Ahh good old filmstrip. One of the highlights of my kindergarten experience.
Well ok calling it a highlight might be a bit extreme, but who doesn't love some time out of the classroom to be surrounded by books? (Yes I have always been a nerd. I was born that way) Plus this kind of activity fed into my Type-A personality and allowed me to impress teachers with my ability to hit the 'Forward' button when prompted by a tape.
To remind all of those who aren't able to recall with crystal clear clarity the antics of their childhood (or don't want to spend lots of time scouring Google), here's the 411 on filmstrip presentations:
"The filmstrip was a common form of still image instructional multimedia, once commonly used by educators in primary and secondary schools (K-12), now overtaken by newer and increasingly lower-cost full-motion videocassettes and DVDs. From the 1940s to 1980s, filmstrips provided an easy and inexpensive alternative to 16mm projector educational films, requiring very little storage space and being very quick to rewind for the next use. Filmstrips were large and durable, and rarely needed splicing. They are still used in some areas.....The instructor would turn on a film projector that would show the first frame (image) of the filmstrip. The instructor then turned on a 33 RPM record or cassette tape containing the audio material for the filmstrip which included narration. At the appropriate point, a tone would sound, signaling the instructor (or a student volunteer/assistant) to turn a knob, advancing to the next frame. Later, technical improvements allowed the projector to advance the film automatically."
--from Wikipedia
I know it's ridiculous and archaic to bring something like this up but it's always fun for me to remember the little things that came at the beginning of my book loving journey. The little moments that I didn't realize at the time would mean so much to me. I remember sitting Indian style with my classmates waiting for the ding and the next slide to flash, excited for the story to continue.
Take a moment to remind yourself of a good book memory - I know you won't regret it if you do!
References:
*Wikipedia Article - 'Filmstrip'
*Collectors' Quest - 'Collecting Filmstrips'
*Each image is linked to its source, none of them are my own
