1. Using Movement, MUsic and Visual Art
(MMUVA)
to
Enhance Critical Thinking in the Classroom
TeriW. Finn
Ph.D. Student, Instructional Design &Technology,VirginiaTech
GRA, Integrated Design + Education +Art Studio (IDEAS) project

2. Rationale
“All around us are matters of national and
international importance that are crying out for
creative solutions…. Such solutions emerge from
a healthy marketplace of ideas, sustained by a
populace constantly contributing original ideas
and receptive to the ideas of others.”
~Newsweek, “The Creativity Crisis,” July 2010

3. “No problem can be solved by the same consciousness that created it. We need to see the world anew.” ~ Einstein
Integrated Design + Education + Art StudioTeam:
Research-based Model of Critical & CreativeThinking
Background
Knowledge
Reflective
Judgment
Idea
Generation
Self-Regulation
Self-Regulation
Attitudes & Dispositions

4. “If we teach today as we taught yesterday, then we rob our children of tomorrow.” ~ John Dewey
 Integrated Design + Education + Art Studio (IDEAS)
 Support research focused at the intersection of the arts, creative
technologies, and education
 Discover new methods and tools to enhance PK-12 learning
 Institute for Creativity, the Arts, andTechnology (ICAT) in the Center for the
Arts atVirginiaTech
 Educational Enhancement Collaboration Grants
 Funds given to support projects which demonstrate integration of art and
creative technologies and have educational potential
 MMUVA
 Simone Patterson, Ph.D. - School ofVisual Arts (SOVA)
 Kelly Parkes, Ph.D. – School of Education (SOE)
Framework

5. What is MMUVA?
 Custom software that uses motion capture to generate digital sound
and image through movement
 Produces original new media (electronic) artworks and provides
instruction in the visual arts, music, dance and collaboration.
 An embodied learning experience.
 Users respond to music with dance and motion, which is converted
into visual representations.
“Think for yourselves and let others enjoy the privilege to do so, too.” ~ Voltaire

6. History of the Project
“Out of the questions of students come most of the creative ideas and discoveries.” ~ Ellen Langer
 Originally developed with art inspired by the works of Jackson
Pollock & Michael Jackson’s music
 Named Michael Jackson Pollock
 Used with students at Pulaski High School, South Salem Elementary
 Lesson Plans developed that focus on the Great Depression, the
New Deal, and the arts (grades 6-8)
 Lesson Plans developed that focus on the Great Migration, Harlem
Renaissance (grade 11)

7. Where?
“Too often we give children answers to remember rather than problems to solve.” ~ Roger Lewin
http://www.soe.vt.edu/IDEAS/MMUVA-project.html
•No Cost to Access
•Look for the link that says:
“Click here for access to the MMUVA program”
•Downloadable lesson plans
•Additional projects on the IDEAS site

8. MMUVA Demo

9. Post-It Brainstorm
How can you use MMUVA in your
classroom to…
•Promote CriticalThinking Skills?
•Idea Generation
•Reflective Judgment
•Self-Regulation
•Attitudes and Dispositions
•Address Content Area Standards?