Creativity Flows at Hartland Elementary in Vermont

Peter H. Reynolds is often asked for advice on how to start drawing. His answer – put a pencil on a piece of paper and move it around. The same tip can be applied to animation as young animators at Hartland Elementary School in Vermont discovered during a recent program with FableVision.

The school launched its Create Bravely extravaganza with a Family Night filled with animated films and activities for all ages.

The following day students met Peter H. Reynolds virtually, setting the stage for the animation workshops that filled the rest of the day. Using Animation-ish, Peter’s leveled online animation-tool, students discovered how three frames with slight movements can create movement.

Check out some of their work:

Would you like to host a Create Bravely Family Night or animation workshops?
Send an email to Andrea Calvin at andrea@fablevision.com.

Washington Elementary School, New Hampshire

There’s something special about the little New Hampshire school at the top of a steep dirt driveway. Inside the doors of Washington Elementary School kindness, creativity, and curiosity flows. Recently the school welcomed Paul and Peter H. Reynolds and the FableVision Team for a Family Night, school visits, Animation-ish workshops and teacher PD.   

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If you are interested in learning more about custom programs, family nights, and author visits email the team at info@fablevisionlearning.com

FableVision Learning Connects with Gifted Educators in Georgia

FableVision Learning’s Sara Smith, Director of Creative Education, and Andrea Calvin, Vice President, roadtripped to Athens, Georgia to connect the dots at the Georgia Association for Gifted Educators conference. Held on the beautiful University of Georgia campus the conference saw over 500 educators from across the state. 

During three hands-on-sessions educators dove deeper into the works of Peter H. Reynolds and creativity skills.

At the Start With A Story session, participants explored the SEL and Creativity themes of Peter’s book The Dot as they made their mark in Animation-ish. 

Later in the day Sara encouraged attendees to Unbox Creativity and stretch their creative muscles as they explored divergent thinking and tools to bring into their teaching practice. If you weren’t able to attend the session, we encourage you to explore FableVision Learning’s Certified Creative Educator Course.

A special thank you to Lisa B. Hackney at the Georgia Department of Education for being an amazing host during the conference and  beyond. And to Desiree Isis Sharpe and the team at the Torrance Center for Creativity and Talent Development (housed on the university’s campus), for hosting the FableVision Learning team, Georgia Department of Education’s gifted program manager Mary Jean Banter and program specialist Lisa Hackney, and Dalton gifted educator Molly Carlson for lunch and conversation.

FableVision Learning Launches After-School SEL/STEM Program with Norwood Public Schools

It may have started as a simple purchase of The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds and a stop to his bookstore The Blue Bunny in Dedham square, but Debbie Holzendorf, director of the Norwood Public Schools Extended Day Services, saw something more. 

A few phone calls and meetings later, FableVision Learning officially launched the after-school program with an educator PD on Saturday, Feb. 4. During this hands-on session, 40-ish teachers explored this unique after-school program that has been designed for K-5 students across Norwood’s six elementary schools: Balch, Callahan, Cleveland, Oldham, Prescott, and Willett (Kindergarten), Middle School and The Savage Center for school vacation programming. 

This custom program activates the works of New York Times Best-Selling author and illustrator Peter H. Reynolds through SEL/STEM projects. Through this program, students will engage with creative tools, including Animation-ish (a leveled animation program) and FabMaker Studio (a 3-D design and engineering tool) as they practice the skills of communication, collaboration, critical thinking and creativity. 

As a culminating event for this school year, Norwood Public Schools Extended Day Services will host a creativity celebration with Peter H. Reynolds. During this time students and families will meet the author and be able to share projects from the after-school program.

FableVision Learning partners with school districts across the country to develop custom programs. If you have any questions send us an email at info@fablevisionlearning.com.

Somerville Elementary School Creates Bravely With FableVision Learning

Outside the sky was gray and rainy, but inside Somerville Elementary School in New Jersey there were rays of laughter, beams of creativity, and of course, lots of lots of dots! The FableVision Learning team journeyed  to Ridgewood New Jersey to run a creativity teacher PD session, a family night, a virtual author visit with Peter H. Reynolds and student workshops on writing and animation.  

With a focus on creativity and divergent thinking, Sara Smith, FableVision Learning’s director of creative education, led teachers through exercises in thinking outside the box. The school has also implemented Start With a Story, a program designed to activate books by Peter H. Reynolds as students explore STEM, SEL, and digital storytelling. 

Following the teacher PD, the gymnasium was transformed into Creativity Central with a selfie station, collaborative mural, scavenger hunt and Peter H. Reynolds Film Festival. Jumping from spot to spot, kids did ishful drawings of each other, created book plates and solved challenges for a special prize. 

The FableFun continued the next day with a school-wide virtual assembly with Peter H. Reynolds followed by workshops with students around animation and storybook writing. Every student ended the day encouraged to Create Bravely.

If you’d like to bring exciting programs like this one to your school or district, contact us at info@fablevisionlearning.com.

New Hampshire's SAU 6 Celebrates Dot Week With FableVision Learning

I  Am Brave!

This special message was celebrated by every student in Claremont/Unity New Hampshire during the FableVision Learning week of creativity that launched with the Creatrilogy Family Night and continued during the week with a coding activity at each elementary school. 

To activate the district’s goal of student growth, the team at FableVision Learning helped SAU #6 kick-off the year with energy and joy through a hands-on student activity to remind them that they are brave and they can do hard things. By creating and deciphering binary code necklaces, students carried the important message of bravery with them around their necks.

The most exciting part of the week, though, was The Creatrilogy Family Night. All of the families in the district were invited to come to the high school for a Stories that Matter, Stories that Move animated film festival followed by activities all related to Peter H. Reynolds’s Creatrilogy of books The Dot, Ish, and Sky Color. Families worked on collaborative art, searched for hidden dots, and stretched their minds with brain teasers and challenges.

There is a lot more in store for SAU#6 Claremont/Unity this year. We are so happy to be part of their year of growth. If you’d like to bring exciting programs like this one to your school or district, contact us at info@fablevisionlearning.com.

Maine Educators Embark on North Star Journey With FableVision Learning

Maine's Department of Education’s State Agency Program Team set sail on a creativity journey to transform teaching practice and classroom outcomes through a unique partnership with Boston-based educational company FableVision Learning, founded by Peter H. Reynolds.

“We were eager to provide equitable access to quality instruction to Maine’s vulnerable youth in therapeutic education settings to enhance special education programming after the difficult times caused by the pandemic, when emotional and social issues have been heightened,” explained Dr. Mary Adley, Coordinator of State Agency Programs. “We wanted to provide staff and students a sense of excitement and creativity to view their world with optimism and we knew FableVision Learning would help us achieve that.”

Adley and her team provide oversight to educational programming for state wards and state agency clients. This includes the General Supervision System of Monitoring for Maine’s approved Special Purpose Private Schools. Her team also offers special education technical assistance, professional development, and support to Maine educators, students, and families for Maine children in the care or custody of the Department of Health and Human Services or the Department of Corrections, educated in all settings, both in public and private settings and within Maine and placed in out of state settings.

“Our team is delighted that FableVision is embedding the Department’s Maine MOOSE (Maine Online Opportunities for Sustained Education) modules as curricular/content to guide educators in developing creative and specially designed instruction needed to meet each student’s Individual Education Program,” shared Dr. Tracy Whitlock, Coordinator for Special Projects.

This multi-level program of support integrates evidence-based instructional strategies, such as elements of Dr. John Medina’s “Brain Rules,” with intentional focus on social-emotional welfare for both staff and students. Every month, educators from 9 agencies representing 25 schools meet virtually for the Creative Maine workshop and the FableVision Learning team guides discussions and activities around creative instructional design and inspiration to enhance teaching practice. A community of practice is provided on FableVision’s collaborative learning platform The Creativity Circle.

“We are exploring with teachers ways to expand the pathways for students to demonstrate their knowledge and to engage in deep and creative thinking,” explained Sara Smith, FableVision Learning’s creative curriculum developer. “Creativity in the classroom empowers both teachers and students to maximize their talents and make meaning.”

In addition to student projects highlighted in the Creative Maine course, educators are utilizing the FableVision Learning’s The North Star Classroom program to further develop student voice and creativity.

“The essential outcome of education is for students to know who they are and what they can give to the world,” Jane Reynolds, president of FableVision Learning said. “The classroom is where they should be able to explore their strengths, learn resilience, and discover their power to create in a safe and supportive environment.”

Based on the themes in the book “The North Star,” by FableVision founder and New York Times bestselling-author/illustrator Peter H. Reynolds, The North Star Program is a guide to creating a classroom where students uncover their true potential.

“I have found The North Star Program to be very adaptable. I can integrate it with the existing social skills curriculum as well as adjust lessons to fit the variety of learning levels in my classroom,” explained Teresa Dickson, participating educator from NFI Sidney River Bend.

The program includes best practices for setting up the classroom and establishing a positive, creative climate as well as 18+ weeks of activities and projects that help students develop their strengths, values, and goals that will start laying the path to the future selves they want to be. Activities include teamwork challenges, problem solving projects, social-emotional games and experiences, literature exploration and discussions, and personal reflection writing pieces.

“Since I have begun using The North Star Program, I have watched my students become more confident in their learning and more accepting of themselves and others,” Dickson said. “The lessons can be taught in sequence or be pulled out to target a specific concept or skill. I was able to easily integrate The North Star Program with the Common Core Standards. The North Star Program hits many content areas such as music, art, writing, reading, and poetry.”

In 2022, Maine Department of Education’s State Agency Programs and FableVision Learning will continue the Creative Maine journey as educators continue to explore creative problem solving and creative classroom management.

FableVision Learning Celebrates Student Creators in New York City’s District 75

FableVision Learning wrapped up another amazing year with New York City’s District 75 Middle School After School (MSAS) program. To make the program happen this year, the district had to navigate the challenges of a pandemic and remote learning, and FableVision Learning helped with a custom curriculum focusing on social-emotional learning (SEL). 

After all the changes and uncertainty students experienced this year, it felt especially important to help students express themselves and tell their stories, because everyone has a story to tell. 

During the FableVision program, students read books by Peter H. Reynolds to introduce each core competency of SEL. Then they shared their hearts through animations about their emotions, generated and practiced self-management strategies, and wrote their very own books about things that are important to them. No two student projects were the same. 

As a culminating celebration, almost 200 teachers, parents, and students gathered virtually to celebrate all the students’ hard work and resilience during the Virtual Year End Annual Gala hosted by Peter H. Reynolds. 

We are so grateful to have been part of this program to help D75 students share their voices and access their creativity in a difficult time.

STUDENT STORIES

ANIMATION-ISH PROJECTS

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ANIMATION-ISH IN SPACE

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Watch Peter H. Reynolds' Keynote at ASCD online - LIVE! Sunday 3/27/11 at 10 AM PST / 1 PM EST

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Thousands of educators around the world have been inspired by Peter's uplifting message. If you'll be attending the ASCD 2011 conference in San Francisco, don't miss this opportunity to hear his keynote in person! The keynote will take place on Sunday, March 27th, 1:00 PM EST/10:00 AM PST, at the second General Session at ASCD. Can't make it to the conference? Watch the live stream of the keynote. NOTE: The keynote will not be archived, so make sure you mark your calendar for this time!At ASCD? Be sure to also drop by FableVision Learning Booth #603 to meet our team! For more information on ASCD 2011, click here.