ePals Virtual Field Trip: Guidelines

When creating your video projects, please address the following four areas:

1. Where do you live? What is your eco-system?

2. What animals live in your “backyard”? Are any of them unique?

3. What grows where you live? Which plants are unique to your eco-system?

4. What is your daily life like?   Students around the world are interested in the culture of where you live. Use local expressions, show local customs, local food specialties and local points of interests. Be sure to include something that makes your school or your class unique.

Important items to remember:

·         Each video should be no more than five minutes. One whole-class video is encouraged, rather than several individual submissions.

·         We accept the following video formats: mpg, .mp3, .mp4, .mov, .wma, .avi, .flv. We cannot accept .mswmm (Microsoft Windows Movie Maker).

·         Do not include student last names or ages in your video.

·         Videos should be both informative and visually appealing. Use primary sources where possible. Show us what makes your hometown interesting and unique. Please cite all sources at the end of your video.

·         Where possible, let your students do the talking. Young ePals around the world are most interested in listening to their peers.

·         If your students are under the age of 13, please be sure that you have parents sign permission slips that permit their children’s likenesses to be posted on our website.

·         Please feel free to have students speak in your native language. But remember, many students who will not be native speakers will be watching the video. Speak clearly. English subtitles are a great addition if your video is competed in another language.