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Our Favorite Children’s Books

May 15, 2013

To celebrate Children’s Book Week, the oldest literacy initiative in the country, we asked Cooney Center staff members to reflect on their favorite children’s books: the books whose spines we wore out, even if we knew the words by heart; the books that sparked hours of laughter and debate with … 

Checking in with Last Year’s Stem Challenge Winner, Martin Esterman

April 17, 2013

Well, it’s been just around a year since I received an email that AdditionBlocks had won the 2012 STEM Video Game Challenge for one of the Educator entry streams. I have really enjoyed being a part of this contest, and thanks to the Cooney Center, PBS, and E-Line Media, a … 

Digital Games: A Context for Cognitive Development

April 9, 2013

Executive Director Michael Levine and former Cooney Center fellow Sarah Vaala have co-authored Games for Learning: Vast Wasteland or a Digital Promise?, the conclusion to the new anthology Digital Games: A Context for Cognitive Development, edited by Fran C. Blumberg and Shalom M. Fisch. The volume takes a broad look … 

A Sandbox for Learning: SimCityEDU

March 13, 2013

I’m old enough (or young enough, based on whom you ask) to have fond memories of experimenting with both SimCity 2000 and SimCity 3000, the first two sequels to Will Wright’s popular SimCity game. The ability to design and wreak havoc on my own community offered mixed feelings of power … 

Upgrading Afterschool: Common Sense Shifts in Expanded Learning for a Digital Age

February 8, 2013

The Cooney Center’s Executive Director Michael H. Levine and Rafi Santo (Indiana University) have co-authored a chapter called “Upgrading Afterschool: Common Sense Shifts in Expanded Learning for a Digital Age” in the new book from the Expanding Learning & Afterschool Project. The compendium presents bold and persuasive evidence—as well as … 

Games for Change 2012: What Do Teachers Really Think About Using Games in the Classroom?

June 18, 2012

Presentation at Games for Change 2012: Wednesday,June 20 at 12:10 pm, Tishman Auditorium at NYU Law School Join Jessica Millstone of the Joan Ganz Cooney Center and Allisyn Levy of BrainPOP for a presentation and panel discussion that highlight teachers’ candid attitudes and beliefs about the use of video games in their … 

Q&A: Games for Change Talks to Jessica Millstone About Teachers and Games

June 7, 2012

The 9th Annual Games for Change Festival is less than two weeks away! We are thrilled that our own Research Consultant Jessica Millstone and BrainPOP’s Senior Director, Educators Experience, Allisyn Levy, will present the findings of the first national survey on teacher attitudes towards games in the classroom. Their presentation will take place on Wednesday, … 

Game Design Camp: Lessons Learned

May 21, 2012

Allison Mishkin teaches at a game design camp for middle school students. Here she shares some of the lessons that she’s learned — and tries to impart — to her students during this week-long sessions.   A group of students stumble into a computer lab on a bright spring day, … 

Report from the Annenberg Public Policy Conference

April 18, 2012

Last week I had the chance to head back to my home turf to attend the “Media and the Well-Being of Children and Adolescents” conference at the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) at the University of Pennsylvania.  The conference was organized, hosted, and moderated by Dr. Amy Jordan, director of … 

Robot to Begin Cross-Continental Adventure Next Week

October 14, 2011

Numerous technology ventures aim to improve students’ scores in an increasingly test-focused educational landscape. Challenging that, the innovators behind the Robot Heart Stories project hope that modern technology can spark students’ imagination, fueling the resources needed to inspire better scores: creativity and passion. Starting Monday, October 17, two classrooms of …