literacy | Liam O'Donnell

Thinking critically about kids VWs at OISE/UT Conference

by liam | Mar 1, 2008 | appearances, education, gaming, literacy, media, virtual worlds

I just finished presenting Chillin’ at Club Penguin to a small but enthusiastic group at the OISE Dean’s Conference at University of Toronto. Happy to say that it went well, despite a few setting-up tech glitches (aren’t there always?) Once myself...

Talking kids’ virtual worlds at Dean’s Conference OISE/UT

by liam | Feb 28, 2008 | education, gaming, literacy, media, virtual worlds

Been a very hectic last few days, but I have a few minutes to let you all know that I’ll be at OISE/UT’s Dean’s raduate Conference this Saturday spreading the word about virtual worlds to educators. I’ll be part of the Critical Literacies in...

Hello Kitty Online players must sing for their beta

by liam | Feb 24, 2008 | gaming, literacy, media

Like many folks following virtual worlds for kids, I was pleasantly surprised when Sanrio announced they were to release a Hello Kitty virtual world, Hello Kitty Online. And probably like many vw folks, I signed up for a beta account. Clearly, I’m not in the...

Liking PowerUp, IBM’s multiplayer game for teens

by liam | Feb 15, 2008 | education, gaming, literacy, media, virtual worlds

I’ll admit that I’ve haven’t even finished downloading PowerUp, IBM’s new multiplayer game about the environment and alternative energy, but so far I like what I see. Check out their launch/promo video below and see for yourself: Adblock A...

Am I the only one troubled by Doodle 4 Google?

by liam | Feb 14, 2008 | education, literacy, media

From a search of the web on Doodle 4 Google, it looks like I might be. Is anyone wondering about how elementary students and high schoolers spending valuable, publicly funded, class time helping Google redraw their logo benefits students’ learning? Not that I...