Visual Thinking

& Tinkering

Tuesday September 15th

(Asynchronous, 12-2pm)

Today's Agenda:

Respond to the warmup
Engage in dialogue in the Padlet forum
Read the Burton article and submit a one-page response to Google Classroom
Watch the TED talks

Today's Goals:

I can engage in purposeful play with collage materials.

I can contribute to a vibrant (albeit virtual) discussion about the implications of last week's readings for my future teaching practice.

I can consider and summarize my thinking about the role of learners' developmental needs in making material considerations in the studio classroom.

Dear explorers,

Today we will NOT meet together on Zoom as a whole group. TOMORROW we will meet together as a whole group and we will be actively making/creating/tinkering for the MAJORITY of class!

I'm so excited to have a session of nearly uninterrupted making with you tomorrow, so please understand-- that is the rationale behind today's work being mostly focused on the reading/processing/digesting/reflecting/researching/writing work.

But there is a creative exercise for today's warmup. Before you begin... remember to put on your LAB COAT!

Remember too that if you have any questions, I am available to you. Call, text, or email me. We can also arrange a Zoom meeting if that would be helpful.

If I don't hear from you today, I'll certainly see you tomorrow on Zoom!

🌻 Erin

This book was published when Unnahar was just 19 years old. (She is 22 now). It was recommended to me by a high school art student who shares my affinity for poetry and collage (and authentic success stories of ambitious young artists).

Warmup

This strategy inspired by: Noor Unnahar (@noor_unnahar)

Elegant Problem:

Please look through your phone's camera roll and pick a random photo. Capture every detail with words and phrases.

You may choose to literally describe what you see or to free-associate and create an abstract gathering of words.

Make

a collage inspired by your writing from the warm-up.

Reflect/Respond

Last week your assignment was to gather, collect & highlight key points that resonated with you from the Swann and Henig or Wenner readings. Please pull out your notes and the reactions/questions that you identified and/or the further research you conducted.

Please POST your top reaction(s) to our Padlet under the 9/15 discussion forum column and please RESPOND to two other peoples' posts with a question or comment that furthers discussion.

The goal of this exercise to digest and process the implications of last week's reading for your future classrooms, so please bring energy and intention to your posts and dialogue with one another.

Read

Lowenfeld (An)Other Look

Please read this article then write a one-page summary (to be turned in on Google Classroom) that identifies issues of materials and development presented in the article. Elaborate on these points in addition to exploring why it is important to be considering and thinking about materials and learners' development simultaneously.

Burton - Lowenfeld (An)other look.pdf

Watch these (short!) videos & take notes in your field journal!

A short intro to the Studio SchoolSome kids learn by listening; others learn by doing. Geoff Mulgan gives a short introduction to the Studio School, a new kind of school in the UK where small teams of kids learn by working on projects that are, as Mulgan puts it, "for real."

Math class needs a makeoverToday's math curriculum is teaching students to expect -- and excel at -- paint-by-numbers classwork, robbing kids of a skill more important than solving problems: formulating them. Dan Meyer shows classroom-tested math exercises that prompt students to stop and think.

Life lessons through tinkeringGever Tulley uses engaging photos and footage to demonstrate the valuable lessons kids learn at his Tinkering School. When given tools, materials and guidance, these young imaginations run wild and creative problem-solving takes over to build unique boats, bridges and even a roller coaster!

Summarizing Checklist

By our seminar tomorrow night, please make sure to:

Respond to the warmup and post documentation of your making to our Padlet
Engage in dialogue (at least one post and at least two comments on the posts of others) in the Padlet forum
Read the Burton article responding to the legacy of the work of Viktor Lowenfeld and write a one-page response. Please submit this response to Google Classroom.
Please watch the three (short and inspiring!) TED talks and take notes about your reactions and questions.

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