• You need to elaborate on the exercises. Build on them so that it is clear to you what and how the child will learn from them.
• Each exercise should have a process. For example if the exercise is about inventing a word, how will you engage the child in inventing the word. Otherwise the child may lose interest.
• The exercises could appear in stages depending on the difficulty of each.
• Look at books on design synectics.
• The essence of the package should be fun and playful. That means that I have to allow myself to get into the feel of the book while designing the content. Don’t just think of things of the top of your head; make the exercises really creative and interactive.
• Think about how you will convince parents to buy the book. Some parents don’t understand the value of creativity. How do you sell the product to them?
• Elaborate on the observations made during the research process. Mention where each observation took place and what it was that you observed.
• Refer to the child as the learner or the user.
• Make your presentation more professional. Add illustrations instead of photographs to make it more personal.
• Create 10 exercises which are really good with the process of how each will be done. Gather materials and conduct the workshop on Monday. Figure out how you will conduct it and write it down to make it easier for your self. Anticipate what the possible problems could be and go prepared. Document by taking pictures and video. Take a friend along for this if possible.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Talk with Shweta at the Hippocampus Library:
• Shweta is the parent of two children one boy aged 6 and a girl aged 9. She is a full time mother.
• She came to the Hippocampus Library to read a book with her child.
• Her kids study in a nearby school in Koramangala. Her daughter had earlier been studying at the Valley School. She had been happy there. Shweta was pleased with the system of education there and had been especially happy with the long art classes they had where the children were allowed to paint and draw freely without fear of judgment.
• In their free time her kids like to play sports, take classes and do homework. They also play pretend games and often invent their own games. They usually always play together and she attributes this to the fact that they live in a joint family.
• Shweta does not allow her kids to watch TV on weekends. She prefers it f they play on their own be it sports, playing pretend games or drawing. She has enrolled her children in classes like swimming and tennis to keep them occupied.
• She claims that both her children, especially her daughter loves to draw. One thing that baffles Shweta however is the fact that her children usually draw the same thing over and over again, they have fixed subjects (like airplanes and cars for the boy) and they tend to repeat them over and over again.
• Shweta says she lets her children be completely free when they are drawing. She does not offer her judgment or any guidance by telling them what to draw.
• One thing Shweta laments is that her children do not enjoy reading. She has stocked up her house with many books, many of which she used to read as a child but her children rarely ever pick up a book unless they are forced to. Her motivation for buying books for her children is not so much the content of the books as it is getting them into the good habit of reading, which will improve their skills.
• Shweta is quite picky about the books she buys. She feels that the language should be appropriate and the spellings and grammar correct. She does not like to buy books with American spellings.
• She came to the Hippocampus Library to read a book with her child.
• Her kids study in a nearby school in Koramangala. Her daughter had earlier been studying at the Valley School. She had been happy there. Shweta was pleased with the system of education there and had been especially happy with the long art classes they had where the children were allowed to paint and draw freely without fear of judgment.
• In their free time her kids like to play sports, take classes and do homework. They also play pretend games and often invent their own games. They usually always play together and she attributes this to the fact that they live in a joint family.
• Shweta does not allow her kids to watch TV on weekends. She prefers it f they play on their own be it sports, playing pretend games or drawing. She has enrolled her children in classes like swimming and tennis to keep them occupied.
• She claims that both her children, especially her daughter loves to draw. One thing that baffles Shweta however is the fact that her children usually draw the same thing over and over again, they have fixed subjects (like airplanes and cars for the boy) and they tend to repeat them over and over again.
• Shweta says she lets her children be completely free when they are drawing. She does not offer her judgment or any guidance by telling them what to draw.
• One thing Shweta laments is that her children do not enjoy reading. She has stocked up her house with many books, many of which she used to read as a child but her children rarely ever pick up a book unless they are forced to. Her motivation for buying books for her children is not so much the content of the books as it is getting them into the good habit of reading, which will improve their skills.
• Shweta is quite picky about the books she buys. She feels that the language should be appropriate and the spellings and grammar correct. She does not like to buy books with American spellings.
Viit to Hippocampus Libraray on 28th July 2009
• Books for children aged 4 to 14.
• Weekend activities like arts and crafts, photography, reading competitions and talent competitions. Mostly children until the age of 9 participate in these. Older come there mostly to borrow books, they don’t spend time there or participate in activities.
• They do not judge the work done by children nor do they teach them. They basically let them be free and do their own thing. The activities are seen as a fun event for children where there is no pressure of performance or being right or wrong.
• They have a large collection of book including story books for very little children, counting book and alphabet books, fiction for young readers, encyclopedias, educational books like The Knowledge Series (which has titles like Murderous Math and Horrible Histories which aims to educate children in a fun way), arts and crafts books, hobby books which teach children skills like writing, drama, needlecraft, photography, drawing, painting, etc.
• One book that caught my eye was ‘Games and Giggles’ which is an activity book for young girls that has many ideas for games that children can play together, and also variations of popular games like hopscotch. Other activities included finding a way to convert one’s initials into a picture and making up a song where each letter of the alphabet is the beginning to a paragraph. This book is interesting because it involves activities that require the child to use her imagination rather than just using logic to deduct something.
• Another activity book that caught my eye was ‘Play in Art’ which is a compilation of famous paintings. The paintings have been used as a trigger for some activity. One such activity is called ‘Make up a story’ where the child looks at the subject of a painting and uses that as a trigger to create his own story. Another spread is titled ‘Animal noises’ where the child is challenged to make the noise of the animal that is depicted in the painting. I find this book interesting because it serves a dual purpose, that of being educational and also being a starting point for creative activities.
• Hippocampus has organized an activity for children from the age of 7 onwards on Saturday, 1st August that may be worth checking out.
• Weekend activities like arts and crafts, photography, reading competitions and talent competitions. Mostly children until the age of 9 participate in these. Older come there mostly to borrow books, they don’t spend time there or participate in activities.
• They do not judge the work done by children nor do they teach them. They basically let them be free and do their own thing. The activities are seen as a fun event for children where there is no pressure of performance or being right or wrong.
• They have a large collection of book including story books for very little children, counting book and alphabet books, fiction for young readers, encyclopedias, educational books like The Knowledge Series (which has titles like Murderous Math and Horrible Histories which aims to educate children in a fun way), arts and crafts books, hobby books which teach children skills like writing, drama, needlecraft, photography, drawing, painting, etc.
• One book that caught my eye was ‘Games and Giggles’ which is an activity book for young girls that has many ideas for games that children can play together, and also variations of popular games like hopscotch. Other activities included finding a way to convert one’s initials into a picture and making up a song where each letter of the alphabet is the beginning to a paragraph. This book is interesting because it involves activities that require the child to use her imagination rather than just using logic to deduct something.
• Another activity book that caught my eye was ‘Play in Art’ which is a compilation of famous paintings. The paintings have been used as a trigger for some activity. One such activity is called ‘Make up a story’ where the child looks at the subject of a painting and uses that as a trigger to create his own story. Another spread is titled ‘Animal noises’ where the child is challenged to make the noise of the animal that is depicted in the painting. I find this book interesting because it serves a dual purpose, that of being educational and also being a starting point for creative activities.
• Hippocampus has organized an activity for children from the age of 7 onwards on Saturday, 1st August that may be worth checking out.
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