Archive for the ‘Technology’ Category
Makego App for iphone
Monday, March 12th, 2012
Creative guru Chris O’Shea, of Little Magic Stories fame is at it again with Makego, a new app for the iphone. (more…)
Posted in Creativity, Technology | 3 Comments »
Rock Paper Scissors
Thursday, September 15th, 2011
Is there a childhood game more classic than Rock, Paper, Scissors? All you need is your fist, a cunning wit and a formidable opponent. I find it’s the perfect game for settling arguments, waiting in line, and when there’s a ban on game systems because of some transgression. It’s also just fun to do every once in a while for no reason at all. (more…)
Posted in Games & Creative Play, Technology | 2 Comments »
Tech Thursday: 5 Apps to Tame Road Trips with Toddlers
Thursday, June 9th, 2011
Tech savvy mom Heather, of (cool) Progeny, found five great apps you’ll want to download before your next road trip with junior. Go check them out! Seriously, she did a fab job putting this list together. She even included an app to find the nearest bathroom. As someone who’s traveled with toddlers, I can honestly say, “MAN! I wish they had this app back in the day.”
Oh and since we’re talking tech today, but mostly because I’m woefully random and I just ran across this, I wanted to show you a beautiful advancement in technology. Behold…
Posted in Technology | 1 Comment »
Tech Thursday: Free Stop-Motion Animation Software
Thursday, June 2nd, 2011
Did I ever tell you about the time I visited a gifted and talented class? (cue: kids groaning, “Not againnnnnn”) I think I was in 3rd or 4th grade and my memory is fuzzy as to why I went to observe, but they were doing the most fabulous project I had ever seen. They were making their own filmstrips.
It should probably come as no surprise this memory has stuck with me for so long. I’ve already told you about my crush on AV equipment. Anyway, it was really quite creative and spoke to my crafty heart. They uncurled the strips and used markers to draw scenes. I remember dreamily thinking, those kids are so lucky. We don’t do anything like that in the “B” level group. All we do is read and do worksheets.
Now, I never made it into G & T. But it’s always stuck with me—this idea that you can demonstrate what you know in multiple ways BEYOND worksheets and tests. (more…)
Posted in Arts & Crafts, Ideas and Inspiration, Science Fun, Technology | 8 Comments »
Play Dough Circuits and Robot Fest
Monday, May 2nd, 2011
On Saturday, we exhibited at the Mid-Atlantic Robot Fest and Mini Maker Faire. We had so much fun!
Prior to the event, I had spoken with organizers Gary Mauler and Scott Austin about Ellie Bellie Kids/Classic Play hosting a table. I wanted to provide a hands-on activity for young kids that would get them excited about science so, I asked them for ideas. During our chat, Gary pulled up a short TED video (and y’all know how I love the TED videos) by Anne Marie Thomas featuring an innovative, fun and simple project using homemade play dough to make simple circuits.
Basically this is how it works in a nutshell, you make two types of play dough: one using salt, the other using sugar. The salt dough is conductive and the sugar dough is insulating. Plug in leads from a battery pack into the conductive dough and you create squishy circuits that will cause LEDs to light and small motors to whir.
So thanks to the work of Dr. Thomas and her team who developed this, our team introduced Squishy Circuits to kids at Robot Fest.
Posted in Arts & Crafts, Science Fun, Technology | 6 Comments »
Tech Thursday: Chris O’Shea
Thursday, April 28th, 2011
A little while back I was introduced to the work of artist Chris O’Shea. His work is a great example of technology and creativity combining to make something extraordinary. His interactive displays are playful, engaging and innovative. From a hand that emerges from above to watching children’s stories come to life, one walks away from O’Shea’s work feeling like anything is possible.
Recently, I caught up with Chris to ask him about his work and what he has planned next.
(more…)
Posted in Features, Guest Posts, Technology | 1 Comment »
Tech Thursday: When Junior’s Website is Monetized
Thursday, April 21st, 2011
It’s Thursday! That means it’s time to talk tech. Today’s kick off topic is a great one. The other day Heather told me about a 13 year old who is making a fair bit of money a month in google ads on his website. (more…)
Tags: Parenting, tech thursday
Posted in Technology | 1 Comment »
Tech Thursday: Smartphone Smarts
Thursday, April 14th, 2011
Can you believe it’s Thursday already? Me either!
Today Heather over at (cool) progeny is hosting our Tech Thursday series. Hop on over to learn about geotagging (smart phones often automatically tag your pictures with the exact latitude and longitude of where you snapped it) and what you can do about it, including step-by-step instructions for how to disable that feature. (more…)
Tags: tech thursday
Posted in Technology | No Comments »
