My training or lack thereof consisted of a lifelong interest in learning. My father probably instilled a never-quenched thirst for the next peice of knowledge. Leg up that Technology can give in the transition from analog to digital

What better time than, on the cusp between middle & high school, to explore the plasticity of self.

I have been teaching the Morph application for sometime (Exploratorium, Skyline college) with student to student and student to animal evolvement.

An invaluable tool to gauge a students hand/eye coordination and facility with a mouse. At the beginning of the semester it became an evaluating tool to see where the students stood with their skill and comfort levels with the computers. As a primer for Flipbook animation it was a logical beginning to the ultimate moviemaking end. Also, the outcome was always a kick and a surefire way to put 'butterflys in their brains.'

My year's as a photographer had obviously dulled me to the particulars of putting images of children on the Internet for general consumption. Again I blame technology for this new development in society .

So what's a photographer cum teacher to do with the personalizing imagery that a webpage

All hail the School Librarian! The hardest working and most organized by design of all school employees.

It occured to me early on that Google and technology in general were slowly usurping the wonderment and utility of browsing library shelves for inspiration and information. What a waste of an incredible resource and a crying shame to give into the laziness that technology can feed. I worked with our delightful Librarian on acqauinting the students with the vast resources in the Library's physical space by arranging a VIP tour in the first of the school year.

Later, this assignment in particular tapped into sharing the opinion voice of each student. By painting it as a recommendation to their peers, the writing reflected a conversation about their reading experiences and the joy and excitement that only a good book engenders. And because of technology, this very interior experience could now be shared with the world waiting for just such an insight.

My own tutorials and a need to deconstruct the learning process led to this step by step approach. Fortunately, it conveniently mirrors a computer's process in interpreting code and user interaction. You must push lever A before Lever B presents itself for input. For instance, their are menu items in Photoshop that are greyed out until you select something to require these

I left the choice for the subject of their tutorials to an area of expertise they deemed as their own unique ability. This ability and the utility to share it with the world became the manifesto for the piece. I also let the students know early on that if they sat next to someone that did not understand, it was their duty to share their understanding. This alleviated much of my one on one with many students in a short class period. I think there is much to be gained for self assurance if you can convey a concept in an orderly fashion.

The followup and reflection after the deeds were done including a mandatory review and rating of their peer's work. Although I suspect this in-class assignment was hurried through and gratuitous ratings were given to favored classmates, I felt it important to reward and praise their h hard work.