Everything we are reading is saying somewhere between 80% – 95% of Generation Z uses YouTube more than any other social media channel. They visit YouTube to laugh, be entertained by funny content, and keep up to date with the latest and music and entertainment news. They also use it to search “real stories” or “day-in-the-life” videos, “behind-the-scenes” videos, and “how-to” videos. Turns out, teenagers prefer a low-quality video by an unknown person who seems real and authentic to a polished and produced video portraying something teenagers know isn’t reality.

Learning more about what this generation of teenagers connects with caused us to reimagine and rethink the way we do middle school teaching videos for our XP3 Middle School curriculum. After all, we have the best chance of reaching middle school students if we meet them where they already are, right?