This post was published in the Common Craft Newsletter. Subscribe here
I'd like you to think about learning as a river. When we're in school, the river flows briskly. Each day is filled with ideas, lessons, and examples that flow by. If we pay attention, we can grasp them long enough to pass a test or complete an assignment. The best educators find ways to make the river feel easy to navigate.
![](/sites/default/files/media/Rock%20River%20for%20GIF%203.gif)
Unfortunately, the river is often too wide and turbulent. Ideas can get lost. Attention wanes. Memory fails. It happens to everyone.
High-quality explanations are like rocks in that river of learning. They are set in the ground and stay put no matter how turbulent the river gets. They create the foundation for applying the ideas flowing over them.
Let's consider an idea like your digital footprint. If an educator can clearly explain the concept of a digital footprint to students, it can become a rock in the river that helps keep them safe online.
Or maybe the rock is avoiding plagiarism. Once they truly understand it, the idea supports their writing in the future.
The Challenge
Most educators know the rocks that students need. You see the value, but the river is already overflowing. There isn't enough time to create a powerful explanation that gets everyone on the same page quickly.
What if...
I believe that animated videos have the power to create stable rocks in the river of learning. In just a few minutes, well-designed videos can captivate students and teach them core concepts quickly. By creating a solid foundation of rocks, the educator can provide students with an easy way to grasp and apply ideas as they flow.
This has always been our goal at Common Craft. We create rocks in the river of learning. Want to see more examples? Watch any video in our library, in full.