During the summer of 1997, sixty-one middle school students participated in Mindflight, a one-week summer residential program at Plymouth State College. Students used computer technology, music, and art as they explored subjects such as astronomy, ecology, and mythology.
The Sights and Sounds of Space
After a weeks work in the PSC Planetarium, MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) Lab, and Networked Computer Lab, teams of students entertained and educated their parents and fellow students with their own computerized Planetarium show accompanied by their MIDI created musical soundtrack. Most student teams choose to develop PowerPoint presentations of the information and images they had gathered from various Internet resources and other instructional sources.
Ecological Expeditions
Students spent most of the week designing their scientific studies, collecting data from a local bog and freshwater pond, and statistically analyzing their results. Team presentations were augmented by digital images of many of the flora and fauna from their research projects, a satellite image of the bog where they had collected data, and other resources from the Internet.
Mythical Masks of Creative Expression
This yearŐs focus was on examining the artistic symbols and musical roots of African culture and the influence of African musical rhythms on other musical traditions throughout the world. Creative writing, African culture, and drumming workshops also contributed to the mixed media art works students created. The myths, legends, and art work available on the Internet also found their way into the Web sites developed by the students.
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Multimedia Madness
Within one week students created a fully interactive multimedia presentation. Using professional multimedia authoring applications, each team of students created their own television channel for the Multimedia Madness Television Station. Students created a functional remote control for easy access to their projects. The remote control for the overall group project and each of the channels can be found on the Mindflight Web site, mindflight.plymouth.edu/. For more information about Mindflight and a new collaborative initiative with the Alliance schools, see New Hampshire Alliance Schools to Pilot Mindflight above.
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