movie night :: Being Elmo

photo from here

A few weeks ago, my kids and I watched the documentary Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey and BOOM another thread was added to the loom (that I seem to keep talking about) of our creative explorations. I think it is important to note that my kids are not naturally Elmo fans. They did not grow up watching that much Sesame Street, so their interest in this film was all about the puppetry and the story of Kevin Clash's life. 

Clash's story of dreaming big, working hard and not being swayed by detractors led him to become one of the most successful puppeteers working today. His friendships with Kermit Love, Jim Henson, and Frank Oz helped him gain invaluable experience from a young age. It is hard to image a kid watching this and not getting inspired and fired up to follow their passion - no matter what it is.

As soon as the credits were rolling, my kids immediately started sewing puppets. In fact, if you are going to watch this with your children, go ahead and have some supplies ready!

My daughter sewed a muppet, making the eyes from polymer clay and adding a rod for the tail.

One son used a glove (stock up at Target - they are only a dollar!) to make a plant that comes alive and bites you. 

Another son made an "Animal" inspired, drum playing creature. 

Spoon and styrofoam puppets followed, each with names and back stories. We are looking forward to getting some craft foam next time we are at the fabric store to see what we can do with that.

Beyond just making puppets and writing some simple stories, we were connecting all sorts of other interesting cultural bits. We read about Jim Henson and Frank Oz and loved learning the fact that Oz does the voice for both Miss Piggy and Yoda. 

We have seen several Muppet movies and Fraggle Rock, but are now interested in checking out Dark Crystal and Labyrinth. 

And we would love to make one of these Muppets at FAO Swartz.!

This video of Jim Henson making puppets from things one can find around the house was funny and inspiring. 

Looking back, it seems like we have always been making puppets and little puppet theaters. Shadow and hand puppets, paper bag puppets, cereal box puppet theaters and marionettes - all seem to offer great methods for children to explore character, emotions, story telling and bravado.  As my kids get older, I hope they continue to explore this form of expression as it seems like such a fertile medium for creativity.

Have you made puppets and puppet shows with your kids?

real role models for kids :: Gertrude Ederle

In this series, real role models for kids, I will feature some of the amazing people we have gotten to know better through our reading explorations. These people, to me, offer great examples to kids and adults. Examples that can be drawn on during challenges and dissapointment. 

While no one is perfect, I do think role models share at least these five characteristcs.

1. They are hard working.

2. They embrace failure and know that much is to be learned in it.

3. The are innovative and big thinkers.

4. They are driven by their personal passion.

5. In some way, they make the world a better place.  

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"When someone tells me I cannot do something, that's when I do it."

Gertrude Ederle

Gertrude Ederle's story quickly drew us in and astounded us! An early 20th century swimmer, Ederle won gold medals and broke many records, but she is most known for being the first woman to swim across the English Channel. When she accomplished this, only 5 men had done it (some attempting it up to 20 times) and she shattered their records! This was at a time when womens' roles and identities in society were changing drastically. She is like the Bille Jean King of the Roaring 20's. 

The actual story of the swim had my children on the edge of their seats. She attempted the feat the year before, only to be pulled out of the water by her trainer when she was just a few miles from the finish line. She found a new trainer and returned the following year to swim 35 miles in 14.5 hours. Her sister designed her bathing suit and goggles and she layered her body in 3 layers of grease to help retain body heat in the frigid Atlantic water and protect against stinging jelly fish. During the swim she would eat floating on her back, listen to the music being sang by the press boat and sing herself. At one point she was having trouble using one of her legs, and refused to be pulled out. She proclaimed that would finish or drown trying.

She accomplished this amazing feat and was the world's hero. After her triumphant ticker tape parade in NYC, she continued to swim, designed dresses and taught swimming to deaf children. She died at 98 years old in 2003. 

Read

We read, America's Champion Swimmer: Gertrude Ederle, written by David Adler and illustrated by Terry Widener. This is an engaging, beautifully illustrated book that captures the excitement and daring of the swim.

Watch
With the wonder of the internet, you can instantly look up footage of Ederle preparing for her famous swim, the actual swim and her parade. Here is a great silent video showing all the above. Check out how rough the water is when she is swimming near the boat!




Extension activities

1. Design sports gear. If your child plays a sport or has a physical hobby, ask them to design new gear that would make their sport easier.


2. Try the grease experiment. Prepare a bowl of icy cold water. Dip one hand in for as long as you can. Then fill a large ziploc bag with shortening, wrap you hand with another bag and put in to the shortening bag and then dip the whole thing into the cold water. How much longer can your hand stay in the water when it is insulated with the grease?


3. Find the English Channel on the map. Talk about the various ways people have crossed it. (One of my kids is really into the Chunnel).


4. Mark the time of swim. Start in the morning at 7 am and say, "she is in the water now." As the day goes on, you can casually mention, "she is still swimming." At the end of the day you can note when she finishes at 9:40pm. This will make the length of the swim more real than the abstract idea of 14.5 hours. 

Bill Cunningham New York

Bill Cunningham New York is one of the most inspiring documentaries I have seen in a while. Chronicling the days and life of NYT street fashion photographer Bill Cunningham, the film showcases the vibrancy and happiness one gets from dedicating their life to their  passion. Watching this octogenarian ride his bike through NYC, taking pictures of society elites as well as ordinary people, made me not only want to live a life like his when I am 80, but NOW. He has more energy and mental facility that I can muster up all week. And the collection that he is leaving to fashion and cultural historians is an unbelievable gift.  You can watch this right now on Netflix streaming. It is so good.

movie night:: The Fox and the Child

This is perhaps one of my very favorite children's films ever. It is so stunningly beautiful and captures a true and epic struggle between children and nature. My slight obsession with the movie might be tangled up with the fact that I have a red haired, blue eyed girl who reminds me of Lulu in the film, as well as a highly intuitive nature boy. So, I see two of my children clearly in The Fox and the Child.

The plot is pretty simple and classic. Lulu, 10 years old, becomes enamored with a fox she sees in the woods. She spends a good part of the year following the fox, befriending her and eventually thinking she has tamed her. The ending is dramatic and offers a coming of age and more mature understanding of the natural world for Lulu. This is an important realization for children who feel like they want to own and possess everything in nature. (I had one of those for awhile).

With minimal narration and dialogue, the film relies on lush and fantastical imagery to convey the story and mood. The woods is a comforting place, where Lulu begins to see more and more because she is quiet and really looks. One night she gets lost and must spend the night in the woods; the nocturnal animals become active and the trees seem to come alive. She is very frightened, but soon corals her imagination and sees the magic of the forest at night.  When she wakes up, the fox is next to her. She reaches out to touch it (something she had wanted to do badly from the start); you can hear her breathing, rapid heart beat and finally a melting relief as she sinks her hand into the fur on the vixens neck.

Lulu's attachment to the fox as she begins to tame it illustrates the slipperly slope when fascination with a wild animal turns into ownership. She names the fox, Lily and wants her to play human games. "She was my secret... I felt like I really understood her... she was my real friend...." This shift in engagement with the fox portends the upcoming fissure in their realtionship. We clearly see the confusion in the foxes eyes as Lulu's needs change. I will not spoil the ending other than to it all turns out okay. If you watch this with a younger child (as I have), you might want to look it up and warn them of a dramatic scene in the last part of the movie.  Lulu's emotional journey ends when she narrates, "In that moment I understood why humans and foxes could never really be freinds. I confused possesion with love." And she drops the scarf which she had been using as collar.

You can link to THIS blog for some more amazing images from the film. The natural scenery is amazing, and so is her bedroom!

Discussion questions
Why do you think Lulu is so smitten with the fox?
What are some of the ways Lulu got closer to the fox and gained her trust?
How are domesticated and wild animals different?
What do you think is the bravest thing Lulu did?
What do you think is the most dangerous thing Lulu did?
In the scene where Lulu was lost in the woods at night, why was she so frighten at first and then not?
Is it okay to take a creature from nature?
Have you ever tried to tame a wild animal?
Why did Lulu change her mind about being friends with Lily at the end of the movie?

Extension ideas
visit a wildlife rescue in your area
be open to raising and releasing a wild animal if the opportunity arises
go to the woods and sit quietly and see what happens
research the history of  the domestication of animals
match up wild versions of domesticated animals (dogs/wolves, cats/wild cats etc.)

movie night:: Microcosmos

Microcosmos (1996) is a French documentary illuminating the complex, elegant and mysterious lives of insects. Filmed using specially developed equipment and extreme close ups, as well as time lapse photography, Microcosmos is a visual feast for viewers. The minimal narration by Kristen Scott Thomas pulls the viewer in, and encourages concentrated looking: "To observe this world, you must fall silent now and listen to it's murmurs."

From a young age my kids sat spellbound by this magical film. The variety of insect activity captured is staggering; bees collecting nectar (while their backs are perfectly dusted with pollen), ants drinking aphid secretions, spiders catching prey and snails mating to opera. My favorite scene is of a water spider repeatedly going to the surface and pulling down air to create an oxygen chamber where he can eat his catch. Simply amazing!

I would recommend this movie for any age, unless your child would get upset watching one insect catch and eat another insect. My kids are fairly sensitive, but those types of scenes are handled in a matter-of-fact way so it does not upset them.

Have you seen this movie already? Did your family like it?
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discussion questions

1. What part of the film was your favorite?

2. Which insect did you learn something new or surprising about?

3. How do you think the film makers captured this footage?
4. If you could be an insect which would you be? Why?

extension projects

-take a walk to look at real bugs up close (bring your magnifying glass and journal)

-draw insects and label their body parts
-tend an ant farm
-order praying mantis egg cases and hatch them
-order live lady bugs to release in your garden
-research and plant a butterfly habitat (observe the life cycle)
-visit a real insectarium (search for them here)
-call your local extension office for additional local resources
-check out the art of Jennifer Angus
-for fun, make this bug cake
-read Jean Henri Fabre, 19th century, self taught entomologist whose popular writing about the lives of insects is still highly readable today
-if you are in France, visit Micropolis, an interesting insect museum that was involved with Microcosmos.

movie night:: Paddle to the Sea

Friday night is movie night around here. We bathe, pj it up, make cozy nests on the floor, pop corn and snuggle in. While we are not immune from mainstream movies at all, we try to include lots of independent, foreign, and classic films. We also try to discuss both the content and formal aspects of the film - as much as the kids are able and interested. While enjoyable, I also see it as a big part of their education. 

So, here, on most Fridays, I aim to share a film we watched and loved. I will also suggest some extension activities as our films certainly inspire our play, crafting and discussions. 

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Paddle to the Sea (1966)

This delightful short film (28 minutes) is based on the book of the same name by Holling C. Holling. It is essentially the quest tale of a Native American boy who can not leave his home for adventure. Instead, he carefully carves a boat, fills the bottom with lead, and paints it. On the bottom he carves, "I Am Paddle To The Sea - Please Put Me Back In The Water."

Following the boat through the water from Canada to the Atlantic Ocean, the viewer joins the adventure, encountering many dangers, from big ships, curious animals, humans and even Niagra Falls. We find ourselves rooting for Paddle To The Sea and so do the people he encounters along the way who without fail return him to the water. 

This film, as most brillant films for kids do, can be experienced on many levels. At it's simplest, it is a boat adventure even a small child will enjoy. But the older kid and adult will recognize themes of yearning, dreaming big and outside yourself, and hope; a deep hope for something you can not see. 

In so many cases, books render the best tale, but in this case the film is both a moving tribute to the book and its own strong piece of art that takes viewers on an emotional journey. I highly reccomend this film for all ages. 

(a copy of this movie along with some balsa wood and simple carving tools would make a GREAT gift for an adventurous kid)

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discussion questions

1. How did Paddle to the Sea get from Canada to the Atlantic Ocean?

2. What was the journey like?

3. List the dangers Paddle to the Sea encountered. Can you make a table showing the natural dangers and the human dangers?

4. Why do you think the people who found Paddle to the Sea put him back in the water? Would that be hard for you to do?

extension projects

-trace the journey on a map

-learn about locks and canal history (even visit one if you can)

-make a model of a canal lock using recyclables (this is a challenge!)

-listen to the Great Lakes song

-make paper boats and dip them in beeswax, sail them

-carve boats from soap

-carve boat from wood

-visit a lighthouse

-send something into the world (a message in a bottle, a book or toy with a good message on it).

Thomasina

Highly recommended if your children love:
pre 1970’s Disney films
cats dressed up in doll clothes and being pushed around in a pram
Egyptian cat heaven
tear-worthy emotional drama
pretty ladies who live in the woods nursing sick wildlife