Saturday, April 9, 2011

Practicum Post #4 - Jamie N.





I discovered another new thing on the club pengu
in site. Not only do they have the online interactive game, but they have a community page on the actual website with tons of activities that kids can do offline. I think this is a great idea because it encourages kids to print off the acti
vities from their computers and get active. Instead of playing Club Penguin for hours on end in front of the computer screen, Club Penguin encourages outside and offline activities. For example, the site has a recipes page with a good selection of different kinds and types of cuisine to choose from. Each recipe has its own uniq
ue name that relates to Club Penguin in order to catch the attention of the kids. (See Below).
Another cool thing that they have
for kids is an Arts and Crafts Page. On this page it has instructions on making things from a memory game to making ninja ma
sks. It is really easy to do, all you have to do read the directions and and print off any templates that you'll need. It allows for kids to be creative and decorate and construct the arts and crafts
in any way they choose. (See Below - Memory Game and Ninja Mask)


The last interactive thing that they have one on the site is outdoor activity ideas. This is my favorite because even though you need to go online to get these ideas, it encourages kids to get active. All too often it seems kids are spending too much time playing video games and online, and it's good that there is a site like this that lets kids know the importance of staying active. Not only do the activities involve physical activities, but they involve critical thinking. My favorite of the outdoor activities is the '12 Days of Giving'. This exercise demonstrates and reminds kids and their families how important it is to do things for others and work together to. (See Below.)

2 comments:

  1. I definitely agree with you that making club penguin and on an offline game is a great thing! I used to babysit for an 11 year old and all he wanted to do was play video games. That kind of worries me a little bit and as silly as it sounds, kids are just not active enough anymore! I'm glad you found such a positive feature to club penguin. It's great that kids can learn how to use the internet but they take what they learned on the internet and apply it some where else and get active!

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  2. I think that the fact that this website is consciously making an effort to encourage these kids playing their game to essentially GET OFFLINE and actually do something active. I guess I have a super strong opinion about being active and the downfall of health in our country..(which starts with our youth) ...okay okay enough with my soapbox... BUT I think its a great thing for this site to giving their users ideas about active things to do offline. Even the non active one like baking a cake. The users are learning "life skills" rather than just playing computer games all day. Too many kids today don't know how to do anything for themselves, and this site encourages them to LEARN. Not just math or reading or fun games, but things like how to be active and bake a cake.

    Though I must say, I'm confused at the juxtaposition of the site essentially WANTING their users to spend money and play their games constantly, and wanting them to leave the site and go do other things? Kinda confusing motives? But overall... i support the offline activities.

    Wow, sorry for the rant. I find this really interesting. Good job Jamie :)

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