Scott Kennedy, a math teacher at Sachem High School East in Farmingville, N.Y., was recently featured in an animated video lesson on the newly launched TED-Ed website.
Using lessons originally developed by Euclid, an ancient Greek mathematician famous for revolutionizing the way math is written, Kennedy, 29, presents nearly a five-minute lesson about proofs in a fun and enlightening manner.
Kennedy, who has been recording math lessons for his YouTube channel for a couple of years, learned last March that he would be one of the first 100 educators to have a lesson on TED-Ed.
Through recording equipment that was provided by TED, Kennedy recorded his own lesson, which was matched with illustrations by Karrot Animation, a company based in Britain.
Scott Kennedy on working with TED-Ed: “I try to stay on the cutting edge. I find it’s effective. I find my students love it and it keeps it interesting for me. If you can supplement with technology, it’s all the better. I’ve always wanted to be a cartoon character. That’s just awesome. I’m an animated person in the classroom. I get very into my lessons and what I’m talking about. They really captured it pretty well because they watched my YouTube videos. It’s good exposure. I’m just trying to be the best teacher I can be in the classroom.”
Sachem East Principal Lou Antonetti on Kennedy: “Scott is a very dynamic teacher whose passion and enthusiasm for math lead to great outcomes in the classroom. The recognition he is receiving for his work on TED.com is a credit to his persistent approach and ability to vary lessons structures based on student abilities.”
JoAnne Albino, math department chair at Sachem East on Kennedy: “I was very proud when I heard that Scott was accepted to create a TED-Ed video. It is a real honor for him to be granted the opportunity to be a part of the TED-Ed collection of lessons. TED-Ed is also looking to get Scott’s students’ reactions to the video as they view it for the first time so that they can include it on their website. Scott has always been a creative force within the Math department and I look forward to his contributions in the future.”
About TED-Ed
TED stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design. TED-Ed videos aim to capture and amplify the voices of the world’s greatest educators. To achieve this, they pair extraordinary educators with talented animators to produce a new library of exceptional educational videos. TED believes passionately that ideas have the power to change attitudes, lives, and ultimately, the world. TED-Ed’s commitment to creating lessons worth sharing is an extension of TED’s mission of spreading great ideas. Within the growing TED-Ed video library, you will find carefully curated educational videos, many of which represent collaborations between talented educators and animators nominated through the TED-Ed platform. This platform also allows users to take any useful educational video, not just TED’s, and easily create a customized lesson around the video. Users can distribute the lessons, publicly or privately, and track their impact on the world, a class, or an individual student.
CLICK HERE to view Scott Kennedy’s video lesson on Ted Ed
(Official press release of Sachem Central School District)