(9/2) Lesson Plan for StopMotion

Lesson Plan for Stop Motion: Storytelling with Personal Mementos 

Objective: 
To introduce students to iStopMotion, familiarizing them with how to use the software. Subsequently, this can be used as a useful tool for personal self expression and exploration, fostering interest based learning

Target Audience: Middle School, 6th or 7th grade

Tools: Computer Lab, iStopMotion, iMovie, Camera with Tripod or External Webcam linked with USBs, Construction paper in a variety of colors and with patterns

Instructions: 

1. Ask students to bring in objects of personal significance, ideally small scale (a few inches). What items are important to them and says something about their personality and who they are? How do they want to be represented through a simple object or two?

2. Show students examples of stop motion artists, and how it has the capacity to tell a story in a short gif. Provide a basic tutorial of the steps necessary, how to use the camera. If possible, play the tutorial on Lynda or use that as a guide to teach students how to use iStopMotion.

3. Ask students to take photographs of their objects to tell a short story. It can be about themselves, or the interaction of two objects. Consider the backdrop of the objects itself and the idea of 3 dimensional space that is captured in a two dimensional format. Utilize the construction paper to create a setting/scene. What story do they want to tell in a few seconds? 

4. Export your stop motion to iMovie. Do you want to add music and edit the aesthetic? How does this change the piece? Leave the editing options open ended. 

5. Upload the finished piece onto a class blog. Invite students to watch one another works, and make a meaningful comment or question on at least three other examples. 

Takeaways:

Students will be introduced to a simple software and easily accessible that allows them to consider how movement is captured. In a way, its similar to film making, and incorporates a video editing program, namely iMovie. This encourages the merging of various digital storytelling tools, and will ask students to consider space, color, time, and sound to relation to one another.

(9/3) 3 Takeaways from Readings

1. Firstly, I believe its really important to eliminate my old mindset and views towards computer programming. Despite coming from the millennial generation, my education was relatively traditional, while we had computers in class, it was always using pre-programmed games such as Mavis Beacon for typing, or Sims City to create an imaginary space. Now, the learning begins even before that, children are able to utilize computer programming for expressive means. I’ve played around before making a really simple project on Processing and I can attest to how interdisciplinary it is. It’s not like using Microsoft Paint, which we may be more familiar with from our childhood, rather even making a simple line requires writing a line of code. It incorporates a lot of basic geometry, using the Cartesian plane, and simple calculations, which opens up the realm of possibilities of combing art with math and science, which are typically viewed as opposites. 

2. The maker movement is increasingly popular today, and I agree the Maker Faire is a wonderful platform. However, from what I’ve heard, it is largely dominated by 3D printing. This highlights the elephant in the room: is there actually equal access to these spaces? I somewhat agree with the point of the reading that there is a growing ubiquity of 1:1 computing. The author does state that most children have their own computer, smartphone, or tablet, but this needs to be reexamined. I think this blanket statement only applies to middle class and above—which neglects a large segment of society still. We cannot truly democratize learning without acknowledging these barriers of entry. There is a fantastic talk by Dr. Leah Buechley, that states the majority of the people on the cover of Make magazine are men—specifically white and asian men. How do we involve underrepresented minorities and women in this movement when there are both structural and financial challenges? This video, which I highly recommend, can be viewed here: https://vimeo.com/110616469

3. I’m also interested in this notion that a sense of community can be formed via these technological explorations. Lines between public and private knowledge are blurred, and encourage sharing and collaboration. When I read what was most important to Nick was the comments and sharing similar positive comments in the Scratch community, I was impressed that a nine year boy had the sensitivity to consider the feelings of others. Similarly on Diabetes Daily, there is an online network of netizens that provide one another emotional support. I often think about how to provide a well-rounded education, and my definition of a quality education builds kindness and self awareness, not just information based knowledge. It seems to me that through using these technological tools, games and spaces, it is possible to build and shape character. 

(8/2) Reflections on Sound

I was truly moved by the Story Corps project that was shared on the podcast, and really started me thinking about the sounds around me. I’ve always viewed myself as more of an introvert than an extrovert, and thus, I should be a good listener. But am I? I started to realize that unless we are told to listen, as if our ears were a switch that could be turned on or off, I don’t really play attention to what’s happening. I tend to zone out during my downtime, but really, downtime can be enhanced or made meaningful by listening to the sounds around me. I actually had a lovely conversation with this retired English teacher while observing at a looming class, she shared her experiences running Knitting Club while she was teaching, a career which spanned 28 years. I thanked her for sharing her experiences, and she responded, while continuing weaving, “I’m just glad someone is willing to hear me talk about myself!” This got me thinking: what if Story Corps was combined with an art component, or if we told each other stories WHILE making art? The combinations are endless. The poignant tales shared on their website: storycorps.org are paired with photographs, but what if they were also paired with an artistic response or reaction to this project? Also, another thing I’ve been thinking about is the broader definition of ‘art’, and how I used to think of it as a visual medium—but it really is a multi-sensory medium. From a curriculum point of view, these two subjects are divided into Music and Art, but especially for schools that lack funding for both subjects, what if there was a way to teach both at the same time? 

(8/1) Sound Assignment by Regina and I

The Pulse of the Human Experience

For this Sound assignment, Regina and I decided to work together. As people, we eat about three times a day if not more. Especially combined with living in the city, we often go out to cafes, restaurants, take out spots to grab food to go or sit down and dine with friends. We decided to make recordings of these everyday spaces. Turns out that there always so much going out around us. Typically, I’m just focused on my own food or my conversation with friends, but there are many conversations all around us. Inspired by the NPR podcast, Regina downloaded a bunch of space noises from the NASA website to incorporate a more structured beat that is very much related to the human existence. In audacity, we cropped down our clips from eating establishments, then layered them with the space noises which were more rhythmic. We utilized “Studio Fade Out” to make them sound somewhat more pleasant together. Towards the end of clip, the noises from the restaurants fade away, leaving just the beeping of our galaxy.

Moving from chaos to tranquility, we have created a multisensory experience from which we begin fully emerged in the commotion of daily life and slowly zoom out to a panoramic shot of our universe. 

(7/1) iMovie Project: Shakin' It Off

(7/2) Video in the Classroom

1. Video is a very powerful form of self expression. Coupled with the rise of cell phones and popularity amongst teens, students often take videos of themselves and their friends. Thus, they already have the basis and raw materials for their potential art projects. They will be self motivated to learn new effects and filters on iMovie and Final Cut Pro especially if it's about topics they are already interested in. This encourages them to spend additional time on projects and even share them with their peers. Furthermore, there are many sharing platforms for videos that are increasingly popular, such as youtube, vine, periscope, and vimeo. These are great platforms for feedback beyond just their teacher and fellow classmates, but everyone else on the internet. 

2. Video is multi sensory, it incorporates sounds, music, and movement. As discussed in class last week, some students are kinetic learners, they may have trouble sitting still and listening to a lecture. Video embraces and provides an outlet for otherwise more hyperactive students, allowing them to express themselves through performance such as dancing, signing, and acting. This engages students beyond just 2 dimensional drawings or paintings, in some ways, it brings their art to life!

3. Lastly, I tend to associate video with TV and movies. Frankly speaking, I believe that students (and myself included) love spending their free time watching shows and films. Putting the student behind the video camera and asking them to be inspired by the large amount of videos they are exposed to opens up a huge realm of possibilities. Ask students to make superhero videos, or dramas, or music videos to their favorite songs. It's one of the best forms of linking their extracurricular interests with school work, and also invites them to reconsider the amount of effort and artistry that goes into making the actual product. 

(6/1) Scanography Projects

(6/2) Scanography in the Classroom

Scanography can used in many ways in the art classroom to engage children beyond the scope of what art class is typically defined as. It gives students who normally may not be interested in art (because they don’t think of themselves as naturally ‘talented’ at drawing or painting) a chance to be included. Children who are not given affirmation at a young age about their artistic skills can be bored by art class and have given up on this subject. This is where the merits of scanners, the fact that they work very fast and that children tend to have short attention spans, comes in handy. The potential of making multiple works of art in a minimal amount of time can keep children occupied and wanting them to continue creating and editing their work. They can also build off their scenography projects to produce a similar work with traditional art materials such as oil paint, colored pencils, watercolors, breaking the prior fear of these materials. 

(6/3) Takeaways from Digital Storytelling Readings

1. I think that Lankshear and Knobel did an excellent job of exploring notion of what it means to be “literate” today. Sometimes, I find myself overwhelmed with the amount of music, film, images, information available out there, and blame it on technology. However, I have come to realize that children today see it completely differently. They are instead energized and engaged by this, and their definition and perception of writing itself—for kids under 15, is completely different. For instance, the most popular app especially with the preteens and teenagers today is Snapchat. Snapchat is based exactly off this notion of storytelling:  we take images or videos of our day, caption them, or draw on them, filter them, and then add it to “My Story”, or add it to another group story, such as “New York Story” or “4th of July Story”, etc. The shared stories are collaborative works, and allow for users to gain more exposure and views. These stories may be frowned upon as being frivolous or unacademic, but I believe this is incorrect. There has been a very thorough story following the upcoming election, with links to relevant news articles that are easily accessible with just a swipe. This encourages learning about new topics—increasing children’s exposure to other stories of typically more serious themes by presenting it via a digital storytelling format.
2. Coming in from an adult or an educator’s point of view, it’s easy to be affected by our own prejudices and frown upon “copying”. Read/Write, and building off the information out there is not plagiarism, and should NOT be frowned upon. Not everything has to be a novel and fresh concept, sometimes building off pre-existing work can alleviate “writers block” and take off the stress of school work or an assignment. For instance, Ryan Adams did an entire album that covered Taylor Swift’s 1989 album, and with proper copyright approval and support from Taylor, this was a method in which Ryan was able to gain additional exposure for his own stylistic take on her original music. 
3. The power of storytelling itself is beautiful platform for children to express themselves. Digital storytelling opens up a whole new realm of possibilities: iMovie, PhotoStory, MovieMaker, seem to be relatively learnable and teachable programs, and the merits of incorporating them into the classroom are infinite. Children are beginning to build their voice and their identity and are very curious creatures. Sitting down and writing their emotions through prose and researching via traditional literature can be intimidating. Furthermore, as Peppler mentions, teens absolutely love photos (even myself, I love photos too), and the immediacy of feedback on this virtual story can be more gratifying than having an English teacher read their paper and give comments back about a week later. Comments can be hurtful, but at the same time, the virtual world can be comforting for otherwise more shy children in the classroom.

(5/1) Digital Photography Project

My first idea works with the relationship of digital photography and traditional art materials. I’m curious about the visual differences between the two mediums, and whether they can be combined to make a visually aesthetically pleasing piece. I would take the photograph of the weeds, and also take five more photographs of similar subject matter: any plants on the sidewalk, vegetables, trees, flowers, etc. Next, I would combine all five images on photoshop and then use and the most traditional material of oil paint and a canvas to create a painting. I’m interested to see whether starting with digital photography but ending with a regular painting makes a difference in the final product. Personally, I have made a painting working on still lives of greenery, literal observation, as shown below, and I’m wondering if using digital photography as a ‘sketchbook’ would enhance this piece.

My second idea, which is what I chose to execute, seeks to turn the literal into something abstract. Digital photography is able to capture great detail, textures, and differences in light. While this is one of its advantages, sometimes it can be too literal and limiting in message. I decided to incorporate digital drawing/painting from last week (in line with my personal objectives), to edit the photograph in Photoshop. I used brushes to highlight the light and bring attention to the relationship of negative and positive space. Nature often is thought as something that stems out of light — sunshine. I changed the adjustments of the photograph, and added a few stylized filters such as palette brush. Here are some intermediary images of the process:

This is the final product, where I cropped it, and I think it shows how such a vibrant, literal photograph can become a quiet and abstract image, showing the scope and potential of this medium.  

(5/2) Impact 25: Twenty Five 21s

I am working with Katherine for our Impact25 Project. Our idea addresses recent events in the media about women’s role in society. Women are faced with increasing amounts of criticism, scrutiny, and double standards. To counter this negativity, women have banned together to create movements such as #WCW, Women’s Crush Wednesday to encourage mutual positivity and support. We would like to build on this community, and have women encourage and mentor one another. Personally, I also read a lot of advice columns online such as Dear Sugar and Ask Polly. 

Our idea is to take this advice column idea, and ask 25 women (our female friends, relatives, acquaintances of a variety of ages): What would you tell your 21 year old self? I know we both would have a lot of “wisdoms” that we’d like to share to our past selves, and am sure that there are many fellow women who feel similarly. We plan on utilizing the most commonly used form of communication today: texting, as our platform. Most of us will respond to a text, or at least read the text response. The language and tone is casual and easily reliable. We plan to take screenshots of everyone’s answer and uploading it onto a website. This website can be easily refreshed and accessible on the go (subway), and creating a hashtag to go with it. Other possible physical responses would be printing out the screenshots on the laser cutter true to size, with the advice etched onto it. This would give the viewer the feeling of actually holding a phone and reading advice from a real life — or virtual — new friend. 

(5/3) Digital Photography and Connections to Children

Digital photography opens up a whole new platform for creativity: it is a material that is easily accessible, most of us have digital cameras on our smartphones that we carry on us daily. Thus, it’s very easy to capture a moment or an image on the go. Most digital cameras today are also lightweight and have many functions and modes. As opposed to before, we were limited by film photography, it requires physical time and effort to go to a darkroom to develop each photograph, making it more time consuming. In a lightroom, the editing options are endless, and can be done with a click, and even un-done and re-done. One digital photograph can be used to create many effects, and can be compared and contrasted on the same screen. Digital printing options are also fast and very clear with inkjet printers.

Today, we are saturated with so many options of how to use our time. Children get distracted easily, and often have trouble concentrating. This is not a problem that should be solved by medications for ADHD, instead, the vivid and fast paced nature of a child’s mind can be captured through the medium of digital photography. They can use digital cameras as a form of entertainment that constantly engages. From taking the photography itself to going back and editing it in many options with filters and in Photoshop, they can constantly entertain and engage themselves.

Secondly, the digital camera also teaches children basic technology. Even a basic point and shoot goes beyond automatic mode. DSLRs have the options of changing lenses to suit certain environments and lighting. Children will be challenged to think about the proper aperture, ISO, and shutter speed to best capture the subject. This makes them understand how a digital photograph is taken, and think on their own about which combinations will allow them to get the best result, placing the learning in their hands.

Lastly, digital photography is useful for children’s interest-based arts learning. Digital photography can be applied to anything and everything. Children these days are also heavily immersed with images via the internet, social media, tv, games, movies. Digital photography is the ideal image-based medium, kids can create their own images that suit their personal interests. They can easily share their photographs online via a blog or their social media outlets, and get feedback from their peers and other online communities. They allows for social engagement and will encourage children to generate more material: keeping children entertained, collaborating with one another, and self motivated.