Hello families!
I wanted to include you in a new project the 7th and 8th graders have been assigned—it’s an extension of their “30 Things I Believe” assignment.
Mr. Kobe in Art, Ms. Hanson in Computers, and I are working together on this project. It is aimed at getting the kids to “be the change they want to see in the world.”
It is not due until a few weeks into Q4, and students will have some work time in class; students will, however, be required to complete a significant portion of this project outside of class/school.
Some important points that we went over together in class are:
A) This project must document positive beliefs in action in the student’s community; so, for example, students should not be tearing out pictures from magazines of people in, say, South Africa doing something positive (unless, of course, South Africa is an active part of the student’s life in some way…)
B) Students must be creating a new piece of art for this project; so, for example, students should not be printing off pictures from their Facebook page of a field trip to Feed My Starving Children three years ago (even though that’s a wonderful, positive thing!).
C) “Community” for our purposes can mean your family’s home, neighborhood, local recreation center, library, Paideia, place of worship, sports team, family vacation, family friends’ home or neighborhood, parent/guardian workplace, cousin’s house, mall, dentist’s office, etc.
D) In order to be safe, students must have parent/guardian permission and/or supervision before going out into their communities to document and create positive action.
Below are some basic guidelines for the project. (Which the students have been given.)
Thanks so much, and please contact me with any questions or concerns—
Leah Hood
This I Believe
Beliefs In Action
Photo/Video Gallery Project
Social Studies-Meets-Art
Due at end of Week 3 of Q4 (Friday, April 29th)
Purpose:
*To locate and document your positive beliefs in action in the community
*To create inspiring, substantive art with a social conscience
Directions:
*Choose your Top 5 Beliefs from your list of 30 Things I Believe; these 5 beliefs should be, in your mind, some of your strongest/most important beliefs (you can also choose to include more than 5!)
*Over the next month, document your Top 5 Beliefs in action; you may choose to take photographs, shoot short video clips, or record sound bytes that show/represent your Top 5 Beliefs in action out in your community.
*During the second and third weeks of Q4, Mr. Kobe will be working with you in Art to present your beliefs in an artistic fashion; I highly recommend that you work on taking your photographs (or whatever format you choose) over break, because Mr. Kobe is expecting that you will come to Art class prepared to work on this project—and he will hold you to it! Ms. Hanson will also provide you with some work time and guidance in Computers class.
*Each piece (photo, video, sound) must have a title.
*Each piece must have a well-written caption explaining what is happening and how you think it represents that particular belief.
*Remember: This is not a list of facts, or simply a list of things that you like; this is a list of beliefs about how you think the world should be, stated in a positive way.
Examples:
*(Hypothetical) Belief: “I believe we should help people.”
*Take a photograph of the food drive at your place of worship.
*Can’t find an example of your belief in action? Make it happen yourself! Go to the grocery store with your family and buy a bag of groceries for your local food shelf; then take a picture of your family donating the food!
