How big did you want that playground?

Mat Parsons, a freshmen psychology major at Bloomsburg University, asks children what they'd like at Kidsburg.

Nearly 20 Bloomsburg students spent a morning with children at Central Columbia Elementary School to ask what features they'd like to see in the new Kidsburg at Bloomsburg Town Park. The Bloomsburg University students became involved through the Center for Community Research and Consulting and education professor Michael Patte.

The original Kidsburg was ruined in the 2011 flood. The new Kidsburg will be located on higher ground at the park. Volunteers steering the construction of the new park hope to start building in June. Learn more about the park at www.facebook.com/groups/kidsburg or www.kidsburg.org.

Hands say so much

If you take Wikipedia's word for it, 93 percent of how we communicate comes from our body language, our expressions, and our tone of voice. Seven percent comes from the words themselves. From what I've seen, that's especially true in the classroom, where professors communicate so much through movement, intonation and particularly, gestures.

In the top photo French professor Nathalie Cornelius brings her hands to her ears, telling the students something very specific ... she's listening and it's their turn to talk. (I've frozen the moment here, but the consistency of this gesture and it's specific meaning makes the back and forth interaction both fun and fast.)

In the second photo management professor John Okpara's hands literally grab student's attention. (We recently had videographers on campus and they did a shoot in Okpara's class. Afterwords one of them said he would have liked to just sit and join the class.)

In the third photo exceptionalities professor Deborah Stryker naturally uses her hands to communicate in a sign language class ... but in this discipline, facial expressions take on great importance as well.

Even in traditional classrooms ... even without high-tech aids ... great professors engage students' senses. They use sight as well as sound. And gestures as well as words. The hands have a lot to say.
—EGF.

Sharing research

Catching up a little from the end of last semester. This shot was taken at the College of Science and Technology's student research symposium.  Kathleen Paiva, majoring in both education and geography, is discussing a project she did with faculty mentor Cynthia Venn to make a tactile map to teach visually impaired students about geology. Yarn, glue, pipe cleaners were all pressed into service. Biology major Taylor Ball took a real interest in the project and stuck around, paying no attention to me while I took photos.

In all, there were more than a dozen student research posters at the event and another 19 research talks.

Technical notes: Nothing remarkable. Canon 7, ISO 800 1/64th. Tokina 11mm at f/4.5. Though you'll see distortion at the edges, the lens is really useful. Click on any photo to make it larger.

A bocce bash

I think one of the things that set Bloomsburg students apart is their willingness to get involved in projects. For many years, students in our exceptionalities programs have hosted an annual Bocce Ball tournament for the Special Olympics in Nelson Field House. 

Spread over the gymnasium floor were nine bocce courts. There were 236 athletes from 17 counties participating. The day-long Saturday event was staffed by 380 BU student volunteers from a variety of organizations; Helping Others Club, BU Women's Club soccer team, Student Council for Exceptional Children, ASA, Education Living and Learning Community, PSEA, and Kappa Sig, working for various lengths of time. This year, the theme was Outer Space and organizers, such as Carolyn Mitchell (above), could be identified by the antennas on their heads.

Top right, are Special Olympics Athlete Toni Hiester, BU student Kirstie Aumen, senior elementary and special education major, and athlete Josh Snyder. Snyder is shown competing at lower right.

Technical Notes (top photo): Canon 7D with Tokina 16-50 f2.8. ISO 800, 50mm, f3.5, 1/64. Colors boosted slightly in PhotoShop.