Sketchnoting Beautiful Questions
Last week, I brainstormed questions regarding my teaching practices. This week, I evaluated, edited, and added to the question pile. I mentioned in my previous blog that I struggled with this. This week is a different story. After reading the third chapter in Warren Berger’s (2014), A More Beautiful Question book, I was deeply inspired by the innovative stories and how (most likely subconsciously), Berger’s why, what if, and how structure was utilized to solve problems.
To document my brainstorm process, I created a sketchnote video. Sketchnote is a style of note-taking that involves more visuals and fewer words (Neill, n.d.). This was my first attempt at making a sketchnote video, and I have to admit, it was not an easy feat. I quickly found myself using Berger’s (2014) 3 question method for innovation to help me complete this task.
I started with the Why. Why are my instructors asking me to sketchnote? Before recording, I did my homework and learned about the process. When adding illustrations to notes, it taps into parts of the brain that normally are not activated during traditional note-taking methods (Cox, 2019). Next, I applied What If by imagining the best approach to record this bird’s eye view video. After many failed attempts, the configuration that worked included my iPhone bolstered up by a selfie stick, wedged into the hand holes of a canvas bin, and placed on top of an ironing board. I arranged a whiteboard below, which became the centerstage.
Finally, utilizing the How or the doing (Berger, 2014, p. 75), I analyzed how to present the content (including images) and searched for connections. While doing this, I couldn’t help but think about how sketchnoting would benefit my students. I have always encouraged doodling and now understand that it actually fosters recall and supports understanding.
Berger, W. (2014). A more beautiful question: The power of inquiry to spark breakthrough ideas. New York, NY: Bloomsbury.