Anyone for a bit of stargazing…?

Posted by alice on Jan 20, 2012 in Project News | 0 comments

This week BBC2 had 3 nights of Stargazing specials hosted by Dara O Briain and Proffesor Brian Cox:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00mlr20

My brain was bamboozled with talk of exoplanets and extraterrestrials – incredible and inspiring to see what’s out there in space…and even more exciting to think about what could be waiting to be discovered!

The MakeBelieve Arts team were taking notes as we know our space skills will be put to the test come Science week in March.  Our very own astronomical adventurer Captain Comet will be expected to make an appearance, whisking away a new batch of intrepid explorers through the Solar System and beyond!  But keep your eyes peeled, Captain Comet travels at the speed of light – blink and you’ll miss him!

Giant Tours…Next destination…?

Posted by alice on Dec 22, 2011 in Project News | 0 comments

Wow!  What a time, what a tour.  Science will never be the same again!

The power of story has enthralled and inspired the scientific minds of Year 2 – Year 5 pupils all over South East London.  The feedback from pupils and teachers was fantastic.  It’s a fact – our little girl Giant Nell is a hit.  We’ve got to her know her intimately over the last few months and she will be missed.

 
But – the suitcase has been packed for the last time…Giant Tours has come to an end…for now!

Where next I hear you ask?   Ahah!  We’ve got our eyes on science week in March and have a team of experts foraging for funding to bring giant Nell back on the road for a reunion with Ricky and Dr Brown in 2012.

So, keep checking in to hear the latest science news…and of course HAPPY CHRISTMAS! 

Hmmm…I wonder what Nell’s getting in her stocking, not too many sweets I hope…better get Ricky on speed dial just in case…

Science goes down a storm!

Posted by alice on Nov 18, 2011 in Project News | 0 comments

This week 300 children across South East London have been on a whistlestop tour around a giant body with the launch of our creative science programme sponsored by The Wellcome Trust.  Discovering all about what goes on under our skin they have visited organs, met characters and learnt about what makes a healthy lifestyle along the way.

The pupils from Year 2 – Year have come up with lots of interesting questions and ideas.  Here’s something to think about:

Are a giant’s red blood cells much bigger than ours or is it just that they have a lot more?  Hmmm….

First stop on Giant Tours…Turnham Primary School

Posted by alice on Oct 25, 2011 in Project News | 0 comments

A GIANT thank you to the pupils and staff at Turnham Primary for welcoming Giant Tours into their school.  The MakeBelieve Arts team had a very productive 2 days working with the Year 2 & Year 5 pupils.  Their thoughts on the show were taken on board, and with a few tweaks we’re now ready for rolling out in November!

Have you got the guts?

Posted by alice on Oct 7, 2011 in Project News | 1 comment

Ian Teague, the designer for Giant Tours, spotted an interesting article in the Metro this morning which lead us to this link.  So, if you can’t wait to get inside a giant, check this out…but be warned-with dissections revealing the insides of animals- it’s not for the squeamish!

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/inside-natures-giants/episode-guide

Loud noises coming from the rehearsal room…

Posted by trish on Oct 5, 2011 in Project News | 0 comments

Today sawing and banging could be heard coming from the Gulliver rehearsal room as Ian Teague, award winning theatre designer was busy working on his latest creation, a giant suitcase for a very big little girl.

Walking into the corridors i was greated by the mist of sawdust escaping from the room, and my heart filled with joy as I opened the door to an enormous wooden structure, big enough for Ross to walk into and to contain an array of giant goodies.

This project, funded by the Welcome Trust has created a real buzz around MakeBelieve Arts. Funding issues have meant that it has been two years since we have produced a theatre performance but this programme, although not a full blown production is definetly a step above your ordinary workshop.

Amazing bodies – a wonderful source of story material

Posted by trish on Sep 29, 2011 in Project News | 1 comment

Another day of Giant Tours – Science Rerhearsal today and I am so pleased with how it is all going. Having spent a lot of time worrying about the ethics of taking 60 children into the ear of a giant little girl, and giving them a chance to learn about her body from the inside, we have finally cracked the problem. We have begun creating a training programme for one of our crack team of giant experts, where he and the children get to explore a mock up of her body and meet all the exciting characters inside, and all of this as part of a practice run for when Ricky the Roady has to go inside her for real to unblock a blockage.

Filled with jokes about poo, and facts about keeping our bodies healthy, it is a very exciting workshop/performance and iI am so enjoying devising it.

And I have learnt masses in the process…

Did you know that our red blood cells only live for approxiamtely 120 days, (4 months). They do all this work, racing around our bodies, carrying oxygen from our lungs  and and helping us get rid of CO2. And then after all this they head of to the spleem to die. Apparently the spleem is like the graveyard of the body.

And there are hard core killer cells patroling inside us, waiting for the white blood cells to call them so they can pounce on the vile viruses and beastly bugs.

Our bodies are amazing places and doing this project is giving me such an insight into all the exciting things that are happening in there that I have previously taken for granted.

Also it is such a rich source of story material.

Stories are incredible, because through them we can engage children in areas of learning far beyond the scientific areas specified for their particular age group. Thorough story we can gain greater understanding of complex ideas well beyond our years.

Having failed in both Maths and Science at school I am constantly amazed at how exciting and dynamic I find this work when we begin to shape these subjects into story form. If we truely are to turn around education and ‘raise standards’ as politicians continually demand, then story has to take center stage in our classrooms.