Voki in the Classroom: Four Activities

Looking to enhance students technology and 21st-century skills? Voki is a free Web 2.0 tool that
allows kids to create talking characters. The site features educational resources, including teachersubmitted lesson plans.
Users can customize characters to resemble living people, animals and cartoons. Record

voices via microphone or telephone, or upload them in an audio file. Completed characters can be
shared via social media, email and embed code.
With free Voki accounts, users can create unlimited characters. Those who upgrade to a paid Voki
Classroom subscription can select pre-made historical figures and scenes, and record a total of 90
seconds of audio (as opposed to the 60 seconds available to free-account users). Additional
management options come with a paid account.

Students will enjoy the following technology integration activities:

This...Is...ME!
Try this as a fun icebreaker at back-to-school time. Let students create characters that look like
themselves. Then have students write a script that identifies their best qualities and communicates
whats most important to them. Ask them to use one of the three audio input methods to record their
tracks. Have students share their animations with the class.

Vocabulary Rundown

This is a great activity for language arts, English or foreign-language classes. Ask students to design
characters. Let them be very creative, as character design isnt important for this exercise. Have
students make a list of some vocabulary words they need to practice that week. Ask them to use one
of the three audio input methods to record the five words and their definitions. Then have kids quiz
themselves by pausing the animation right before the character states the definition.

Fictional Characters Come to Life

Begin this public speaking exercise by having students design their interpretations of famous
characters from literature. Then ask them to use one of the three audio input methods to record their
favorite monologue by any one character from a book theyve read. Give students time to use their
animations to help them remember their monologues. Have them present their animations to the
class, followed by them reciting their monologues without the help of the animation.

Historical Figures
Want to spice up social studies or history class? Have students create (or select, depending on your
account) historical figures to use for brief reports. Have students identify a significant moment from
the life of the figure, and then ask them to type up a first-person narrative account for their
characters to recite. Next, have them use one of the three audio input methods to record audio for
their scripts. Encourage students to present their animated reports to the class.

Related resources
Animoto in the Classroom: Activity Ideas
Using Wikis in the Classroom
Event-Coverage Tech: Classroom Ideas
Real-Time Chat Tool: Student Activity Ideas

Article by Jason Cunningham, EducationWorld Social Media Editor

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