grade category and won the People’s Choice Award for our 3D movie, ‘Flashback in Time,’” exclaimed Mrs. Power.

“Flashback in Time” is a 3D video that takes viewers through the journey of a child creating his class project on the recent past – the 1920s, 1950s and 1980s. The students filmed at three locations – the Poway Midland Railroad, Corvette Diner and North County Fair. According to Mrs. Power, the students were involved in all aspects of the movie-making process, from conceptualization, research, scripting, storyboarding, filming and editing. “Just because students are young doesn’t mean that they can’t research or understand concepts. My students quickly learn that even Kindergarteners can make a difference,” declared Mrs. Power.

Mrs. Power has been engaging her Kindergartners in video projects for the past three years, and she is always amazed by how much the students learn during the making of a film. This year the students learned not only about the context of film-making, but also how the eye and the brain process 3D. “There is just something about creating a video with students. It completely engages them and inspires them to learn,” said Mrs. Power, who is grateful to Sony for generously donating a 3D camera for “Flashback in Time.”

Each year, she enters the finished film in the SDCOE iVIE Awards, a video festival hosted by the San Diego Office of Education. The mission of the festival is to encourage the use of video in the classroom with project based learning. “This year, there were more than 400 films submitted. It is inspiring to have a county that takes the time to encourage, share and honor student work at such a big event,” explained Mrs. Power.

Regardless of the outcome of the SDCOE iVIE Awards, Mrs. Power also hosts an annual “Red Carpet Premiere” event to celebrate the student’s hard work. Families and friends are invited, and the students give a presentation about the movie making process. “It is a magical event for the students and their families,” said Mrs. Power.