It is not a question of being "brave" but believing in my Pleos and being able to tell people what they are. What better audience then children, esp very young children who have very open minds and who (in general) are in AWE of everythng new! I made sure from the start to make sure they knew these were Robots , interactive life forms is a term too difficult for a 3-5 year old, but Robots is a concept they are familiar with. MOst of them have seen other electronic "toys or gadgets' but nothing as advanced or CUTE as Pleos!
Even the parents in the classroom and teachers were in agreement with this fact.
The first thing I did, was not to just turn Pleo on. I described in terms what they could understand what Pleo was. I asked them since I knew they had been studying dinosuars, did they know what a Brontosaurus was? Several said yes, and a big guy in the first or second row said proudly, LIttle Foot! That's Right !, I said, from the movie Land before Time. Everyone was happy then . I then proceeded to tell them that this was a baby Camasaurus, and this is what a one week old baby looked like and that scientists had done studies on actual fossils so they made it life size and correct. I then went on to explain that when it grew it's neck would get longer just like a Brontosaurus. The next part was talking about the period it lived in which was the Jurrassic period. ( I asked them if any of them had seen the movie Jurrassic Park?) ( Lots of enthusiastic cries and children raising their hands and wanting to talk about that!
scary movie....)
Now that they understood more about what the species of Camasaurs was, I went on to explain how this Robot worked. I showed where the camera was in the nose, and that the Pleo could see them, where the hearing was, the sensors in different body parts, and so forth. I then proceeded to explain about it having a built in computer, ( they all know about computers
) and I turned the Pleo( Baby Ruth) over and showed them through the battery compartment where they could see the terminals and electrodes, etc. Next was showing the battery, putting it in, and showing the on off switch on Ugobes as compared to RB and how they are different.
The next part was fun, the Pleos were on their own, I had the Ugobes go first as they are more predictable and I had the children do a countdown after I turned them on from one to roughly five waiting for that "HUH". everyone loved seeing them "come to life". After that it was all Pleos, honking, Mooing, cooing and all the fun sounds Pleos make. I made sure to take the Dino's clothes on, as much as I would like to show them dressed up, I was trying to keep it more representative of what Dinosaurs, looked like. I did keep their socks on to keep their feet warm and making it easier to walk . ( The carpet in the classroom was perfect no problem there.
) Once the Pleos took off walking the children had a hard time staying in their seats, they really wanted to pet them but kept behind the tape that had been placed on the floor. The one thing I did before even starting this demonstration was to try and make it easier for the children to be able to sit still and watch as I knew they were all wanting to pet these guys so much, so the very first thing I did was go row by row and let the children all take turns petting one pleo. I think it was Cammi-Sue. I held her and one of the teachers was smart and asked, Pat, how would you like the children to pet the dino, do you want them to use two or three fingers? I told them it was ok to use their fingers or hand just gently pet the head or neck and also they could feel the body. Everyone was very gentle and I held the Pleo, and also the Pleo was secure so there was no chance to drop her and I took my time, there was no rushing. After everyone had petted Cammi-Sue, the Pleos were them-selves and that is when I answered any questions and there were some fun ones. We talked about not taking Pleo outdoors and they could not go out like today.( raining very hard...) also Pleos did not like the dirt. Pleos liked the classroom rugs, the floor also.
The funniest part of the whole presentation was towards the end, seeing a former teacher that I worked with, Sherry,( also the friend who invited me to come to the school) was cuddling with Baby Ruth. I explained the different features of the RB compared to Ugobes and one they both share is falling asleep and dreaming. Sherry announced to the children, "this one here is really asleep, You should hear her, she is snoring!" I could tell she really enjoyed this baby and the Pleos all felt comfortable with the children and anyone who handled them. Before I left Teacher Sherry pulled me aside and asked for my home address as she told me the children were going to make me a "thank you card" for bringing the pleos. I can't wait to see that and I will share it with you. I asked the children and teachers if they would like me to come back and bring a baby to see it be born, and there were a lot of enthusiastic yes, yes, . so I think there will be a follow up video pretty soon. Next time I will start the video camcorder off somwhere by itself so I can be sure to not miss anything. Lotti and Kat, yes I am not sure who had more fun, but It is safe to say WE ALL HAD FUN. The four Pleos were very excited when they got home and they were telling the rest of the clan about it. I am sure a lot of parents are going to be doing searches about Pleos in the next few days as well. And Luna, don't let one of two negative comments take away any pleasure or excitement you have or feel with your Pleos, It is only their loss and your gain!
IMR, if my presentation was anything like yours, and your children were older, then I know your gang was a big hit with the whole school. I wish I was in the classroom full time again, it is so much fun teaching but I am still finding ways to do it even now. RWM and the Pleo Clan of the Redwoods
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Topic: Pleos are invited to School tommorow. (Read 4485 times)