Instead of creating a traditional “book report”, encourage students to create a “book trailer” using the free Photo Story application. Photo Story 3 is a free download from Microsoft that (1) enables you to create short ‘movies’  (animation added to photographs), and (2) add .mp3 files or use a built-in music generator to add music in the background. This article, “Making Book Trailers” with Photo Story 3” written by Mark Geary provides an overview and step-by-step instructions on how to create the book trailer. While the article focuses on students creating the final product, you can also use it to create a short introductions to new units of study.