http://nairnnicujournal.wordpress.com/2010/08/10/hello-world/

The link above will take you to my actual first post – Labour Day – but I have blogged about that recently so instead I want to take a look back at my second post, Blue Monday.

http://nairnnicujournal.wordpress.com/2010/08/10/blue-monday/

This was the day after the twins were born.  David and I had been home to sleep the night but had been up every couple of hours trying to hand express colostrum which we collected in syringes for our precious new babies.

When we arrived on the NICU both babies were bathed in blue light, they were undergoing phototherapy for jaundice.  We had not been expecting this, we did not know what it was, what it meant.  So many questions needed asking and answering.

For David and I it broke the adrenalin rush that had got us through the last few hours and we cried the tears we so badly needed to cry.  We did not understand what was happening or why it was happening to us.  What had we done to deserve our babies being in so much trouble?  Why were they struggling?  Was it our fault?  We did not know what we should be doing for the best, we just wanted someone to tell us what to do.

Standing by an incubator, staring at two babies you yearn to hold but cannot, that you are destined to protect yet cannot is heartbreaking and that raw emotion is still with me now when I think of those horrible first few hours, days and weeks.  You get on because you have to, your priority is the babies that we we now finally have in our arms but I do wonder what lasting damage that time has had for us, as individuals, as a couple, a a family.

I wish that in my first post I had conveyed more of the emotion that we felt at that time and I wish I had posted a photo of how our miracle babies appeared to us that day, bathed in the blue x

Welcome to the world Esther and William.  Youa re our world and we will love you both for always x

To answer this question properly I need to mention a series of people, each of whom played a similar role in my life. The first is Rachel who ran Gillingham Youth Spotlights many years ago, the second is my 4th year junior teacher Mrs Foster, the third is Lynette Burroughs my GCSE Drama and A Level Theatre Studies teacher and the fourth is Kath Langley-Hamel my English tutor at university.  Each of these women were exceptional at their jobs and each of them noticed something in me that they helped to develop.  They each inspired me and led to me enjoying my greatest hobby – acting – and my chosen profession – teaching.  They each fuelled my love of reading and encouraged me to enjoy the magic of stories.  These are the people from my past who have influenced me the most and I thank them with all my heart.

Rachel King

When I was 9 years old my family moved back from Cyprus to our hometown Gillingham, Kent.  I started back at school with my old class that I had not seen since I was 6 and I joined the local drama group, Gillingham Youth Spotlights at the Parochial Hall (picture above).  My first role was as one of the children in The King and I before being spotted by Rachel as a potential talent and chosen to audition for one of the Von Trapp children in The Sound of Music.  I was successful in that audition and loved playing the role of Louisa in the musical.  Through all of this I idolised Rachel.  I have no idea how old she was at the time, I am guessing between 18 and 23?  She had curly hair, pouty lips and always wore long flowing skirts which in my memory were always brown.  We started every drama session with a meditation and visualisation exercise which was led by Rachel.  Her voice was mesmerising, I loved listening to it.  She could really paint a picture in your mind with her rich, gentle tones.  Rachel was really good to me and she noticed during The King and I that I had a good singing voice so one day when no one else was in the hall she asked me to stand on the stage and sing to her, which I did.  She said, “I knew that you had a good voice under there!”  I have never looked back, she told me to audition for The Sound of Music which I did and won the part of Louisa.  Since then I have played lots of lead roles in pantomimes and muscials and my belief in myself to do this was definitely started by Rachel.  Rachel also influenced my younger sister Julie’s amateur acting career.  When casting The Sound of Music we were struggling to find a Gretl.  I clearly remember one little girl auditioning who when asked to sing Do Reh Me, sang Don’t Blame Me. Very cute but not what Rachel needed.  At the end of one rehearsal evening my Dad was waiting for me at the back of the hall with my 6 year old sister in his arms.  Rachel saw her and just said, “Who’s little sister is that?!”  Our Gretl was born!  I hope that one day I will run a children’s drama group like Rachel and that I too will be able to help some children realise their talents and achieve their dreams.

Rachel now runs http://spotlites.co.uk/

Mrs Foster

Mrs Foster was my fourth year junior teacher at St Barbara’s School in Wulfen, Germany.  She was wonderful!  She, like Rachel, encouraged my love of singing and drama.  She cast me as Mary in the school Nativity, Only A Baby.  A visiting music teacher, Mr Parfitt, led that production but I know that it was Mrs Foster that ensured I play Mary.  In assemblies and music sessions Mrs Foster encouraged us all and ‘fostered’ our talents and enthusiasms.  Mrs Foster also helped me with my creative writing, praising my stories and poems.  I remember one poem that we had to write from a starting line given by Mrs Foster,

What’s in Santa’s sack

Heavy on his bright red back?

Mrs Foster was the teacher that first made me want to be a teacher myself and it was the way she read to us that did it.  For years when reading I Am David, The Silver Sword and Children of the Oregon Trail I would see Mrs Foster’s lips when reading.  I used to love watching her and listening to her read.  These three books are still my three all time favourites and ones that I always share with classes of my own, books I chose to write about at University too.  I owe much to Mrs Foster and feel sad that I do not know where she is in the world anymore and I would love to see her again and thank her for setting me on my way.

Miss Burroughs

Lynette Burroughs taught me drama and theatre studies.  She introduced me to Brecht and Stanislavski and she lead me to love the theatre the way I still do today.  In my theatre studies class there were only 6 of us and we were a close group that worked hard and were lead by Miss Burroughs.  She also cast and directed the school plays and she chose me to play Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors which I loved.  Miss Burroughs was the reason I settled on becomng a teacher.  I wanted to be just like her.  I still do.  When I chose my teaching degree I chose to focus on primary but when I return to teaching I may follow my heart and my dream to teach secondary English and Theatre Studies.  Thank you Miss Burroughs x

Kath Langley-Hamel

Kath was my tutor at St Martin’s College, Ambleside.  She taught English, my subject specialism on my Primary Education degree.  I used to talk to her a lot about my work and my worries.  She always had faith in me and believed that I would be a good teacher.  She told me that it was okay to worry and because I was worried she knew I would do well because of the care and throught that I put into my work and my teaching.  It was Kath who told me, as the end of our course drew near, that I had acheived my dream of getting first class honours in my degree.  A very special moment, getting such brilliant news from someone I looked up to so much. Someone who for me has really made a difference.

These are the people who have influenced me the most, my past, my present and I am sure my future. 

This post is written as part of the Bloggy Moms Blog Dare.

I am once again joining with Mummy from the Heart’s link up sharing my reasons to be cheerful.  I love having this little review each week though I cannot believe that yet another week has passed!  We say in our house that it always seems to be bath time and now equally it always seems to be the time of the week when I am sharing my reasons to be cheerful.  Time flies when you have twinnies on your hands!

And so to this week’s reasons – again I had many to chose from and I know how lucky that I am to be able to say that.  Even through the red mist of sleep deprivation I do know how lucky I am.

Esther and William love baby rice!

This week we started weaning as Esther and William are very nearly 6 months old and William, in particular, seems to be very hungry!  We started on Sunday with their 11 o’clock ish feed.  They did not have very much but they had fun trying to eat it.  William has had baby rice every day since but we have had to stop with Esther as she is having some toilet trouble!! I am going to just use baby rice for another week and then start to experiment with fruit and veg purees for a week or so and then start to follow the Gina Ford weaning book as I like to have a structure to follow.  I am quite excited about it all really and it is definitely a reason to be cheerful.

William and Esther are becoming aware of one another

This week I have been sitting them opposite each other and they have been smiling at each other in a very flirtatious kind of way.  William cries when Esther is upset and looks very thoughtfully at her whenever he is near.  He is also starting to get jealous I think when he feels that she is getting too much attention!  I love that they are becoming so aware but sensing that there may be problems ahead if one feels they are getting less attention than the other.  I do so hope that as well as brother and sister they are going to become life long friends.

My ever thoughtful family and friends

Firstly Francoise has made me cheerful with her very thoughtful gifts of clothing sent from France.  A dress for Esther with little stars as we call her Little Star and a cardigan for William in the style of one I bought for his Daddy at Christmas.  Thank you Francoise for making me smile x

Had a lovely time and a good, LOUD, laugh with my cousin, Lyndsey, today.  Was great to spend some quality time with her and introduce her to Esther and William finally.  Hope to see a lot more of her as the weather improves and cold and flu season begins to fade x

Michele always makes me smile and keeps me sane, she is always a reason to be cheerful and this week she put up with me at my most tired and grumpy, and she is still coming to play again tomorrow. Thank you x

I also want to say that my Facebook / Bliss Ladies are a reason to be cheerful.  They support me all the time in making decisions about the twins.  They advise, and sympathise and are just there as a support network which I appreciate with all my heart.  This week they have been particularly helpful with diagnosing and treating Esther’s constipation.  And no, as we enter Day 12 she has still not been!

And finally, David.  After a week away I am so glad to have him home, and though I hate that he works so hard I know that he does it for us.  I love him so much and I could not do this without him.  I could not and would not be without him so thank goodness that, mostly(!), he makes me cheerful.

These are my reasons to be cheerful this week, what are yours?

As I want to write posts that are relevant to the parenting community I thought that I would get some inspiration from BloggyMoms.com and participate in their Blog Dare challenge.  We are already a good way through January and so I am going to pick and choose from the January prompts and then join The Blog Dare completely in February.  I am really looking forward to joining the challenge and have been inspired by some of the very powerful posts that I have been reading from other Mummies.  I hope that my writing might inspire someone one day too.

The first prompt that I am going to follow is What is Your Resolution for 2011.  For this I refer you to an old post that I published at the beginning of the year, my January TO DO list which is my compromise on resolutions, setting achieveable targets over a realistic time frame.

So what were those targets and how am I getting on?

Encourage William to take a bottle

This is something that I am definitely working on but with a lot of resistance from William.  He woul much rather go to the breast and is not at all impressed or cooperative when Daddy, or Mummy for that matter, tries to giv him a bottle.  His sister on the other hand will guzzle her milk down in any shape or form but for William, clearly breast is best.  This is making achieving target number 2 something of a struggle!

Make Time for Me

Obviously I have time to blog which is time I cherish when the babies are sleeping, I have also enjoyed a couple of very, long hot showers recently and a couple of short lie ins, but anything more than this just is not possible until William will take a bottle or is weaned!  My plans for a soa day are firmly on hold for a while!

Read a book and not Twilight AGAIN!!

I am reading a lot but mostly dipping in and out of baby books and blogs.  I have Room by Emma Donoghue to read which I am really looking forward to and a whole other pile of must reads sat gathering dust.  A bath with a book sounds like a good idea.  I might try that this weekend!

Spring Clean and Sort Baby Things

I have started to do this.  I washed the kitchen floor last week and seem to be constantly washing and sorting clothes.  David has agreed that we can get a cleaner which will make this target much more achieveable!  We may also get a dishwasher and a tumble dryer which will make more time for other chores.  Seems such an extravagance but is more of a necessity with the twins!

Get dressed everyday and Go outside everyday

I would say that I do this most days, weather permitting.  The current burst of sunshine is making me more keen to get up and go!

Start and Sustain Healthy Plan

This is most definitely underway with strict portion control and cereal bars as substitutes for chocolate.  Have started to lose a little bit of baby weight so I must be doing something right.

Still a way to go with these resolutions but I am doing my best to stick to them as I know that they will lead to a more positive year for us all.

Check out The Blog Dare posts to see other people’s resolutions and whether or not they are sticking to them.

Today I have been searching through my old teaching files and found these poems written by children in Year 2.  They will be in Year 6 now!  The poems are based, quite obviously, on Spike Milligan’s On the Ning Nang Nong.  I remember this being a wonderful, fun lesson and if I can find the planning that went with it then I will post that too.  In the meantime please enjoy the poems.

On the Zig Zag Zog by Daniel and Luke

On the zig zag zog

Where the owls go wog!

And the dolphins all say shoo!

There’s a zag zog zig

Where the rats go big!

And gorillas liver laver loo!

On the zog zig zag

All the mice go clag!

And you just can’t catch ‘em when they do.

So it’s zig zag zog

Owls go wog!

Zag zog zig

Rats go big!

Zog zig zag

Mice go clag!

What a noisy place to have a sob!

Is the zig zag zig zag zog!

On the Bip Bap Bop by Darby and Francesca

On the bip bap bop

Where the chicks go clop!

And the piglets all go wooo!

There’s a bip bap bop

Where the rabbits go plop!

And the dogs go rapper rapper roop!

On the bip bap bop

All the horses say hop

And you just can’t catch ‘em when they do!

So, it’s bip bap bop

The chicks go clop!

Bip bap bop

Rabbits go plop!

Bip bap bop

Horses say hop!

What a noisy place to have a chop

Is the bip bap bip bap bop! 

On the Zim Zam Zoom by Alex, Harry and Sam 

On the zim zam zoom

Where the ants go boom!

And the horses all say soom!

On the zoom zam zim

Where the ducks go kim!

And the teatocks tibber tagger choo!

On the zoom zim zam

All the pigs shout Ham!

And you just can’t catch ‘em when they do!

So it’s zim zam zoom

The ants go boom!

Zoom zam zim

Ducks go kim!

Zoom zim zam

Pigs shout ham!

What a noisy place to have a room!

Is the zim zam zim zam zoom!

On the Clip Clap Clop by Grace and Abbie

On the clip clap clop

Where the horse goes pop!

And the cows just moo moo moo!

There’s a clop clip clap

Where the rats all flap!

And the pigs go clipper clapper cloo!

On the clap clop clip

All the fleas shout flip!

And you just can’t catch ‘em when they do.

So, it’s clip clap clop

The horse goes pop!

Clop clip clap

The rats all flap!

Clap clop clip

The fleas shout flip!

What a noisy place to stop and flop

Is the clip clap clip clap clop! 

On the Nish Nash Nosh by Jenny and Isla

On the nish nash nosh

Where the dogs are posh!

And the rabbits all say noo!

There’s a nosh nash nish

Where the pigs go flish!

And the hamsters nigger nagger noo!

On the nish nosh nash

All the cats go lash!

And you just can’t catch ‘em when they do!

So, it’s nash nish nosh!

The dogs are posh!

Nosh nash nish

The pigs go flish!

Nish nosh nash

The cats go lash!

What a noisy place to have a wash!

Is the nish nash nish nash nosh!

Zu3D is a new stop-motion animation program made specifically for schools.

It has been developed through primary school ICT Clubs and with the expert

knowledge of a professional animator who has worked with Aardman.

This software is visually stimulating and engaging for children of all ages. It

is easy to use and enables children to work independently on their very own

stop-motion animation.

It provides a tool for learning across all primary subjects and is an excellent

resource for our developing creative curriculum.

In the recent review of the primary curriculum learning through the arts

was highlighted as a priority.

“Through the arts, children will also develop original ideas, explore issues

and solve problems. Children will take part in different activities – from

singing and composing their own music to photography and animation.”

http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/primarycurriculumreview/downloads/83306-COIDCSF-

CurriculumReview(Summary).pdf

Animation is a multi-faceted form of art. You have to create a story, create

characters, make them from clay or plasticine, design and make sets,

compose soundtracks or select appropriate recorded music to enhance a

film. Animation means children have to solve problems, make decisions and

judgements, evaluate and improve their projects and review and reflect on

their learning. Zu3D is a powerful tool that demands all of these things

from our pupils as they have fun with their friends making a film, often not

realising that they are in fact working hard, learning new skills, applying new

theories and sharing fresh ideas.

“Design, dance, drawing, photography, drama, animation and music are all

possible areas for teachers to explore, and they can all cut across to other

subjects in exciting ways.”

http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/primarycurriculumreview/downloads/83306-COIDCSF-

CurriculumReview(Summary).pdf

Here are some ideas for how you might use Zu3D in the classroom to do just

that.

Literacy

Planning stories

Developing understanding of narrative structure

Animated stories

Story telling

Animated poems

Develop speaking and listening skills

Hotseat / Interview an animated character

Create an animated Wanted Poster

Animated instructions or explanations

Animate onomatopoeic words

Create an animated alphabet

Demonstrate what a sentence is through animated words and punctuation

Animate a blurb for a book – persuasive writing

Create a film trailer – persuasive writing

Making adverts – persuasive writing

Illustrating spelling rules

Create moving characters that can be used as a stimulus for a poem or play

Numeracy

Demonstrate fractions

Bonds to 10 / 20

Animated times tables rap

Explain division

Doubling and halving

Looking at 2D and 3D shapes

Science

Animate a life cycle

Animation of earth, moon and sun

Animate what happens in an electric circuit

Illustrate vibrations producing sound

Explain states of matter

PSHE

Crossing the road safely

Bullying scenario films

Fire safety advert

Electrical safety

Illustrate dangers of drugs and alcohol

How to care for your pet – animated instructions

Develop team work and cooperation

RE

Animate a Bible story or prayer

Animate a hymn

Animate a story from a festival

Show how a Muslim prays through an animated character

Geography

Illustrate the water cycle

Make an animated weather map

Show a route on a map

History

Recreate past events – moon landing

Interview famous people from the past

Illustrate characters and situations – Victorian children

Show contrasts – rich and poor in Victorian times

DT/Art

Experiment with different ways of creating the set for your animations

Make props for your set

PE

Illustrate the rules of a game

Make an advert about playing fair

How to jump and land safely

How to kick a ball

How to hold a tennis racket / cricket ball

Music

Record a composition to accompany your animation

Add sound effects

Choose appropriate music from a collection to enhance your film

The Primary National Strategy invites us to “Create a visual adaptation of a

simple text using toys, modelling clay, play figures and stop-frame animation

techniques” but we know that so much more can be achieved and explored

through animation, as well as developing the skills of filmmaking in their own

right.

Why not download Zu3D today and see what you can do?

www.zu3d.com

Win a copy of Zu3D

Zu3D can be used throughout the Early Years Curriculum to enhance teaching and learning and to support learning through play.  Though ICT is mentioned only once in the Early Learning Goals, within Knowledge and Understanding of the World, Zu3D believes that ICT and animation in particular can be used effectively across all six areas of learning and development to engage children in learning, motivate teachers to explore new ideas and enhance the Foundation Stage curriculum for all.  Zu3D also helps to develop the skills and knowledge that children will need as they move into the National Curriculum. 

ICT is important in our lives today and runs through everything that we do, this should be reflected in our curriculum to ensure that children are familiar with technologies and the impact that they have on their lives.  ICT provides invaluable tools and opportunities for teaching and learning for people of all ages, but we must start exploring these with the very youngest in the Early Years.

Zu3D is a new stop-motion animation software package designed to meet the needs of teachers and children in our schools today.  An intuitive, easy to use interface enables children to create high quality films easily and independently.  This software provides a creative outlet for demonstrating knowledge and understanding across all areas of the curriculum.  Zu3D has many clever features that make animation achievable for all.  

One of the great things about Zu3D is that it gives children the ability to make a complete film within one program.  In Zu3D you can easily create an animated film with titles, credits, subtitles, narration, sound effects and music.  Within one resource you can create all these elements that before have had to be created in separate pieces of software and then collated in yet another.  This makes a complicated process simple enough for young children without sacrificing any of the quality of a professional film.  During the last twelve months we have seen children as young as 5 make a complete film in Zu3D within an hour of being introduced to the program. They have been buzzing because they have found something that they can do well, independently and without fuss.  This software enables children to achieve results they are proud of without having to rely on others.

In the Early Years Zu3D can be used as a tool to support children’s developing communication, language and literacy.  Stop Motion Animation can involve painting pictures, making models, creating props and evaluating sounds.  It encourages children to work together in a team to create an end product that they can share.  All of these aspects of this process encourage children to talk, to communicate, to use language and develop their literacy skills in a fun and practical way.  In a 21^st century way.

Zu3D makes animation easy for younger children.  Its intuitive interface has been designed specifically for children and so enables children to make high quality films without the need to read or understand complicated instructions.  Once an adult has help them to set up their equipment, modelled the process then they are ready to click and go. Children can spend time playing with the software and experimenting with what it can do before being set a particular challenge to work on or target to achieve.

With careful planning and adult support we have seen some wonderful films created by children in Reception and Year 1 that have resulted in excellence and enjoyment.  Click below to see three particularly strong examples.

http://www.zu3d.com/gallery/elmer by Year R and Y1

http://www.zu3d.com/gallery/the-three-little-pigs by Y1 and Y2

http://www.zu3d.com/gallery/owl-pussy-cat by YR

Animation is a fantastic tool.  Children are familiar with the concept from television and film.  Making movies of their own is a magical process that can capture their imaginations and make learning fun.  It is a digital form of role play, a technological way to tell a story or recount an experience.  It enables children to share communicate their ideas, thoughts and feelings in a new and creative way. 

Animation should take its rightful place at the heart of early years education where it can play a large role in supporting children’s learning through technology and play.

Creative Development

Express and communicate their ideas, thoughts and feelings by using a widening range of materials – including animation

Match movement in animation to music

Explore colour, texture, shape, form and space in two or three dimensions – creating models, props, scenery for use in animated films

Use their imagination in art and design, music, dance, imaginative and role-play and stories – all of these aspects can be used in the planning and creating of an animated film

Communication, Language and Literacy

Animate a nursery rhyme, song or part of a story

Animate the letters in their name whilst saying the sounds out loud

Explore and experiment with sounds, words and texts

Retell narratives in the correct sequence, drawing on language patterns of stories

Use talk to organise, sequence and clarify thinking and ideas

Use language to imagine and recreate roles and experiences

Listen with enjoyment and respond to stories, songs and other music, rhymes and poems and make up their own stories, songs, rhymes and poems

Speak clearly and audibly with confidence and control and show awareness of the listener

Knowledge and Understanding of the World

Create an animation to show how an animal moves

Make an animation to show understanding of different forms of transport

Make an animation showing a simple life cycle

Make a weather symbol animation to a weather song or rhyme

Find out about and identify the uses of everyday technology and use information communication technology and programmable toys to support their learning

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

Work as part of a group or class, taking turns and sharing fairly

Be confident to try new activities, initiate ideas and speak in a familiar group

Make an animation to show good manners, sharing or other social story

Use animation to explore different points of view

Problem Solving, Reasoning and Numeracy

Say and use number names in order in familiar contexts

Animate number songs

Make counting animations

Use language such as ‘greater’, ‘smaller’, ‘heavier’ or ‘lighter’ to compare quantities

Physical Development

Handle tools, objects, construction and malleable materials safely and with increasing control

For your chance to win a copy of this software just click here

Zu3D is currently being used in a number of schools promoting the use of animation to enhance learning in the creative curriculum.
Zu3D has enabled children to create good quality films independently.  It has also allowed children to create films at home.  They have been able to share these films using the Zu3D online animation gallery.  This allows children to develop their evaluation skills as they can leave comments about their own and their peers’ contributions. This has been very beneficial in the current climate of assessment for learning. 

Zu3D has been used as a tool in literacy for developing narrative structure.  Before starting to animate the children devise a story and plan it out using a storyboard.  Within literacy Zu3D has many uses including the promotion of good speaking and listening skills as children can add narration to their animation.  Zu3D can be used by less able writers to share their work. Persuasive writing is exemplified through the making of animated adverts, children can improve their organisational and editorial skills by producing an animated documentary.  This software has many possibilities for supporting and inspiring exciting literacy projects. 

As a tool for ICT lessons and developing the skills required for animation Zu3D has been found to be superior to any other software used because of some key features; Children are saved time by the fact that they can take multiple frames using the numeric keys on the keyboard, this is also good for children who do not have good mouse control.  At any time during the process of creating an animation it is possible to change the speed of your film. This was a problem that children often had, making their films too fast or too slow. The children do not need to be able to read, they just need to identify the images of the tortoise and the hare.  Another feature is the fact that you can delete individual frames so if you get your hand in a frame, which children so often do, you can just delete a single frame and the guilty hand!  Another element that children have enjoyed experimenting with is the fact that you can copy, paste and reverse a selection of frames and so play a part of the animation backwards.  This has been a useful feature in storytelling through animation.  It has also been used to loop sections of animation, for example a character waving, allowing children to quickly create longer animations.

One tool that has excellent value in the classroom is the use of onion skinning. This is the ability to overlay previously taken frames upon the current live view from the camera.  It helps to make more accurate and precise films. It also promotes a happy collaborative classroom as if someone accidentally knocks over one of your characters it’s possible to return them to just the right location.  This is one aspect of the software that the children have found to be very valuable indeed.  Teachers have reported not heard so many raised voices and heated discussions since they have started using Zu3D. 

Zu3D has different levels to its features that make it perfect for differentiating in the classroom.  For example with the credits and titles you can either use one of the preset styles or more able children can fully customise their titles.  Films can be made with multiple sound tracks; children can incorporate background music, narration and sound effects or just one of those elements.  On the timeline you are able to see the waveform of the sound and so more able children can accurately and easily synchronise their animation to their sounds.

One of the great things about Zu3D is the ability to make a complete film within one program.  In Zu3D you can easily create an animated film with titles, credits, subtitles, narration, sound effects and music.  Within one resource you can create all these elements that before had to be created in separate pieces of software and then collated in yet another.  This makes a complicated process simple enough for young children without sacrificing any of the quality of a professional film.  We have seen children as young as 5 make a complete film in Zu3D within an hour of being introduced to the program. They have been buzzing because they have found something that they can do well, independently and without fuss.  This software enables children to achieve results they are proud of without having to rely on others.

Since using this software with children in schools we have had a lot of very positive feedback about its visual appeal, ease of use and the fact that it promotes independent learning.  Often children are learning so much and not even realising it at all, they are just having fun.  The online gallery is one aspect that has received much praise from parents as they like the fact that they can see what their children have been working on at school. They are also able to leave comments for their children to see and this can be shared with relatives overseas.  The gallery can be used as an assessment tool and an online portfolio of work. It can also be used as a stimulus for new ideas by viewing and reviewing current films.  As the site is moderated children have to think carefully about the comments they make and this leads to them leaving detailed and valid evaluations that have been carefully composed and worded.  As a teacher it is great to be able to leave feedback that parents can see so they can see that their child’s work is viewed and valued by staff at school. It is also good for the children as having an audience is highly motivational.  It ensures that they work hard and produce the best quality of work that they can.

To see the benefits of Zu3D for you and your classroom or family, check out the website www.zu3d.com where you can download a fully functional 30 day trial and have a play for yourself.

Time to Animate – See What You Can Do!