Clay-mation!

Today marked the beginning of a new technological revolution for arts and crafts at the Marine Discovery Centre with iPads being used for the first time!

On a busy Friday at the MDC, the kids came in droves to see not only the variety of marine wildlife on display but also to participate in the arts and crafts activities, including regular craftwork and then our new addition to the school holiday schedule - dubbed "Clay-mation."

Children were first given some brief instructions on how to use the new technology and were then paired up to create some awesome homemade marine based cinema using just plasticine and the iPads. Essentially, all it requires is the free app loaded onto the iPads, some coloured paper and tape to make a marine background stuck to the wall, and then some imagination and some clay to use it with!

The kids had a blast and soon we had some great videos to show for our newfound technology!





Luisa, Jordan and Ted with their Clay-mation plasticine models!



Each pair came up with their own individual motion capture story to tell and we had some great ideas including a surfing story, a beach scene, and even an Inter-tidal zone theme!



An Inter-tidal Zone movie in the making!



Surf's Up!

 



The kids hard at work directing their fishing video!





All in all, the new activity proved to be a big hit with the kids and is sure to be in the future as we continue to improve on our arts and crafts department for kids these holidays! Go MDC!

Videos of the children's creative motion capture stories are available for viewing at www.youtube.com/seaclaymation

Thanks Tim for your assisstance and great report. Today not only marked the beginning of iPads and clay-mation at the MDC but it was also Tim's first day as an MDC volunteer. What a blast! 

Tuesdays with Peter.P

Long standing volunteer Peter.P tells us a bit about what he does during his volunteer time every Tuesday at the MDC...

I have been a senior volunteer at the Marine Discover Centre every Tuesday for the past 6 years. I began as an interpretive volunteer and eventually took on other responsibilities.

My daily duties consist of:

- Cleaning and tidying the Preparation Room.

- Compiling & maintaining an inventory of preparation supplies.

- Laboratory equipment maintenance.

- Ensuring that their are enough habitat series poster packs made up & beach combing poster rolled for all the school groups and other visitors to the MDC each week.

- I also compile a monthly newsletter for the Marine Discovery Centre. This contains some interesting articles I put together on local ecological and environmental issues. I also suggest ways in which we can mitigate pollution within our marine and freshwater habitats. These aquatic habitats support rich plant communities and incredible marine life.

- Whilst I do all these tasks with great pleasure my real passion remains for being an interpretive volunteer. Here I get to share my knowledge on Victoria's marine environment with MDC visitors. I usually talk about the importance of aquatic communities, the various aquatic habitats and how we should car for them. I discuss effective natural resource management with a focus on the effects of pollutants on fish populations.

I thoroughly enjoy my time as a volunteer at the MDC. All the staff and volunteers are really friendly, knowledgeable and share a passion for our marine environment. I find every volunteer day so interesting and valuable. The MDC is such an excellent centre for students and the general public to learn about Victoria's aquatic environments with a diverse array of habitats close by and the magnificent Swan Bay on its doorstep.  I look forward to continuing my role as an MDC volunteer for years to come.

Thanks Peter, you're a great help! We'll be sure to say g'day if we are ever in on a Tuesday!