My first passion in life was experimenting with the moving image. I even majored in film at the University of Michigan to learn as much as possible about the medium. I got my start in the classroom teaching animation and I truly became enraptured with all the different ways to use materials and techniques to make the impossible, possible.
Below are some of my favorite pieces of student work from when I used to teach at the Brooklyn Heights Montessori School where I worked with 4-6 graders as part of the Arts Selective Program.
I always ask students to think of conflict as they construct their narratives o help guide them in the process. Experimenting with materials is also key, which is what I love so much about the Starry Night piece. The entire process was filled with trial error and her hard work really paid off.
Having tripods is key to completing strong stop-motion projects! I also find the iPad app iStopmotion is a great resource due to the onion skilling option. This really helps younger students visualize the stop-motion process. I have my students move their animations from iStopmotion into iMovie to add sounds effects and titles so they can have more control.
Maker Love Story 