Why sit kids down in front of the TV when they could be making their own media - exercising their imaginations and having fun? This can be as simple as filming funny antics in the backyard to coming up with a full story line complete with plot, characters, and costumes.

All you need is a video camera and a little imagination! Try uploading the video onto a YouTube channel (make sure to set the privacy settings so that the channel isn’t open to the public) and share it with family.

For younger kids, point-and-shoot videos are a ton of fun. Recoding real time“out takes” makes for great laughs. Teenagers might have fun editing their videos with software like iMovie or Windows Movie Maker. If your kids really get into video, many communities have Public Access groups for youth - where kids can learn about editing, production, and filming. Check to see if something like this exists in your community!

Spoof a fairy tale
Make commercials
Make a movie based on a book
Try a video in Spanish
Interview family and friends
Create an original story line
Mock Olympic events and film them
Film a puppet show
Create a news program
Brainstorm a bunch of ideas and put them in a hat—draw an idea to ad-lib