8 Tips for Turning March into a Creativity Month!

March is nearly here! It seems like the right time to re-release one of our popular classroom posters: March is Creativity Month. You'll find eight great tips for celebrating creativity next month. Our lead ambassador (and dear educator friend) Terry Shay wrote the tips, while Peter H. Reynolds provided the illustrations.Keep in mind that there's no need to wait for March — you can take these tips and apply them to celebrate creativity in ANY month!

Download this poster for free until March 31, 2012.

Paul & Peter H. Reynolds' 17 Tips for Recharging Your Creativity

Here are 17 tried-and-true tips for recharging your creativity. We hope you'll enjoy trying some of these today!

Tip #1. Relax. Make some tea.

Tip #2. Articulate your mission. Write it down. Share it. Review it.

Tip #3. Take time to ponder.Where are you going? Or, a better question: Where do you WANT to be going?

Tip #4. Be playful!

Tip #5. Remember to take care of the spirit. (Both student & teacher!) "Find your soul, and make it whole." No "crushed spirits" - no "lost souls"!

More tips after the jump!

Tip #6. Imagine your classroom as a studio, as a research center, as a publishing house.

Tip #7. Step off the path in your teaching. Allow the same for your students in their learning.

Tip #8. Celebrate the blank page! Use programs that allow the user to supply the content or buy a blank journal! Whichever it is... dive in! Doodle. Jot. Ramble. Let it out! (Link to wonderful blank page)

Tip #9. Listen, talk, connect. Believe in the power of the 6-minute conversation.

Tip #10. Find your twin! Share yourself and your dreams with a very close friend. Someone who shares and supports your vision.

Tip #11. Try left field. When looking for solutions, reduce the pressure of coming up with the best idea by allowing yourself to come up with the "worst" idea. Build from there! The "bad" ideas can turn out to be the best because they're the ones everyone else has overlooked.

Tip #12. Share the drive. Like any long road trip, share the wheel. You don't always have to know where an activity is going. Just enjoy the ride. Allow yourself to be surprised. Students are especially engaged when they see you are too!

Tip #13. Novelty. Shake things up. Make it new. It can be as simple as turning off the lights or playing a modern piece of music to introduce Shakespeare. Research supports the idea that novelty is a long-term memory booster.

Tip #14. Search for personal meaning. Provide context and essence before you launch into the details. Connect with a learner's interests, dreams, and unique skills.

Tip #15. Encourage strategies for personal achievement. Allow for multiple approaches to a project. Provide time for students to vision their own futures and explore what they'll need to make it real.

Tip #16. Prove your groove! "Eat your own cookin'!" Model it. Show your students your own work, your examples, your enthusiasm!

Tip #17. Love what you do. Do what you love. Love, love, love, love your kids. It's a gift they'll carry with them for the rest of their lives. Fuel for the journey.

"Make Your Mark" by Emma Wallace

Emma Wallace has written a very cool song called "Make Your Mark" in honor of International Dot Day.Make Your Mark by iamemma. See her original post here. Learn more about Emma here. Thanks to Emma for the song and permission to post it here.

New Posters from Peter H. Reynolds

Welcome your students back to the classroom with a new poster decorating the walls. Start your class on a creative thinking journey with these tips from Peter H. Reynolds on living with purpose. Choose from two options or hang up both!

New Book by Peter H. Reynolds: "I'm Here"

Exciting news: Peter H. Reynolds' much-anticipated new book, I'm Here, will be released on August 16th! I'm Here is a heartwarming story about childhood friendships, with a strong anti-bullying message encouraging children to stand up for others who may not seem to belong. We're thrilled to add it to FableVision Learning's collection of inspiring books by Peter, and we're certain it will be a wonderful addition to your collection as well! Take a moment to view the short film version of I'm Here, with original story and art by Peter H. Reynolds. The film movingly conveys the loneliness that a child on the autism spectrum often experiences, and the life-changing impact each of us can have when we reach out and embrace them. FableVision Studios created the film for SARRC (Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center). The film includes a powerful musical score by Ruth Mendelson.  

New Film in the Animation-ish Hall of Fame: The Tiny Horse

We received an excellent animated film created in Animation-ish, wonderfully produced by Dylan, a talented young student. Great job Dylan!

TWO posters from Peter H. Reynolds!

We're pleased to offer you two beautiful posters! Visit our poster gallery to see our new featured poster (and other posters from our collection!). Hang it in your classroom to help your students refocus on creativity by using their imagination. Plus, as a special bonus, we've gone into the FableVision Learning archives and chosen a classic poster for our newer subscribers. As we celebrate freedom in the USA this month, hang this poster as a reminder to be yourself and dream.

New Poster: Think Outside the Box!

Learning to think independently is an essential skill of all creative learners. Inspire your students to be original by hanging this beautiful poster by Peter H. Reynolds in your classroom!

New Poster: Who Inspires You?

Teachers inspire their students every day. Hang this poster in your classroom to help your students appreciate all the guiding stars in their lives!

Give Your Students an Affirmation of Awesomeness!

Peter H. Reynolds often emphasizes the importance of noticing and rewarding each and every student. Look around your classroom and see which students have been flying beneath your radar. All of your students want to feel connected with you, so we've created these Affirmations of Awesomeness for you to use! Pass them out to students as you notice them excelling, caring, helping, or just being themselves.

NEW Animation-ish Tutorial & Challenge!

The Challenge :

Peter H. Reynolds’ 7th grade teacher inspired him to animate math concepts, and your students can animate what they are learning as well. Motivate your students to combine the art of animation with any concept they have been learning in class. We can't wait to see what they come up with, and we'll publish a selection of outstanding entries in an upcoming blog post!

How to do it :

New to animation? No problem! We’ve collected some quick, simple resources to turn you into a pro in no time.1. First, watch this video tutorial to get an overview of Animation-ish.2. Then visit our website to download your free software trial.3. Lastly, refer to this simple quick start guide as you explore the program.

Submission Information:

When your students have completed their animation, you may email the Animation-ish file to us, or use a program like YouSendIt if the file is too large to email. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions! If you added music or titles, please send us a QuickTime movie. Be sure to follow all student privacy and parental permission guidelines as specified by your school. In your submission for each student, please include:

• Your school name and state (and country, if outside the U.S.)
• The student's first name and grade level

Please email us if you have any questions. We can't wait to see your students' animations!

Author David Smith Appearing at The Blue Bunny!

Join us at The Blue Bunny Bookstore in Dedham Square for an open house event for educators and interested patrons on May 17th, from 7-8 p.m.  Educator and author David J. Smith, creator of our award-winning curriculum Mapping the World by Heart will be presenting his new book This Child, Every Child — a groundbreaking book of statistics and stories that compare the lives of children around the world today.  Using the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child as a template to compare and contrast kids’ experiences and opportunities, Smith’s book introduces young readers to the world beyond their own borders and reveals the challenges children face in obtaining adequate food, clean water, health care, education, and more.Smith, a leader in international education and author of the bestselling book If the World Were a Village, felt compelled to share the dramatic and sobering facts about children around the world with young readers.  “These issues are not light or easy, but they affect millions of children.”  Kids Can Press, which published This Child, Every Child will donate 50% of the profits from the sales of this book to deliver books to school libraries in Haiti.Along with refreshments, raffles, and a guaranteed SUPER presentation, David’s books will be available for sale and signing.  David and the FableVision Learning team will also talk about his geography product Mapping the World by Heart.  Learn more about David J. Smith on his website: www.mapping.com.Learn more about the event here. All are welcome!