Global Learning Unit Plan
We all know that Art is not truth. Art is a lie that makes us realize truth. Pablo Picasso
Chicago's Cultural Center
I teach Interrelated Arts, an interdisciplinary course that combines AP Language & Composition with the study of art history, architecture, and music appreciation. We study how artists, writers, musicians, and designers respond to and affect the values and culture of their time. My unit plan is designed to research that question further and to develop a wider appreciation for the global impact that one person can have on the world.
Unit Plan Leading Question:
In what ways do artists convey cultural values and shape conversations about issues
of deep significance and to what effect?
Unit Summary:
In this 6 week unit, students study how one contemporary artist, photographer, or documentary filmmaker from around the world uses their medium to comment on an issue of deep cultural significance while persuading their audience toward action whether social, political, or cultural in nature. To understand the context of the artist’s work, students research the historical moment out of which the piece was created, read a variety of accompanying texts that reflect the topic being explored, analyze how the artwork communicates its message to the audience, compare various perspectives and interpretations that emerge in response, and participate in the conversation by synthesizing their research into a medium of their choice: an original artwork, a curated exhibit for our in-house gallery, a mini-documentary, or a podcast, all of which will be directed towards our wider school community in order to inform and communicate a global issue to a local audience.
UBD Unit Outline.
Feel free to copy, use, amend, etc. based upon your students' needs and send along ideas, updates or products that your students created and/or curated as a final product.
Below are three of the resources, artists, and/or projects I reference during the unit.
Amar
A documentary by
Andrew Hinton
Global Oneness Project
Accompanying Lesson Plan
for additional teaching options
Global Competencies:
investigate the world, recognize perspectives, & communicate ideas across cultures
That Morning Was a Long Time Ago
Chicago Artist
Mariana Rockwell
Reflection
Artwork by Jessica Lee based upon her reading of The Book of Job & “Bontsha the Silent."
Jessica's art essay of six paintings with an accompanying analysis & artist's statement conveyed her interpretation of our class study of tragedy - a unit in my Sophomore Honors English class from a few years back. When students choose the medium to communicate their learning, the results are lasting and impactful in part because by doing so, they learn to articulate their choices while considering the audience's perspectives and cultural values.