Kids can make own claymation movie, it's easy

Making a claymation movie is a lot of fun and a very easy project for kids. You only need a digital camera, some clay and a basic knowledge of Windows Movie Maker or Mac iMovie (and even if you don't know this software, it's not hard to figure out the basics) do to it.

Supplies:
* digital camera w/tripod (although is possible without a tripod but it does make it easier for the kids with one)
* Clay (any kind that does not harden in air immediately)
* Windows Movie Maker (on pc) or iMovie (on mac) - both are free and on any computer made within past 5 years

Directions:
My girls made something out of clay that they could easily manipulate to move in small increments like a butterfly or flower. L. came up with a rolling, drooling possum for one of her characters so the sky is the limit on things to make. Just make sure the creature can "do something."

Set up the camera on the tripod in a well-lit are and zoom on the clay creation so not too much background is showing.

Snap a photo of the creature then move it slightly and snap another photo. Ideally you want 10-12 photos total (more if possible and your child has the patience for it).

Download your photos to your computer.

Open Windows Movie Maker/iMovie (there are different ways to do this depending on which you use but for now I'm going to explain this for Windows) and choose "Import Media" option at top left of screen.

Find your folder with the clay photos and select them all to import in to Movie Maker.

Drag photos to the "timeline" at the bottom of the screen. You want each photo to play for about 3 seconds each so you need to trim each photo by selecting all the photos (in the timeline) and selecting "options" in the "tools" pulldown menu at the top of the screen. Once in "options" choose the "advanced" tab and change the "picture duration" to about 3 seconds. (The shorter duration for each image will make the animation look smoother).

Once you've played the clip to make sure the sequence and animation are how you like it, choose "publish movie" in the "file" pulldown menu at the top of the screen and save it to your desktop.

Then you can watch the claymation creation!

It's really quite fun and if you already know the basics of how to use Movie Maker/iMovie, it really is a snap.

L. has spent quite a bit of time since the 4-H Edge Conference (where she learned how to do this) playing around with various claymation movies and she has some advice for other kids.

* Don't take pictures when there is a shadow from the window. It makes the movie come out weird.
* Don't move your camera around because it makes the action look jumpy.
* Make sure all your pictures are in focus because the movie looks funny when they aren't.
* Be patient because it's hard to only move the clay a little bit but it comes out better when you do it a little at a time.

L.'s claymation project



G.'s claymation project (which includes a clip of her using a special voice activated program at the UMaine New Media lab).



And just for the record, yes, there are a wide variety of animation software options that work better than Movie Maker/iMovie but they cost money. The software I suggest you use is free and installed on all computers made within the past five years (it's part of the windows or os system). The simplicity of the program to do this project is what really appeals to me. At some point the girls might want to get more sophisticated but for now this is just right to explore their ideas for claymation movies.