For the final project in Mrs. Rasmus' Contemporary Man Language Arts class, we asked the students to complete a three pronged assignment. Students had selected a book to read during the 4th marking period. The due date to finish reading their selection fell in mid-May. The first component of the assignment asked students to identify with a character from the book and complete a character analysis. The second component involved writing a book review. The final component was to create an infographic that exemplified aspects of the story or characters central to the book.
For those of you familiar with Infographic design, you will notice that we took great liberty with the concept for this project. We may have even used the term incorrectly in the grand scheme...oh well...
Our goal was to give the students a framework to work within, but not limit their creativity. All ideas were welcome and vetted. What I found interesting is that many students were uncomfortable with the notion that they had true license to come up with what on the surface seemed "simple", but in actuality required them to carefully consider their content. "Less" required more reflection, than "more" in this instance. We did not prescribe any particular medium. Students were free to use paper, glogs, Wordle, Tagxedo, or other tool such as pic.collage shown in the example below.
As a culminating activity, students shared / presented (defended) their Infographic design (visual representations) with the entire class. The central point was for the students to carefully consider which words, images, color, symbols would convey meaning central to their understanding and use this creation to entice others to "see" their meaning, both visually and via verbal descriptions. Part of their presentation was to describe rationale for any images, words, color, placement, or design element and to answer any clarifying questions from "the audience".
Since this was our first time "out-of-the-gate", Mrs. Rasmus and I were not quite sure what to expect. We found ourselves in awe of the unique "packages" presented on the finals day. It is difficult to explain, but because we did not measure the message within one "tool" but rather by substance, student strengths emerged in quite remarkable ways.
One presentation in particular will remain memorable. The truth is that we would have never "seen" this had we confined our expectations. This particular student read a piece of historical fiction about the yellow fever plague set in the 1800s. He was a quiet young man, always had a book open and reading, to the point where we wondered if he was "listening". During our conferencing sessions about the visual representation, it appeared his initial idea was somewhat "elementary" in nature. His vision and artistic ability reminded me of a folk art drawing, rather simplistic. We discussed the importance of selecting visual pieces to include, words that would best "sum-up" the message / meaning of the story. Quite frankly, early on, I considered his content to be even a bit "boring"..., as-if he were missing some grand point. (Sorry...).
When it came time for him to present his infographic, the visual he presented was drawn by hand on simple, construction-like paper. On this one sheet, he created the time, place, and situation. Through his words and actions, he conveyed the emotion and significance central to understanding the depth of this story. It was riveting. I was mesmerized, as were many in the class. I felt in the presence of true, raw talent. And what's more, by his very nature, he would have easily moved through any final project, earning a respectable grade, without much more notice.
His "final" reminded me of how important it is to remember that we are not all that much different...we (students and teachers) both learn, we both grow through our experiences. I'm not sure he realized how "good" he actually was, the impact he had on those in the room. I'm grateful he (and all students in Spring 2012 Contemporary Man class) had a forum in which to "be", to "solve", to "reach others" with their ideas, and to "teach us". That's the intent of school...really. Some days are just more magical...
In closing, many, many students presented projects worthy of recognition. Unfortunately, the school year came to a close so soon after the project, that we did not reflect early enough to gather too many to share.
One young lady though, Katie A., a was one of our "early" adopters to the concept of presenting her story using visuals. From the beginning, she sent her ideas to Mrs. Rasmus via a web link to the site / tool she selected as her presentation medium (http://pic-collage.com). She has kindly given permission for me to display her work here. Katie was quite comfortable with the idea...
I wonder, does this visual entice you to want to know more?
It did for us...
Mrs. E.
