No-Book Book Clubs were a surprise to me today! Just when I was feeling discouraged and ready to throw in the towel, the students surprise me with some insightful comments or reports about their discussions from yesterday. They still have me curious about a few things though...
In response to the poem "The White Rose" we asked the students to complete an assignment Cindy has used with her students. The students were to select 3-5 symbols to represent the section of the poem their book club focused on while reading. When the students went to work today they were all (almost without exception) focused intently on the task of creating their visual interpretation. Why is it that when students are given a blank sheet of paper and markers they become so engaged? Even the students who appeared unwilling to participate in class discussions were in the thick of coloring. Why is this? Any thoughts from the art teacher?
I am also wondering about how much group dynamics play a role in the success or failure of these groups and therefore their discussions. I am wondering about allowing the students to give me not only their preference for which book to read, but also for which students to work with in their book clubs. This adds another layer of complexity to forming groups, but I wonder if it could create more successful book clubs. Yet I'm also worried about this idea. Dragon Boy was working in a group with his friends--he would have selected at least two of the three boys he worked with--and that was not much of a success story. I'm just not sure. Is this pandering to them? Isn't the idea of civil discourse supposed to apply to any discussion, not just conversations with friends. Any thoughts on this idea?
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2 comments:
Oh my gosh - I can't believe the difference a day makes - isn't life wonderful!? I just finished responding to Cindy's blog and then I read yours and feel so vindicated in what I wrote. You're making me feel so SMART! (Okay, I'm smug, so sue me.)
But see, what is done DOES make a difference. It's just that the actions we expect are inserted into that adolescent brain where it mutates into something quite different, and often quite wonderful.
I almost couldn't get to the end of your blog to respond (then of course I had to read the earlier one as well so I had to wait EVEN LONGER!). Here is my disclaimer, you've just asked a question that touches my artist heart. I'll try to be as succinct as I can and hope to be able to express what's in my mind right now.
Dr. Patrick Fahey, my cohort in Art Education uses a great quote (sorry, don't remember who said it and I'm not sure I have it exactly right, but the gist of it is here) that might help explain the excitment of coloring. The essence of the art is the act of seeing an object not for what it looks like but for what it is. Now, I assure you the original author was much more eloquent in his words, but maybe I can explain the thought behind them.
When a student picks up a marker and makes a mark, you may see a purple blob. But what the student sees is the ESSENCE of the color, the shape, the intensity, the quailty of lines within the shape. Each of these components evokes a specific feeling.
For me purple summarizes WHO I AM. Every painting I've ever done has purple in it. Often the purple is covered by another hue, but it's there - because I'm there. The color HAS to be there. It may be hidden but because the color is my essence it must be infused into the work.
So for a student the color itself may signify an idea. When I think of purple the heady aroma of grapes hanging ripe on an arbor at the peak of summer comes fills my nose. A dusty haze lies on the surface of the plump purple sphere, darkened in spots where the vintners fingers have reached out to test it's ripness. The sweet fullness of the fruit fills my mouth as my teeth split the skin and the seed pops through the flesh against my gum. Dark juice spills from the corner of my mouth as I smile with delight. All this from a little purple shape - all this and I haven't even touched on the shape, the intensity, or the quailty of line used.
Each of these components brings another chapter of meaning into the mark. Words are wondrous things, but in my mind mark-making is pure magic. Once a word has been committed to paper it signifies an idea, or a group of ideas that usually can be corraled. Once a mark hits the paper its like a floodgate and the meaning is as fluid as the water in the river. Because we all associate different ideas with every component of a mark it isn't possible to contain or even count the number of ideas that have been unleashed. And the one idea of purple I shared is specific to a single colored blob I've pictured as I write. Your experience will be quite different. This is why you've heard me say that there are things I can say with images that I cannot say with words.
So, perhaps the students who were unwilling to participate in class discussions have internalized the story and honestly cannot find the words to describe their thoughts. Their thoughts can only be unleashed through the marks that color the pages.
Be aware however, that often the markmaking is an access point to cognition - and once the essence of the idea has been released the student might be able to sort through their thoughts and put them into words. I would encourage you to ask these students to share once they've made the marks. It is often the process of markmaking that clarifies the words and maybe help a student communicate their ideas.
As far as the idea of civil discourse...I think that any discussion needs structure to move forward. Living in a democracy I think we often take for granted the rights we have. Students need to understand that with these rights come responsibility. While we all have the "right" to say blatantly stupid things, if we want our ideas to be hear and contemplated we have a responsibility to frame them within parameters specific to the situation. Your classroom is a very different place than a public street filled with demonstrators. I think helping kids make the distinction and selecting the right words (or lack of words) for every situation is giving them a REAL education.
I hope I have actually addressed your question, you pose some great insights here!
I think Natalie's ideas provide a ton of insight into why these visual interpretation activities often engage students right off the bat. (Natalie, I want to talk to you more about this at some point). I was especially interested in her comment that "markmaking is an access point to cognition."
Now that you've actually seen their presentations of their work, what do you think, Rebecca?
Did they get more layerred insights into the poem as a result of drawing their interpretations?
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