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The award winning geeArt16 software has evolved into Creativity Express, a highly animated, interactive, imaginative, web based, art education experience for upper elementary grades. The creators, who have impressive backgrounds with Walt Disney and DreamWorks, have built an engrossing adventure into the world of art that clearly demonstrates its close connection to math, science, and history. The format encourages and celebrates student artwork with a bold visual and auditory approach which meets the National Visual Arts Curriculum Standards.
Research has shown that students are better engaged in the learning process when there is an emotional attachment. The animated, story-telling approach to Creativity Express captures the imagination of the learner, who will then be more likely to explore his/her artistic voice and expression. Further, it promotes essential skills, e.g., critical thinking, by allowing interaction with the artistic process; analyzing the historical significance of art; and interpreting work by famous artists; all of which lead to a lifelong love of learning.
A major feature of Creativity Express is the Home Base activity that incorporates progressive components of sayArt (art principles), seeArt (meaning and interpretation), doArt (application). Each of these 16 independent, self-paced lessons includes a quiz, Challenge, and a highly visual prompt, Idea Gizmo (which encourage self-expression through art and writing). Students may save work in their digital Portfolio, which can be reviewed by teacher/parent.
The program can be easily accessed on the web by parents, teachers and schools. The User Guide presents a clear outline and description of suggested applications, with both traditional and digital art techniques and lessons.
The supervising adult may utilize the 32 integrated lessons for individual or group hands-on instruction, each of which includes an objective, pertinent vocabulary, materials needed, procedure and extension activities. Some of the activities include creating comic book pages, movie posters, and super heroes. Templates for student art include masks, marionettes, origami and animation.
In a time when budgetary cutbacks are impacting the visual arts programs in schools, Creativity Express offers a reasonably priced, enriching outlet for parents, schools, after-school and home school programs, addressing this vital educational need. Clearly, this holistic and multi-disciplinary approach to art education will help develop the well-rounded student needed in our complex world.
Cabanga (website)
[Six Red Marbles (866) 632-6623]
Finally, an answer to the perennial whine: Why do I have to learn Math? Cabanga!
Winner of this year's Middle School Interactive Math Game Website award, the program is a surprisingly effective and entertaining weapon in the math-apathy war. Cabanga is an online celebrity-agent role-playing game that offers students the opportunity to employ core math concepts and methods for business success.
First, it is important to note that Cabanga is based on solid scientific research, with a melding of African tribal pedagogy.
Second, Cabanga solves a bugaboo that has plagued math games for years, where the student invariably finds the least educational aspect of the game and stays there ad nauseam. With Cabanga, that simply isn't possible. To succeed in the game, the student must solve math problems and earn enough money to continue; and if the answer is incorrect, a cleverly-designed remediation window is generated which clearly explains the solution, and resets itself until the concept is mastered.
Last, but not least, Cabanga is fun - what kid today wouldn't love to be a Hollywood talent agent, hobnobbing with singers, actors, and sports stars, and getting rich (or going broke) right along with them?
Congrats, Six Red Marbles. Cabanga's a hit! (Free access for 10 days is available. See website for more information.)
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