Posted by Geoff Beauchamp on Thu, May 17, 2012 @ 08:01 AM
Scientists have known for years that the climate of our planet fluctuates from time to time, growing warmer in some periods and colder in others. Sometimes change occurs slowly, and other times fairly rapidly.
One way in which science allows us to look into the past is through analysis of ice in the polar regions. As ice firms in these areas, it not only traps what is in the air at that time, but it also forms in different ways according to the temperature and climate conditions. By drilling deep holes into polar ice, scientists are able to take deep core samples which can be “read” to determine what conditions were like at different times in the past.
It is now theorized that a series of volcanic eruptions in the mid 13th century put so much matter into the atmosphere that it triggered a cold wave which produced a mini ice age lasting through the 13th and 14th century. (http://www.sciencenewsforkids.org/2012/02/sudden-big-chill/)
However, a student of history will also note that in other world events at that time, famine began to strike Europe. Because of the cold weather, crops began to fail, resulting in what is known as “the Great Famine” between 1315 and 1317. But hunger was a real problem throughout this entire period, due to the extremely low and unusual temperatures.
Naturally, when mass populations are weakened by hunger, they are an easy target for disease. So it then comes as no surprise that we witness how rapidly the “black death” (bubonic plague) spread through Europe once it made it’s way there carried, most likely, by the fleas on rats aboard ships traveling from the Middle East. The plague peaked between 1348 and 1350. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Death)
Recent movements in education such as the STEM initiative (Science-Technology-Engineering-Mathematics) underline that experts see the need for added work in this area when it comes to teaching our children in school. Understanding our changing climate is a key to the survival of our species, and also a source of rich educational value for children, as the study of climate involves so many other areas of study, from Oceanography to Geography, to Chemistry and even, as we have seen, History. Involving children in these studies in exciting ways is key to ensuring they realize the interesting nature of science.
If you are seeking ideas for educational assemblies that can provoke this kind of interest in your children, Mobile Ed has several that will help.
Our Changing Climate is an exciting 45 minute program that deals specifically with these issues. The Earth Dome (Earth Balloon) is a giant, twenty foot tall planet Earth which is not only a jaw dropping sight to behold but also a fabulous tool for teaching about the geography of our planet. Chemistry! It Really Matters! allows students to quickly understand the interrelated chemical reactions that affect all life on planet Earth. Mobile Ed offers numerous science programs and historical assemblies, and one of them is sure to meet your needs and also excite your kids.
And they need to be excited about science. Our very future depends upon it!
Geoff Beauchamp is the Regional Manager of Mobile Ed Productions where "Education Through Entertainment" has been the guiding principal since 1979. Mobile Ed Productions produces and markets quality educational school assembly programs in the fields of science, history, writing, astronomy, natural science, mathematics, character issues and a variety of other curriculum based areas. In addition, Mr. Beauchamp is a professional actor with 30 years of experience in film, television and on stage. He created and still performs occasionally in Mobile Ed's THE LIVING LINCOLN.
Posted by Geoff Beauchamp on Mon, May 14, 2012 @ 08:19 AM
Wow! I just read an article I found fascinating! In China they are working on a chemical treatment for clothing. Why is that interesting? Because this treatment would allow clothing to be “cleaned” by simply hanging in the sun. Cool, huh?
As an avid backpacker, I am always interested in anything that might reduce the ... shall we say ... aroma? that begins to permeate a backpacker after several days on the trail. Modern synthetic fabrics have done a lot in allowing shirts to wick away moisture, but many of these same shirts, once they absorb bacteria, never really lose the stench even after washing. Some companies have now made advances in fabrics treated with anti-microbial chemicals that are supposed to kill the bacteria which causes the smell. And this is great news! But, for a backpacker, the idea of a shirt you can simply hang in the sun at the end of the day and have the sunlight kill the bacteria while it dries out the moisture is, well, spectacular! Self cleaning clothing! Wow! (http://www.sciencenewsforkids.org/2012/01/self-cleaning-clothes/)
Science is amazing! And, when presented well, kids find it super cool! Which is why professionally produced and performed school science assemblies are the perfect solution for those seeking ideas for school assemblies. Sure, clowns are fun, but so is science! Magicians have a certain “wow” factor, but so do science assemblies. Authors? Well, they are usually way overpriced, and often boring live. Science assemblies are definitely not boring!
We were recently working on a new experiment-demonstration for our new chemistry assembly, and we were trying to find exactly the right balance of chemicals to produce the right result in performance, and we mixed some of the components in amounts that were not balanced quite correctly... just to see what would happen. Heh, heh. We ended up with a huge yellow stain on the ceiling! Ha! It was cool! And it is going to be a really great demonstration! (we promise we will leave no stains on your ceiling!)
This year Mobile Ed is really pouring on the science! We are introducing seven new school shows for 12-13, and four of the seven are science programs! From physical science to chemistry, hands on science excitement to live animals, all the elements have been assembled. We feel this is a very important area, and we wish to support it with the best science assemblies and science school shows you can find anywhere. We now have fourteen different school math and science assemblies available from which elementary and middle schools may choose! Five new within the last year!
If you are looking for school assembly ideas, and elementary school assembly programs or middle school shows, Mobile Ed Productions has you covered! We may not clean up with sunlight, but your kids may be inspired to become the scientists that create the next big breakthrough in science! And that would be really cool!
Posted by Geoff Beauchamp on Tue, May 01, 2012 @ 09:18 AM
Just a quick one today to show you a new video from a recent performance by one of our Mark Twain tours which visited Dearborn, Michigan last month.
Jeff Hoge, known to many of our clients for his portrayal of Abraham Lincoln, and his great performances in Crime Scene Science, Our Changing Climate and Young Authors Day, has recently added Mark Twain to his repertoire, and his show is really good! I watched as he held two separate groups of students spellbound at Sacred Heart School in late March. Here is a clip taken from one of the performances:
Jeff is normally based in the Chicago area, but audiences outside of Illinois and Wisconsin also get an opportunity to enjoy his programs. Once or twice a year Jeff will sally forth to perform his great shows on the East Coast and in other parts of the Midwest.
If you are seeking school assembly ideas, Jeff has a lot to offer. You will want to check to see when he will be in your area and grab a date quickly!
Geoff Beauchamp is the Regional Manager of Mobile Ed Productions where "Education Through Entertainment" has been the guiding principal since 1979. Mobile Ed Productions produces and markets quality educational school assembly programs in the fields of science, history, writing, astronomy, natural science, mathematics, character issues and a variety of other curriculum based areas. In addition, Mr. Beauchamp is a professional actor with 30 years of experience in film, television and on stage. He created and still performs occasionally in Mobile Ed's THE LIVING LINCOLN.
Posted by Geoff Beauchamp on Mon, Apr 30, 2012 @ 09:01 AM
With the entire nation finally turning it’s attention to the crying problem of bullying in schools, Mobile Ed Productions is answering the call with not one, not two but three anti bullying school assembly type school shows this year.
Our loyal client schools will already be aware that we took the school assembly world by storm last year with a magnificent anti bullying assembly entitled Stronger Than a Bully. Featuring the wonderful David Mitchell in the starring role, this great show focused kids on learning ways to respond appropriately and safely when faced with bullying whether verbal, physically or in cyber space. Stronger Than a Bully has been a great success!
Not content to rest on his laurels, or complacent about the prospect of returning to schools with the same program two years in a row, Mr. Mitchell is busily at work on a sequel to Stronger Than a Bully as yet untitled ... perhaps “Son of Stronger Than a Bully” or Stronger Than a Bully Strikes Back? ... I am sure david will come up with something far more creative! Regardless, if the new program’s title, we are positive it will enjoy the same success as the first program, and contain many of the same positive messages in this ongoing war on bullying.
Meantime, since Mr. Mitchell can only be in one place at a time, and since his tour is filling rapidly, we are adding another new anti bullying school assembly. Technically, this is not really new as the program has been performed before and with great success. The No Bully Zone (Bully No More) is performed by Greg carter, and has seen action already in numerous schools to wonderful affect. The No Bully Zone now joins our stable of fine school assemblies, and will be available in Texas, California, Colorado, Kansas and other western states primarily, but will also enjoy a brief tour to the Midwest and Eastern United States this fall. We are very excited to have Greg joining us as he is an established talent and really knows how to bring a great show to your school.
But don't forget we also carry Inspector Iwannano, a fabulous school show on the topic of Character issues and following the Character Counts, Six Pillars of Character approach. Inspector Iwannano also brings a great show to this all important area of student growth. Inspector Iwannano also delivers a really fun show!
And that is what we always strive to do! If you are still seeking school assembly ideas for next year, and are looking for a school show to meet the challenge of confronting the problem of bullying, then we have what you need! And if you are looking for a different topic, if it is curriculum based I am sure we have you covered! With thirty three programs offered for 2012-2013, of which eight are either brand new, new to Mobile Ed or newly refreshed, Mobile Ed has something for every taste!
Geoff Beauchamp is the Regional Manager of Mobile Ed Productions where "Education Through Entertainment" has been the guiding principal since 1979. Mobile Ed Productions produces and markets quality educational school assembly programs in the fields of science, history, writing, astronomy, natural science, mathematics, character issues and a variety of other curriculum based areas. In addition, Mr. Beauchamp is a professional actor with 30 years of experience in film, television and on stage. He created and still performs occasionally in Mobile Ed's THE LIVING LINCOLN.
Posted by Geoff Beauchamp on Wed, Apr 25, 2012 @ 08:33 AM
Today, April 25, is ANZAC Day. You probably do not know what this means, so let me explain.
April 25 is the day when Australians, New Zealanders and various other peoples associated with a remembrance of the efforts of the armed services of those countries pause to celebrate the memory of fallen comrades.
Personally, I have a great recollection of this day. I spent many years in Australia when I was young and I have distinct memories of mandatory school appearances at ANZAC Day events that took place at the Shrine of Remembrance on St. Kilda Road in Melbourne. Drilling soldiers and bagpipes haunt my recollections of that day very vividly. I will never forget the stories of the soldiers that fought at Tobruk, Gallipolis and other sites around the globe, all permanently etched into the consciousness of every Australian.
Australia has a rich history, but as a still young country, it is not a long history. So Australian children learn many of the same stories from that history every year in school. As a result, most Australians know their own history very, very well.
Would that the same could be said in the United States.
One need only spend a few moments watching Jay Leno interview average people on the street to get a very clear and accurate idea of just how poorly many Americans do know and understand the history of this great nation.
And far too many Americans underestimate the importance of history in their lives. How many times have you heard some young person complain that history is boring? Well, it is not. But far too many of us are taught that it is by time spent in the presence only of adults who undervalue it’s importance and are mostly ignorant of it themselves. A great and creative teacher can, of course, counteract this problem. But today, teachers in most schools are under the gun so forcibly to meet standards (imposed by the state or federal governments) that too often focus only on Reading and Math, that there is precious little time left to devote to a proper look at History.
In lieu of a gifted teacher, or large amounts of time spent in classrooms, a talented school assembly performer can often help to rectify the problem.
Skilled in story telling, and in mesmerizing children through professional performance techniques, a gifted school assembly performer can bring history to life in such a vivid and exciting manner that it will be forever embedded in the mind of a child. Forty five minutes in the presence of Abraham Lincoln or Ben Franklin or Thomas Edison can easily impress a child far beyond what is possible by a good teacher in weeks of classroom time, and the impressions will last and last.
So as we approach the end of this school year, and as you search for great assembly ideas for 2012-2013, please pause to remember those who have gone before, and give a thought to the impact on your children of the choices you are making. A magician or a clown may be fun, but a character from history, while just as much fun, will have a lasting effect of the future.
Geoff Beauchamp is the Regional Manager of Mobile Ed Productions where "Education Through Entertainment" has been the guiding principal since 1979. Mobile Ed Productions produces and markets quality educational school assembly programs in the fields of science, history, writing, astronomy, natural science, mathematics, character issues and a variety of other curriculum based areas. In addition, Mr. Beauchamp is a professional actor with 30 years of experience in film, television and on stage. He created and still performs occasionally in Mobile Ed's THE LIVING LINCOLN.
Posted by Geoff Beauchamp on Thu, Apr 19, 2012 @ 09:19 AM
In August of 2011 we began performances of Stronger Than a Bully, a fabulous school assembly performed by David Mitchell. This show has been a staggering success with rave reviews from every school where it appears. David is a consummate professional and one of the very best school assembly performers in the country!
However, we have happily become a victim of our own success. In 2011-2012 Stronger Than a Bully sold out quickly in almost all states where it was offered, and is rapidly selling out for 2012-2013. And yet there is still a crying demand for high quality anti bullying programs from so may schools.
As mentioned in the last two blogs, we are pleased to be adding a very talented individual to our roster of performers, Mr. Greg carter, otherwise known as “Safari Greg”. Greg is a wildlife trainer and naturalist with over 30 years of experience in the animal/wildlife field. He is one of the most in-demand school show performers in the United States, and was voted Tennessee’s Best Children’s Entertainer by Parenting magazine 6 years in a row! We are so pleased to welcome Greg on board!
Well we have already mentioned that Greg offers The Circle of Life (live animals) and The Treasure of the Six Traits (writing). We are now pleased to announce that greg also offers a program devoted to the problem of bullying. This is no rookie program but a performance tested, and proven successful show entitled The No Bully Zone Game Show (Steps 1-4:Bully No More). We believe our clients will LOVE this show!
Since Stronger Than a Bully is already available touring in the Midwest and on the east Coast, initially Greg and The The No Bully Zone Game Show will be offered in states west of the Mississippi (Texas, California,Colorado,Kansas) but this may expand as time goes on. In the meantime, I guess this is great news for California, Colorado and Texas schools looking for ideas for school assemblies relating to bullying (and who isn’t these days?).
So, there you have it! Three brand new programs available to our western state clients from a dynamite new addition to Mobile Ed’s already awesome roster of talented and dedicated school assembly professionals! Combine these with the rebuilt and redesigned Chemistry! It Really Matters! and Forces and Motion (both featuring the dazzling Ms. Renee Allen!), Kidz Science Safari, and the new Books Made The Man reading assembly featuring President Lincoln, and this is going to be a great year for school shows and school assembly programs!
But remember, dates in each area of the country are limited and will fill in quickly. So contact us soon to see when we will be available in your area!
Geoff Beauchamp is the Regional Manager of Mobile Ed Productions where "Education Through Entertainment" has been the guiding principal since 1979. Mobile Ed Productions produces and markets quality educational school assembly programs in the fields of science, history, writing, astronomy, natural science, mathematics, character issues and a variety of other curriculum based areas. In addition, Mr. Beauchamp is a professional actor with 30 years of experience in film, television and on stage. He created and still performs occasionally in Mobile Ed's THE LIVING LINCOLN.
Posted by Geoff Beauchamp on Wed, Apr 18, 2012 @ 08:10 AM
For many years one of our most popular school assemblies has been the elegant and highly acclaimed Young Authors Day. This stunning school show is a magnificent way to get kids excited about writing, and never fails to deliver absolutely rave reviews from whatever school is lucky enough to schedule it.
Still, for every silver lining there is a cloud. Despite the fact that Mobile Ed offers nearly thirty different high quality educational school assemblies, covering science, history, character values, bullying and math, we had no direct follow up to Young Authors Day if a client school was looking to continue in the vein of writing.
Well, no more!
As we announced yesterday, we have managed to secure the services of a marvelous established performer who offers three wonderful school shows which are new to Mobile Ed Productions client schools. Greg Carter, otherwise known as “Safari Greg” to fans around the country, joins our team next year, and as we said yesterday he will carry The Circle of Life, a live animal, Natural Science show. But additionally Greg offers the perfect follow up to our Young Authors Day, and, indeed, a marvelous show in it's own right, The Treasure of the Six Traits, pertaining to writing.
Many schools will be familiar with the Six Plus One Traits of Writing, as this system is a popular teaching style in many schools across the country. Now we can offer the perfect school show to support and augment this great teaching system. The Treasure of the Six Traits will help students to identify and implement the 6+1 Traits of Writing method through a creative and highly entertaining presentation.
Ideas
Organization
Voice
Word Choice
Sentence Fluency
Conventions
Presentation
These are the 6+1 traits and these are the points espoused and highlighted through this great show. If you are seeking school assembly ideas for next year, and improving writing scores is on your agenda, The Treasure of the Six Traits should be on your list!
Exact details of Greg's tour are still being worked out, but dates will certainly be available in Texas, California and mostly likely Colorado, Kansas, Missouri and other states as well!
Give us a call and let us know you want The Treasure of The Six Traits to visit your school!
Oh, and check back tomorrow to learn the secret of Greg's third great new show!
Geoff Beauchamp is the Regional Manager of Mobile Ed Productions where "Education Through Entertainment" has been the guiding principal since 1979. Mobile Ed Productions produces and markets quality educational school assembly programs in the fields of science, history, writing, astronomy, natural science, mathematics, character issues and a variety of other curriculum based areas. In addition, Mr. Beauchamp is a professional actor with 30 years of experience in film, television and on stage. He created and still performs occasionally in Mobile Ed's THE LIVING LINCOLN.
Posted by Geoff Beauchamp on Tue, Apr 17, 2012 @ 09:22 AM
Continuing what has to be one of the most exciting Spring rollouts I can remember here at Mobile Ed, we are happy to announce today that we are adding even more programs to our killer roster of awesome school shows and assemblies for 2012-2013. If you are looking for school assembly ideas you have certainly found the right place!
We already announced the introduction of our brand new reading assembly Books Made The Man featuring our sixteenth president, Abraham Lincoln. This show is going to rock!
We already announced that two science programs - Chemistry! It Really Matters! and Forces and Motion - are being completely renewed and reinvigorated with all new props, experiments, sets and an awesome new performer, the delightful Ms. Renee Allen!
We already announced that we are proudly adding Kidz Science Safari, a totally cool hands on science experience to our canon of amazing school shows.
We are now extremely jazzed to announce the further addition of a new to us but very established and talented performer, Mr. Greg Carter, otherwise known to many as “Safari Greg”.
Greg joins our team this year bringing with him three fantastic programs! Continuing our emphasis on science, Greg will contribute an amazing live animal Natural Science program entitled The Circle of Life. Already performed in countless schools, this school show delivers a fun-filled journey into the animal kingdom. And in long standing Mobile Ed tradition, the show, while extremely fun and entertaining also offers solid core content education material covering animal habits and habitats, major animal groups, the food chain, warm and cold blooded animals and an explanation of what we mean by nocturnal, diurnal and crepuscular animals.
With a base in Texas, Greg will allow us to once again offer live animal programs to our clients in western states such as Texas, Colorado, Kansas and, of course, California!
Now I mentioned that Greg also carries two other knockout assemblies, didn’t I? Well if you want to know what those are you will just have to wait until tomorrow!
See you then!
Geoff Beauchamp is the Regional Manager of Mobile Ed Productions where "Education Through Entertainment" has been the guiding principal since 1979. Mobile Ed Productions produces and markets quality educational school assembly programs in the fields of science, history, writing, astronomy, natural science, mathematics, character issues and a variety of other curriculum based areas. In addition, Mr. Beauchamp is a professional actor with 30 years of experience in film, television and on stage. He created and still performs occasionally in Mobile Ed's THE LIVING LINCOLN.
Posted by Geoff Beauchamp on Wed, Apr 11, 2012 @ 07:59 AM
As you ponder ideas for school assemblies for next year, consider the following...
In any year, but particularly in an election year, there is a lot of discussion about what is and what is not constitutional, and about what the Founding Fathers really meant when they wrote that famous document. Every year we witness the Supreme Court being called upon to discuss and decide upon which laws do and do not meet the threshold of “constitutionality”. Issues such as the separation of Church and State, campaign finance, and the limits of Federal authority are constantly being argued over, and the claim is frequently heard that “The Founding Fathers” did or did not intend such and such. And their intentions are often quoted on both sides of an issue.
But the fact is that the average American does not have a very good knowledge of the Founding Fathers. Other than a misplaced belief that George Washington chopped down a cherry tree (he didn’t), and an inaccurate notion that we won against the English by fighting “Indian style” (we didn’t), most Americans know very little about the men who founded our country.
It has been said that you cannot know where you are going if you do not know from whence you have come. Well, by this we would assume that the average American has no clue where we are going, because the average American, having little interest in history (how many times have you heard someone remark that “history is boring”?), knows almost nothing about history.
The place to change this is, of course, in school. But teachers, under the gun to meet mandated standards in reading and math, often have little time to actually teach history, let alone make it interesting and exciting for children. And, with years of experience in front of children, I myself can vouch for the fact that history, when presented well, IS exciting. And children are interested in history when it is brought alive for them in an exciting fashion.
But when it comes to the Founding Fathers, no one is better able to bring alive these men and their world and the challenges they faced than our own Dave Mitchell, otherwise known as Ben Franklin. In his school assembly, with elements of history, politics, science and invention, Dave is able to thoroughly capture the spirit of the old rogue and mesmerize children with the tales of his life. Schools absolutely love this amazing school assembly program.
And maybe ...just maybe ... as they grow into adults, these same children will have a slightly better idea of what the Founding Fathers really did intend when they began those famous lines “ We the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union...”
Geoff Beauchamp is the Regional Manager of Mobile Ed Productions where "Education Through Entertainment" has been the guiding principal since 1979. Mobile Ed Productions produces and markets quality educational school assembly programs in the fields of science, history, writing, astronomy, natural science, mathematics, character issues and a variety of other curriculum based areas. In addition, Mr. Beauchamp is a professional actor with 30 years of experience in film, television and on stage. He created and still performs occasionally in Mobile Ed's THE LIVING LINCOLN.
Posted by Geoff Beauchamp on Fri, Apr 06, 2012 @ 01:15 PM
STEM stands for The Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics coalition. If you are still ignorant of in regard to this organization let me try to help out.
As we have stated in this blog on many occasions, educating today's students (the leaders of tomorrow) in the fields of science and technology is crucial to maintaining The United States’ place in the world. Other countries are rapidly forging ahead in these areas, recognizing their growing importance in the world of today and tomorrow. Meantime, here at home, we continue to allow our students to enter the adult world with too little training in or enthusiasm for these subjects. STEM is a coalition aimed at correcting this situation, and one that we applaud wholeheartedly!
As a pioneer in the field of science assemblies and hands on science workshops for children, Mobile Ed has been trying for decades to increase awareness of science in schools and raise the interest of children across the country. Science IS fun, and kids recognize this fact if it is placed before them in the right way. Science assemblies show the excitement in science and dazzle children with endless possibilities. Hands on science workshops allow them to learn immediate lessons that inspire them to want to continue learning. We have known this for years. And yet, too often we have been met with reluctance on the part of educators, unwilling to remove students from class time, and oblivious to the greater value, educationally, of time spent in a high quality educational assembly where children can see and learn things impossible to duplicate in a classroom.
STEM is working to promote raising awareness of the importance of instruction in these fields, and to raise the level of accountability to that of reading and math, currently the only subjects tested at a state wide level nationally.
This year Mobile Ed is doubling down on science education. From our inception thirty three years ago, we have always had a heavy emphasis on science. Our very first assembly was a science assembly! This year we offered sixteen different assemblies dealing with some form of science, mathematics or technology. For next year we are raising the bar even more.
Two of our stalwart science assemblies, Chemistry! It Really Matters! and Forces and Motion, are being thoroughly redesigned, rebuilt and refitted with new experiments, new props, new set pieces and a brilliant and exciting new performer. We have added Kidz Science Safari, a brand new hands on science experience for students. And we are adding a new Natural Science live animal assembly, The Circle of Life (more on this major announcement later). All of this in addition to our extremely successful previous programs such as the Sky Dome portable planetarium, The Earth Dome (aka The Earth Balloon), Physics is Fun (with it’s wonderful all day all school hands on science sessions) not to mention Crime Scene Science, Our Changing Climate and all the other great science assemblies for which we have become justly famous.
Our belief is directly in line with the goals and aims of STEM. To become the leaders of tomorrow, our children need a sound and exciting education encompassing science and technology. STEM is leading the way. Mobile Ed Productions’ science assemblies are part of that movement.
Make your school a part of this movement, too. Join with STEM. And call us about bringing to your school a world class science assembly that will help propel your kids into a brave new world!
Geoff Beauchamp is the Regional Manager of Mobile Ed Productions where "Education Through Entertainment" has been the guiding principal since 1979. Mobile Ed Productions produces and markets quality educational school assembly programs in the fields of science, history, writing, astronomy, natural science, mathematics, character issues and a variety of other curriculum based areas. In addition, Mr. Beauchamp is a professional actor with 30 years of experience in film, television and on stage. He created and still performs occasionally in Mobile Ed's THE LIVING LINCOLN.