Using BrainPOP for Creative Inspiration!
Posted by Andrew Gardner on
Liz Andrews, Lower School Computer Lab Teacher at Kentucky Country Day School (and new mother) uses BrainPOP as inspiration for creative projects with her students. In 2nd grade, the homeroom teachers lead a yearlong community study, and BrainPOP Jr’s community helper topic page is a hit with the students. For a few years, Liz would show the movie and have children use KerPoof to make digital drawing of people in the community in response. However, she soon realized the difficulty of drawing humans would be eased if students drew Moby instead (not to mention it was a good incorporation of geometry!) Once the students drew Moby in outline form , they would use the paintbucket tool to fill him in with bright orange!
In 3rd grade, to continue developing online drawing skills, Liz leads the “Moby is” project. Her only only requirement? Draw Moby as someone, and explain who he is. Since the students are already familiar with KerPoof, this entire project is done in one class period. Liz gets great insight into her students through this project. Living in Kentucky, many are caught up in the excitement of regional college basketball so there are a lot of Moby basketball players! However others branch out: one student made Moby as Da Vinci, holding a well angled palette proudly standing at a canvas of Annie! There are rock stars, physical education teachers, doctors and friends, too.
Liz has recognized that BrainPOP can be a great entry point into creative expression in the digital arts. Have you used BrainPOP as inspiration? Let us know!