When Walt opened the Disneyland Theme Park in 1955, he envisioned creating a place where everyone could come and be playful together. A far cry from the seedy, shady local fairs and boardwalk carnivals of yore, Disney saw the Disneyland park as a destination where kids of all ages could safely enjoy a day on elaborately themed rides and attractions, while adults could get caught up in all the excitement and learn to embrace the magic their inner child.
For Disney, the park was expressly designed to be a thing that was constantly a work in progress. A place to inspire joy, wonder, excitement, and curiosity at every turn and a destination that would captivate its visitors imaginations so guests simply couldn’t wait to come back and see what else there was to discover. We think this quote from old Uncle Walt himself really sums the issue up quite brilliantly:
"Disneyland will never be completed. It will continue to grow as long as there is imagination left in the world."
That’s the same design spirit we’ve brought together in our work and the resources we offer here at EMC² Learning. And in addition to all of the other “high energy attractions” and “colorful characters” that you’ll find throughout our site (like step-by-step teaching tutorials, and exclusive access to members-only webinars and livestreams), we’re proud to say that this site offers a mountain of classroom resources that you can take for a ride in your teaching practice. As of our site’s “soft opening” on March 1, 2021, we already have more than 200 unique classroom activities on the site for our Engagement Engineer members to enjoy. And as of our official “park opening” for our free membership tier access this summer? We’re shooting for well over 300 and counting — including even more step-by-step instructional videos, plug-and-play classroom templates, and full length book studies for each of our books. Always “plussing it” — as Walt would say. Always growing. Once again, we defer to the sage wisdom of the Man himself to crystalize the EMC² vision:
"There's really no secret about our approach. We keep moving forward—opening up new doors and doing new things—because we're curious. And curiosity keeps leading us down new paths."
And since we’re on the subject of building a space that everyone can enjoy together, we think it’s really important to emphasize how serious we are about playing safely, fairly, and with the highest degree of quality control. Likewise, the Disney theme parks are famous for their fanatical attention to detail where even the tiniest thing counts and “everything speaks.” This commitment to the excellence keeps customers fully engaged in their experience and happy to come back for more.
At EMC², we’re proud that all of our products feature only original artwork assets that have been created in house or been made possible by the work of paid creators who have been duly compensated for their time and artistic talents. That means quality control. No dinky clipart or unlicensed Google image searches. And zero off-the-shelf worksheets.
Likewise, every resource on EMC² Learning has been closely reviewed for quality assurance to keep our activities equitable, accessible, and socially emotionally responsible. We believe in the power of playful learning and classrooms that are full of discovery and excitement. But play begins with consent and safety, and we are committed to ensuring the physical, psychological, and social well-being of all learners in our classrooms. Unfortunately, we’ve seen far too many educational “games” and plug-and-play teacher websites inadvertently make light of real-life trauma including racism, sexism, ableism, and certain historical topics that are nothing to joke about. We’re serious about getting it right. And we are simply committed to offering a better way to play.
In short, there is a LOT for you to explore and enjoy on this site. From a treasure trove of never before seen activities to exciting new twists on some of our most engaging pedagogies pulled together “from the vault” into one giant streaming service that’s open 24/7/365, we’ve got so much to see and do for teachers to create, savor and enjoy with “kids” of all ages. Whether you’re looking to take in all the sites on a leisurely stroll down Main Street or looking to jump right on the big ticket attractions as fast as you can: to all who come to this happy place, welcome. After all, that was Walt’s original vision for Disneyland, right? And we can’t wait to show you around!
We hope you’ll consider joining us as an Engagement Engineer to unlock a full year of site access. For complete details including our exclusive limited time offer for annual site membership, click here.
(PS: Like the look of that Disney inspired “E Ticket” image at the top of the page? Surprise! It’s fully editable for any course or content area. And it’s just one of the hundreds of activities available inside the site. Just imagine the energy in your classroom if students were challenged to re-teach a concept they’d just learned as if the current unit of study was being turned into an elaborately themed land in one of the Disney parks — complete with colorful thematic connections splashed all throughout their creation, unit-appropriate character meet and greets, and tasty concession stand offerings to encourage lateral thinking and endless potential for iterative design! So what would Biology World look like as a themed land in an amusement park? What characters might offer face to face greetings in a theme park land inspired by Captain Underpants? What rides might there be in a theme park dedicated to The American Revolution? And what delectable confections might they be serving up in a theme park devoted to Healthy Habits 101? You get the idea — and we bet your mind is already racing with possibilities. Ready to take this pedagogy for a spin? We’ll see you inside the site!)
