For my lesson plan I decided to do a drawing activity, because I’m a big fan of art and letting kids express themselves freely. For the activity, all the students get into pairs. One student is assigned as “A” and the other is “B”. The two students are each handed a folder of two pictures labeled one and two, along with two blank papers. Student “A” will be instructed to be the describer first and student “B” will be the drawer. Student “A” then has two minutes to describe the picture, while student “B” draws it. After the two minutes is over student “B” becomes the describer, and “A” the drawer. The process is then repeated a second time.
As William Ayers describes the idea of building bridges in his book, “To Teach the journey, in comics” this drawing lesson can relate very well to his metaphor. Ayers’ metaphor of building bridges can be interpreted as the ability for students to make connections from in class work or discussions to real world situations/problems/issues. The task of building bridges is important because, it pushes the student to apply the knowledge they have gained in the classroom and put it to real use. Many students, including myself at times, often forget to use what we have learned in class when dealing with real life situations - whether it be math, psychology, or science. An example of how the drawing lesson plan can be qualified as building bridges is because it emphasizes the importance of communication skills. For the activity to go smoothly, the students must clearly, descriptively, and effectively speak to one another, especially because they are under a time restraint. This tool to communicate is key to society, because we are often faced with challenges that cause us to get our point across well and quickly - such as interviews, presentations, or speed dating. Another lesson that relates to building bridges from this drawing activity is effective listening. The lesson requires effective listening, because in order to successfully draw the pictures both partners must listen closely to each other’s advice and questions. This connects to the outside world, because listening plays a key role in how well you can understand others emotions and input. Many people engage in passive listening, but not critical. Critical listening focuses on people actively engaging in the conversation, and hearing out what each other has to say (an important quality to possess).
If I wanted this activity to go successfully, I definitely would take into consideration the advice from Freire, Ohanian, DiGuilia, and Ayers. From Freie, he stresses the importance for students’ goal to be becoming “beings” for themselves. (106) This means that he wants students to express themselves how they truly feel and not to be afraid to think out of the box. The drawing lesson allows the students to describe and draw however they please too. With a lack of strict rules on what you can/cannot say or draw, students are able to choose how they approach the task. This is important because students will then hopefully apply their own creative thinking to approach real world discussions.
Ohanian on the other hand discusses the idea of that what counts is endeavor and attitude (108). I agree with Ohanian on this notion, because when a kid considers themselves to be bad at something they do not find joy in participating. I think that reassuring kids as long as they are trying their best is all that matters. As a teacher it is obligatory we remind our students of that. Ohanian’s advice is important for teachers to take note on, because I think that sometimes teachers forget not all students can do everything the best, but as long as they are pushing themselves to do the best is what truly counts! The drawing activity encourages students to perform to their best ability without pressure.
Ayers’ emphasizes the message that: “Learning is active, and we’re all in this together” (41). I think this message is incorporated well with the drawing activity, because everyone is working together for a common goal - to draw and describe successfully. This can be connected to the real world, because everyone is trying to reach a common goal of being successful and finding happiness.
Lastly, DiGuilio’s advice that stood out to me the most was “Empowering means actively teaching students to help themselves” (129). This is specifically important, because kids need to be reminded they can do things on their own. Because students are always being told by their parents, teachers, and others around them what to do, they forget they can do things their own way. Although it is teachers’ jobs to instruct students on how to do their homework, classwork, and other activities, I believe it is important we find a balance that also allows them to express their ideas/problem solving solutions in their own way. Empowering students forces them to become their own people and promotes their creativity, which is key to the drawing and describing aspect of the drawing activity.
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