3/24/2016: Professor Wins $700,000 for solving 300-year-old Math Problem - Campus Food Pantries For Hungry Students On The Rise

Today's Article: Professor Wins $700,000 for solving 300-year-old Math Problem (11.2)
From: CNN

It was a problem that had baffled mathematicians for centuries -- until British professor Andrew Wiles set his mind to it.

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http://www.izzit.org/events/index.php

Today's Alternate Article: Campus Food Pantries For Hungry Students On The Rise (5.3)

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1/13/2016: Scientists Debate How Far To Go In Editing Human Genes - A 'No-Nonsense' Classroom Where Teachers Don't Say 'Please'

Today's Article: Scientists Debate How Far To Go In Editing Human Genes (12.2)
From: NPR

Notably, the organizers didn't rule out the possibility that gene editing someday could be used to create humans...

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http://www.izzit.org/events/index.php

Today's Alternate Article: A 'No-Nonsense' Classroom Where Teachers Don't Say 'Please' (8.9)

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We have a POGO (Pick one, get one) special for this month! -Eminent Domain and Who Owns What? Click here to learn more.

The Making of Pups of Liberty by Bert and Jennifer Klein

Pups of Liberty: The Boston Tea-Bone Party is now in thousands of classrooms, and has become a hit with students and teachers. It's the first teaching unit in the Pups of Liberty series, featuring four (that's the current plan, anyway!) animated films that will tell the story of the American Revolution using animals to represent real-life historical figures. The second unit, The Dog-claration of Independence, is also now available!

Characters like "Bonejamin Franklin" and "Spaniel Adams" introduce kids to the Founding Fathers in a new and fun way. Even though the Pups of Liberty films use a clever spin to attract young people, they always maintain historical accuracy and make it clear in the supplemental materials how the animated characters correspond to the real men and women of history. Future episodes will include: The Ruffolutionary War and Fetching a New Nation (featuring George Woofington). (Working titles - titles may change!) We believe this approach will enable young people to embrace history, and that the characters will  have a lasting impact.

Our goal is to help kids truly understand the ideals and principles of freedom upon which our nation was founded. When a young person sees in our film how the taxes imposed by the cats affect our main character Anne and her business, they can relate to her disappointment and empathize with her frustration that the dogs have no representation. If viewers can relate on an emotional level with our characters, they can begin to understand how these issues could make people angry enough to start a revolution.

When we began the Pups of Liberty series, we wanted to make films like the ones we loved back in school. The teacher would pull out the rickety 16mm film projector and show a movie as a change of pace from the usual routine. The best ones were the animated educational films that were produced by Walt Disney in the 1950s and '60s. They were so well done that they were being shown for decades after they'd been made. A big favorite was Donald Duck in Mathmagic Land,which managed to teach the Pythagorean Theorem with amazing clarity. These films taught in ways that made students want to watch, and so they learned. As filmmakers and parents, we believe that making education fun also makes it more effective.

The animation in Pups of Liberty uses both digital and hand-drawn techniques. We begin with thorough research, staying as close to the source of the historical facts as possible. After we write the script, we design the characters and the draw the "storyboards," which are single-drawing representations of what is happening in each shot. To determine the look of each scene we paint "color keys" and draw a "layout" for each shot prior to animation. Each

second of film requires up to 24 drawings for the characters to come to life and every detail is hand drawn. The highest quality of animation requires specially trained artists to create a character that lives and breathes and convinces the viewer it is real. To use an old phrase, an animator is "an actor with a pencil" - and through thousands of beautiful drawings we give our characters expression and feelings, which resonate with our audience. After the animation is done, it receives a "clean up" line, is then scanned digitally, and colored and composited together with a painted background. Sound mixing and an original music score create the final product.

Another fun aspect of Pups of Liberty is the way we make our historical figures easy to remember - Spaniel Adams in place of Samuel Adams is catchy and will stick in a viewer's mind for years (Just try to forget Paul Ruffere or George Woofington!).

As artists, we have a passion to practice our craft every day, but being able to tell great stories with worthwhile messages makes it even more exciting and rewarding. The lessons learned from history don't have to be exclusively for grownups; kids can understand and apply ideals, principles, and values to their young lives, too. We hope that Pups of Liberty can teach young pups some new tricks!

Pups of Liberty: The Dog-claration of Independence is available for purchase, educators can select it as their Free Annual Video, or anyone can watch it via streaming.













We also have a Pups of Liberty Activity and Coloring Book on sale until the end of September. Click here to purchase.










Take a glimpse behind the scenes of the creation of Pups of Liberty: The Dog-claration of Independence. Meet some of the animation team and learn how the bring the Pups to life in the video below.

Keeping Our Customers Happy!

You probably know that teachers and homeschoolers across the country use izzit.org DVDs and other teaching materials. What you may not know about is our fabulous customer service team, based in Erie, PA, who make sure our customers get what they need. Below are some sample emails from educators about our customer service.

How sweet of you to email me back with all that wonderful information! Honestly, I thought my email would go into some database, and may never be read! I can't tell you enough how your willingness to share resources and assistance is appreciated! I look forward to checking out those websites.

Thank you again! :)

Lockport, NY

Joye, thank you for your correspondence. Fortunately, I have recently retired from many years at a wonderful, small town school. My school email has been "banished." Your service has been impressive and useful. I have and will continue to inform my teaching associates of your services. Many thanks for your excellent programs.

Eunice, LA

Finally, all is well and thank you for all your help. I ordered a new DVD and it was difficult to choose....so many must haves. Currently I use Pennies a Day every semester. The students get it! I do appreciate this source of educational materials. Money is so tight and free new items are welcome from the educator as well as from the student. Maybe especially the student! 

Respectfully, 

Middletown, IN

This email was sent to us by mistake- the teacher meant to forward one of our marketing emails to a friend. Customer service wrote back to tell him of his error and thank him for the referral, and he was very happy to hear from us, but had already corrected himself. The new release in the marketing email was Monkey Business.

Saw this new release thought you might be able to use it. If you register with this company you can get one free DVD a year as long as you evaluate it. They are very inexpensive even if you buy them and usually pretty good.

Falmouth, KY

So, anytime you have a question, concern, or problem with your izzit.org materials, call or email us. We'll take good care of you! (We also, as you see above, love to hear good things, too!)
We especially appreciate your recommendations to other educators you know.

If you or anyone you know, is interested in FREE educational materials, have them come create an account with us here. We have much more than just free DVDs, and we're creating new membership options for this fall. We help educators promote critical thinking among students in their classrooms and at home.