Trace Your Face Successes

Patricia's Trace Your Face project is simple enough for anyone to do in one visit to the clubhouse. Unfortunately, Kristophur was the only member to attempt the project -- two weeks ago! I wasn't very happy with that. You need to remember that to continue to come into the computer clubhouse requires that you do projects. My job is to guide you through learning various software programs by doing projects. There are dozens of programs to learn and it takes studying and practicing to learn advance features. There are only a few members that are exempt from doing the assigned projects. This is because I know that they are focused on improving their knowledge and skills in a particular area. For example, I know that when James comes to the clubhouse he is working on music; I know that when Donovan comes he's doing Photoshop; I know that Treymaine works in Scratch; and most importantly, their Village portfolio reflects progress. If you have not been given exemption, then you have to do the assignments listed in this posting. Since the majority of you did not accomplish completing the assignments posted two weeks ago, I decided not to give any new assignments last week. I decided to see what we could accomplish from the old posting. I'm glad to show-off what a difference a week can make. Wow! Keyona did an awesome job on this project! As usual, she didn't just try to do the assignment once and call it done, she used the guidance that I provided and went on to work on a second and a third picture. And I can see how she improved with each attempt. Great job, Keyona! (Can I clone you?) I love how she added the details of the original picture. It works for this picture. Yet, Bryan did an equally great project and I'm glad that he didn't add the details of the original picture.

This was not a hard project, but it taught some important concepts about Adobe Photoshop, such as the use of the pencil and paint bucket tools, which many of you know about from Microsoft Paint. However, Photoshop adds the process of layering that can't be done in Paint. As you continue to use Photoshop, you will find that layering allows you to make amazing art and designs. I know that Keyona does beautiful projects using The Print Shop, so I'm really looking forward to what she will produce with Photoshop. Remember, there are lots of tutorials available on YouTube and at tv.adobe.com, as well as on the Computer Clubhouse Village. You can learn this program and get better and better, and even learn to use your creations in other programs, like PowerPoint, Flash, and Premiere.

I like the works done by Tim, Deonte, Reggie, Martoine, Pheobe and Malik, but I'm disappointed that not everyone uploaded their work to the Village. I know that Tim may still want to color his project, but it looks like Pheobe and Malik are finished. Remember that uploading your projects is a membership requirement. You don't need to upload every project that you create. You should upload your best works. Now, if you do not have a username and password for the Village, then you need to let me know. You cannot set up an account on your own. You need me to do it and if you have forgotten your password, you need me to reset it.

Assignments

1. Typing Practice
2. Read Blog & Leave your comment
3. Photoshop: Put yourself in a picture with yourself
4. Upload Project(s) to the Village
5. Draw a picture at the Green Table and scan it
6. Click this link and Watch the Photoshop Videos
7. Explore the Autodesk website

Note: If you have not done your video introduction and your portfolio cover, you need to do these, also.

Clubhouse Focus: Adobe and Autodesk

Note to Computer Clubhouse members:

Always remember to sign into The Village before reading this blog.

You must have a Village account and an email account (preferably, gmail). Let me know if you need these setup or if you forgot your password.

I am so excited that Autodesk has opened its education community to the network of computer clubhouses! I hope that many of you took the time to link off of last week's blog post to check out the Adobe and the Autodesk websites. These are both awesome companies with amazing software! We will be using these sites alot, so get familiar with them. Please note that if you are not familiar with recognizing a link, here is an example: Link to The Clubhouse Village website. Notice the color difference, underline and that your mouse pointer changes to a hand when you are on a link. Simply click your mouse to go to the link. Sometimes a link will open in it's own window, and you can just close it to go back to the original site; and other times you can click the back button (arrow in upper left corner). A link can also be a picture, so keep an eye out for the pointer changing to a hand. Such as when you put your mouse over this picture by Donovan.

Autodesk is a world leader in 3D design, engineering and entertainment software. They make some amazing software for any type of design creation you can imagine. Their software was used in the making of the movie, Avatar. They have software for game making, movie making, architecture, engineering, and everything in between. In fact, like Adobe, there is so much good stuff that I have to focus training towards a specific category. I think that it is going to be fun to learn to design and create with the animation curriculum I have selected. Of course, if you have an interest in learning another area, let me know and I can download the required program(s) and guide you to training videos that will help you learn. As a group, though, we will focus on the Animation Academy curriculum provided directly from Autodesk. The process of downloading the required programs is going to take a few weeks; so we will be working on getting everyone familiar with Adobe Photoshop and Premiere.

Your assignments for this week are:

1. Read this blog and leave a comment
2. Typing Practice: Follow instructions on handout
3. Make a new binder cover for your 3-ring, clearview binder (Everyone must have their binder and binder cover by September 27)
4. Take 3 photos of yourself; 1 headshot, 1 full-body shot, and 1 choice (could be sitting, standing, close-up, far away, whatever)
5. Record a video introduction
6. Review the introduction video of Photoshop
7. Complete a Photoshop project and upload it to The Village

The following are suggestions and links to beginner Photoshop projects/training:

1. You can use your headshot and follow Patricia's instructions to Trace Your Face.

2. Start with the Getting Started episode and work your way through Learn Photoshop CS5. (Ask me about setting up an Adobe account so you will be able to store a playlist.)

3. Ask Donovan for help. The pictures in this post were done by him. He has been working in CS4, so he knows how to work with brushes and layers. You can link from his name to see his projects and profile on The Village.

Don't forget to check out all the links in this blog post and to leave a comment.

Clubhouse Program Resumes

I'm excited to have a new school year begin with great anticipation of the creativity that can come from our clubhouse. I am looking forward to welcoming new and old members into the clubhouse. There will be an orientation for all members and their parent(s) or guardian(s) to attend this week. Since attendance at the orientation is mandatory, I have scheduled it for both Thursday, September 9th at 6pm and Friday, September 10th at 5pm. There are several changes that have been implemented to improve the clubhouse. I will cover these issues during the orientation.

The computer clubhouse is a great place to learn some awesome software programs. Our participation in Adobe Youth Voices has provided each computer with the Adobe CS5 Production Premium. This suite of programs includes the award-winning Photoshop, as well as After Effects, Premiere, Illustrator, Soundbooth and more. In addition to the Adobe software, we now have access to the entire suite of Autodesk programs, including 3ds Max, Maya and programs used in the making of the movie, Avatar!

There is lots to learn in the clubhouse. I hope you're ready!

Teen Summit 2010

I had to shut down the clubhouse last week so that I, Donovan, James and Marcellous could attend Teen Summit 2010 in Boston. This was my 4th opportunity to participate in this awesome week of learning. The theme for this year was Mobilize! Act! Inspire! -- and indeed we did!

I picked up everyone and we left for the airport.

We arrived in Boston and took a cab to Northeastern University. We stayed in the West Village dorms.

Day 1 included a project fair for all the clubhouses to show off their talents and works.

Donovan displayed projects he'd done in Photoshop.

There was plenty of(and by that I mean, more than enough) food -- snacks, and meals.

Day 2 - We participated in a regional workshop. The Northwest Activities Center has the only computer clubhouse in Michigan. We are in the midwest region. We got to meet some of the members in our region. All were from Chicago where there are four computer clubhouses. My roommates were Brianna and Tytianna. We did a traveling storytelling project. It was fun!

That night we went to the Museum of Science for the Clubhouse to College/Clubhouse to Career (C2C) Fair. There were companies like Microsoft, Autodesk, Adobe, and Intel, as well as schools like Harvard, MIT, Berkelee School of Music and more.

Teen Summit 2010 Day 1

James, Donovan, Marcellous were each picked up by me and we were dropped off at the airport in plenty of time. Flying was a new experience for James and I don't think that he liked it very much. But, we arrived safely in Boston for Teen Summit 2010. We took a taxi to Northeastern University and spent almost an hour trying to find the dorm building. Finally, we ran into some other participants who escorted us to the dorm. We received our room keys and a book bag containing a notebook, a mini digital picture frame, a map and some other goodies. We are all in different rooms, so that gives us the opportunity to meet new people.
We participated in the Project Fair. It was an opportunity to people to show off the works done at their clubhouse. There was some great talent. I'll have to edit this latter and upload some of the video from the event. So far all is going well. I plan to provide a daily account of the events.

Weeks Are Flying By

I didn't have the opportunity to post a message last week, so I was definitely going to get to it this week. I hope that everyone is enjoying their summer. I can't say that I'm super happy with how mine is going, but I'm always learning from experiences. I know there are things that I will do different next summer. Sometimes things don't go the way you plan but they still work out okay. I haven't gotten the photography and videography supplies that are to be used for our Adobe Youth Voices (AYV) projects, but that's not stopping us from trying to learn the new software and make some awesome creations. If you haven't checked out After Effects you need to see the cool titling this program can create. You can watch videos on how to use all of the programs in the Adobe Creative Suite by visiting www.tv.adobe.com.

I'm pretty happy with the participation and creativity of several members. I have seen some good projects uploaded to the Village. I haven't seen very many hand-drawn artwork, but I hope that will change. The plans for our first Field Trip Friday did not go as expected, but it was still a lot of fun. Kelvin, Malik, Laresha and I had a great time on our photo/video excursion. We took pictures throughout the neighborhood and enjoyed dinner at the local Wendy's restaurant. It was a beautiful, sunny evening as you can see from this picture of Kelvin. Unfortunately the weather has not been very good for us to get out and do photoshoots. It is reported that there will be scattered showers this Friday. This means that our excursion for this Friday will have to be cancelled. I think that the only way to make these missed opportunities up is to plan a Field Trip Friday for each of the remaining weeks. What do you think? Remember, we were planning to go downtown this Friday and to the Zoo two weeks later. If we move this Friday's trip to after Teen Summit, then the new schedule would be:

August 6 - Downtown

August 13 - Zoo

August 20 - Belle Isle (our last day)

Are you interested in participating in any of these trips?

Clubhouse Closing

The clubhouse will be closed next week (July 26 - 30). Donovan, James, Marcellous and I are going to Boston for Teen Summit 2010! This event is a week of fun learning that includes staying on the campus of Northeastern University. You can check out the Village to find out more about Teen Summit. It is a biennial event held in Boston since 2002. The Village has lots of pictures and information about the different tracks, the career fair, and the cruise on the Charles River. The career fair offers the opportunity to speak with workers from some very interesting companies, like Intel, Google, Microsoft and even Harmonix, the company that makes Rock Band! Here is a picture of Desmond, a member of our clubhouse who went to Teen Summit 2008. He is holding the new Rock Band guitar--before it came out!

First Week Hits and Misses

The summer program started on Monday, July 28. It was very disappointing to find that several members had signed up, but were not present. It would have been nice if anyone who signs up but cannot (for whatever reason) participate, will call me and let me know that I can free-up that spot. I have planned to have 11 girls and 11 boys in my summer program. I am keeping my fingers crossed that this week is better than last week.

Check out the numbers:

M: 7girls
T: 5girls 3boys
W: 3boys
H: 7girls 8boys

I definitely expect to see better numbers for Week 2.

Of course, Week 1 was not a total failure. I had the pleasure of meeting Tyrese, Irick, Tionne, and Cherish. They are the newest clubhouse members. I'm looking forward to the creative energy they bring to the clubhouse. Although I still have to set up a Village account for Tionne and Cherish, I was glad to see that Tyrese and Irick were able to upload project(s) they created. It's hard to believe that Tyrese was able to make this beautiful Bryce creation on his first use of the program. Way to go, Tyrese! He was also able to complete and upload three projects in his first week!

The following members were also able to upload projects:
Alethia, 1
Irick, 3
Jada, 1
Mikayla, 1
Taylor, 3
and a surprise appearance of three projects by Marcus, who is working primarily from home. I am going to forward our assignment sheets to him each week. Don't forget that you can link from the name to check out their Village profile/projects, but you should already be signed into the Village.

The above list shows that there are several members in the clubhouse that have not uploaded any projects. If you need help getting your project uploaded, you should see me or ask one of the above listed members to help you. The only members that have an excuse for not uploading their projects are those who have never gotten a Village account set up.

Finally, I just want to mention, Field Trip Fridays. This is our opportunity to get outside of the clubhouse and produce video and photo projects. I have prepared an information sheet that you should take home with you. It explains that there are no funds to provide transportation for members to get to the selected site, but hopefully, you can get dropped off and picked up, so you can participate. This Friday we will be in the culture center. Our starting point is on the Cass street side of the Detroit Library at around 4:30pm. Let me know if you will be able to participate.

Don't forget to leave your comment. If you don't have a gmail account, then sign into the Village and use your email account there to send to my email account shown on the tag on your monitor.