We have a laptop that is a few years old that we are hoping to set-up for our 9-year old. She has been using her iPod Touch but is doing lots of game playing and shopping . We want to make sure she has lots of opportunities to create.
Ana is a creator at heart. She loves art and is often making things. She is a very visual learner and can learn something by looking at photos. Although she loves the Disney Channel and the usual shows, she also loves HGTV and the Cooking Channel. A few weeks ago, Ana decided to use an empty box to create a house for the 3 animals that she has accumulated from McDonald's over the summer. She started to gather lots of things from around the house, reminding us to save any empty toilet paper rolls, tissue boxes, etc. She was on the lookout for anything that she could use in her creation.
I suggested that she take photos of her project, knowing that this might be a great time to teach her how to create something with the photos she takes. She has spent hours over the last two weeks working on the house. The TV alone took her days--she needed Sponge Bob to look "just-right". I love watching this kind of creation. She'd "work" for hours by herself, creating this house. I think this is why ages 9-12 are my favorite ages. No matter how sophisticated and grown up they are about some things, this kid factor is key to their learning. This to me, is the best kind of play.Always has been.
Ana had just as much fun today, learning and working on putting her photos together. My husband taught her the basics of Garage Band and she worked for about 2-3 hours, choosing photos, deciding on the right music, recording her voice, etc. She is VERY excited about the final project and asked if we could teach her a new thing to do tomorrow. She knows there are lots of ways to "make things" and is dying to learn about all of them. My thinking is that after a few days of us showing her the possibilities, she will know lots about what she can create on her own--if we don't really worry about all of those final project things but really just let her get in there an play with the tools for a while. Imagine if we took the first few days in school to open up these possibilities for our kids.
Saturday, August 08, 2009
My 9-Year-Old Creates Her First Podcast
We have a laptop that is a few years old that we are hoping to set-up for our 9-year old. She has been using her iPod Touch but is doing lots of game playing and shopping . We want to make sure she has lots of opportunities to create.
Ana is a creator at heart. She loves art and is often making things. She is a very visual learner and can learn something by looking at photos. Although she loves the Disney Channel and the usual shows, she also loves HGTV and the Cooking Channel. A few weeks ago, Ana decided to use an empty box to create a house for the 3 animals that she has accumulated from McDonald's over the summer. She started to gather lots of things from around the house, reminding us to save any empty toilet paper rolls, tissue boxes, etc. She was on the lookout for anything that she could use in her creation.
I suggested that she take photos of her project, knowing that this might be a great time to teach her how to create something with the photos she takes. She has spent hours over the last two weeks working on the house. The TV alone took her days--she needed Sponge Bob to look "just-right". I love watching this kind of creation. She'd "work" for hours by herself, creating this house. I think this is why ages 9-12 are my favorite ages. No matter how sophisticated and grown up they are about some things, this kid factor is key to their learning. This to me, is the best kind of play.Always has been.
Ana had just as much fun today, learning and working on putting her photos together. My husband taught her the basics of Garage Band and she worked for about 2-3 hours, choosing photos, deciding on the right music, recording her voice, etc. She is VERY excited about the final project and asked if we could teach her a new thing to do tomorrow. She knows there are lots of ways to "make things" and is dying to learn about all of them. My thinking is that after a few days of us showing her the possibilities, she will know lots about what she can create on her own--if we don't really worry about all of those final project things but really just let her get in there an play with the tools for a while. Imagine if we took the first few days in school to open up these possibilities for our kids.
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Ana,
ReplyDeleteWhat a great project and podcast! My favorite house feature was the window in the roof. Using recycled materials for your house shows such creativity. Have fun using it and exploring more with podcasts.
Fun, what a great experience! I would love to hear more about the technology side. I did my first attempt at a podcast earlier this summer with Garage Band, but then I was stuck on how to take it from Garage Band to putting it on Blogger. Also, I didn't see how to add images as Ana did. This may be too much to explain in a post, but if you have a chance to explain how Ana did her podcast, I would love to hear about it.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great project. I'm going to share it with my almost 8YO when she wakes up! She loves creating art and taking pictures, so it would be fun to expand her horizions with an online tool.
ReplyDeleteAna,
ReplyDeleteCould my 9 year-old me come over and play with you? Your house is EXACTLY the kind of thing I loved to make when I was your age. I think we'd be great friends and we'd have tons of fun making things. I've got some ideas for outfits for some of your animals...
That was fun! Ana, your podcast was cool.
ReplyDeleteAna,
ReplyDeleteI love this project! When I was your age, I made a house for my Barbies on the shelves in my closet out of things I found around the house. I don't even have a picture of that project. That is the great thing about technology today. This podcast is an artifact of your personal history that you can look back on in years to come. I just love the music! It made me want to dance the Salsa this morning.
That is a fantastic house!! My favorite part is the elevator (and the Sponge Bob TV is pretty cool, too.)
ReplyDeleteFRanki and Ana-
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to show this to the boys!!! May be you will inspire Joey to create a podcast! Loved the toilet and the elevator...so creative!
Thanks everyone for your great comments. Ana was thrilled to receive each one. She has gone on to create a few more fun things because of all of the positive feedback she got on this podcast!
ReplyDelete