Tech Tools: Stop Motion Animation

Stop motion animation is a tool for visual storytelling that uses still images to create a moving image. Stop motion movies can be as simple as a few consecutive frames that form a story-board to an intricate film with thousands of frames a minuet. A classic example of stop motion that many may be familiar with is claymation: forming characters from clay and photographing them through a range of positions to create action. The popular series Wallace and Gromit is an example of this technique.

Of course, Wallace and Gromit is stop motion created by a studio of trained technicians, but the same stop motion principles apply to this film as would be used by students in the classroom. A camera is set up in a fixed place and the characters are moved around in front of it with one photography being taken at selected intervals (the smaller the interval the faster the action) to create motion. The characters that create motion can be either 3D models, or can take the form of an image that is developed in front of the camera and sped up to create a progression.  Here is an example of a stop motion video I made with drawing and painting. This video combines portions of stop motion with video to create a more dynamic experience.

 

The flexibility and creative potential of stop motion make it an excellent tool for students to express them selfs and show their learning. Because it is often an in depth process to make a stop motion film, it also lends itself well to collaboration between students, with individualized roles such as camera person, director, cinematographer etc within a group. Below is an example of a stop motion animation made by a whole class at Gidgalang Kuuyas Naay Secondary School in Haida Gwaii. The animation uses readily available materials like cardboard and paper and tells the story of Taaw, a local landmark on Graham Island. This video is an excellent example of the power of stop motion animation. It is simple, creative, collaborative approachable and fun way to breath life into any story. These students have made it relevant by using it to tell the story of their own place and culture in their own language. With the right tools, training access to equipment and time I think all students could tell their story in this medium.

Coding, Blended Education and Thinking about Modality

Today we had a lesson in coding with Scratch from Rich McCue. Scratch is a visual coding program that allows you to create interactive stories with code. Code is broken down into already written phrases that perform specific actions in Scratch. The user selects the “block” of code they want and click it into other blocks to create a unique sequence. This visual manipulation of code is a good starting point for inexperienced coders because as it mystifies the language and logic of coding by representing it visually. For me, Scratch was a useful way to create fun sequences and mess around with basic code commands. For my future students, I could see this program being a good game making tool. Introducing interactive play into student led projects would help provide choice to my socials studies learners, and Scratch would be a good platform to suggest for digitally constructing a game that connected to an inquiry or research project.  Games like Scratch are particularly useful because of their flexibility, because each student can program as little or as much as is their level of understanding or desire. Like many games or forms of play, I think tools like Scratch lead to inclusion of different learners.

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Moving on from scratch, we also were introduced to augmented learning and learning by proxy in today’s class. Our introduction was to two specific tools: the first being  Aurasma, an augmented reality platform for smartphones. Aurasma allows you to add overlays to your surroundings. These overlays can be connected back to events or histories that cannot be seen physically, or could be fantastical like the example of the Harry Potter classroom. We were also shown different models for learning by proxy, the most notable of which was the telecasting robot. This robots allows you to video – conference into a space using a platform much like Skype or Facetime. However the difference between standard video connections which are static, proxy robots allow the remote party to control the movement of their robotic body from afar. Playing with this robot was totally surreal. Physically it was the size of a child and had a screen like head and moved in a jerky wheeled gait. Its eerie movements were off-putting at first but as I got used to it I was impressed by much better it was that traditional video calling. The ability of the caller to move around takes the strain off the instructor, who otherwise would have to move the screen around or orient the caller to the material. Of all the ways to access a classroom without being there, this robot seemed like an excellent option for both the remote party and those attending and teaching the class.

The telecasting robot, Professor Robot. We gave it a scarf. Photo by me.

Using the telepresence robot in class brought up a valuable discussion about modality and our preferences and biases as instructors. Examining my own bias I can say I lean towards face to face learning because it is my experience. As a student I learned as much from the social interactions outside of the curriculum as I do from the instruction, and being with a physical group of people is important for my mental health. However I know this is not everyone’s experience of school. Some students cannot attend or have negative social experiences when they do attend. With technology such as telecasting available there is no need to punish students for absence or have the threat of missing out cause them stress. I think perhaps knowing that the option to learn by proxy exists may be enough to provide some students with relief when they are not having a positive school experience.

Blended learning also allows for students to lead more diverse lives through travel, independent projects or deeper involvement with community outside of school. Students who take advantages of these opportunities and remain connected to their classes through blended learning and learning by proxy will enrich the community in numerous ways.  The options that technology such as the telecasting robot and other platforms for learning by poxy or learning online give students help to open up the idea of the classroom and learning. This is a good thing, no matter what your initial bias may be.

 

 

 

 

Intergenerational Education

EDCI 780 Inquiry

For my inquiry project as a pre- service teacher at Victoria High School I researched benefits and strategies for integrating inter-generational learning into high school classrooms and culture. Intergenerational learning is learning with and from our elders.  My inquiry topic is inspired by programs such as Igen (Intergenerational Classroom) in Saskatoon which pairs grade 6 learners with elders in the community full time for a year. I want to strategize how learning with elders in schools might ground students in their community and ground them in relationships and culture. 

I am driven to investigate intergenerational learning from my own experience. I lived with my grandparents as an adolescent and learned under their tutelage. I also went to a high school where Indigenous elders were often present in the classroom or at school events. The presence of these older adults in my personal and academic community gave my high school experience perspective and taught me a respect for different life experiences.

I was also guided towards this inquiry because of it’s relevance in my teaching areas of  social studies and gender studies, combined with the calls for intergenerational awareness in the new BC Curriculum. During my time at Vic High, I focused my inquiry project on the social studies classroom and faculty, and ask teachers and administrators how they connect students to elders in the community, or what the barriers might be that prevent them from doing so. From here, I want to ask students at Vic High and peers at Uvic what their experience of elders are, and wether they can think of any connections between those experiences and the topics they are teaching or learning about. Finally, I grounded my project in case studies on inter-generational learning such as the Igen program in Saskatoon, and connect the results to potential applications under the BC Curriculum’s Core Competencies and the FNESC First Peoples Principles of Knowledge. The final result of my project were displayed in the poster pictured below and presented at the Vic High and the Uvic Education Programs end of year gala. 

Intergenerational Learning poster by me

 

Some of the benefits of Intergenerational Learning I found were:

• Strengthens community inside and beyond the school and classroom
• Teaches strong communication skills
• Builds respect for different world views and experiences
• Connects learning to culture and history
• Grounds learning in relationships
• Builds empathy and self awareness
• Can improve mental health

Strategies for integrating Intergenerational learning into the classroom were listed from starting points to increasing levels of involvement:

• Service education (volunteering)
• Guest speakers
• Connect with learners and their communities
• Use primary documents and material culture from other time periods to promote empathy in lessons
• Connect with elders through technology
• Work with administration to build an ongoing school – elder partnership
• Immersion programes

Perhaps the most important finding of my inquiry was that building meaningful intergenerational learning partnerships means facilitating ongoing reciprocal relationships between students and elders. This means that students and elders meet regularly and get to know and trust one another, perhaps working together on a project. Through my time at Vic High I connected with the gender studies teacher who does just this. Her class has worked with elders to create a play about sexual identity and health, a project that has matured through the year.

This inquiry is far from finished. It will continue to grow as I move into my role as a teacher. I plan on starting my teaching with an awareness of the importance of the generations that inform each students identity. I hope that by grounding my pedagogy in my experience with my own elders I can foster a classroom dynamic where students feel comfortable speaking to their own relationships with elders. This will be the first step toward connecting my students to an intergenerational consciousness.

 

Minecraft and Skate Club

Today we learned about Minecraft. Minecraft is a multiple player game where new worlds are created with 3D blocks. Players explore these worlds and can build and gather resources as well as interact with other players. We were introduced to the teacher controlled mode of Minecraft and played the game in student mode. We had the pleasure of playing with several young learners present (primary school age). The young players seemed drawn to the digging, planting and flying functions. Any movement that allowed for creative change to occur in the virtual world seemed to appeal to these players most.

https://minecraft.net/en-us/

Personally, gaming is foreign to me as I have never done it, so Minecraft was a new world. I appreciate how Minecraft can be highly manipulated to mirror the needs of multiple learners and multiple contexts. Thinking about my future art and social studies classrooms I can see the creative modes of Minecraft providing a useful stepping stone for students who may not feel naturally creative. Social studies students could use Minecraft to map out a world or to experiment with problem solving, basic economics and collaborative world creation. The strength of this game is it’s limitless potential. In art class Minecraft could teach students about three dimensionality, what depth in space looks like and how to create it simply with basic shapes like cubes.

Today we also held the first meeting of our informal skateboard club. After visiting central middle school which has a skateboard and scooter elective class, several members of our cohort decided we should start our own extra curricular club. It quickly caught on with the children of some of our peers and has grown into a skate and art hangout. It has made me think about the importance of fun, physical activity and play in my future classroom. Students of any age need the opportunity to access play, curiosity and creative exploration. This can be done in a classroom by modelling a comfort with exploration and improvisation as an instructor. Today’s club meeting also reminded me of the importance of family centred learning. Parents, university students, kids and members of the cohort were all engaged in collective discovery.  I intend on bringing this multigenerational approach to learning into my teaching wherever possible. Also skateboards and drawing are fun and that is a fact.

 

Augmented Reality, 3D Printing and Sketchnotes

Today we looked at several tech tools including sketch notes, augmented reality, QR codes, Tinker Cad and 3D printing. Of the multiple tools, I found augmented reality the most interesting and potentially useful for my classrooms. I can see a clear connection between augmented reality and social studies classes. The example Rich shared at Kitsilano High School showed how augmented reality allowed students to embody the history they were learning about. This seems like a good tool for developing empathy. As students move through the same spaces that events happened in they can connect  to events through experience rather than conceptualizing them. This is a form of embodied knowledge that I think is critical for empathy. I think this learning may be even more meaningful if students help create the augmented reality with their peers. I can see applications of this technology for learning about recent history as well as Indigenous territories and history.

We also played with Tinker Cad and 3D printing. I was able to make a keychain model of my name and export it in a form apropriate for 3D printing. This is a great tool for students who want to explore model building or a specific art project that may need a tool or multiple reproductions. Tinker Cad seems intuative in a way that other programes I have used have not been. I would like to use it as a starting point for a diorama project in socials class for students who may not feel creative with traditional physical media.

My experiment with 3d printing. It’s my name!

We also learned about sketchnotes. This is funny for me because I have always taken notes that way. It was validating to hear how it connects specific synapses we may miss by taking notes on a computer. I look forward to sharing that information with my students when I ask them not to do everything digitally. I think it’s important we try both methods before deicing what helps us process information best. For me, sketching and drawing is most useful. However I know some students find it an obstacle to their learning. Learning about multimedia learning theory, how information is best absorbed when it is presented in multiple formats, confirms the importance of including the visual with the written. Modelling a way of learning that uses the visual to process information will be important for me to balance with providing concrete written options and information for my more linear learners. We are all different and it’s great!

my sketch note

Twine and Google Classroom

Today we were introduced to Twine, a tool for non linear storytelling. We worked with Rich to make a Twine story and add some elements to the graphics and narrative. My story was brief, as Twine is a new process for me and is therefore quite unfamiliar. Playing around with Twine, I can see huge potential for the tool in my social studies classrooms, both for my lessons and for students to show their learning. I think the “choose your own adventure” quality Twine has speaks well to historical narratives, which often branch off in many directions. The larger map of the story that starts the  Twine is also a strong feature for historical lessons. This feature allows students to see the big picture in a graphic way before they zoom into more specific events and slides. Below are examples from my Twine story about one of the dogs aboard the Titanic.

the bigger picture with Twine

each box contains a passage of linked text

images can be inserted

We also experimented with Google Classroom. I can see myself using this tool often as it is very intuitive for teachers and students. We have spoken about some of the issues with Google Classroom specifically around data ownership and student access after a course is over. In my classes I will work with students to make sure their assignments are backed up outside of the Google platform, and only use Google Classroom when more traditional methods of handing work in are not feasible. I think that the resource is a good tool for learners that cannot attend classes or are working through inquiry outside of the classroom, but can be overused in a conventional classroom structure. I fear becoming reliant on the tool as an educator, and sometimes feel that good old pen and paper leaves space for dialogue that may not occur online (pictures, stickers, etc). As with all tech tools, moderation is key!

 

World Fisheries Trust and Gorge Nature House “Watershed StewARTship” Program

Gorge Nature House (Photo by Me)

This Wednesday morning I volunteered with World Fisheries Trust, a local Victoria NGO as an art teacher for their StewARTship Program at the Gorge Nature house. This program is available for kids from K-12 and teaches nature sketching in partnership with the Bateman Centre for the Arts. On Wednesday we worked with a class of grade five learners from Mill Bay Elementary. We taught the basics of nature sketching and gave each student a small sketch book. We then taught a short history of the Gorge Waterway and why it is an important and unique watershed and ecosystem. Students were then invited to touch creatures found in the Gorge Watershed that had been set up in small basins. Learning physically, especially for a group of grade 5’s, was a big hit. Finally students went on a short nature walk around the park and identified Indigenous plants and drew them. We finished off the lesson by sharing our sketchbooks and talking about what stewardship means: taking care of natural places.

Touch Basins

Sea Cucumber

Sketch Book with Robert Bateman Drawing

 

Volunteering was an excellent opportunity for me as I am personally interested in combining fine art and outdoor education. I think that the nature journal is an excellent tool for learners to start thinking about the natural world as a place of creativity and inspiration. I appreciated how the program with the Bateman Centre gave the students an example of what nature sketching looks like by showing the process behind Robert Bateman’s unfinished works. It was also inspiring to see the individual creativity of grade five learners. These students were still fresh in their drawings and had a unique and personal style to their artwork. They had recently finished a tone and value lesson in their classroom art curriculum, and were totally immersed in drawing for the whole session. As an art teacher, nothing makes me happier than kids who wont put down a pencil and paper. It was great to see this level of enthusiasm for drawing and nature in younger learners.

 

Trevor McKenzie and Oak Bay High

Today we visited Trevor McKenzie’s classroom at Oak Bay High School. It was excellent to see how inquiry is scaffolded into a conventional high school context. I appreciated Trevor’s openness and hospitality, and his willingness to explain all elements of his teaching practice from the minor details to the big ideas. I found the energy and design of his classroom refreshing. I responded well to the clean, minimal and purposeful layout rather than the visually overwhelming environment of many classrooms I have visited so far. I also appreciated his ability to break inquiry down into teachable units, where students are guided from the shallow to the deep end of the pool.

Something that struck a personal note with me during our visit was Trevor’s connection to Esquimalt High school. I grew up in Esquimalt, my family all live there and I attended Esquimalt High where my aunt is a teacher. It is heartening to hear that inquiry is applicable in a school like Esquimalt that is less resourced than Oak Bay and may have more at risk learners. It is my personal goal to work in a community school like Esquimalt or Vic High and bring a strong inquiry mindset to my classes. Hearing Trevor speak about his success there validated my goal. Hearing him speak also left me with some questions about what the differences in inquiry might be in the two school environments- and what drew him to Oak Bay specifically. I look forward to reading his book and hearing more about his teachings in the future.

 

Copyright in the Classroom

Copyright at first seems a dry topic for discussion. Today’s lesson showed how intertwined intellectual property is with creative practices, and laid out the implications of copyright in the classroom. The lesson connected with me because of my background in the arts. I am an artist and spent nine years studying and teaching in art schools. In my experience contemporary art is built on the principle or re-mixing; sampling from the cultural phenomena around us to creating a unique statement. As an art student and teacher I expect that artworks will be connected to our visual and material culture regardless of copyright. This expectation is standard practice in art institutions, and copyright law is not often discussed. Of course there has been visual recycling in the arts since the beginning of art-making, however the intensity of this practice has changed rapidly since the 1980’s. Postmodern artists built on the increasingly accessible and reproducible nature of media images and material culture. Some of my favourite pieces of art come from this era. This album is one of them.

“My Life In the Bush of Ghosts” is an early sample based album by Brian Eno and David Byrne (Talking Heads). It was released in 1981 and is built from a combination of radio clips and musical samples. I love this album because it is grounded in the context of its time, and simultaneously comments on the timelessness of many human statements stories and practices. It also sounds uniquely like these two artists even though it is completely sampled.

The importance of re-mixing has been in the cultural zeitgeist outside of my education life. In 2016 the Vancouver Art Gallery held it’s biggest show ever curated to follow mixing and sampling in all art forms through time. It was called Mashup: The Birth of Modern Culture.

As an art teacher I want my students to be engaged in the reality of contemporary arts today. This territory comes with the occasional stretch of copyright laws. Rather than shying away from material that may be off limits, I want my students to understand why strong art practices sometimes push the boundaries of fair use. It is my hope that they engage in a dialogue around the problematics of intellectual property for artists and continue a dialogue with visual and material culture that artists have been having for centuries.

 

 

Tech Tools: IMovie, Screencast and Garage Band

It is always useful to learn more about video and audio editing. Today we looked at some of the basic skills we use in video and audio editing software such as IMovie and Garage Band. I have worked with IMovie often and used it to create a video for my EDCI 352 class, which is posted on this blog here. I had not had a chance to play with Screencast or Garage Band however, and found them both fun and useful tools.

Thinking about my own teaching, I think I will use screencasting much more than garage band. I think screencasting would be particularly useful for art classes. I can imagine introducing a technical concept such as shading a sphere and providing a screencast as guidance for homework. For fun I have made a sample with some free software called Screen Recorder:

 

This is just a fun start. However I think this technology would be very useful for demonstrating all kinds of techniques in art class to students who may not be able to attend class.