Video cameras seem to be everywhere these days. In fact, there’s a good chance you have one plugged into your phone and sitting in your pocket or purse right now. That’s good news, because a video camera can be a great way to bring your family together—more than just using it to record birthday celebrations and sporting events.
Instead, turn your camera into the toy you know, and get the whole family together for one of these fun activities.
1. Interview
Have mom or dad dress up as a newscaster, complete with microphone, and conduct an interview with each child. Ask questions about their likes and dislikes, what they do at school, who their friends are, recent adventures they may have had, and any other topic that comes to their mind. Encourage your children to give long, involved responses and get into the spirit of the interview. If they wish, they can answer the interview questions “in character”, as one of their favorite fictional characters.
2. Godzilla
There are many ways to make your own creations Godzilla-style scenes. You can start with building blocks, cereal boxes, miniature toys, sand castles, or anything else that can be used to build a town or small town. Next, bring your camera low to the ground, and take a few shots from eye level of someone who may live in the city. Then, let your kids be free to mess up your beautiful city paradise! Keep the camera low, though, to capture the true terror of the 50-foot high school students as they smash their way through downtown.
3. Magical action
There are a number of magic tricks that can be done much more easily with a video camera than in real life. Have your kids dress up as magicians, and using camera trick magic, put on a show. By shooting a scene, pressing the stop button, changing something in the scene, and then continuing recording, you can make it appear as if something has been changed to something else, or has disappeared altogether! Let your kids invent their own magic tricks that use this principle, and let them entertain you for hours with their mind-blowing skills.
4. Hide and seek videos
Have one family member pick up a video camera (preferably one old enough to trust so as not to damage it) and then blindfold them and count to 100. The rest of the family should hide. When the person with the camera has finished counting, they turn on the camera and start hunting. The tricky part is that they can only look through the camera viewfinder while looking for the rest of the family. After everyone has had a turn, replay the recording and enjoy the game again.
5. Make a movie
This one is a little more complicated, and may take a little more time, but your kids are sure to love it. Sit down with the family and come up with an idea for a film. Write a script, cast, collect costumes and props, and get ready to make an independent film. Take your time, and shoot the scene as best you can. When you’re done, use some editing tools (you don’t need to get the best video editing software; just use something with basic features) to put everything together as professionally as possible. You can even add music and credits to your masterpiece.
When everything is done, have the family get together for a movie and enjoy your finished product with a bowl of popcorn. You can even give your kids fake academy awards, telling them they’re the best actors you’ve ever worked with.
