Streaming your stories as they happen

““There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”
”

Throughout the history of mankind we have shared stories. From cave paintings, Egyptian hieroglyphics and Greek pottery our history of storytelling is a rich tapestry of innovative platforms in which we post and share stories with one and other. 

Of course throughout history the ways which we share stories have developed and changed. 

Throughout modern history the purpose of storytelling has been to archive stories and make sure they are passed down through generations.  

Some of the earliest texts we have date back to 2600BC

So where is the future of storytelling? 

We are now very much in a digital age. If you don't keep your eye on technology it can quickly pass you by.

In a digital age where we are building self-driving cars and plotting to explore the depths of outer space we are also beginning to expand our storytelling horizons. Now we have the ability to stream stories as they happen. 

To put this into context, if somebody is telling a story in Australia,  people of the United Kingdom can watch the story live.  

Of course this all started with television...

Television first streamed live events/stories to the world and gave people the opportunity to capture historic moments live as they unfolded. 

Of course this still limited who could tell stories and what stories we could choose to listen to.

With advancements in technology, now anybody has the ability to live stream stories from anywhere in the word and from anybody. 

A 30 second advert in the Superbowl costs roughly $4.5 million dollars, now we can stream our stories and content to the world for free if we choose to embrace live streaming. 

How can I stream my stories? 

Periscope

The original periscope was first invented back in the 1400's to help pilgrims see over the crowd at a festival but unsurprisingly this is not the periscope we are referring to.

The app Periscope was founded on a simple premise. Co- founder Beykpour was travelling abroad and heard of riots outbreaking in Turkey. He quickly signed onto Twitter to see what was happening and realised something very obvious: he could not see what was happening. 

Although on Twitter he could read about it, see pictures and short videos, he wanted to be able to see it properly and be able to truly experience a live event.

On March 26th 2015 Periscope was launched as an arm of Twitter.

Periscope currently has over 10 million accounts and more than 40 years worth of video are watched daily live!

So what are the features of Periscope?

  • Mobile/Tablet apps only, no live streaming from desktop. Though you can watch a stream on desktop.
  • Periscope has its own channel on Apple TV. Watch people's live streams as a unique television channel. 
  • Public/Private streaming. Either stream directly to your adoring public or just a select group of people.  
  • Periscope is live, it is not edited or tampered with. What you see is what you get. Real stories and a real insight into peoples lives.
  • It's free. How much would you have to pay to broadcast an event several year ago? Periscope is free and you can broadcast any event live from your mobile phone. 

Meerkat

A valued member of the mongoose family and entrepreneurs of comical adverts for insurance but unsurprisingly this again is not the meerkat we are referring too. 

The Meerkat app launched on the 2nd May 2015. The app now has over 2 million users. Originally Twitter exiled Meerkat as it was a competitor of Periscope.  Meerkat turned to Facebook and now you can sign up to Meerkat through Facebook. 

Meerkat and Periscope have very similar features. It's a matter of user functionality preference.

Meerkat of Periscope, which is better?

YouTube

YouTube is now ten years old. The site has over 1 billion registered users and receives over 4 billion video views a day. It's easy to see why often YouTube is referred to as the sleeping giant of live streaming.  

YouTube has live streaming and it is available now.  Many YouTube users be even be unaware of the fact that YouTube offers the ability to stream live video.  Although functional it doesn't seem to have a massive presence like the main functionalities of YouTube. 

So what are the features of YouTube live streaming?

How to live stream on YouTube.

YouTube has got live streaming functionality but it is easy to see why it may be referred to as a sleeping giant. If and when YouTube decides to throw it's weight behind promoting it's live streaming it could become much more common to see live streaming on YouTube.

Check out this live footage of Earth from the International space station!

Streaming school stories as they happen. 

““The best thing to spend on your children is your time””

As much as every parent wants to dote on their children with time and affection around the clock this isn't always possible. In modern society more and more parents are both working. They are many big moments at schools which parents and family and parents simply can not be present for. 

However with all of this streaming software, times are changing. Social media has made it very much possible for parents and families to get an inside look into school events and stories. 

Let's apply live streaming to an school event: 

The pinnacle of all sports day events! The egg and spoon race!

The pinnacle of all sports day events! The egg and spoon race!

  • Sports days happen during term -time during a week day. Many parents struggle to get this time off work.
  • Schools could release timings of all of the races. If a parent or family member can not take time off work to attend sports day they can simply tune in to the streams of the child's events. 
  • Why not film the race and post it to YouTube later? There is a certain thrill with live events, you are part of the moment, part of the magic. People watching a World cup final live are part of that game, part of that story. (We're not comparing the world cup final to the egg and spoon race) However to a parent these are precious moments that they would love to be part of as it's happening. 
  • Particularly with boarding and international schools the advantages of live streaming are more than beneficial. With the ability to broadcast these events for free worldwide, to all parents and family it's a wonderful opportunity . 

 

Tips for live streaming in schools

Like all social media it's about being creative and selective with what you decide to post or in this case broadcast live. 

1.Be Practical: To stream live you will need internet access. If your school has no wifi or bad internet be practical. Don't try and broadcast outdoor events if you have poor internet or bad mobile reception. 

2. Inform: Inform parents and families that events are being broadcast. Don't let your live streams go under the radar. Parents and families will want to know about these events. 

3. Be Creative: Stream anything from indoor football matches, christmas plays to geography lessons.

Schloss Neubeuern use live streaming to engage with parent, prospects and their international community.

Schloss Neubeuern use live streaming to engage with parent, prospects and their international community.

4. Be Selective: Choose your audience. Events such as sports day may be best suited to stream privately. However broadcasting a lesson or even your christmas dinner, may be best for a public platform, to give an insight into your school life and create a brilliant free worldwide advertisement for your school. 

 

Benefits for live streaming in schools

 

1. It's free: For something that can make such a difference to your school, it's unbelievable that live streaming software won't cost you a penny.

2. Show off your school: Social media has revolutionised how people can brand themselves and gives groundbreaking platforms to show off what people can do so brilliantly. 

3. It's easy: It's really not complicated. Periscope and Meerkat in particular are very easy to use and a live stream can be set up within a matter of seconds. 

4.Promote through existing networks: Periscope works wonderfully with twitter, Meerkat works wonderfully with Facebook. Sharing information about live streams can be done through existing social networks and can quickly generate an audience. 

 

Live streaming events is a growing phenomenon which is only going to get bigger and bigger.

We would love to hear about any innovative ideas you have for live streaming in schools.

Share your thoughts in the comments below..

 


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