Adventures in After School Learning Blog

-By Mike DeBritz on Wednesday, March 23, 2011

The topic of screenwriting reminds me of a course I took in college back in the early 80’s. It was called “Introduction to Slide Show Production” which may sound like the second choice for people that couldn’t get into Basket Weaving, but I learned a number of very valuable and timeless lessons in that course. 

This predated PowerPoint by a long shot.  After learning some background, we had to come up with an informative topic, plan our shots, sketch them out on story boards, take all the pictures, develop and mount the slides, record narration and music, arrange them in a slide carousel and sync the slides to the audio. 

A single project took months, because each step took time to get right and was integral to the final outcome. This was the big idea behind the entire class, the planning process was just as critical as the images and the audio. There were few shortcuts. If your idea wasn’t solid, there was no turning back. This was reinforced with multiple assignments; everyone’s work showed marked improvement.

Fast Forward

I found an immediate application for these skills after college. I’m now working at Xerox Corporation and we had a big meeting coming up between our three offices.  My boss was looking for some kind of team building activity and I suggested a slideshow.  She said, “Great, one more thing off my plate, put it together.”

I had to come up with a theme quickly, working with a tight time frame. My theme was “a day in the life” of all these Xerox employees in their various roles.  I had a couple assistants from the other offices help take photographs to ensure I included every employee. We got some great pictures depicting their jobs, hobbies and personalities, all synced to upbeat music.
 
I was pretty nervous when I hit start on the carousel, but people just loved the thing.  It really hit the mark because everyone saw themselves and learned something about one another. I got really nice compliments, probably earned a couple brownie points, but most importantly had a lot of fun interacting with everyone.

The process, which at times was tricky, turned out to be just as much fun as the premier.   Our small team worked hard, had some fun, brought everyone together and shared in the glory of creating a successful project.

Fast-Fast Forward

Now let’s consider today’s tools, there are literally hundreds of tools available today to help you construct your message.  That slide carousel is down at the museum or in your parent’s basement.  But practical planning skills still apply today, with the addition of the power of focus to avoid being distracted by the daunting number of choices.   

The process of creating a screenplay,  a more modern medium, involves thinking up a meaningful story, writing dialogue and planning scenes will take some of the same skills.  It will take some deep thinking, some sweat and perseverance.  There’s a good chance things won’t go exactly as planned and someone will have to create a contingency plan on the fly.

Wow, now doesn’t this sound like the real world we operate in today? This is especially relevant with everyone being a content creator and sites like Twitter, Facebook and YouTube making it easy to broadcast.  Creating a message or story that is valuable will still take time.  How many hours do we pore over our presentation to make them interesting and valuable?

Sometime the limitations of space, equipment or time working in after school can make it hard to create a full blown video program but focusing on storytelling, showing kids how to plan, writing and re-writing scripts and understanding the entire process is a truly worthwhile activity.    

The tools and technology will continue to change, but in order to be heard it will always boil down to how you construct your message.  The key question to ask your students is, “What’s your story?

-By Mike DeBritz on Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Brian Melick, a musician and performer who we collaborated with on our “Playing with Percussion” Course Kit, is a man following his talents and almost any kind of percussion instrument he finds. 

We worked together demonstrating some of the basics behind percussion, where kids make and play instruments out of everyday objects (he's also the the star of the DVD in the kit).  In addition to performing, I've seen him work his magic leading professional development sessions and assemblies.

Brian has been making instruments out of found objects for a long time and we'll be highlighting some of his latest creations real soon. 

In the meantime, here are a couple fun clips of Brian doing his thing on a Cajinto and Cajon. Enjoy!

-By Mike DeBritz on Wednesday, March 09, 2011

I know from traveling in after-school circles, trades shows and conferences over the years many sites would love to offer some type of financial education component.  It's so relevant today with the sub-prime mortgage meltdown and the Bernie Madoff scandal still in the news. I'm sure a number of parents would appreciate a clear overview and break down of a "Ponzi" scheme to help them steer clear. But where do you start?

Elementary kids work on learning about money in math in as early as 2nd grade.  But learning techniques on how to manage money is a true lifetime skill and not simple to teach. This sounds like a golden opportunity for knocking off that parental involvement component right?  You might be thinking sure but the details are always in the implementation.

Well, enter Mint.com, a free website that aggregates all your banking account activity, investments, loans and bills to give you an accurate snapshot of your personal cash flow, if you will.  It was created by INTUIT, the company behind the personal checkbook software Quicken and the business software QuickBooks.  It's a nice site with access via your smart phone and many neat features like auto-categorization of expenses.

At the end of last year, Mint.com announced a joint effort with Scholastic to launch a financial educational initiative aimed at middle school kids and their parents. They developed a fun online computer game and lesson plans for both parents and teachers. Take a look at their site and this introductory video, Quest for Credit.   

These activities and resources could help you jump start a fun mini-course on financial literacy. Students could watch the video, work on the activities and sign up for the software with their parents. Kids can use the site to bank allowance and gifts, manage bank statements online demonstrating their 21^st century skills.

And the really good news for your program's bottom line---this educational program is free!

-By Mike DeBritz on Wednesday, March 02, 2011

It seems you can’t go anywhere today without hearing someone saying, “Find us on Facebook!”  This message has been received and is part of daily life for high school and college kids. After all, the idea behind Facebook was born in a dorm room at Harvard.

With all the buzz, little brothers and sisters can’t wait to get into the action.  Even though Facebook rules strictly prohibit kids under 13 from joining the social networking site, many parents are bending that rule for their 11 or 12 year olds.   

Stories like the one reported this week by the Associated Press will make parents think twice, even though this scam didn’t involve kids.  A fifty-two year-old woman spoiled a plot by an unscrupulous con artist who  impersonated a soldier. This scammer stole various photos, including one of his dog from his mother’s Facebook page.  They often start out as wanting to be “friends” and in no time skip to declaring their undying love followed up by a request for money.

Facebook Jr.

With the number of people using Facebook reported to be over 600 million, a number of new players are looking at the under 13 age group as big opportunity. Each one of these sites has a strong emphasis on safety, with some requiring parents to sign them up or by guaranteeing they won’t share the data with anyone.

-By Mike DeBritz on Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Have you ever seen President's Obama's weekly video address?   I noticed it last week when it popped in my Google News feed set for Science and Math education.

The President was broadcasting from Intel's manufacturing facility in Oregon.  It's interesting how his administration has focused the conversation in education reform around STEM and how critical the need for a highly trained workforce is to the global competitiveness of the United States . 

The President went on to say, " If we want to win the global competition for new jobs and industries, we’ve got to win the global competition to educate our people." 

It's an interesting approach and dovetails nicely with their "Race to the Top" initiative. Take a look at this short video for yourself below.

 If you want to make staying up on events like this easy, get iGoogle here and start your own gadget collection today!

-By Mike DeBritz on Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Do you recognize this picture?

This is a great scene from the classic movie “A Christmas Story” written by Jean Shepard and released in 1983. I have the DVD now after watching TNT’s 24-hour marathon around Christmas for so many years.

The main character Ralphie is in this class, where all he can think about is getting a Red Ryder BB Gun for Christmas. His teacher just announced a new assignment, “Ok class we are now going to write a theme” and while his classmates groan, Ralphie see this “theme” in a whole new light.

He seizes the opportunity to write a masterpiece (in his mind), so artfully constructed and compelling that his mother will no choice but to get him this BB gun. His plan is spoiled, when his teacher gives him a C+ and joins the chorus of adult’s by commenting on his paper, “You’ll shoot our eye out!” Ralphie presses on and doesn’t stop scheming right up to Christmas day.

The writers of this movie carry this theme, what I want for Christmas and Ralphie’s strong desire to own a Red Ryder BB gun, prominently throughout the movie. It never wavers, never fades and brings the viewer happily along for the fun ride.

Thematic Education

So taking a page from Hollywood, how can thematic presentations help you engage kids in after school? It can be very challenging, after a long day of school where most students are mentally and physically ready to relax, to reignite students’ interest in any topic.

We’ve found thematic presentation of academic content really makes a difference by making the experience memorable, compelling and interesting to kids. Much less obsessive than Ralphie of course, but the concept of immersing kids in authentic crime scenarios, arts shows or musical performances makes a lasting impression.

By seeing themselves as actual Screenwriters, Crime Scene Investigators or Artist’s, students become engaged because they’re part of the action. The learning activities woven throughout become fun, light and more of a game.

Real Life Skills

With students engaged, understanding the theme and overall mission, they’re ready to learn how to write loglines, gather evidence or perform rhythms. Much in the way Ralphie wouldn’t stop entertaining ideas to help him advance his cause, kids are interested in knowing how things work and learning new skills with an immediate application.

With their eyes open, kids can make a number of interesting discoveries along the way…figuring out how to craft a great story, how each piece of evidence can be tied to a suspect and the native origins of many of today’s modern instruments. Now you’re building practical, higher order thinking skills in a fun way!

Think about skills you’d like to introduce after school and how you can wrap a series of activities up in a theme, scenario or larger project. You find more excited, possibly obsessed, but more than likely enthusiastically engaged kids after school!

-By Mike DeBritz on Wednesday, February 09, 2011

I know many after school sites like learning activities that are interdisciplinary, because it’s practical and can be more fun. It’s not always easy to bring all the pieces together and generally takes careful planning and preparation.

We know that the “Cookie Jar Mystery” provides a nice mix of the sciences, data analysis and problem solving…but one area you may not expect a connection between is forensic science and art.

Forensic Art  

This photo was sent from CEM, a faith based organization and after school provider in Buffalo, NY. Their kids were so inspired after learning about impressions and examining their own shoeprints; they decided to add an additional layer or two of customization.

Furthering the Learning

They examined the differences between treads from various types of shoes and learned how a person walks will effect the impression. I like the variation in how each student decided to color their shoeprints. Some of them simply added a name, where others added borders, colored the treads and added decorations. You can be sure their students will remember this lesson, especially when they take these works of art home.

Creating the Environment

I know the environment at CEM’s community center where they really focus on relationships and getting to know each child that attends. I didn’t ask, but am almost certain that one of the kids suggested coloring their shoeprints and the staff just ran with it!

So sometimes providing an environment where kids are free to try things, experiment and explore can lead to fun interdisciplinary learning with a lot less planning!

-By Mike DeBritz on Wednesday, February 02, 2011

There has been a lot of talk lately about STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education.  The conversation picked up inertia last week when President Obama talked about forthcoming education reforms aimed at raising student achievement and inspiring students to excel in math and science.  

Getting a Flavor for STEM 

STEM covers a range of disciplines. One official definition found in the “Race to the Top” executive summary paraphrased as key areas for STEM are preparing a rigorous course of study, creating partnerships with industry experts, universities and research centers; and preparing more students for advanced study and careers in the sciences.

All in all, this is still broad with many of today’s science projects fitting the bill.  In the case of our “Cookie Jar Mystery” customers, having completed a hands-on forensic mystery and inviting a guest speaker to come in from the local police department meets parameters comprehensively. 

Start with a Project

You don’t have to look far to infuse STEM into your after school program.

Google just announce the first ever online Science Fair on January 11th…with the first prize being a $50,000 scholarship for the best project!  Don’t worry the window for submission runs until April 4th 2011, so you’ll have plenty of time to help get your students organized.

The online project works much like the traditional science fair. Students come up with an area they’re interested in pursuing along these categories:

1. Computer Science & Math
2. Earth & Environmental Sciences
3. Behavioral & Social Sciences
4. Flora & Fauna
5. Energy & Space
6. Inventions & Innovation
7. Physics
8. Biology (could include forensics)
9. Chemistry (could include forensics)
10. Food Science
11. Electricity & Electronics

By the way just the fact that you enter this contest should get you a long way with the “T” or technology part in STEM; Google’s technology will be the vehicle to submit your entry. Each contestant will need to create a website for the project on Google Sites and each project will require up to a 2-minute video or a 20 slide Google presentation. 

To learn more, checkout their introductory Rube Goldberg video here. 

Hopefully you’ve been inspired and get started today!

-By Mike DeBritz on Wednesday, January 26, 2011

As the after school initiative matures so does the average age of children served, so high school After School is the new frontier and where many program leaders find themselves today.  But programming that worked for younger kids won’t always translate to the high school level.

When looking around at what interests high school kids today you see social media taking up a big chunk of their mindshare and time. 

Tap that Energy

So how do you harness the power of all this media and technology into a worthwhile activity that will supplant what high school kids currently do after school?  Well the one forum or media that reinforces writing and communication skills is the one you’re reading – a blog.  High school kids have a lot to say…so why not start a blogging club for your high school after school students?

Specialized Services

Blogs give kids a voice and a central space to house their videos, pictures, art work or voice opinions about issues that concern them.  They’re a number of free services available, but one service worth looking at for instructional purposes is EduBlogs. 

Edublogs is free and designed for educators.  It was created on top of the easy to use Word Press blogging platform, with built in tools to help you manage a classroom full of blogs. In addition, it includes a series of tutorials with step-by-step instructions on everything from setting up an account to creating your first post.

The Win-Win

Now for the big payoff...why not form an editorial team of high school students to create and manage a blog about your after school program!  This would be cheaper and easier than building a web site and would allow you to add articles or updates weekly.  There could be features about interesting activities, science programs, upcoming events and special guests.     

Your high school students will be engaged when you empower them to own the project.  They’ll learn valuable skills by writing articles, working as a team, gaining hands-on experience with the platform, incorporating photography and video perhaps and reaching out to community members. 

Best of all they’ll have a whole lot of fun!

-By Mike DeBritz on Wednesday, January 19, 2011

From all indications the “Common Core Standards” movement is coming fast and furious to a school near you. I’ve heard a little about this initiative briefly at last years 21st Community Learning Centers (CCLC) Summer Institute in Washington, DC. 

States on Board

Recently a survey was released by the Center on Education Policy detailing the progress of each state in adopting the Common Core Standards.  At the time of the survey, between October and November 2010, 32 have adopted the standards.  Of these, 30 states conceded that they felt adopting the core standards would improve their chance of winning the Race to the Top funding. 

The report also went to say that most states will have until 2013 or later to implement the more complex challenges associated with the initiative. 

Preparing for the Future

Many school districts will continue to prepare students for the existing state assessments with an eye toward the new assessments associated with the core standards. 

“For now, customers will probably need materials from publishers that help students do well on existing state tests as well as helping them transition to the new assessments,” stated the Educational Publishing Blog which is the official blog of the Association of Educational Publishers. 

With school publishers starting to plan the transition to core standards, after school providers should probably follow their clue to be in a good position to support school partners and their curriculum goals.

Where Do You Stand?

To see were your state is in with the adoption of these standards; click over to the Common Core State Standards Initiative, state adoption page. 

If this area really intrigues you, consider subscribing to their newsletter because this initiative is sure to take many twists and turns on the way to being completely implemented.  Best to to be prepared.

Good luck!