I’m thousands of feet in the air, speeding across the United States, flying from Portland, Oregon to Austin, Texas. When I land, I’m going to send a picture of myself to my nieces back home – but it won’t just be a picture of one of their favorite uncles in a place they’ve never been. There will be a familiar avatar in the picture with me – a Flat Stanley.
That’s an experience that children all over the world have had. Flat Stanley calls itself the longest-running literacy and community building program on the web. The program encourages participants to carry, mail or otherwise send a cardboard cut-out figure called Flat Stanley to faraway places and interesting circumstances. When the same Flat Stanley that was in a classroom in South Africa shows up in a photo perched on a snow bank in the United States – something magical happens in the minds of the children who sent it across the world. It’s as if those faraway places become more real, now the child has a connection with the place and the prospect of making that trip themselves feels more possible. Anything that expands a person’s understanding of what’s possible is a good thing. Now the Flat Stanley experience is available in a new mobile app, making it easier than ever to use.
Article source: RRW http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/readwriteweb/~3/b5dMK4Oz-1M/mixed_reality_iphone_app_shows_kids_the_world_with.php