Matching Items (3)
Description
As part of a group project, myself and four teammates created an interactive children's storybook based off of the "Young Lady's Illustrated Primer" in Neal Stephenson's novel The Diamond Age. This electronic book is meant to be read aloud by a caregiver with their child, and is designed for reading over long distances through the use of real-time voice and video calling. While one part of the team focused on building the electronic book itself and writing the program, myself and two others wrote the story and I provided illustrations. Our Primer tells the story of a young princess named Charname (short for character name) who escapes from a tower and goes on a mission to save four companions to help her on her quest. The book is meant for reader-insertion, and teaches children problem-solving, teamwork, and critical thinking skills by presenting challenges for Princess Charname to solve. The Primer borrows techniques from modern video game design, focusing heavily on interactivity and feelings of agency through offering the child choices of how to proceed, similar to choose-your-own-adventure books. If brought to market, the medium lends itself well to expanded quests and storylines for the child to explore as they learn and grow. Additionally, resources are provided for the narrator to help create an engaging experience for the child, based off of research on parent-child cooperative reading and cooperative gameplay. The final version of the Primer included a website to run the program, a book-like computer to access the program online, and three complete story segments for the child and narrator to read together.
ContributorsLax, Amelia Ann Riedel (Author) / Dove-Viebahn, Aviva (Thesis director) / Wetzel, Jon (Committee member) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05
Description
Popular culture tends to downplay strong female characters to favor a plethora of male figures that children look up to as heroes. This creates a gender imbalance in exposure to inspirational characters that children can look up to as role models. For our team's creative project, we chose to write and illustrate a children's book mainly targeted at young girls, ages eight to twelve that focuses on the stories of selected female figures of Norse mythology. The five stories in our collection focus on the figures Frigg, Skadi, Elli, Idunn, and Freya and are inspired by the mythology contained in the Prose Edda by Snorri Sturluson and selected medieval texts on the Germanic Lombard tribe. Through our book, Women of Norse Myth: For Little Goddesses, we wanted to introduce children to Norse mythology, a branch of myth that is often overshadowed by more popular mythologies such as Roman and Greek. Additionally, our goal was to bring light to the female figures within Norse myth that are generally given less attention than their male counterparts. Keeping in mind these goals, the stories were adapted from the original myths in a manner that would be suitable for a young audience as well as our aim for female empowerment. The final manuscript contains an introduction to Norse cosmology, introductions to the figures, a glossary of Norse terms used, and the illustrated stories themselves. Together with our combined talents, interests, and goals, Women of Norse Myth: For Little Goddesses was completed, and we hope that someday it can be published and serve as a fun and inspiring storybook for children to read and learn from.
ContributorsFarine, Brittany (Co-author) / Muth, Margaret (Co-author) / Youngjohn, Trystan (Co-author) / Alexander, John (Thesis director) / Wells, Cornelia (Committee member) / Department of English (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / School of Human Evolution and Social Change (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05
Description
As children and preteens begin to grow up and make their way through their teenage years, they are beginning to figure themselves out and form their own identities. They are starting to learn about events and the issues going on in the world and they are forced to determine their stance on certain issues whether that be their self-identity, politics, social injustice, etc. Realistically, many people feel uncomfortable talking about these issues. We want to prepare our audience, so they are not afraid or uncomfortable of such conversations. Through collectible cards and enamel pins with a children’s book, this product acts as a gateway to becoming more educated at an earlier age, and it aims to spread awareness about the experiences of our peers. The combination of digital branding and physical objects puts our purpose of spreading awareness in a way that makes it easier for our peers to understand. When people can relate to an idea, they will develop a personal connection to it and feel comfortable. We want our audience to be able to identify with, feel connected, and get educated on social injustice topics like mental health, discrimination, or harassment through our product. In recent years, education technology has been transforming the way we learn. With our project’s website feature, it is a more immersive and entertaining way to learn. Our generation has grown up with collectibles like Webkinz, Pokemon, Build-A-Bears, etc. that would come with a digital feature where owners can form a personal connection with their character for fun. Our purpose is to bring that back and make it more modern, current, and educational.
ContributorsReyes, Sharliz (Author) / Kautz, Luke (Thesis director) / Kirtz, Jaime (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Arts, Media and Engineering Sch T (Contributor)
Created2024-05