Weekly Click: May 31, 2012

Welcome to FableVision's Weekly Click for the week of May 31st, 2012. This week we're looking at how mobile apps affect children's brains, the art of apps, and one mother's in-depth look at Legos, play and gender. Lots to see, so let's get started! Featured Article

iPad + Toddlers = ?

Parents -- do you ever have the feeling that your child is spaced-out while using a mobile device? Do you ever have trouble getting them to put it down at night and just go to sleep? Here's something to keep in mind:  early studies are starting to show that interactive apps like those on the iPad actually increase interactivity and can engage children in ways traditional media cannot.

While research is still in its early stages, some studies are showing that moderate use of interactive apps actually improved a child's vocabulary up to 27%. Well-designed apps function much in the same way other thought-process oriented toys do. They create "flow experience", where a child becomes immersed in the activity at hand. Thankfully, this is a good sign; it means your child is concentrating.

However, these studies come with a caveat. iPad and iPhone use releases a small dose of dopamine into the child's brain, much like television and video games. While harmless, dopamine causes the brain to experience pleasure, which over time will make it difficult for the child to give up the device.

Here at FableVision Studios, we're encouraged by these studies. We believe that technology serves as a perfect compliment to traditional learning methods. Apps, websites and yes, videogames can all be effective and fun ways to engage students of all ages.

Legos, spaceships and breasts

At FableVision we believe in helping everyone learn and reach their full potential, no matter their age or gender. We've talked about Lego's new series of "girls-only" toys. That said, we found this article especially thought provoking. Kate Bachus has written a great blog post about her personal experiences with her daughter, Legos, and the disturbing implications of Lego's "girls only" series. Required reading for parents with children of any gender.

Roominate: Make It Yours!

Did you read the article about about the new "gendered" Legos? Were you as disappointed as we were? Well here's a fun Kickstarter that tries to bridge the gap between traditional "girl" toys and "boy" ones. From the creators:

Roominate is a different kind of toy. It is a first step in inspiring the next generation of female technology innovators. Because we believe that early exposure to STEM through toys will inspire change. Rominate is the toy that makes every young girl an artist, an engineer, an architect, and a visionary. Watch out world!

Roominate encourages girls to design, build and then -- get this -- wire up their own house! This is such a super-cool idea, especially for those girls who might not be interested in pirates or aliens but still want to play with toys that allow them to flex and develop their interest in STEM skills.

The Art of Apps: Paper, Tweetbot, Mixel, and Piictu creators on designing beautiful apps

At the Art Of Apps gallery event in New York City, seven apps were chosen to be lauded for their exceptional design: Paper, Mixel, Tweetbot, Piictu, Path, and Cameo. Behind the link check out two videos from The Verge talk to the designers and creators of Paper, Mixel and Cameo. Good design is something everyone strives for, and is the difference between an okay app and a truly great one. We're always excited to pick the brains of other artists and creators to find ways to make our own apps and games even better. This has us geared up for our own Speed Apping event here in the Studio!

Arts|Learning Annual Advocacy Awards and Symposium: Honoring Peter H. Reynolds

Arts|Learning held its 26th Champions of Arts Education Advocacy Awards at the Gardner Auditorium of the Massachusetts Statehouse on May 24, 2012 where 17 outstanding advocates (including arts teachers, administrators, business, legislators, arts organizations, media, and students) were recognized and honored for their amazing work supporting and promoting arts education in dance, music, theatre arts, and visual arts. FableVision Studios' Founder Peter H. Reynolds was one of the well-known individuals being honored. Others included Anita Walker, MA Cultural Council Executive Director; MA Senator Stanley Rosenberg, MA Representative Alice Peisch, Ernie Boch, Jr. and his Music Drives Us Foundation, and others.

The symposium focused on the theme, Theory in Action: Research to Results. Experts presented examples of best practices in arts education. Peter Reynolds gave an awesome reading of one of his books and talked about fostering creativity.

Congrats, Pete for continuing to inspire!

The Making of the Lure of the Labyrinth

HISTORY

Lure of the Labyrinth will always have a special place in FableVision Studios history. At the time we won the project in 2005, it was the largest project we had ever undertaken.  It was a perfect balance of an exciting technical challenge--games, back end, teacher tools--and an incredible opportunity to explore a myriad of design possibilities--comics, game interfaces, monsters.  And it was the beginning of an exciting and longlasting partnership and friendship with Maryland Public Television and the MIT Education Arcade that yielded the award-winning, online middle-school math game.

WHAT IS LURE OF THE LABYRINTH?

Lure of the Labyrinth was designed to encourage students to use mathematical thinking and problem-solving skills to progress through a graphic-novel story and to give all students a chance to learn and succeed. A safe, educator-moderated game-embedded communication device allows players on the same team to exchange ideas and game strategies, and encourages collaborative game play.

Lure of the Labyrinth continues to be used as a math and literacy teaching tool in classrooms all around the world.  From now through June 15, FableVision Studios, Maryland Public Television and the MIT Education Arcade have teamed up to launch the Lure of the Labyrinth Challenge, a chance for students to play the game and win prizes. Students can play at home or at school, in the classroom, computer lab, library, or after-school program. The goal of the challenge is to help examine the role of gaming in the classroom.

THE MAKING OF LURE OF THE LABYRINTH

While more students around the world are participating in the Labyrinth Challenge every day (and more pets are being saved!), we wanted to give our readers a little behind-the-scenes look at the making-of this incredible game and education tool:

One of the things that made this project so amazing is that we had a lot of time up front to hammer out the look and feel. We were able to spend a good month or two just drawing and experimenting. Now, this may not sound like a lot but we normally have to hit the ground running at FableVision- so this was refreshing! In the beginning, we knew the game would be full of monsters, so that's where our artists started. To give you a little idea of how the game came to life, our Director of Art and Animation Bob Flynn shared some of his earlier artistic concoctions:

Here are some of the weirder monsters Bob came up with in the beginning stages of the project. In the end, Labyrinth is not a cartoony landscape. Keith Zulawnik, our Lead Artist took over the design and the story became more of a dark fantasy dreamscape, which fits the story perfectly. Still, there were a lot of monsters in the beginning and everyone fed off each other's ideas.

In another instance, we needed a group of monsters of varying types and sizes for the Cafeteria game. Original concept art for the monsters in the Cafeteria and Iris (below) came from MIT graduate student Kristina Drzaic.  Here's one line-up that Bob created:

And here's where Keith landed for the final game design:

When we started getting more specific, character design was the next big thing to tackle. Iris is a mysterious fairy companion who you meet early in the game. She's someone you're not sure you can trust, but you don't have much of a choice.

Here's the entrance pipe to the monster world that Bob doodled with a brush pen on paper in the beginning of the process. It stuck, and made it into the comic!

Some of the comics we drew never made it into the final game. But here are some that did:

From the original sketch, to the final game appearances, artists bounced around designs and concepts like these characters all the time. It was a great example of the type of collaboration we do best.

NOW GO PLAY!

We hope you've enjoyed this little trip down memory lane about the creation of Lure of the Labyrinth. But really, the best way to experience it is to go play yourself!  It's fun, it's cool, it's free, it has monsters and you may even learn something:)

Special thanks again to our partners Maryland Public Television and the MIT Education Arcade in bringing the Labyrinth Challenge to classrooms around the world.  We couldn't ask for better partners in this monstrous world of gaming in the classroom!

To take part in the Labyrinth Challenge, go here!

To play Lure of the Labyrinth after June 15th, go here!

Weekly Click: May 16, 2012

Featured Article

MaKey MaKey: An Invention Kit for Everyone Did you ever wish you could turn any everyday object into touch pads and combine them with the internet? Just think how cool it would be to have a banana space bar on your computer? Or wouldn't it be REALLY revolutionary if you could play Dance, Dance Revolution with buckets of water, rather than the traditional floor mat? Well, wish no more, because thanks to MaKey MaKey you can! MaKey MaKey is an invention kit for the 21st century from our friend Eric Rosenbaum and graduate student Jay Silver from the MIT Media Lab.

We couldn't imagine a better way to help people start to think of themselves as makers and agents of change.  So when we find out about MaKey Makey we just had to share, because when you have the "Maker's Mindset," you know you can change the world! MaKey MaKey is a simple Invention Kit for beginners and experts doing art, engineering, and everything in between.  It looks awesome and we can't wait to play with it!

Fresh Air Remembers Author Maurice Sendak This is a beautiful compilation of interviews with the late Maurice Sendak on the NPR Fresh Air Program.

How Pixar Almost Lost Toy Story 2 to a Bad Backup Pixar's Oren Jacob and Galyn Susman recount how the files for Toy Story 2 were almost lost due to an accidental Linux command and bad backup. A good reminder to back up your important files!  Also, a great example of how you can use minimal animation with a great story.

Exploring the Role of Mobile Technology as a Health Care Helper Here at FableVision Studios, we love seeing all the exciting ways mobile technology is changing the world.  Kudos to Johns Hopkins Global Health Initiative, which has 51 projects educating students in global mobile technologies and exploring the use of mobile technology in health.

Peter H. Reynolds honored with the Puppet Showplace Theatre Creative Leadership Award

Animation and puppetry have a lot in common, and FableVision Studios has always had a strong affinity with the world of puppets.  There happens to be a great puppet theater right down the road from us, the Puppet Showplace Theatre in Brookline, MA. Established in 1974, it is the first and only year-round dedicated puppetry presenter in New England.

Peter H. Reynolds, founder of FableVision Studios, recalls, "As a child, The Puppet Showplace inspired me to run out and get my own puppets. I quickly learned that puppets have no voice — I needed to be that voice. The Showplace continues to inspire children to tap into their imaginations and to find their voice and let the world hear. That is powerful stuff."

On June 2nd, Peter will be honored by the Puppet Showplace Theatre as the recipient of their very first Creative Leadership Award. The award is given to someone in the community who has shown creative vision in the arts and who embodies the spirit of Puppet Showplace Theatre in inspiring creativity in people of all ages. It will be presented at the theater's Gala Birthday Celebration, which will also feature live music, cocktails, refreshments from local restaurants, and a silent action.  David Syrotiak, founder of the National Marionette Theatre, will be presented with the first ever Paul Vincent Davis Award for excellence in puppetry.

The gala is also a fundraiser, and all proceeds will go to support the programming at the theater, which depends on the generous support of members and patrons in order to keep ticket prices affordable to families and schools.

FableVision Studios' own John Lechner, who is on the Board of Trustees at Puppet Showplace, is a puppeteer himself. "Puppetry is storytelling, which is what FableVision is all about," he says. "Children see a lot of puppetry on television, but there's something magical about a live theatrical experience, and places like Puppet Showplace are rare these days. I'm hoping the theater is around for a long time."

To order tickets for this special event, call 617-731-6400, or register online here.

To learn more about Puppet Showplace Theatre, visit their website.