Mr. Popper's Penguins Comes to Life with Kids and Aurasma!

Ever heard of Mr. Popper's Penguins?  Mr. Popper's Penguins is a book written by Richard and Florence Atwater in 1938.  Here's what the book looks like-

 

 

 A man by the name of Robert Lawson was the illustrator.  Interesting thing about Robert is that he is the only person to win a Newberry Medal and a Caldecott Medal.  If you are studying pencil or pen and ink drawing, Robert Lawson may be a good illustrator to study.  

So, on June 17, 2011, the movie was released starring Jim Carrey.
 

Before Mr. Popper's Penguins was a movie, two awesome teachers, Joye Goodwin and Janet Nunn, at The Westfield School, had students perform in a play.  The play was very upbeat and fun with lots of interesting penguin facts and fun music.  For twenty years, the play has continued to evolve and there are two new teachers (Angie Westbrook and Liana Walton) still carrying on the tradition in the second grade.

So, what is the art on the art blog?

I used the video below and kids drew and painted a penguin.



Then, I took a picture of each kid at recess with their right arm held up.  I blew the picture up quite a bit.  Also, had to hot glue the penguin and the kid together.  Have a look-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just squished and smushed white paper.  Taped.  Painted shades of gray to indicate shadows on snow.

Have a look at the getting close to the final product-

Well one of the second grade moms just happens to be the IT specialist at our school.  Our friend, Gayle Hardwick, used Aurasma on the photos above.  So, parents could hold their phone over a kid's picture.  Then, they wait patiently a minute before seeing and hearing their kid talk about the penguin program. 
Aurasma is an app.  Looks like this-

 

Check out the video below about Aurasma-

 

 

 In the picture below is my little penguin doing her "speaking part" in the program in 2003.  
 

I am writing a blog about penguins because two teachers did a little extra.  In keeping with the theme of Super Bowl weekend, how about a Jimmie Johnson quote?  “The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra.”

 

I think this is some good advice.  Jimmy Johnson is one of only six men in NFL history (including Vince Lombardi, Don Shula, Chuck Noll, Mike Shanahan, and Bill Belichick) to coach consecutive Super Bowl winners, winning Super Bowl XXVII in 1992 and Super Bowl XXVIII in 1993 as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys. 

 

One more thing-



Jimmy Johnson began as an assistant coach at Louisiana Tech University in 1965. During this time, Phil Robertson of Duck Dynasty fame was the starting quarterback, and Jimmy helped recruit Terry Bradshaw from nearby Shreveport, Louisiana.

So there you have it.  A connection between Jimmy Johnson, a duck lover, and some penguins in Perry, Georgia.

1965