Compass Odyssey Math 5-6

Compass Learning Odyssey Math is a broad-ranging curricular math program consisting of a large number of character-driven lessons based on rigorous research wrapped in a humorous character-driven animation context. I provided primary creative direction, directed all animation, oversaw all visual, graphic, and lesson design, as well as spearheading project management.

Odyssey is an integrated software solution based on the precept that student success can be achieved through current and confirmed research about how students engage, think, and learn. Odyssey covers core K-12 curriculum in a fun and entertaining fashion, and can be used both in and out of the classroom, with the ability to track students’ progress on both individual and large group levels. For the purpose of this project, my team worked to build the 149 sets of 5th and 6th grade Math activities, with an average 25-minute interactive experience apiece. Each activity, presented in the guise of a retro-styled news report, begins with an animated explanation of a concept by a variety of off-the-wall characters, followed by an interactive quiz, with specific feedback given based on the student’s answers.

Our experience developing with modular, curriculum-based content, combined with my team’s top-flight creative skills, made each animation sing without breaking budget or schedule. With a project of this size and complexity, paired with a challenging deadline, we keyed into an immediate need for an organized, structured approach to production. Starting with a set of interrelated templates and guidelines, I oversaw the creation of a complex array of highly flexible character models (allowing efficient and modular, but never stale character animation), text/illustration motion graphics, as well as specialized animations and illustrations unique to each lesson to ensure visual freshness. Utilizing an in-house audio recording booth, we recorded what resulted in over 100 hours of edited audio to realize the 11 unique characters. The end result involved approximately 7500 Flash files incorporating over 14,000 audio files, with an additional 11,000 dynamically-called audio files used by the activities!

In 2009, Odyssey Math 5-6 won two of ComputED Gazette’s BESSIE Awards (Best Educational Software Award) in the categories of Middle School Math Intervention Website and High School Remedial Multi-Subject Website.

Over the course of a year, my team of over a dozen developed 149 animated and interactive math lessons for 5th & 6th graders, including: