THIRTEEN announces the launch of Mission US: Flight to Freedom, the second in a series of innovative role-playing games developed to transform the way middle school students learn U.S. history. Timed to support curriculum activities connected to Black History Month in February 2012, Flight to Freedom immerses learners in the experiences of a runaway slave in the years before the Civil War. Educators and students can access the game via streaming and download through any Internet-connected computer, making it accessible in the classroom, the library, school technology lab and at home.

In Flight to Freedom players take on the role of Lucy King, a fictional 14-year-old enslaved in Kentucky in 1848. As they navigate her escape and journey to Ohio via the Underground Railroad, they discover that life in the “free” North is dangerous and difficult. Players encounter a diverse group of people – from abolitionists to slave owners – and make decisions that affect the game’s outcome. Flight to Freedom helps students learn how enslaved people’s choices – from small, everyday acts of resistance to action that sought an end to slavery – affected the lives of individuals, and ultimately the nation.

As students play Flight to Freedom, they build knowledge of the history of slavery and the abolitionist movement. Their understanding and critical perception of the historical context deepens through the accompanying curriculum of activities and by examining a robust collection of primary sources such as maps, posters, runaway ads, slave narratives and other materials. Students also interact with the game’s embedded “Smartwords” to build vocabulary and historical literacy skills.

Flight to Freedom, like all Mission US games, includes a comprehensive collection of resources and materials for educators. These materials include document-based questions, a rich collection of primary sources, activities for individual, small group, and whole class implementation, vocabulary builders, standards alignments, writing prompts and visual aids. Teachers can project content from the game using a variety of technology tools such as interactive whiteboards. The game and supporting materials are free and downloadable for use in classrooms, libraries and homes.

Mission US launched in September of 2010 with its first mission, For Crown or Colony? The next two installments of this ongoing series are planned for release in 2013 and 2014. In Mission 3, The Race for the Golden Spike, players will take on the role of workers helping to build the transcontinental railroad. In Mission 4, The Sidewalks of New York, players will explore early 20th century New York as a muckraking journalist.

Mission US is produced by THIRTEEN in association with WNET and is funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) with additional support from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Sandra Sheppard, THIRTEEN’s director of Children’s and Educational Programming, is the executive-in-charge. Jill Peters serves as executive producer, with Michelle Chen, coordinating producer.

The anniversary event featured students and alumni telling stories of how Macaulay helped them achieve personal “firsts.” “Tonight you are seeing an institution that puts students at the center of everything we do,” said Dean Ann Kirschner. “Macaulay students are an incredibly talented, hard-working, and inspirational group.”

One of the featured student/alumni stories covered a recent highlight of the Macaulay-WNET partnership: a segment for SundayArts called “My First Opera.” Macaulay alumnus Daniel T. Allen, Production Coordinator for MetroFocus, WNET’s local news and culture magazine, presented alongside current student George Kruchinina about the project. During their winter break, six Macaulay freshmen spent weeks backstage as The Metropolitan Opera prepared Nixon in China for its Met debut. The SundayArts segment followed the students as they interacted with and interviewed composer John Adams, director Peter Sellars, Met general manager Peter Gelb and the many other professionals who make opera possible.

Watch My First Opera on PBS. See more from SundayArts.

Daniel began at WNET as an intern and went on to serve as the first Director of Community Engagement for Friends of THIRTEEN. He helped to develop several local documentaries including local supplements to Ken Burns’ The National Parks: America’s Best Idea and The Tenth Inning. Since joining WNET, Dan has been instrumental in establishing and cementing Macaulay’s partnership with the station. Since Dan came on in 2007, Macaulay has provided WNET with dozens of interns and volunteers, contributing hundreds of hours of volunteer service. Five Macaulay Honors College alumni are full-time employees at WNET.

The partnership has been beneficial for both parties, giving Macaulay students real world experience at one of New York’s premiere media, arts, and educational organizations, and offering the station access to a talented pool of passionate young pre-professionals with diverse interests. WNET looks forward to continuing this fruitful partnership for many years to come!

Director Judy Lieff

Independent Lens caught up with director Judy Lieff, whose film Deaf Jam premieres this Sunday at 11 p.m. on THIRTEEN. Lieff offers some perspective on the challenges she faced making the film, plus some updates on what the people portrayed in the film have been up to since shooting wrapped.

Interview courtesy of Independent Lens. For more interviews and other Independent Lens film content, visit their blog.

What impact do you hope this film will have?

I hope that this program will inspire and empower deaf youth and contribute to expanding social images of the deaf community. I also hope that the film will inspire anyone interested in poetry and literature to explore ASL poetry.

What led you to make this film?

While working as a visiting artist teaching video production to deaf high school students, I was introduced to the hidden practices of ASL poetry. Shortly thereafter, I was invited to attend a youth poetry slam, and it occurred to me that it would be fantastic to see deaf teens involved in this exploding movement. My research revealed that few, if any, deaf teens had ever been involved in the slam scene. Also, during my research, I met Liz Wolter, an ASL literature teacher at Lexington School for the Deaf who had been teaching single semester ASL poetry electives and video poetry projects with guest poets including poet guru, Bob Holman. Things just jettisoned from there, and I teamed up with City Lore, a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of America’s living cultural heritage, to produce the documentary and raise funds to assist Liz in extending her electives to a full year.

What were some of the challenges you faced in making this film?

The issue of translation both for the dialogue and the poetry was the most challenging. ASL poetry is a totally different modality from written poetry. Many of the techniques involve spatial relationships as well as images and transitions that are visual and lose their power when translating into a written or spoken form. I chose to utilize animated graphics to approximate the translation. Regarding the dialogue — I had to shoot with two cameras most of the time in order to catch all the dialogue plus have an interpreter paired up with each camera operator so they knew what was being expressed. It was difficult keeping the sound of the interpreter off of the boom microphone even with if they were wearing a wireless mic. Given that we were shooting handheld and the nature of translating ASL, we did not have the option of putting the interpreter in another room with a monitor feed from the cameras. In some shooting situations, I had to lose the voice of the interpreter and translate the scene in post-production. In the end, I still had to transcribe all of the footage in post to get a more accurate read. In group situations it was impossible for interpreters to get all that was being said in the moment.

How did you gain the trust of the subjects in your film?

Prior to starting the project, I had been teaching video to deaf students and had established relationships with some of the poetry mentors through various other small projects. So, I had a rudimentary understanding of ASL and was able to communicate on a basic level with the students. When I started working on Deaf Jam, I made a point to always have a camera with me and attend all of the workshops even though I knew I wasn’t going to use all the footage. The consistency of filming allowed the students to become quite comfortable being filmed. I also utilized my dance background and gave the students warm-up exercises which let me step away from “production mode” and gave the characters a chance to get to know a bit more about me. My dance background and comfort in communicating through gesture and motion augmented my signing skills.

What would you have liked to include in your film that didn’t make the cut?

For the theatrical version of the film there were several fun scenes with Peter Cook that exhibited the cinematic concepts involved in ASL poetry that I wish I could have kept. However, I eventually decided that those scenes would be best included in the DVD extras or educational version of the film as they directly pertain to “how to make an ASL poem” and not the main character’s trajectory. For the broadcast version of the film, there were two scenes in particular that I would have liked to keep. One scene involves an isolated shot of one of Aneta’s classmates, Wanda, working on her first poem. The scene showcases the beauty of ASL poetry quite well and Wanda’s personality really comes through in the poetry. The other scene I would have liked to keep was a controversial discussion among the teachers in the famous Katz’s Deli about the future of ASL. In both instances, I had to ultimately remove them from the television version because they did not directly relate to Aneta’s story.

Tell us about a scene in the film that especially moved or resonated with you.

There is a graduation party for Aneta’s classmates in the middle of the film that is shot by the students. In the scene Aneta, expresses her concerns about being left alone while all her friends go off to college. For deaf students, school life becomes your second family. Aneta and her peers had been attending Lexington since they were children. So the impact of separation for Aneta is profound.

What has the audience response been so far? Have the people featured in the film seen it, and if so, what did they think?

So far, people who have seen the film have fallen in love with Aneta and want to meet her. Also, many hearing folks who have seen the film have asked where they can take ASL classes. During the edit process, I consulted with Aneta on the translation of some of the scenes particularly her poetry scenes and the scenes with Shiran where the two are signing in Israeli sign language. Five of the characters in the film have seen the final version. I held a screening for Aneta’s family and friends and to my relief they were thrilled! Peter Cook, Dirksen Bauman, and Liz Wolter — three prominent subjects in the film and experts on ASL poetry applauded the results. Dirksen has been key to my outreach developments for the film with Gallaudet University.

What has happened with the people in the film since you finished it?

Aneta Brodski and Tahani Salah (Photo courtesy of Melissa Donovan)

Aneta Brodski – After graduating from Lexington, Aneta took a year off from school before enrolling part time at John Jay College and studying International Criminal Justice. While attending college, Aneta worked as a volunteer and activist for the organization Global Deaf Women. She is currently teaching American Sign Language in New York City in order to continue her education. This summer she was asked to create a poem for Cisco’s online technology news site and Summer Poetry Series.

Tahani Salah – Tahani graduated from Columbia University. She is currently serving as a youth outreach coordinator and member of the Word Wide Youth Leadership Board with Urban Word NYC. She is also a member of the Nuyorican Slam Team and author of the forthcoming book Respect The Mic. Tahani has been featured on HBO’s Def Poetry Jams.

Shiran Zhavian – Shiran graduated from Gallaudet University with a BS degree in chemistry. She was crowned Miss Deaf New York for 2009-2011 by the ESAD (Empire State Association of the Deaf). Currently, Shiran is in graduate school studying to be a pharmacist.

Liz Wolter – Liz continues to teach English and ASL literature at Lexington School for the Deaf. She is a contributor to the book Signing the Body Poetics.

Peter Cook – Peter is a full-time professor in ASL–English Interpretation at Columbia College in Chicago and is earning his Masters degree. He continues to travel internationally performing ASL poetry and stories.

Manny Hernandez – Manny lives in Washington D.C. with his wife and daughters. He travels internationally performing ASL stories and is on faculty at the Catholic University of America teaching ASL and is an adjunct professor at Gallaudet University.

Terrylene Sacchetti – Terrylene has founded a company called Clerc’s Children, Inc. It is a web-based dual language development curriculum and service for deaf and hard-of-hearing infants and toddlers.

The independent film business is a difficult one. What keeps you motivated?

I’m inspired by the burgeoning film scene both online and in traditional settings. Seeing films and other works of art along with the act of creating new projects keeps me motivated. I also try to incorporate some form of creativity into every day even if it only involves a domestic chore.

Why did you choose to present your film on public television?

From the beginning, I thought that Public Television would be the ideal venue for Deaf Jam. The mission statement for public television calls for films that reflect underrepresented communities and express points of view seldom explored in popular media, and Deaf Jam satisfies this vision.

What didn’t you get done when you were making your film?

What I did get done was become a parent during the making of Deaf Jam. But, between the making of the film and parenting I didn’t get anything else done.

What are your three favorite films?

This is a particularly tough question — I don’t really have favorites per se of any category – food, color, etc. My interests fluctuate according to circumstances. What I list today will most likely change tomorrow – but here goes:

The Great Dictator by Chaplin, Amarcord by Fellini, The Fog of War by Errol Morris

What advice do you have for aspiring filmmakers?

Follow your instincts and your dreams. Stay focused and don’t be afraid of making mistakes.

What do you think is the most inspirational food for making independent film?

I would say that the most inspirational and metaphorical food for me would be – the preparation (not necessarily the consumption) of a dinner consisting of wild mushroom risotto accompanied by a full bodied dry red wine, a green salad comprised of local produce, and a sorbet with fresh fruit for dessert. I chose the risotto because the recipe I have is labor intensive but the results are delicious. I chose the salad because I think salads are fun to create. The sorbet clears your palate at the close of a meal and prepares you for the next consumption.

The conference brought together experts from a wide range of fields, including the Arts, Global Awareness, Health & Wellness, Instructional Technology, Social Studies, Special Education, and Whole School Issues.

Among this year’s notable speakers were NBC’s Brian Williams, Dr. Mehmet Oz, Chief of Staff to the U.S. Secretary of Education, Joanne Weiss; Mayor Cory Booker, and WNET’s own Jon Meacham (Need to Know).

Check out our photo highlights from the event:

This premier professional development conference brings together over 10,000 educators from all 50 states, D.C., and across the globe with experts, advocates, practitioners and academics to help shape the future of schools.  It is also the marquee event of New York City’s annual “New York Celebrates Teaching & Learning Week,” as proclaimed by Mayor Bloomberg for March 16-19, 2011.

Sandra Sheppard

At THIRTEEN, we’re dedicated to creating programs that spark children’s imaginations and fuel learning — with no commercial agenda. Our commitment to this goal grows stronger every year. As Sandra Sheppard, Director of Children’s and Educational Media at WNET and Executive Producer of Cyberchase, says, “Our goal as a public media producer is to make sure that children’s screen time is valuable.”

Sheppard spoke with THIRTEEN about creating content that educates, entertains, and has lasting value.

Q: Education has been at the core of our mission since our founding. Fifty years later, why is it still important?

A: Our mission has always been to harness the power of television and other media to positively impact the life of our public. We’ve always had a stake in improving the lives of children and their families, and serving the needs of the underserved. Today, that goal is more critical than ever. When you look at the educational progress reports, it’s clear that we as a country need to do better.

Q: What are the educational goals of our children’s programs?

A: Our goal is to create programs that tap into children’s natural curiosity to motivate them, challenge them, and help them develop intellectual skills and life skills. We do that by embedding content in character-rich stories that are playful, entertaining, and addictive in the most positive sense of the word – from the math in Cyberchase and the performing arts in Angelina Ballerina, to the history in our brand-new Mission U.S. video games. We also work hard to make sure the programs we create are child-centric, and are very careful about modeling characters who think and learn from experience, and who make mistakes but get up again and go out into the world and solve problems. We do a lot of research to get it right. The ultimate question is: have we made a difference in that child’s life? Do they know more having watched our series or consumed our online content than they did before? And we’re tough. We ask those questions because at the end of the day if they haven’t learned more, we haven’t done our job. So we’re very rigorous in our research and evaluation.

Q: How do you measure the impact of our programs on viewers?

A: We have a core group of advisors and educators who evaluate understanding of content by youngsters both before and after they watch our programs. The National Science Foundation, which has supported Cyberchase since its inception, funded a landmark study examining the impact of television, online, and hands-on learning, using Cyberchase as the model. Results showed that kids would learn math skills from the television show and apply them online, which is very exciting. It affirms that the work we’re doing is making a real difference, and that a smartly designed on-air and online package can have real impact.

Q: What are the benefits of producing non-commercial children’s programs – and the challenges?

A: The benefit is that we have a very captive audience and they’re consuming content on many different platforms at a record pace. At the same time, it’s a hugely competitive landscape, so we need to be as creative as possible to make sure our content, which is grounded in education, is highly entertaining. We have to capture children’s attention and keep them coming back again and again, which can be challenging to do these days. Twenty years ago, there weren’t 24-hour cable channels dedicated to kids programming. So we’ve got to be better at our game. The wonderful thing about public media is that we can develop a show like Cyberchase, which is aimed at improving kids’ math skills, and watch it evolve and expand its audience with each successive season. Now we’re in our eighth season. That wouldn’t happen in commercial television. Our commercial counterparts aren’t going to introduce science or the performing arts or engineering or history to this generation. So we have to keep producing these types of programs – and we have to do it really well.

Q: How do you develop ideas for new programs? Do you work closely with teachers and education consultants?

A: Our ideas are grounded in curriculum. We look carefully at national standards and are very thoughtful about working with educators to make sure the material is meaningful, age-appropriate, and connects to lessons kids are learning in school and in life. Ideas come from everywhere. They come from characters and books, video games, and the many brainstorming sessions I have with my team. Interestingly, Cyberchase came out of brainstorming meeting where we were talking about Star Wars and how we would love to do a show in which the problems were mathematical and there would be good guys and bad guys, but the path to victory would be mind over muscle. In other words — may the mathematical force be with you!

Q: How long does it take to develop an idea for broadcast?

A: The gestation period varies from project to project, but to get it right, it takes time. You need a really strong development team and you need to allow adequate time for a project to fully develop. If you’re working with an original idea, as opposed to a book-based idea, it can take anywhere from six months to a year to create a bible, a series of stories, some designs, and to really get the ethos of the project. In children’s media, we usually need to find co-production partners and often look to the international community for partnerships and funding. Given those factors, two or three years can pass from the time we have an initial idea to the time it hits air and the web, so we’re constantly in development. We’re constantly putting new ideas into the pipeline because our projects have long gestation periods. There are certainly benefits to that because you can tweak and massage and make sure it’s right before it hits air.  I always say it takes passion and patience.

Q: What are some of the new programs we’ll see in 2011?

A: I’m super excited about Noah Comprende, the first foreign language broadband series public media has created for young children. It introduces kids ages 5-8 to Spanish and premieres in April. In February, we launched Get the Math, a reality-style TV show and website introducing tweens and teens to algebra. Later in the year, we’re also releasing a new edition of Mission US, our interactive, online American history series for teens. And we recently launched our first Cyberchase app ever — and it hit the top of the kids chart the first week. Check it out at the iTunes store!

Q:What is the most rewarding aspect of your work?

A: Working with smart people who are passionate about what they do is incredibly rewarding. But there’s nothing like hearing from fans. An elementary school student wrote to tell us that because of Cyberchase, he no longer needs a math tutor. A little girl said she feels less alone when she watches because she could relate to Jackie, an African-American character. To hear that kind of story, and to know we’ve had a profound impact on a child’s life, is extremely gratifying. It’s a window into the world of what we do.

Learn more about our award-winning kids programming at kids.thirteen.org

The event was held at Brooklyn Borough Hall and began with a press conference, which included Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz.  Afterwards, over 2,000 free backpacks filled with essential school supplies were distributed to some of New York City’s neediest public school students.

Karen Boykin-Towns, NAACP Brooklyn Director, and Brooklyn Borough President, Marty Markowitz address the crowd

Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz

Judy Fresco (at far left) and Anne McCorry (second to far right) pictured with this year's graduates who received their GED diplomas through THIRTEEN's adult education program. Also pictured is former GED graduate Mary Malcolm (class of '99).

Yesterday THIRTEEN honored over 120 GED graduates at the Scholastic Auditorium in Manhattan, an annual tradition for the last 16 years. Among the graduates were participants from THIRTEEN’s GED adult education program, in which students utilize the GED Connection on-air course and work with tutors at THIRTEEN throughout the year to prepare for the GED exam.

Jon Rubin, Senior Director, State and Local Education Services at THIRTEEN led the ceremony. He was joined by Dr. Ellen Bergman, Superintendent of Mt. Pleasant Blythedale Schools, who delivered the keynote address.  Other presenters included NYC Council Member Robert Jackson, one of the champions of the Campaign for Fiscal Equity; representatives from the Mayor’s Office of Adult Education; Jann Coles from the NYC Department of Education; Charlotte Henson-Butler of CUNY; Mary Malcolm, a former GED graduate (class of ’99) and Shaquira Thomas, a current GED graduate.

GED Connection airs every Monday and Wednesday at 5:30 a.m. on THIRTEEN. It is one of several educational resources and services the station provides to teachers and students of all ages.

Independent Lens had a chance to speak with director/producer Christopher Wong about the making of the documentary in this interview.

“Whatever It Takes” airs Tueseday, March 30 at 10pm on THIRTEEN.

Visit Independent Lens for more interviews and film segments.

Independent Lens: What impact do you hope this film will have?

Christopher Wong: My plan is to integrate WHATEVER IT TAKES into a larger movement that seeks to inspire at-risk, minority students to take full advantage of their high school years, with the ultimate goal of getting into and succeeding in college. I hope educators will be able to use WHATEVER IT TAKES to hold practical discussions regarding what they believe results in true change at the high school level. Finally, I’ve always thought that this documentary could go a long way towards breaking stereotypes.

IL: What led you to make this film?

CW: For a number of years, I had been actively searching for the right opportunity to make a feature-length documentary. So when I heard that my long-time friend Edward Tom was going to trade in his career as an executive with Saks Fifth Avenue for the job of a high school principal in the South Bronx, I instantly knew that this was the right project. It had everything I was looking for: a compelling storyline, a natural narrative structure, and a strong Asian American character.

IL: What were some of the challenges you faced in making this film?

CW: While money is always a challenge — we basically didn’t have any — I found that putting the film together in the editing room was the hardest task of all. As a new filmmaker, I was experiencing everything for the first time.

IL: How did you gain the trust of the subjects in your film?

CW: Since principal Edward Tom and I had been friends for years, he trusted me completely — even when I said that there was a good chance that I’d have to show him falling on his face and failing miserably. And because the students and parents trusted the principal so much, they also were willing to be incredibly open with us.

IL: What would you have liked to include in your film that didn’t make the cut?

CW: There were five other students that we followed in-depth whose stories didn’t make the final cut of the film. While I would have loved to share these stories, I had to make the decision to concentrate fully and solely on my main character, Sharifea.

IL: What has the audience response been so far? Have the people featured in the film seen it, and if so, what did they think?

CW: Thus far, the audience response has been tremendous. When we premiered WHATEVER IT TAKES in Los Angeles, we had to move the film into the biggest theater at the Director’s Guild of America in order to accommodate the crowd of more than 500 people that showed up.

Both principal Edward Tom and his former student Sharifea have seen the film multiple times. I’m happy to say that they were both thrilled with the story we told because they felt we had captured the genuine reality of who they were and what the school year was like. Having said that, they both found various parts of the film difficult to watch, precisely because we hadn’t shied away from showing everything.

IL: Why did you choose to present your film on public television?

CW: WHATEVER IT TAKES is a great fit for public television because its audience has such a built-in representation of educators, parents, and people who really want to know what is going on in the world around them. It’s hard for me to think of another broadcast partner who would be so interested in the themes and characters we explore in the film. Also, I’d hate to have my documentary interrupted constantly by commercials!

IL: What didn’t you get done when you were making your film?

CW: I certainly didn’t get the opportunity to spend as much time with my family as I would have hoped. My daughter was born right before I started WHATEVER IT TAKES, and my son was born just as I was finishing the film. So I have to give my wife a ton of credit for patiently bearing with me through this long ordeal. I also didn’t get to pad my savings account — rather the opposite, in fact — but that’s a small price to pay for getting the chance to make this incredibly rewarding film.

A new PBS primetime special, Families Stand Together: Feeling Secure in Tough Times is coming to THIRTEEN on Saturday, September 12th at 5 p.m. This hour-long special, hosted by Al Roker, Deborah Roberts and Elmo, aims to help families with children, ages two to eight, experiencing difficult economic circumstances by offering strategies and tips that can lead to positive outcomes for their children’s physical and emotional well-being during this tough economic climate. Roker and Roberts, who are married and have children of their own, spoke to Inside THIRTEEN about the program.

Q: Why did you do this special, “Families Stand Together,” with Sesame Street?

Roberts: I have been such a fan of Sesame Street and I have always looked enviously upon any celebrity that gets to interact with the Muppets. I thought the special was infinitely responsible and wise. I thought ‘Wow, this is a combo of great things, a primetime special that’s important at this moment, and a television show like Sesame Street that has such an impact.’ I thought there’s no way to not do this.

Roker: It’s Sesame Street. Who doesn’t love Sesame Street? It’s a chance to hang out with Elmo! It’s a great topic, lots of people are dealing with this, and if Deborah and I can help, we’re happy to do that.

Q. There are a lot of programs that offer strategies for adults who are trying to deal with the recession … what makes this show different?

Roberts: What makes it different is that it offers advice on a couple of levels, to children and parents. Children are dealing with this recession through their families; children are experiencing and worrying about it, and there’s great advice to help children weather the storm. There’s also advice to help parents to be there for their children. It’s not just geared to children, but also to families, to embrace these tough times and what they call for. There’s one family in the program who had to cut back; the father lost his job and his daughter loves to read. She had a great idea with her mother to sell her old books to buy new ones. Families can walk away from this program with a good image and good advice.

Q. What is the best advice you would give a parent who’s lost a job, or struggling with the recession?

Roker: Look for whatever help your community offers. Whether it’s church, financial assistance, therapy … you have to look for something. And you have to include your kids; you can’t do this without making sure the family’s involved. You also have to make sure that what you tell your kids is age-appropriate – don’t show them a budget, for example. But you can help them understand what’s going on. Hiding it is not the way to go.

Roberts: Number one, don’t underestimate what the children might think about it, and number two, to be creative — whether that means financially, or finding way to make the money go further and still have a good time. One military family has come up with movie night at their own home; they have popcorn, and the kids enjoy it. It’s not like they’re missing out on the experience of going to the movies — parents are finding ways to be creative, in a way that comes up positive for their children.

Q. You have children of your own — what did you take away from working on the show?

Roberts: Fortunately, we are not struggling yet in this economy, but there are ways that our children can enjoy what we have, and ways that we can incorporate what these families do on the special into our own family. There are ways that we can do things to be creative with what we have, and it’s fun to work on a project and activity. My husband and I thought that we can do that with our kids. We can have that atmosphere at home, and we’ve employed these ideas from the program in our home. The silver lining is that we get closer as a family, and we pull together.

Watch a preview below, and tune in on Saturday evening for Families Stand Together.

Jon Rubin of WNET.ORG speaks at Brooklyn Borough Hall, accompanied by Digit from Cyberchase,
Karen Boykin-Towns, president of the NAACP Brooklyn Branch, and Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz

As New York City students get in their last licks of summer, the annual NAACP “Back to School/Stay in School” (BTS/SIS) event yesterday at Brooklyn Borough Hall hopefully made the end of vacation a little sweeter as 2,000 free backpacks filled with essential school supplies were distributed to disadvantaged students.

This year the NAACP Brooklyn Branch forged a partnership with WNET.ORG as a media sponsor and with Friends of Thirteen to help fill the backpacks with supplies from THIRTEEN’s children’s programs. But the idea for this partnership was not born in a board room, nor at a fundraiser, nor even as a conversation between professionals.

It was Memorial Day weekend when Karen Boykin-Towns, president of the NAACP Brooklyn Branch, began preparing this year’s “BTS/SIS” event. She had been thinking of companies to ask for donations. It was her daughter who had the idea: “Mom, why don’t you ask Thirteen? They have a lot of kids’ shows.”

Karen’s first call was to Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, who then connected Dorothy Pacella, Executive Director of Friends of Thirteen, with Karen.

From there it was a team effort. THIRTEEN’s education department donated Cyberchase pencils and other back-to-school goodies from Martha Speaks and Sid the Science Kid. Digit, one of the stars from Cyberchase, and Jon Rubin, director, state and local education services for WNET.ORG, were at the event to help celebrate the new school year and encourage kids to stay in school.

Finally, happy 100th anniversary to the NAACP. THIRTEEN looks forward to future collaborations that will advance the committment of both organizations to improving access to educational opportunities for children and adults of all backgrounds.

Watch Jon Rubin’s comments at Brooklyn Borough Hall.

For the past 3 years, Nature has produced a full-color comic book as a corollary to the on-air episodes, as an entertaining & educational tool…but we’d like to share them with all of you, at least in digital form. The paper copies of the comic were distributed to museums, schools, and nature centers. The series was edited by David Reisman, and we have all three issues as pdfs at the bottom of this post for you to download and read or print. The above image is from #2, a section of a really great set of panels by R. Kikuo Johnson, who creatively uses the honeycomb as the layout structure–and does some really nice color work.

From #1, a few panels of a story about chimpanzees who grew up in captivity, by Sabrina Jones:

Nature comics introduced me to the work of Lauren Weinstein (trivia: she also used to be the lead singer of the band Flaming Fire), whose work has a marvelously fragile line quality with always visceral content…a nice combination. She’s in all three issues, and here’s a panel from #3, which isn’t even my favorite (her stories/panels in #1 and #2 are lovely, and funny also), but is representative of her drawing style:

Download/read them all here:

Nature Comics #1 (2006)

Cover:
Mark Schultz
Artists:
Rick Veitch
Jonathan Bennett
Lauren Weinstein
R. Kikuo Johnson
Sabrina Jones
Related Episodes:
* In The Valley of the Wolves
* Penguins of the Antarctic
* Chimpanzees: An Unnatural History

Download full comic PDF for #1

Nature Comics #2 (2008)

Cover:
R. Kikuo Johnson
Artists:
Rick Veitch
Lauren Weinstein
R. Kikuo Johnson
Thomas Yeates
Josh Neufeld
Jeffrey Lewis
Related Episodes:
* Silence of the Bees
* In the Valley of the Wolves
* The Beauty of Ugly

Download full comic PDF for #2

Nature Comics #3 (2008)

Cover:
Rick Veitch
Artists:
Rick Veitch
Thomas Yeates
Sabrina Jones
R. Kikuo Johnson
Lauren Weinstein
Hope Larson
Josh Neufeld
Related Episodes:
* The Dragon Chronicles (comic online)
* The Wolf That Changed America (comic online)
* Frogs: The Thin Green Line

Download full comic PDF for #3

Everybody’s favorite talking dog is coming to New York Public Libraries! Thirteen will be holding screenings, read-along sessions, and opportunities to read to live therapy dogs, all based on Martha Speaks, the PBS show about a vocabulary-loving talking dog, which airs every weekday on Thirteen at 3:30pm. Bring your children to come read with Martha! Click here to find out more.

MARTHA LIBRARY EVENT SCHEDULE

April 9, 2009 @ 4pm
Martha Speaks @ The Library Screening #1
New York Public Library, Webster Branch @ 1465 York Avenue, Manhattan

April 15, 2009 @ 4pm
Martha Speaks @ The Library Screening #2
New York Public Library, Mulberry Branch @ 10 Jersey Street, Manhattan

April 22, 2009 @ 4pm
Martha Speaks @ The Library Screening #3
New York Public Library, Tottenville Branch, 7430 Amboy Road, Staten Island

June 8, 2009 @ 4pm
Martha Speaks @ The Library Screening #4
New York Public Library, 67th Street Branch @ 328 East 67th Street, Manhattan

That name came back to me this weekend at our annual Celebration of Teaching and Learning. For the fourth year in a row, the Celebration provided a place for teachers from across the country to come together and shape the future of education. We had great guests like Governor Paterson, Google CEO Eric Schmidt (see recent Charlie Rose interview), celebrity math advocate Danica McKellar, and “Hawkeye” himself, Alan Alda of our upcoming show The Human Spark. Teachers were able to hear from these guests and many others in sessions that should have them returning to the classroom bursting with new ideas.

Alan Alda and Neal Shapiro at the 2009 Celebration
of Teaching and Learning (photo: Joe Sinnott)

The weekend reminded me of the educators who have touched my life. Mrs. Berman was my fourth grade teacher, and every day when I walked into school I would tell her what happened on the Today Show that morning. One day, when I wasn’t paying attention to the TV in the kitchen, I had nothing to tell Mrs Berman. Something felt wrong to me… but I didn’t quite know what it was. “I think you like telling people what happened,” she told me. “You know, some people do that as a career. Maybe that would be good for you?”

And I remember Mr. Yoachim, who led the middle school orchestra in which I played the violin. I knew I would never be a professional violinist, but whenever I hear a symphony, I am grateful for the knowledge about just how hard it is to make great music.

And I remember Helen Adler, who taught literature in my high school and opened my eyes to great authors and great works, not just on the page but on the screen as well.

So here I am, lucky enough to be at WNET.ORG, where our people and companies we work with produce the best in news, music and arts and culture.

And… I’m still learning.

Attendees watch on as a converter box is
connected to a television using “rabbit ears”

On September 17th, I traveled uptown with Dorothy Pacella, Executive Director, Friends of Thirteen, to represent Channel Thirteen at “Harlem Connects,” an educational conference to prepare Harlem’s seniors for the digital television transition in 2009. Studies show that seniors are most likely to be left behind on February 17th, 2009, when all analog TV signals cease. The Harlem Consumer Education Council, under the leadership of dedicated community activists Dennis Lane and Florence Rice, hosted the event at the Adam Clayton Powell Jr. building on 125th Street.

As the day progressed, my eyes were opened to an array of issues surrounding the “big switch.” Barriers of age, language and cost are frequently overlooked obstacles when it comes to the digital transition. Even with a $40 coupon, a digital converter box is a still a serious financial concern for someone living on a fixed income.

Below: sample coupon; for real coupon, go to
https://www.dtv2009.gov/ApplyCoupon.aspx

Even if your household subscribes to cable, I urge you to spread the word and educate your parents, relatives, friends, co-workers or neighbors; someone you know who is not ready for February 17th. With 148 days to go, it’s important to be as proactive as Harlem’s seniors who have already held two forums about the digital transition. It’s a daunting task, but Friends of Thirteen is doing our best to make sure that no one misses out. Learn more about the digital transition here: https://www.dtv2009.gov/

Graduating students who participated in the GED Connection and GED en Español programs produced by Thirteen/WNET

This past Tuesday I had the opportunity to see the unique impact Thirteen/WNET has on the community beyond the glow of the television set. Over 100 men and women, surrounded by their friends and family, were awarded their General Educational Development (GED) diploma in our main studio. These graduates came from all around the city, where for the past year, with the help of their dedicated teachers, they studied, learned and ultimately passed the GED exam.

The atmosphere in the halls at Thirteen was noticeably different, the busy hustle of business replaced by the excitement and pride of the day. Each of these students had their own stories and reasons as to what brought them to this point in their lives, but this one event was the culmination of their unified goal. The pride in that collective success could be felt by everyone.

I am proud that Thirteen had an active part in the success of some of these students. By broadcasting GED Connection and GED en Español, adult students whose busy schedules do not allow for them to participate in traditional classes are able to record these programs to help them prepare for the exam. This, coupled with the availability of tutors and teachers, gave a helping hand in their success.

Although the graduation has passed and the graduates have moved on to their next goal, Thirteen’s commitment to education continues. This year was just one in nearly twenty of GED programming and graduations, and thankfully, it is not the last. A new year of educational programming for students of all ages is close to starting, and the same opportunities provided for the 2008 graduating class are open to the future 2009 graduating class. Go here for more information about Thirteen’s adult education projects, or see the Adult Education section at EdOnline.

More graduating students — all photos: Joe Sinnott

Robert Miller, who is my boss, co-worker and friend here at Thirteen/WNET, is retiring in June. Robert has been the Director of the Educational Publishing Department since 1983, and I’ve worked with him since 1986. When I first met Robert, I was 28 years old and in my first semester in a graduate program in education at Teachers College, Columbia University. He had been working at Thirteen/WNET for three years. His first project was a set of ambitious print materials for HERITAGE: CIVILIZATION AND THE JEWS.

I became a full-fledged staff member in the early 1990s. Over the years our department has developed publications for public TV programs of all types, in all subject areas — long-running series like NATURE (we’ve produced its teachers guides for 20 years); Bill Moyers’ programs on poetry, addiction, alternative medicine, and dying; the international documentary series WIDE ANGLE; and even local programs like A WALK AROUND BROOKLYN.

One of the great things about working with Robert is that he brings a truly collaborative spirit to his projects, and he’s very generous with offering opportunities for creative input. Before working at Thirteen/WNET, I’d had some pretty negative experiences in the workplace, and Robert’s encouragement was tremendously important for me. From my first experience with educational publishing (research for the Faces of Japan viewer’s guide) to the recent comic books I’ve developed for NATURE, I’ve always been impressed by how much Robert enjoys the brainstorming process at the beginning of a big project, how seriously he takes the messages of each program we’re working on, and how dedicated he is to making sure that our materials have the greatest possible educational impact.

Robert Miller, Thirteen Education

In addition to his work in educational publishing, Robert is also a very creative person: He is a talented writer of strange, funny pieces of surreal fiction and has a surprisingly excellent singing voice (as my coworkers and I learned when he nervously called us into a conference room to rehearse for a recent guitar recital). He’s also been genuinely supportive of my work as an artist, and one of the nice things about working on 33rd St. and 10th Ave. is that we occasionally go see art exhibits in Chelsea during lunch.

Colleagues come and go, new technologies cause seismic shifts in the workplace – and through all the uncertainty, Robert’s been stalwart and reliable. He’s managed to find a way of being a constant, like the “c” in E=mc2 (the speed of light). He’s been both a mentor and a good friend, and I feel truly lucky to have worked with him over the years.

It may be cloudy outside but in the hallway of Thirteen, I just ran into a ray of sunshine.

How’s that for a transition to Janice Huff, meteorologist for WNBC and NBC Weekend Today?

I’ve known her for years and off camera she’s as nice as you’d imagine she is. We caught up in audioroom B, where she was recording her lines for Stormy Gale, a character in Cyberchase. Stormy is a weatherborg from cybersite Gollywood… she’s got flashy lightning bolt earrings and, instead of having legs, she floats around on a cloud.

Stormy appears in two special weather-themed shows that will hit the air a year from now, in April 2009. In one of her first programs, Stormy helps the CyberSquad (and viewers like you) use math to figure out when fog forms. (If you’re wondering “Where’s the math in fog?” I’ll tell you. It’s in the measurement you do to keep track of air temperature and humidity, and it’s in the reasoning you do to predict when fog will form.)

Like many of the other well-known personalities who do voiceover work for this program, Janice loves how much Cyberchase empowers young people–especially girls–to be more confident in math. (Christopher Lloyd [Hacker] and Gilbert Gottfried [Digit] star in the series, and other guest voices have included Tony Hawk, Jane Curtin, Al Roker, Philip Bosco, Jasmine Guy, Bebe Neuwirth and Danica McKellar.)

When Janice was younger, before she knew a cold front from a cumulonimbus cloud, she loved the theater. I listened as she recorded her lines, and it’s clear she channels her early theatrical passion.

What’s the difference between a forecast and her work on Cyber-
chase? “When you do the weather, you just get one shot at it,” she said. “When I do Cyberchase, I can do it until I get it perfectly.”

Oh…and one more difference. Weather forecasts come and go, but Cyberchase will live on…on the air, online and in children’s imaginations.

This week Cyberchase has a very special appearance from John Maine of the New York Mets on Friday, April 11. The honor? Because Maine can help connect math and baseball for Cyberchase viewers–he’s one of many we’ve worked with to draw real-world parallels and experiences into the process of learning math.

As I wrote in last month’s blog entry, Dan Flockhart is one of the presenters I wish I had seen at Thirteen’s Teaching and Learning Celebration. Dan is the man behind Fantasy Sports and Math, a really cool math curriculum that engages children using baseball, soccer, football, and basketball math.

Math & Sports is but one of the new Outreach tools on our belt. For each of Cyberchase’s thematic initiatives we create an activity kit that contains a DVD with episodes specific to that theme, and a CD-Rom with activities that extend the educational message. This year we had two thematic initiatives, Builders’ Math and Math & Sports. For both initiatives we asked educators to pre-register so we could send the kits out as soon as they arrived at Thirteen. Both kits have presented us with quite a good problem…we “sold out” of our free kits in a matter of days! So what is an educator that uses Cyberchase resources to do? Have no fear; Cyberchase Math & Sports (and Builder’s Math) activities and games are online! What we can give away physically, we have made available virtually.

Trainees playing Cyberchase’s ‘Slugball’

The Cyberchase Outreach team trains our partners at conferences and events nationwide. The American Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance AAHPERD … try saying that five times and fast … is our newest partner; they joined us specifically for the Math & Sports initiative. We have been to both a state conference in Connecticut and a regional conference in Rhode Island.

This month, however, we joined the big leagues at the national conference in Texas. As I type, two Cyberchase Outreach staff members are training AAHPERD conference attendees. Our trainings include an introduction to Cyberchase, a preview of Math & Sports episodes and how to facilitate our Math & Sports activities. Our team truly enjoys these opportunities to interact with educators that use Cyberchase to teach math.

Tune in (online!) and train to become a “mathlete”!

For two years, as a teacher, I hoped to attend the Teaching and Learning Celebration. Who would have thought I would finally land my chance by working in the Education Department at Thirteen? My department, Cyberchase Outreach, presented at a Panel discussion and an “In the Classroom” session. Both presentations were filled with passionate educators, described by one panelist as “an interesting and diverse group of people.”

I was one of many people you may have seen with STAFF shirts and walkie talkies. Most of my time was spent guiding guests to their next session but I did have a few minutes to poke my head into sessions I found intriguing as a math educator. In case you were at other sessions, or missed the TLC altogether, here are some sessions I am looking forward to watching on EdOnline:

• Using Mathematics to Solve Crimes, presented by “The Math Guy” from NPR, Keith Devlin. He’s now the math advisor to the CBS show, NUMB3RS.

• Karen Cator, from Apple. She spoke about ACOT2. ACOT was such a huge influence on me personally, I am excited to see this collaboration revived.

• Edutopia’s Milton Chen. If you do not already receive this innovative educator’s magazine…it’s free, go sign up.

• Dan Flockhart. More to come on him next month when I blog about the launch of Cyberchase’s Math & Sports initiative.

Lastly, I wish I had the opportunity to see Two Million Minutes. This documentary received a lot of attention from bloggers on my Google Reader, and many guests I interacted with showed equal enthusiasm. Factor in Bill Gates’ testimony to the House Committee on Science and Technology and the National Mathematics Advisory Panel Final Report released this week, and this movie should be on the top of all educators’ Netflix queues.