Painted Pie
“Painted Pie” is a video you will probably want to view more than once. The post-Impressionist artwork alone is stunning. But, even better, is the sweet story of a homeless boy who is searching for a human being to connect with him. The moral of the story, that you never know how many lives you can touch with small kindnesses, reminds me of another couple of videos I have featured on here, “The Kindness Boomerang” and “Monsterbox“. The film was created by Havish Thota, Kudzai Gumbo, Mehdi Farrokhtala, and Abdulrahman Alansari. It has already won several awards. The accompanying soundtrack, “Little Person” by Jon Brion is a masterpiece, as well.
In the classroom, I would, of course, ask the students to verbalize the moral of the story. You could ask them to retell this silent movie in their own words. Before even showing the movie, you could play the soundtrack, and ask the students to come up with stories that would go with the music. If you are studying art, you might see if they could write a similar story based on another work of art. Random Acts of Kindness Week is fast approaching (February 11th), and this would be a good way to introduce it.
I found this video on the “Kuriositas” blog. Though the “Kuriositas” blog is not meant for a young audience, I encourage adults to check it out, as it features many interesting videos, pictures, and stories.
Here is the link to the video in case the embedded version does not show below: http://vimeo.com/57146618
Painted Pie from Mehdi Farrokhtala on Vimeo.
Fall Fun for Fast Finishers
“Fall Fun for Fast Finishers” is a free packet of 20 open-ended task cards from Rachel Lynette at Minds in Bloom. Her packet is available for free download from Teachers Pay Teachers. You do have to be a member in order to receive the download, but it is free to register.
I love one of the sample cards that Rachel displays in her blog post, which asks you to pretend you are Autumn (the season) and you are running for president against the other three seasons. What a creative idea!
On a side note, Teachers Pay Teachers can be a goldmine for lesson ideas. There are many, many free activities available. It is well worth registering.
Draw a Stickman Epic
The makers of “Draw a Stickman” have just released a new version, “Draw a Stickman Epic“. At this time, it is available for iPhone, iPad, and Windows 8. The Android app is coming soon, according to the developer’s website. ”Epic” comes in the free, trial version, or the paid version ($1.99). The main difference is the number of levels. With the free version, you get 3 levels, and the paid version offers 14. The other difference, I would assume (since I have not purchased the paid version), would be the presence of ads.
“Epic” is much more interactive than its predecessors, and demands the use of some problem-solving skills in order for your stickman character, which you will draw, to rescue its stickman friend (which you will also draw). In order to do this, you must strategically draw fire to destroy obstacles, as well as rain clouds.
“Draw a Stickman Epic” would be a good app to use as a reward or in a center for students. With a projector, it could even be a whole class activity; after a level is completed, the students could write about what happened, and even use it as a story starter for further adventures.
Monsterbox
image from: Monsterbox by Bellecour Ecoles D’Art
This delightful animated video, created by students at the French university for careers in design, Bellecour Écoles D’Art, is absolutely enchanting. Monsterbox is only about 7 1/2 minutes long, and tells the story of a young girl who is trying to find a home for her monster – and then another monster, and then another! There is no dialogue, but the graphics and characters tell the story perfectly. Here are some of the ways that it could be used in the classroom:
1. Ask students to either write or tell a summary of the story. Different perspectives might make this a lively discussion.
2. Ask students to determine the theme or moral of the story. Again, I think that there could be quite a few suggestions!
3. Have students design their own monster boxes, or draw monsters and exchange them so they can design boxes for their partners’ monsters.
4. Write a new story with a different plot, but the same theme.
5. Write a new story with the same characters, but a different theme.
UPDATE: I just published a post called “Misunderstood Monsters” that may give you even more ideas for using this great video in the classroom.
I’m sure you can think of even more ideas once you have viewed Monsterbox. Here is the link, in case you are unable to view the embedded video below: http://vimeo.com/49224248
Monsterbox from Bellecour 3D on Vimeo.
International Dot Day
Mark your calendar for September 15th, which is International Dot Day! Sponsored by FableVision Learning in coordination with Peter Reynolds, author of The Dot, this is a day on which educators pledge to encourage their students’ creativity. You can sign up formally to participate in International Dot Day, or you can choose your own way to celebrate this day of imagination. The website offers ideas for ways in which to make this a memorable day for your students as well as videos from some of last year’s participants. You can also go to this link for some ideas from Peter Reynolds on how to incorporate his wonderful book into your classroom.
Thanks to Cari Young, librarian at Fox Run Elementary in N.E.I.S.D., and author of The Centered School Library, for this great tip!
Bubble Ball (Reblog)
For the summer, I have decided to use my Tuesday and Thursday posts to reblog some of my favorite posts that some of my readers may have missed the first time around.
Bubble Ball is one of my favorite iDevice apps. It is a free download, and has 48 levels. You can purchase more after you finish the 48 for 99 cents. The purpose of this game is to use the various materials that appear on the screen in each level to direct a ball to roll toward a flag. I don’t usually like to recommend game apps for the classroom, because students seem to get enough of those at home. But this Physics challenge encourages problem solving and creative thinking. Many of the levels have more than one solution. This could be a fun center in which the students could take screen shots of their solutions and explain them using the free Screen Chomp app or other methods. It would be interesting to compare the different solutions groups develop, and have them explain their thought processes. Of course, I highly recommend that you play around with the app yourself – just to get familiar with the levels, of course 
Bubble Ball (Reblog)
For the summer, I have decided to use my Tuesday and Thursday posts to reblog some of my favorite posts that some of my readers may have missed the first time around.
Bubble Ball is one of my favorite iDevice apps. It is a free download, and has 48 levels. You can purchase more after you finish the 48 for 99 cents. The purpose of this game is to use the various materials that appear on the screen in each level to direct a ball to roll toward a flag. I don’t usually like to recommend game apps for the classroom, because students seem to get enough of those at home. But this Physics challenge encourages problem solving and creative thinking. Many of the levels have more than one solution. This could be a fun center in which the students could take screen shots of their solutions and explain them using the free Screen Chomp app or other methods. It would be interesting to compare the different solutions groups develop, and have them explain their thought processes. Of course, I highly recommend that you play around with the app yourself – just to get familiar with the levels, of course
She Wears Many Hats
Here is a cute printable from Fuel the Brain just in time for Mother’s Day. I love the thought of brainstorming all different types of hats with my younger kids, and then guiding them to think about how their mother “wears” them. ”In what ways is your mother like a police officer?” I might ask – and I might just be surprised by some of their answers! Fuel the Brain, by the way, has lots of games and interactives that you might want to check out in addition to the printables!
Caine’s Arcade
Sometimes I feel like I live under a rock. Two of my co-workers were talking about this video at lunch the other day, and I admitted that I had never heard of it. Considering that the video has gotten over 2.5 million views, you would think that I might have come across it at some point. Even after they discussed it, I still didn’t watch it until today when I saw it referenced in an on-line article. ”Oh, yeah, that did sound interesting,” I thought, and clicked on the link. I am so glad I did! It was definitely 11 minutes of my time not wasted. Caine’s imaginative cardboard arcade will inspire you with its creativity, and his personality will endear him to you.
I read a book to my Gifted and Talented Kindergartners every year called Christina Katerina and the Box. After we read the book, I dump a bunch of boxes I have saved onto a table along with random bits and pieces of things. Then I let the kids create. After seeing Caine’s Arcade, I realize that I need to do this more often – and with all of my classes.
You might want to show Caine’s Arcade to your students. There is one part that I caught, when they were showing comments on social networks, that briefly flashes an inappropriate word. If you are concerned about this, or you just want to show key parts of the video, I recommend TubeChop.
Summer Pool Party Creative Thinking Packet
My Summer Pool Party Creative Thinking Packet is now available on Teachers Notebook. It is $1.50, and includes 12 pages of fun activities plus a cover sheet.
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