The Murals - Archi

Transcription

The Murals - Archi

Introduction
This Humboldt Park Mural Arts Program
(HP MAP) Teaching Toolkit is the result of
many minds coming together around the belief
that the Humboldt Park community is a place
where learning, healthy lifestyles, and homegrown leadership takes place every day. Colorful
and content-rich murals can be found throughout the neighborhood. Often, they represent
much more than the talent and vision of the artists who created them by capturing the concerns
of local residents, reflecting upon moments in
history, and honoring people who have made
this a special place. HP MAP leverages this
wealth of information as a teaching tool for our
youth and uses it as an incentive for all of us to
get moving and become more physically active.
HP MAP grew out of the Building
Community Through the Arts Task Force,
which was an initiative of Local Initiative
Support Corporation’s (LISC’s) New
Communities Program. The Task Force recognized that art and culture are integrated into
every aspect of our daily lives and that there
might be strategies to enhance their impact.
HP MAP was formed to create new murals, to
restore old murals, and to develop strategies that
use murals as a way to represent community
issues, ideals, and vision. By recognizing murals
as local destinations, they can be utilized as a
tool to revitalize the health, well-being and vitality of Humboldt Park residents.
archi-treasures is an arts-based community
development organization that has worked in
Humboldt Park for the past 15 years and is
excited to launch the HP MAP Enrichment
Project with support from the Illinois
Humanities Council, and the Advocate Bethany
Health Fund. Since our first project with the
Puerto Rican Culture Center in 1998, La Casita
de Don Pedro, we have partnered with many
schools and organizations in the neighborhood,
using the arts and design to build community by
strengthening social connections. Like all of our
projects, the HP MAP Teaching Toolkit starts
by recognizing and honoring the valuable assets
that already exist in this community. We hope to
continue this successful partnership well into the
future.
Joyce Fernandes, Executive Director
archi-treasures
May, 2012
HP MAP Teaching Toolkit | i
Humboldt Park Mural Arts Program
Enrichment Project
Author: Teaching Toolkit
Karen Indeck, Associate Director, archi-treasures
Design: Teaching Toolkit
Gerta Sorensen, Sorensen London Design
Editors: Teaching Toolkit
Melissa Rose Authemente
Joel Mynsberge
Xavier Louis Burgos
Martha Watterson
Advisory Committee
Eduardo Arocho, Poet
Melissa Rose Authement, Polaris Charter Academy
Xavier Luis Burgos, Barrio, Arts, Culture, & Communications Academy (BACCA)
of the Puerto Rican Cultural Center
Jessica Carrillo, Youth Service Project
Rishi Desai, Bickerdike Redevelopment Corporation
Jessica Maldonado, Erie Elementary Charter School
Christy Prahl, Bickerdike Redevelopment Corporation
Maraliz Salgado, Erie Elementary Charter School
Brenda Torres, Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos High School
John Vergara, Artist
Angie Yeoh, Association House of Chicago
A special thank you to
Jose Lopez, Puerto Rican Cultural Center
Veronica Ocasio, Institute of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture
3339 West Division Street
Chicago, Illinois 60651
p 773.772.4416
f 773.772.4418
www.architreasures.org
ii | HP MAP Teaching Toolkit
Contents
The Toolkit Part One
v
How to Use the Toolkit
Mural Tour (Field Trip)
vi
The Murals
ix
Grades 6-8
Investigation 1
Public Art: Learning About Public Art
1
(May be adapted for grades 3-5)
Investigation 2
Analyze a Work of Art
19
(May be adapted for grades 3-5)
Investigation 3
Art as Social Commentary
29
Investigation 4
Symbol and Symbolism
43
Investigation 5
Political Art
61
Investigation 6
What Do We Know About Voting
77
Investigation 7
Unidos Para Triunfar/Together We Overcome
91
Investigation 8
Sea of Flags and Fiesta Boricua
111
Investigation 9
Aesthetics in the Art of Graffiti
129
Investigation 10
Making a Mural
147
Investigation 11
Happy Feet (for grades 3-8)
159
Investigation 12
A Symbol Is Worth a Thousand Words
175
Investigation 13
Learning About Maps and Mapping
185
Investigation 14
Create a Travel Brochure or Scrapbook on Puerto Rico
203
Investigation 15
Petroglyphs and Pictographs
209
Investigation 16
Puerto Rican Music
219
Investigation 17
The Tale of Two Cultures
225
Investigation 18
Heroes
235
Grades 3-5
HP MAP Teaching Toolkit | iii
The Toolkit Part Two
Mural Bike Tour
243
The Murals
247
Grades 6-8
Investigation 19
Cracking the Code
253
Investigation 20
The Concept of Freedom
263
Investigation 21
Conflict Resolution 101
271
Toolkit Resources
Teacher Survey
285
Additional Resources
289
iv | HP MAP Teaching Toolkit
How to Use the Toolkit
The Humboldt Park Mural Art Program
Teaching Toolkit has been designed to be used by
teachers who work professionally in our neighborhood schools, parents seeking exciting cultural
activities for their families, and youth workers
providing after-school programs and activities.
We intend this toolkit to be used widely and to
become a model for arts-based community programs throughout Chicago and the nation.
The toolkit has been designed to enhance the
experience of walking field trips to view murals
in the Paseo Boricua area of Humboldt Park.
Each lesson is called an “Investigation.” There
are eleven Investigations for grade levels 6–8, and
seven Investigations for grade levels 3–5. Almost
all of the Investigations include more than one
activity; some are designed to occur during the
field trip and others are designed to take place
in the classroom or at home before or after the
field trip. The first page of each Investigation
includes our recommendation for which activities
are critical and which are optional depending on
time and interest.
Each activity begins with the following:
Tools are lists of the handouts, worksheets,
PowerPoint presentations, vocabulary, and other
components of the activity.
Time is our best estimate of how long each
activity will take. This time frame may vary
wildly depending on the number and skill sets of
the students who are participating.
Objectives are the skills that students are
intended to derive from the activity.
Teaching Plans include background informa-
tion, a suggested sequence of presentation, notes
and questions intended to stimulate discussion,
references.
Wooksheets are meant to be completed by
students individually or as a group.
Handouts are information sheets intended
to be used by students, usually to accompany
research activities. Worksheets are intended to
be completed by students (filling in the blanks).
These sheets are designed so that they can be easily removed from a binder to be copied for distribution. At the end of many Investigations there
is a list of vocabulary words.
The toolkit includes a fold out brochure, the
Humboldt Park Mural Tour brochure, with a
map designed to be used on the field trip itself
by the person leading the tour. The map shows
a suggested route for travel from mural to mural
and brief description of each mural. There are
worksheets to accompany some of the mural
stops, but not all.
A CD with visual presentations in a Microsoft
PowerPoint format is also included. At the end
of the toolkit, additional resources are listed,
including recommendations of various arts organizations and local businesses that are available
to enrich your experience. The complete toolkit
is available at www.architreasures.org/portfolio/
mop-teaching-toolkit.
The toolkit is meant to be flexible and userfriendly, so please give us feedback! (contact
information on pg. ii)
HP MAP Teaching Toolkit | v
Mural Field Trip
The walking tour includes eleven murals and
landmarks located between Division Street
and North Avenue, and between Western and
California. We estimate that the field trip will
take 2½–3 hours.
On-Site Worksheets
Mural A: Investigation 5
Worksheet: Political and Hero
Mural: LaCrucifixion de Don Pedro Albizu
Campos
If this field trip is too long, it can be divided
into two segments. If you are unable to go on a field
trip, images of the murals for each investigation are
on the Powerpoints and Articles CD, located at the
back of the Toolkit. Although it is recommended
students see the murals in person, on-Site worksheets
may be completed in the classroom to save time.
Before going on the field trip, we recommend
completing Investigation 1 Public Art: Learning
About Public Art and Investigation 2: Analyze a
Work of Art.
Public Art
Analyzing a Work of Art
Worksheet: Symbols and Symbolism
Murals: 79th and Escuelita Tropical
Mural E: Investigation 8
Worksheet: What Do You See
Mural: Sea of Flags
Mural I: Investigation 9
Worksheet: Graffiti Art
Mural: Co-Op Image
Mural K: Investigation 3
1
19
The Toolkit includes worksheets to be
completed while on the field trip. Please have
the students bring along clip boards so they may
easily complete the on-site worksheets.
vi | HP MAP Teaching Toolkit
Mural D and F: Investigation 4
Worksheet: Art and Social Commentary
Mural: Breaking the Chains
Planning
Check the weather forecast as part of your planning and make arrangements for an alternate
field trip day if there is inclement weather.
• Conduct a pre-visit tour to familiarize
yourself with the route.
• Think about safety issues.
• Make arrangements for water and a snack.
• Arrange to bring along a camera(s) to document the field trip.
• Consider asking students to wear the same
color clothing so they are easily recognized.
Recruit volunteer chaperones to help manage
groups of students. Prepare them by meeting
beforehand to review the following:
• Objectives of the field trip
• Where they will be going: provide them with
a map of the route
• What their responsibilities will be: keep students focused, keep them together, make sure
the students are safe, etc.
• How many students will they be responsible
for
• What supplies and information they will be
provided on the day of the field trip: a list of
emergency numbers, name tags, etc.
• What student jobs will be while on the tour:
Examples: headcounters, timekeepers, speakers, organizers, safety officers, etc.
school. Be sure to file any required paperwork,
send home permission slips, and advise other
teachers if their students will be on a field trip.
Provide alternative arrangements for students not
going on the field trip.
Day of Tour
• Assign chaperones to a small group
• Give each chaperone a list of emergency
numbers
• Make sure that everyone is wearing a name tag
• Introduce chaperones so everyone can
recognize them
• Review rules with students on behavior: ask
students to help you brainstorm the standards
for conduct.
• Make sure cell phones are in working order in
case of an emergency
• Take a first aid kit
• Assign each student a partner
• Take water
• Give each student a clip board and something
to write with (6-8 grades)
• Assign a few students to document the trip
• Reflect on the trip and provide time for
students to write in their journals and work on
their worksheets
Field trip requirements are different for each
HP MAP Teaching Toolkit | vii
Mural Tour Map*
Mural A
Mural B
Mural C
Mural D
Mural E
Mural F
Mural G
Mural H
Mural I
Mural J
Mural K
La Crucifixion de Don Pedro Albizu Campos
I Will…The People United Cannot Be Defeated
Paseo Boricua Gateway Flags
Note: The mural titled Together We
79th
Overcome is not on the walking tour but
Sea of Flags
has an investigation for the students to do.
Escuelita Tropical
It is located at Hoyne and Division Street
La Casita de Don Pedro
on the west side of the Hoyne Street.
Born of Fire
Co-Op Image Graffiti Mural
*Portable version on the “Humboldt
Honor Boricua
Park Mural Tour” Brochure.
Breaking the Chains
viii | HP MAP Teaching Toolkit
The Murals
About the Murals
There are eleven murals on the walking tour. There is
a mural titled Together We Overcome located at Hoyne
and Division Street on the west side of the street.
This mural is not on the walking tour but has an
investigation for the students to do.
Mural B
Title: I Will…The People United Cannot Be Defeated
Date: 2004
Artists: Northeastern Illinois University Students
Location: 1300 North Western (at Western and
Additional sites: Information about additional places or
things to see on the field trip are noted.
Mural A
Title: LaCrucifixion de Don Pedro Albizu Campos
Date: 1971
Artists: Mario Galan, Jose Bermudez, Hector Rasario
Location: 2425 West North Avenue (at North and
Artesian on Artesian side)
• Don Pedro Albizu Campos, the leader of the Puerto
Rican Nationalist Party, is depicted crucified in the
center alongside two other Nationalists of the 1950s.
Portraits of six independence and abolitionist leaders
of the 19th century are lined across the top.
• The flag in the background is called the La Bandera
de Lares. It represents Puerto Rico’s first declaration
of independence from Spain on September 23, 1868.
This armed uprising is historically known as El Grito
de Lares.
• It took nine years to save this mural from destruction.
A new condominium was planned and if built, would
have blocked off the mural. Community members
concerned about gentrification of the neighborhood
as well as saving the oldest existing Puerto Rican
mural in Chicago went into action and saved it.
Potomac on Potomac side )
• The mural is sending a message that encourages
people to vote.
• It depicts the activist figures Mother Jones, Fred
Hampton, Eugene Debs, and Lucy Parsons.
• The mural reflects the mass mobilization of people
to exercise their right to vote and to become active
leaders toward positive social change.
• The title of the mural comes from a chant first heard
at a Chilean protest.
Mural C
Title: Paseo Boricua Gateway Flags
Date: 1995
Location: One flag at Western and Division and one
flag at California and Division
• Each flag weighs 45 tons, measures 56’ high, and
forms a 59’ arch from one side of the street to the
other. They are made out of steel and steel pipeline
welded together.
• The flags were made out of steel to honor the first
wave of Puerto Rican immigrants who established
themselves in Chicago and the Midwest to work in
the steel industry in the mid 1940s. The second wave
of Puerto Ricans came specifically to work on steel
pipelines, the material the flags are made out of
HP MAP Teaching Toolkit | ix
• These flags act as the gateway to Paseo Boricua, the
portion of Division Street between these flags.
Mural D
Title: 79th
Date: 2009
Artist: John Vergara
Location: 2460 West Division (at Division and
Campbell on Campbell side)
• This mural depicts the recently designed Paseo
Boricua flag that recognizes Humboldt Park as the
heart of the City’s Puerto Rican community.
• The symbolism in the Coat of Arms connects Puerto
Rico and its culture to the City of Chicago.
• Paseo Boricua is the first location outside the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico to be granted the
right to fly an official Municipal Flag of Puerto Rico.
• The reason this mural is titled “79th” is that there are
78 municipalities in Puerto Rico and Paseo Boricua
has the honor of being named the 79th.
Mural E
Title: Sea of Flags
Date: 2004
Artist: Gamaliel Ramirez with assistance from Star
Padilla, Moncho, Luis Ortiz, Melissa Cintron, and
members of the community
• The mural depicts a cultural/music event called
Fiesta Boricua (De Bandera a Bandera). The Festival
attracts over 250,000 people every year and is held in
September. Visitors can hear salsa, reggaeton, bomba,
x | HP MAP Teaching Toolkit
plena, and merengue music pulsing in the streets.
• The mural depicts some famous people including
National Puerto Rican icon Lolita Lebrón, Pedro
Pietri, and Don Pedro Albizu Campos, the leader of
the Puerto Rican Independence Movement who is
depicted as a bronze statue on the left of the image.
• The abundance of Puerto Rican flags is an intentional
comment by the artists. From 1898 to 1952, when
Puerto Rico became annexed by the United States, it
was considered a felony to display the Puerto Rican
flag in public; the only flag permitted to be flown on
the island at that time was the United States flag.
Mural F
Title: Escuelita Tropical
Date: 2005
Artist: Eren Star Padilla
Location: 2516 West Division
• This is one of the few murals in the area created by a
female artist.
• Symbols on the mural refer to Taíno petroglyphs
and pictographs found in the Caribbean as well as
Aztec symbols from Mexico. The symbols are PreColumbian and speak to the cultural identity of the
Puerto Rican and Mexican children of Viva Child +
Family, the child development center that owns the
building where the mural is located.
Mural G
Title: LaCasita de Don Pedro
• This is a park dedicated to Humboldt Park’s Puerto
Rican community designed to look like the Puerto
Rican flag from above. Three red tiled stripes lead to
the base of the statue, which is shaped like a star.
• “La casita” or “little house,” is a replica of a 1940s
typical rural house in Puerto Rico with a zinc roof
and a porch.
• The statue of Don Pedro Albizu Campos located in
the center of the park was originally intended to be
installed in Humboldt Park but was rejected by the
Chicago Park District because Albizu Campos was
thought to be too controversial.
• The park hosts bomba and plenta dance and drum
classes, political rallies, concerts, art exhibits, and
other events
• La Casita de Don Pedro was one of archi-treasures’
pilot projects, completed in 1998.
Mural H
achievements with specific reference to the 1996
Division Street Riots and the Three Kings Festival.
• After the Riots, the community became more
politically active and vibrant.
• Puerto Rico’s national flower, the maga, or hibiscus
flower is depicted.
Mural I
Title: Co-Op Image Graffiti Mural
Date: 2011
Artists: Co-Op Image
California on Division side)
• This graffiti style mural reflects the vitality of life on
Division Street.
• The mural confirms that graffiti can be an art form
and not just vandalism.
• The graffiti mural was legally sanctioned by an automechanic shop that gave the organization permission
to paint it.
• The image in the center is from a photograph taken
on April 16, 1936. Albizu Campos is rallying a crowd
to become a force for independence.
Title: Born of Fire
Date: 2006
Mural J
Artist: Martin Soto
Title: Honor Boricua
Washtenaw on Washtenaw)
Date: 1992
• This mural is a complicated narrative about the
Puerto Rican community in Chicago. It contains
images about education, culture, sports, gang
violence, and Puerto Rican historical figures.
• The mural reflects community, social, and political
concerns as well as neighborhood history and
Artist: Hector Duarte
Location: 1318 North Rockwell
• The mural honors the Puerto Rican heritage of many
people in Humboldt Park.
• The flag flying across the sea from Old San Juan,
Puerto Rico to Chicago and back represents the
HP MAP Teaching Toolkit | xi
ongoing exchange of culture, resources, people, and
ideas between the communities. The mural illustrates
transnational and multicultural messages.
• The artist interviewed community members about
their stories and used their ideas to develop the theme
for the mural.
• Borinquen is the original Taíno Indian name for the
Island of Puerto Rico.
Mural K
Title: Breaking the Chains/Rompiendo Las Cadenas
Date: 1971
Artist: John Pitman Weber
Location: 1500 North Rockwell
• The mural is about community struggles.
• There are hands breaking the chains of poverty,
racism, and war and holding up children carrying
roses in a bright light that symbolizes a bright future
for the next generation.
• The woman crying from the burning window is a
reference to the arsons that plagued the community
in the early 1970’s when landlords began burning
buildings to collect the insurance on them.
xii | HP MAP Teaching Toolkit
Investigation 1
Learning About Public Art
Not all art is in museums. This investigation considers
art that comes to life in the streets, on civic buildings, and
public parks of our city. Chicago has a wealth of public art
that enhances our urban environment. Public art occupies
a prominent place in the history of our communities and
city, reflecting the important issues and events of the day
or simply providing an aesthetic experience. It is art that
is intended for everyone. Students will conduct research,
develop presentations, create art, understand the role of the
public artist, write an artist statement, and learn about public
art from other cultures.
Grades: 6–8 (May be adapted for grades 3-5)
Recommended activities
Activity 1: What is Public Art?
Optional activities
Activity 2: Analyze a Cultural Object
Activity 3: My Culture
Activity 4: Making a Maquette
Activity 5: I am an Artist
Investigation 1: Learning About Public Art | 1
Tools
PowerPoint presentation: Public Art.pptx
Handouts (pages 3–4)
Worksheet (pages 5–7)
Time
3 one-hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will build an appreciation for public art
>
Students will communicate an understanding of the purpose of public
art supported by reasoned responses from studying examples
>
Students will use vocabulary from the elements of art
>
Students will identify a variety of art media and processes
Teaching plan
1. Start this activity by showing the Power Point presentation,
Public Art.
2. Discuss the definition of Public Art with your students using
the handout, What is Public Art?
3. Ask your students to complete the worksheet, What is Public Art?
Illinois Learning Standards
18.A.3 | 25.A.2d | 25.B.2
26.A.3.b | 27.B.2
Common Core Standards
Speaking and Listening: 1, 2
2 | Investigation 1: Learning About Public Art
Activity 1 What is Public Art?
Handout
Public art goes back to prehistoric cave paintings and is as new as
contemporary murals. Murals are a type of public art that spans all of
history, crosses cultural boundaries, and has been created from a variety of
media. Murals and other types of public art can inform and instruct.
At a basic level, public art can be “…defined
as work created by artists for places accessible
to and used by the public.”1 The definition of
public art continues to evolve as is reflected in
the variety of definitions found in established
public art ordinances. Public art ordinances
are laws that are written by a government
body to define and regulate art in public
places.
Chicago is a remarkable city because of
its tradition of civic pride. Our architecture,
dynamic public spaces, and public art are a
strong part of that tradition.
There are several types of public art
• Permanent works of art are meant to last a
long time, such as sculptures, fountains and
memorials.
• Temporary works of art are constructed of
materials that will break down over time,
such as some environmental/earth works of
art or transient art events such as street art or
performance events.
• Functional works of art are integrated into the
environment such as, benches, railings, stairs,
flooring, and decorative windows that are part
of the public realm.
Why does a city have public art?
• to create an attractive place and give it
character
• to enhance public appreciation and
knowledge of art
• to reflect the history, people, and cultures of
the city
• to recognize or honor local heroes
• to create a symbol for the City or
neighborhood (the Statue of Liberty or “the
Bean”) reminding people of the uniqueness
of these places
How does public art effect the quality of public space?
Art can increase the value of an environment
and quality of life.2 Public art can serve many
objectives simultaneously, such as pleasing
people, creating art for a community/city,
and bringing prestige to a neighborhood. The
effects of art works and artistic activities on
the quality of public space can be examined
under the following topics: social contribution,
cultural continuity, aesthetic experience,
identity, and economic benefit.3
Continued...
Handout continued
Social contribution: Artistic activities such
as festivals, carnivals, and performances in
public places bring people together, and create
energy. Public art works such as murals or
mosaics can also bring people together, create
energy, and increase shared experiences by
involving the public in volunteer programs to
help artists produce works of art.
Cultural continuity: Art is a direct
reflection of culture- a set of shared attitudes,
values, goals, and practices. What one
generation learns from the previous one will
change as a society changes and adapts to
new conditions. We can send a message to
future generations through public works of
art. We can also learn about past generations
by looking at public art. For example, the
Paseo Boricua Gateway Flags on Division
Street represent the Puerto Rican community
that lives in Humboldt Park now, but the
statue of Leif Erikson on Sacramento in front
of the field house represents the Norwegian
community that lived in Humboldt Park
earlier in the 20th century.
Aesthetic experience: Public art can
enrich people’s lives by making aesthetics a part
of everyday life. We experience art through our
senses and our emotions.
Handout
identity of the place and the culture of the
community it represents.
Economic benefit: Public art activities,
festivals and carnivals can attract a great
number of people to cities. During the “Cows
on Parade” contemporary art installation in
Chicago, an extra 2 million tourists visited
the city and spent 500 million dollars for
accommodations, food, shopping, and
sightseeing over a 3-month period.4
Where do you see
public art?
• transportation terminals
• parks
• on buildings, as pieces or parts of
architecture
• bus stops
• on sidewalks
• in gardens
• shopping malls
• in front of museums
• as fountains
• religious institutions
References
1. City of Columbus Art Commission. April 4, 2010. Public Art Overview. http://columbus.
gov/uploadedFiles/Development/Planning_Division/Columbus_Arts_CommissionPublic%20Art%20Overview.pdf.
2. Longini, S.J. Public Art Contributes to City’s Prestige, Defines Its Image, Oakland
Identity: Art expresses the identity of the
artist who made it, but can also express the
Tribune. 2006. http://www.scribd.com/doc/24011948/Public-Art.
3. Ozsoy Ashen, Bayram, Bahar. The Role of Public Art for Improving the Quality of Public
Spaces In the Residentail Environment. Sustainable Urban Areas Conference, Rotterdam.
2007. http://www.scribd.com/doc/24011948/Public-Art.
4. Project for Public Spaces. How Art Economically Benefits Cities.
http://placemaking.pps.org/info/pub_art/art_impact.
Worksheet
Public Art in Chicago
Choose a piece of public art in Chicago and answer the following questions. If possible, you should
go view the actual artwork. You will get a very different perspective when you see it in person.
The following are resources to help you choose a piece of art:
Chicago Public Art Guide - Explore Chicago. www.explorechicago.org/etc/medialib/explore_chicago/
tourism/pdfs_guides_and_maps/public_art_guide.Par.57923.File.dat/ENTIRE_PA_WEB.pdf
Public Scholarship Definitions. The Center for Community Engagement, The University of North
Dakota. www.und.edu/centers/communityengagement/resources/psdefs.cfm
Project for Public Spaces. How Art Economically Benefits Cities. www.placemaking.pps.org/info/
pub_art/art_impact
Chicago Public Art Collection City of Chicago – Department of Cultural Affairs. www.
cityofchicago.org/content/dam/city/depts/dca/PublicArt/PublicArtGuide.pdf
Chicago Outdoor Sculpture. www.chicago-outdoor-sculptures.blogspot.com/2007/06/sculptors.html
Public Art In Chicago. Chicago Transit Authority. www.transitchicago.com/news_initiatives/art
Chicago Public Art Group. www.cpag.net/home/map.html
Questions:
1. What basic information can you learn about the artwork itself or about the artist just
by looking at it?
2. Who made it?
3. When was it made?
4. What is its title?
5. What is it made out of?
Worksheet continued
Worksheet
6. Where is the artwork located? Describe what is around it.
7. Does it depict anything? If so, what?
8. What visual elements are important in this artwork? (line, color, balance, shape form, space,
value, mass, texture, light, proportion, rhythm, emphasis, harmony, variety, and unity)
9. Where was it made? What tools, materials, and processes did the artist use?
10. Why do you think the artist chose this particular medium? Has the meaning of the artwork
been affected by the artist’s choice of medium?
11. What information can you find to help you begin to develop your own interpretation
of the artwork?
Worksheet continued
Worksheet
12. Does it have an obvious or not-so-obvious function?
13. Does it use symbols to reinforce a message? What are the symbols and what do they
communicate to you?
14. Do other artworks by the same artist give you a better sense of the meaning of the artwork?
Locate two other artworks by the same artist and describe them.
15. What viewer(s) do you think the artist intended the artwork for? What evidence in the work
supports that idea?
Activity 2: Analyze a Cultural Object
Tools
Handout (page 10)
Note: Handout for how to make a PowerPoint presentation is included
separately in the packet on CD.
Time
3 one-hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will learn to understand the cultural contributions
(social, political, religious) of the arts
>
Students will learn how the arts shape and are shaped by prevailing
cultural and social beliefs and values
>
Students will recognize artworks from a variety of cultures and
historical periods
>
Students will analyze how art is used to impart information
>
Students will deepen their awareness and knowledge of other cultures
18.A.3 | 27.A.3.b | 27.B.3
3.C.3ab | 4.B.3.a
Writing: 2,4,5,6,7,8,10
Speaking and Listening: 4,5,6
Activity 2 Analyze a Cultural Object
Teaching Plan
Analyze a Cultural Object
Cultural objects or artifacts represent a myriad of images and ideas including information about
the culture and the people that created them. They can also embody the spirit of a people or may
have another purpose or use beyond aesthetics. Tje physical characteristics of a cultural object may
contain information about the philosophical, political, and ideological organization of a culture.
Ask the class to define the word culture. Is it a set of values, traditions…? Make a running list.
List examples of cultural artifacts. Whichever artifacts you choose to present should be
accompanied by pictures and information about the use of the artifact:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Mural about the Carifesta Festival in the Caribbean
Aboriginal dreamtime stories
Keplie masks of the Senufo
Zulu beadwork
Aztec murals
Taíno petroglyphs from Puerto Rico
A Mexican mural painting from the Mexican Revolution
Molas from the San Blas Islands
Huichol yarn paintings
Petroglyphs of the Anastazi
Sand paintings of the southwest Navajo
Greek sculpture
Egyptian afterlife ceremonial art
Art as Culture
1. Find a public art form from a culture you
wish to study.
2. Create a five minute PowerPoint
presentation on the information you
discovered through your research on cultural
artifacts. It may be accompanied by music,
poetry, or dance from that culture.
3. Use the five W’s as a guide to writing your
presentation about the cultural significance
of the specific object you have chosen—
Who, What, Where, When, and Why.
4. Process your research and observations and
record them.
• What is the object you chose? What
culture does it come from? Who uses it?
How is it used? When is it used?
What is the medium? Does it have a
specific meaning?
Handout
• How does your choice of artwork reflect
the society in which it was made?
• What can the object teach us about a
culture?
• Who made the work?
• What is the meaning of the object?
• Is there a ritual or ceremony that
accompanies the object?
• How does the piece of artwork
communicate an idea?
5. Tell us a little about the culture you chose
to study such as:
• History
• Language
• Geography
• Impact on people from other cultures
Activity 3: My Culture
Tools
Art or artifacts that students bring in to show the class
Worksheet (page 12)
Time
1 one-hour session plus time to research
Objectives
>
Students will analyze how art is used to impart information
>
Students will deepen their awareness and knowledge of their
own culture >
18.A.3 | 27.B.3
Writing: 4,10
Worksheet
My Culture
Pick an artifact used in public life that represents your own cultural heritage. Sketch the object
or artwork that you chose to represent your culture. You may bring the object in if you have one.
Present the object describing what it is, how it is used, and why it is important to you.
Activity 4: Making a Maquette
Tools
Art supplies or found materials
Handout (page 14)
Time
3 one-hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will use a variety of art media, processes, and subject matter
to communicate ideas, feelings, and experiences
>
Students will use scale when developing a piece of art
25.A.3.d | 25.A.3.e | 26.B.3.d
27.B.3
Speaking and Listening: 5,6
Activity 4 Making a Maquette
Handout
Creating Your Work of Art
1. Describe and create a maquette, a small preliminary model, for a piece of public artwork
using the elements of art and principles of design.
2. When you are finished, present your maquette to the class and tell the story behind your idea.
• The maquette can be either 2 or 3 dimensional (a drawing or a model)
• Can be made out of any material
• The maquette should be to scale. Decide on how large the real artwork would be.
• The artwork should have a symbolic meaning
• The artwork should tell a story or have a narrative
• The work should have a title, proposed materials it will be built in, and the size of the
proposed piece
The following websites have lessons on scale:
www.ads-on-line.com/samples/Ad_Layout/chapterthree10.html
www.asu.edu/cfa/wwwcourses/art/SOACore/scalemain.htm
www.alex.state.al.us/lesson_view.php?id=23789
www.mypages.iit.edu/~smile/ma8809.html
www.discoveryeducation.com/teachers/free-lesson-plans/architects-in-action.cfm
Activity 5: I Am an Artist
Tools
Handout (pages 16-17)
Time
1 one-hour session
Objectives
>
Students will write an artist’s statement and bio
>
Students will learn how to describe his/her own artwork
>
Students will write to reflect, discover, and communicate his/her ideas
>
Students will communicate through creative expression and technology
3.A.3
Writing: 4,5,10
Activity 5 I Am an Artist
Handout
Writing: I Am an Artist
Write an artist statement about the maquette you created and about yourself. The following is an
example. Yours only needs to be a few sentences. There is no specific right or wrong way to write
an artist’s statement. The content and style should be specific to you and your artwork and be sure
to include the following considerations:
• Why you created the art and what it means to you
• What emotions, values, and ideas you are trying to express to the viewer
• How the work is a reflection of you
• What or who has influenced or inspired your artwork
• Why you chose a specific medium or style
• What creative and physical processes were involved in creating the artwork
Example: Maria Gaspar Artist Statement
My paintings start with a thought, a memory, a sound or a
dream. They make their way to the canvas through a process
of painting patterns, shapes and color and creating space then
covering parts up and bringing them back. This process repeats
until the original impulse is realized and the painting is complete. I repeat certain simplified shapes to clarify the process or
to restate a thought.
My most recent painting explores the relationship between
the physicality of painting and memories of landscapes and
sky. In this work there is an exploration of the act of painting and subconscious thought. Humor and whimsy are very
important. Through pattern, shape, color and space, I bring
these moments to the surface and create physical reference to
barely remembered dreams thoughts and sounds of the past
and present.
Influences range from roadtrips and the migratory paths of
Monarch butterflies to the wrens in my backyard and bird
song in the early morning. From the theater of the absurd
to Faulkner to Monty Python and Saturday Night Live.
Visual artists such as Cy Twombly, Philip Guston, Cezanne,
Clemetine Hunter and John James Audubon inspire me.
Pink Fluff, Oil on Stretched Canvas, 40” x 50,” 2011
http://mariagaspar.com
Handout
Vocabulary for Public Art Investigation
Architecture the art or science
of building; specifically the art
or practice of designing and
building structures, primarily
habitable ones
Artifact something created by
humans usually for a practical
purpose; especially an object
remaining from a particular period
[caves containing prehistoric
artifacts]
Beliefs things accepted as true or
real; firmly held opinions, especially
a tenet or body of tenets held by a
group
Cave paintings the art of
Paleolithic man represented by
drawings and paintings on the walls
of caves: some key examples located
in Europe
Characteristics a distinguishing
trait, quality, or property
Civic dialogue public dialogue in
which people discuss relevant issues,
policies or decisions of consequence
to their lives, communities, and
society
Civic pride pride in your city
Commission order or authorize
the production of something
Conceptual relating to or
concerned with concepts of ideas
Cross-cultural dealing with or
offering comparison between
two or more different cultures
Culture the customary beliefs, social
forms, and material traits of a racial,
religious, or social group; also the
characteristic features of everyday
existence (as diversions or a way of
life) shared by people in a place or
time
Depict to represent by or as if
by a picture
Economic development the
process by which a community
creates, retains, and invests wealth
and improves the quality of life
Evidence something that furnishes
proof
Façade the front of a building;
also any face of a building given
special architectural treatment
Fresco the art of painting on freshly
spread moist lime plaster with waterbased pigments
Ideological relating to or concerned
with ideas and concepts
Interpretation a teaching that
combines factual with stimulating
explanatory information from a
specific point of view
Maquette usually a small
preliminary model (as of a sculpture
or a building) for a proposed larger
piece of art
Medium material or technical
means of artistic expression: what is
used to make a piece of art
Mosaic a surface decoration made
by inlaying small pieces of variously
colored material to form pictures or
patterns : the process of making it
Myriad a great number
Perspective the art of drawing
objects on a two-dimensional surface
so as to give the right impression of
height, width, depth, and position
in realation to each other when
viewed from a particular point or a
position
Philosophy the most basic beliefs,
concepts, and attitudes of an
individual or group: the study of the
fundamental nature of knowledge,
reality, and existence
Public space a place where anyone
has the right to come without being
excluded because of economic or
social conditions
Symbolic meaning implication of a
hidden or special significance
Symbol something that stands
for or suggests something else by
reason of relationship, association,
convention, or accidental
resemblance; especially a visible sign
of something invisible [the lion is a
symbol of courage]
Values things/ideas/people that are
important to us, central concepts
that give meaning to our lives, a set
of guiding principles that help us
make decisions and choose a path
Investigation 2
Learning How to Analyze
a Work of Art
People often say, “I don’t know anything about art, but I
know what I like.” In fact, there are tools and strategies
used by art historians, artists, and art critics that can help
to analyze a work of art. There are elements of art and
principals of design that can be used to describe and evaluate
art work. In this investigation, students will think critically
about art using the tools of an art historian. Students will
describe, analyze, interpret, and judge a work of art based
on its visual elements, content, and its context. They will
interpret the “visual evidence” by answering questions,
looking for narratives and messages, learning how to
“decode” the visual facts, and finally, making judgments
about the work of art that go beyond their first impression.
Grades: 6–8 (May be adapted for grades 3-5)
Activity 1: Analyze a Work of Art
Activity 2: Critical Assessment/Judging an Artwork
Tools
The Elements of Art Vocabulary (page 23)
Color Vocabulary (page 24)
Color Symbolism Chart (page 25)
Worksheet (page 27)
PowerPoint presentation: Analyzing a Work of Art.pptx
PowerPoint presentation: Born of Fire Pictures.pptx
Printed pictures from the PowerPoint for students to reference
Time
5 one hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will be able to analyze and appreciate a piece of art
>
Students will gain ability to view and describe art using new
vocabulary to express themselves and better understand artwork
>
Students will practice observation skills
Teaching plan
Introduce the mural Born of Fire. Below is the text that accompanies
the mural on the Humboldt Park Portal.
Paseo Boricua’s mural Born of Fire illustrates the cultural, political, and social development of
Chicago’s Puerto Rican community over the last 40 years. “Each image documents a chapter
of this community’s history born from the ashes of the 1966 Division Street Riots. From this
rebellion, as the mural depicts, a vibrant and more politically radical community was born
as represented by “la flor de maga”, Puerto Rico’s national flower - depicts institutions that
were founded in the 1970’s, like Roberto Clemente High School and also images of more
recent community struggles and the institutions that have emerged in response to these such
as the Institute of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture.”1
14.C.3 | 16.A.3.b | 18.A.3
25.A.3.a | 25.A.3.d | 25.A.3.e
Writing: 4,10
1
Humboldt Park Portal. Humboldt Park Mural Arts Program. October
2010. www.humboldtparkportal.org/Community-Info/Humboldt-ParkMural-Arts-Program.html
20 | Investigation 2: Analyzing a Work of Art
Activity 1 Analyze a Work of Art
Worksheet
Become an Art History Detective
Art historians interpret, perceive, and judge works of art.
In this exercise, you will act as an art history
detective and learn some of the jobs of
an art historian using the elements of art and
principles of design.
Knowing what the elements of art are enables
us to (1) describe what the artist has created,
(2) analyze what is going on in a particular
artwork, and (3) communicate our thoughts and
findings using a common language.
Before answering the following questions,
review the worksheets The Elements of Art
Vocabulary and Color Vocabulary on pages 22
and 23.
Writing a description is a way of using
words to represent the visual world. Imagine
you are describing a work of art to one of your
friends who is not there to see it with you.
Interpretations are not so much absolutely right,
but more or less reasonable, convincing, and
informative. Each person interprets a work of
art differently.
Born of Fire is a complex mural and it is
important to look at it in detail and make notes.
Each section needs to be analyzed. Your teacher
will show a Powerpoint presentation with
images of the mural.
Describe and interpret the mural, Born of Fire
Answer the following questions on a separate piece of paper:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Who is /are the artist(s)?
Did the artist work alone or with others? If so, who?
What year was the mural created?
What are the dimensions (size)?
Where is the artwork located?
What is the medium?
What is the subject matter of smaller scenes within the mural?
Hint: At this point, try not to interpret the piece. Describe the piece in a detailed and systematic way. Use
evidence.
Example: There is a scene about bilingual education that includes a teacher reading from a Spanish
language book, a globe, and a child raising her hand.
Investigation 2: Analyzing a Work of Art | 21
Worksheet continued
Worksheet
8. Take an inventory of what you see. Do not leave anything out.
Example: I see a man with fire coming out of his hand. You can’t see his face. There are two fires one on
top of the other. I see large red flowers all over the mural. I think they are hibiscus and are the national
flower of Puerto Rico. They are larger than any other object or scene in the mural.
9. What are the elements of art in this work?
10. What are the principles of design in this work?
11. What are the symbols? What do they symbolize? Provide details.
Example: What kind of flowers are in the mural? What do the flowers represent?
Answer: It is a red hibiscus. It is the national flower of Puerto Rico.
Hint: You will have to use the internet to figure out some of the symbols. When researching this mural,
you should keep in mind what cultures the symbols represent. Symbols mean different things to different
cultures.
12. What is the subject matter of the mural? Is there one narrative or are there many going on?
13. What is the historical and social context of the mural?
Hint: Part of understanding a work of art includes its historical and social context and requires research.
Knowing this information will help you interpret the work.
14. What key ideas are being conveyed?
Example: history of the neighborhood
15. What is the artist trying to communicate? Was the artist able to communicate
these ideas effectively?
16. What do you feel when you see this artwork? Ask yourself what kind of emotions, opinions,
or perspectives it seems to be conveying based on the visual elements the artists used.
Example: Look at the colors. How do they make you feel? Are the colors bright and cheerful and make you
feel in a good mood when you look at them, or are the colors dark and depressing?
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
What is the function of this work of art?
Why is the mural there?
Is there a cultural meaning to the work? What is it?
Was the mural created for a specific group of people or everyone?
How does the work of art reflect its time and place?
Were there important historical events that were taking place at the time this artwork was
created?
Activity 1 Analyze a Work of Art
Handout
The Elements of Art Vocabulary*
Elements of Art Visual Elements of Art are the component parts of art. The elements help define what principles
are. There cannot be a principle without an element. The elements do not occur in isolation but one can be
dominant. The elements give the artist a vocabulary to use in order to help explain their art.
Line is the path of a point moving through space.
It can define a space, create an outline or pattern,
imply movement or texture and allude to mass or
volume.
Shape/Form implies spatial form and is usually
perceived as two-dimensional. Form has depth,
length, and width and resides in space. It is
perceived as three-dimensional.
Colors all come from the three primaries and
black and white. They have three properties: hue,
value, and intensity.
Value refers to relative lightness and darkness
and is perceived in terms of varying levels of
contrast.
Texture refers to the tactile qualities of a surface
(actual) or to the visual representation of such
surface qualities (implied).
Space refers to the area in which art is organized.
Perspective is representing a volume of space or
a 3-dimensional object on a flat surface.
*Methuen Public Schools. 2007. www.methuen.
k12.ma.us/kykent/vocabulary_of_art.htm.
Vocabulary handout continued
Handout
Color Vocabulary
Hue
A color
Primary colors
Red, blue, yellow: the set of colors that can be combined to make a useful range of
colors. They cannot be created through the mixing of other colors.
Secondary colors
Orange, green, violet: When primary colors can be mixed together to produce
secondary colors.
Tertiary colors
Red-orange, blue-green, etc.: A color made by mixing either one primary color with
one secondary color, or two secondary colors.
Complementary colors
Two hues directly across one another on the color wheel. The complement
of each primary is the secondary created by mixing the other two primaries
(red-green; blue-orange; yellow-violet). When placed near each other,
complementary colors seem vivid.
Value
Lightness or darkness of a color.
Saturation / Intensity
Brightness or dullness of a color due to its relative purity.
Shade
A dark value: a color modified by addition of black resulting in a darker hue.
Tint
A light value: a color modified by addition of white, resulting in a lighter hue.
*The Color Wheel
*Properties of Color
*http://netdna.webdesignerdepot.com/uploads/color/hsv-samples.jpg
Vocabulary handout continued
Handout
Color Symbolism Chart
Colors mean different things to different people and cultures, but their meanings often overlap. This is just one of
many types of color charts. You can go online and view more.
Red: Excitement, energy, love, desire, speed, strength, power, heat, aggression, danger, fire, blood,
war, violence, and all things intense
Pink: love and romance, caring, tenderness, acceptance and calm
Beige and ivory: unification, Ivory: quiet and pleasantness, Beige: calm and simplicit
Yellow: joy, happiness, betrayal, optimism, idealism, imagination, hope, sunshine, summer, gold,
philosophy, dishonesty, cowardice, jealousy, deceit, illness, hazard and friendship
Blue: peace, tranquility, cold, calm, stability, harmony, unity, trust, truth, confidence,
conservatism, security, order, loyalty, sky, water, and technology
Turquoise: calm, Teal: sophistication, Aquamarine: water
Purple: royalty, nobility, spirituality, ceremony, mysterious, transformation, wisdom,
enlightenment, cruelty, and mourning
Lavender: femininity, grace, and elegance
Orange: energy, balance, enthusiasm, warmth, vibrant, expansive, and flamboyant
Green: nature, environment, healthy, good luck, renewal, youth, spring, generosity, jealousy,
inexperience, envy, misfortune, and vigor
Brown: earth, stability, hearth, home, outdoors, reliability, comfort, endurance, simplicity, and
comfort
Gray: security, reliability, intelligence, dignity, maturity, solid, conservative, practical, old age,
sadness, boring; Silver symbolizes calm
White: reverence, purity, birth, simplicity, cleanliness, peace, humility, precision, innocence,
youth, winter, good, death (Eastern cultures), cold, and clinical.
Black: power, sophistication, formality, elegance, wealth, mystery, fear, evil, unhappiness, depth,
style, evil, sadness, remorse, anger, anonymity, underground, good technical color, mourning, and
death (Western cultures)
Activity 2: Critical Assessment / Judging an Artwork
Tools
The Vocabulary of Art Handout (page 22-23)
Color Symbolism chart (page 24)
Worksheet (page 26)
Time
2 forty-five minute sessions
Objectives
>
Students will be able to reflect upon the merits of a piece of art.
They will understand and use guidelines for perceiving, interpreting,
and judging art
>
Students will be able to support their beliefs with reasoned responses
by studying a work of art
>
Students will reflect and evaluate art through writing and speech
>
Students will apply critical thinking and perception skills
14.C.3 | 16.A.3.b | 18.A.3
25.A.3.d | 25.A.3.e | 27.B.3
Writing: 1,4,5,10
Activity 2 Critical Assessment / Judging an Artwork
Worksheet
Become an Art Critic
Write a paper reflecting your understanding
and interpretation of the work of art you have
just analyzed, Born of Fire. Your teacher will
specify the length.
This is about making a personal judgment
based on your examination of the artwork.
Critical assessment involves opinions. Critical
assessment involves your judgment about the
“success” of a work of art.
As you write, think about answering the
following questions:
• What emotions and ideas are evoked as a
result of what you have observed?
• What is most interesting to you about this
work of art? Why?
• Does it convey an important message?
• Do you think the work of art is “successful?”
• Does the historical and social context of the
mural make a difference?
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of this
work of art?
• What do you think the artist is trying to say?
What makes you think this?
• Does the artwork move you? Think about
how the work of art makes you feel. Ask
yourself what kind of emotions, opinions or
perspectives it seems to be conveying.
• Does it relate to your life in any way?
• Did you have different reactions to the mural
once you started studying it?
Space for Planning Notes:
Vocabulary for Investigation 2:
Analyzing a Work of Art
* In addition to the Elements of Art Vocabulary and Color Vocabulary
Aesthetic beauty or the
Context the circumstances that
Intrinsic belonging naturally;
appreciation of beauty; giving or
designed to give pleasure through
beauty; of pleasing appearance
form the setting for an event,
statement, or idea, and in terms
of how it can be understood and
assessed
essential (e.g. access to the arts is
intrinsic to a high quality of life)
Analysis detailed examination
of the elements or structure of
something, typically as a basis for
discussion or interpretation
Analyze to examine methodically
and in detail the structure of
something (esp. information),
typically for purposes of explanation
and interpretation
Art history the academic study
of the history and development of
painting, sculpture, and the other
visual arts by a person
Assessment the evaluation or
estimation of the nature, quality, or
ability of someone or something
Content something that is to be
expressed through some medium,
as speech, writing, or any of various
arts
Culture the customary beliefs, social
forms, and material traits of a racial,
religious, or social group; also the
characteristic features of everyday
existence (as diversions or a way of
life) shared by people in a place or
time
Discordant disagreeing:
characterized by conflict
Garish to enhance in appearance
by adding decorative touches;
embellish (verb) or an adornment or
decoration (noun)
Iconography the use or study of
images or symbols in visual arts; the
visual images, symbols, or modes of
representation collectively associated
with a person, cult, or movement
Interpret explain the meaning of
Meaning convey, indicate, or refer
to (a particular thing or notion);
signify
Medium material or technical means
of artistic expression
Perspective the art of drawing solid
objects on a two-dimensional surface
so as to give the right impression
of their height, width, depth, and
position in relation to each other
when viewed from a particular point
or a position from which something
is considered or evaluated
Represent to serve as a sign or
symbol of
Subject matter the topic dealt
with or the subject represented in a
debate, exposition, or work of art
Symbolize be a symbol of;
represent by means of symbols
(information, words, or actions)
Helpful Resources
• Franseschi, Antonio. “Chicago’s Puerto Rican Story.” www.newfilmproduction.com/id71.htm. This film is a good
starting point to introduce the students to the community.
• The Center for Puerto Rican Studies published a journal edition dedicated to Chicago. Some of the essays are simple while others are more academic. www.centropr.hunter.cuny.edu.
Investigation 3
“Murals are the people’s blackboard” *
Over time artists have used every medium to communicate
ideas, inspire individuals, and provoke responses. Social
commentary can be conveyed through symbol, image, or
story. After studying the mural Breaking the Chains, the
students will understand how social, cultural, economic, and
political circumstances influence the meaning and function
of a work of art. By creating their own work of art, students
will explore the role of artists as social commentators. Poetry
will be considered as another avenue to express messages
within a work of art.
Grades: 6–8
Activity 1: Use art as a tool for social change
Optional activities
Activity 2: Poetry Slam
Activity 3: Learn about the Humboldt Park Riots
* Weissman,
Jane. Lecture for New York Council for the Humanities. September 1, 2009.
www.nyhumanities.org/speakers/schools/lecture.php?lecture_id=1209.
Activity 1: Use Art as a Tool for Social Change
Tools
Fieldtrip Worksheet (pages 31-32)
Worksheet (page 34)
Mixed medium: markers, paint, photos, collage, and a board to work on,
PowerPoint Presentation: Social Commentary.pptx
Time
4 one-hour sessions- plus time to collect images, photos, etc. for the art
Objectives
>
Students will identify the role that artists play in directing attention
to important issues
>
Student will understand the definition of social commentary
>
Students will create a 2-dimensional artwork that addresses a social issue
>
Students will hone their skills combining content, context, and
aesthetics together in a piece of art
>
Students will communicate their ideas. Students will present their
artwork to the class making a persuasive argument for their imagery,
meaning, and message.
>
Students will give expression to ideas and perspectives that are
important to them.
>
Students know and apply visual arts materials, tools, techniques,
and processes
>
Students will analyze and evaluate the characteristics, merits,
and meaning of works of art
3.A.3 | 26.B.3.d
Speaking and Listening: 1
Writing: 4,10
30 | Investigation 3: Art as Social Commentary
Activity 1 Use Art as a Tool for Social Change
Fieldtrip Worksheet
Worksheet
The Chilean poet Pablo Neruda once wrote,
“Murals are the people’s blackboard.”
“As much as murals beautify their surroundings,
they also address local or national concerns,
including the need for decent housing, education
and health care; civil and women’s rights; the
emergence of environmental awareness; and ethnic
and cultural pride.”1
In March 1978, a public meeting was held
at the Rockwell Baptist Church in West
Town to protest the planned demolition of
the building 1456 North Rockwell Street
that housed the mural Breaking the Chains. A
flyer that was distributed inviting people to
1.
What do you think this mural is about?
2.
What do you think the hands represent?
3.
What do you think the chains represent?
1 Weissman,
Jane. Lecture for New York Council for the Humanities. September 1, 2009.
www.nyhumanities.org/speakers/schools/lecture.php?lecture_id=1209.
this meeting encouraged residents to protest
the destruction of the building and to stand
up for housing rights. The mural, which was
painted by John Pitman Weber in 1971, had
become an important community symbol
and an inspiration for community activism.
According to the artist, the imagery was
suggested by activists who lived in the building
at the time. The housing organization, Latin
United Community Housing Association
(LUCHA) was developed as an outcome of the
struggle to preserve this building and combat
the displacement of residents from affordable
housing. Lucha means “struggle” in Spanish.
Investigation 3: Art as Social Commentary | 31
Activity 1: Use Art as a Tool for Social Change
Worksheet continued
4.
What do you think the children represent?
5.
What do you think the roses represent?
6.
What do you think the crying woman in the burning building represents?
7.
Does this mural remain relevant to the neighborhood today?
Fieldtrip Worksheet
Note: The symbol in the upper left corner is the logo of the co-sponsor, the Latin American
Defense Organization (LADO). The mural will be restored in 2013. As LADO no longer exists, the logo will
be removed during restoration.
Teaching Plan
Classroom Discussion
These questions can be used to generate a class
discussion after visiting the mural.
• What is “social commentary?”
The class should come up with a
collaborative definition.
*Show the Social Commentary Power Point
Presentation. Continue the discussion considering
these questions:
• What forms of social commentary are there?
Examples: a sermon, political lyrics in music,
articles in the newspaper
• Why do we have murals about social issues?
• Do artists have a role in reflecting and
commenting on the society in which they
live? Should artists comment on moral,
ethical, and or other social issues?
• Can social commentary murals be
understood by everyone who views them
or are they directed to a specific group of
people who understand what the issues are?
For example, would everyone understand
Breaking the Chains if they did not know
about the history of the Humboldt Park?
• Why would someone be motivated to make
social commentary?
Worksheet
Create a Social Commentary Artwork
As you have seen in the mural Breaking the
Chains by John Pitman Weber, art as social
commentary is a major theme in contemporary
murals. The artist assumes the roles of reporter
and analyst in an exploration of the workings
of society.
3. Reflect
Now it is time to do some reflective writing
about your artwork. Please address the
following in a one-page paper:
1. Make a list
What are some current social issues to
comment about?
• What do you want to say?
• Why did you choose this issue? What factors
influenced your decision?
• Do you have a personal connection to the
issue you chose?
• Do you think you have made an artwork that
is convincing? Does it get your point of view
across?
• How do you expect viewers to react to the
work?
• What is your reasoning behind your imagery?
• How did you make your voice heard?
2. Create a social commentary
artwork
Create an artwork about something you want
to change or improve. Commentaries are direct
and express the commentator’s views. They can
also serve as a call to action.
The artwork can be mixed medium using
photographs, collage, text, paint, markers, or
other materials.
4. Share
Present your work to the class and talk about
why you chose this issue. Do your classmates
react to your artwork in the way that you
expected them to?
Tools
Computer
Paper
Pens
Time
2 one-hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will explore poetry as a medium of written and spoken
expression
>
Students will learn to understand poetry as another medium for people
to comment on a social issues
>
Students will interpret meaning in poetry
>
Students will write a commentary poem
14.C.4 | 14.C.5
Reading and Literature: 1,2,4,10
Writing: 4,5,10
Activity 2 Poetry Slam
Teaching Plan
Poetry Slam
This activity can be done individually or in
groups. Introduce the activity by referring to
the following questions and information:
Did you know that rap is a form of spoken
poetry?
Throughout history, poetry is mainly thought
to be a written form of art. Since the 1950s
poets have used their poetry to become a form
of spoken word or performance art. This verbal
form of communication helps add a layer to
the meaning and interpretation of the poem.
Slam poetry
“One of the most vital and energetic
movements in poetry during the 1990s,
slam has revitalized interest in poetry in
performance. Poetry began as part of an oral
tradition, and movements were devoted to the
spoken and performed aspects of their poems.
This interest was reborn through the rise of
poetry slams across America: while many poets
in academia found fault with the movement,
slam was well received among young poets
and poets of diverse backgrounds as a
democratizing force. This generation of spoken
word poetry is often highly politicized, drawing
upon racial, economic, and gender injustices as
well as current events for subject manner.”1
category of social commentary.
Ask them to:
• Choose an issue that relates to your local
community. It should be something that
you want to try to do something about.
Examples might be gentrification, health,
education, etc.
• Make sure the poem can be performed in
under five minutes.
• When putting it in a poetry slam format
remember to control your volume, pacing,
voice, facial expressions and body language
to create an emotional response from the
audience.
• You may add a musical component if you
wish.
• Remember to think about these components
when writing your poem: metaphor,
symbolism, point of view, theme,
characterization, simile, allegory.
Note to Teacher: If your students
do not have much background in
poetry you might want to prepare and
give the students a lesson or quick
reference sheet with the components
and vocabulary of poetry. Also, if you
are not familiar with any local issues
you can conduct surveys or interviews,
read a local newspaper, or attend an
alderman’s weekly community meeting.
Have your students listen to a number of
performance poetry pieces or rap poetry pieces.
Then ask them to write a poem that fits into the
1
Poetry.org. A Brief Guide to Slam Poetry. www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/5672.
Activity 2 Poetry Slam
Handout
Poetry as Social Commentary
The following two poems will give you an idea of social commentary in the form of poetry.
Read these poems then write a paragraph about your thoughts. How do the poems fit into a discussion
about social commentary? What are the poets talking about? Do you see any connection between these
poems and the Breaking the Chains mural?
“Imagine the Angels of Bread”
by Martín Espada
This is the year that squatters evict landlords,
gazing like admirals from the rail
of the roofdeck
or levitating hands in praise
of steam in the shower;
this is the year
that shawled refugees deport judges
who stare at the floor
and their swollen feet
as files are stamped
with their destination;
this is the year that police revolvers,
stove-hot, blister the fingers
of raging cops,
and nightsticks splinter
in their palms;
this is the year that darkskinned men
lynched a century ago
return to sip coffee quietly
with the apologizing descendants
of their executioners.
This is the year that those
who swim the border’s undertow
and shiver in boxcars
are greeted with trumpets and drums
at the first railroad crossing
on the other side;
this is the year that the hands
pulling tomatoes from the vine
uproot the deed to the earth that sprouts
the vine,
the hands canning tomatoes
1 YES!
Powerful Ideas, Practical Actions. September 30, 1999.
www.yesmagazine.org/issues/power-of-one/2266.
are named in the will
that owns the bedlam of the cannery;
this is the year that the eyes stinging from the poison
that purifies toilets
awaken at last to the sight
of a rooster-loud hillside,
pilgrimage of immigrant birth; this is the year that
cockroaches
become extinct, that no doctor
finds a roach embedded
in the ear of an infant;
this is the year that the food stamps
of adolescent mothers
are auctioned like gold doubloons,
and no coin is given to buy machetes
for the next bouquet of severed heads
in coffee plantation country.
If the abolition of slave-manacles
began as a vision of hands without manacles, then this
is the year;
if the shutdown of extermination camps
began as imagination of a land
without barbed wire or the crematorum,
then this is the year;
if every rebellion begins with the idea
that conquerors on horse back are not many-legged
gods, that they too drown
if plunged in the river,
then this is the year.
So may every humiliated mouth,
teeth like desecrated headstones,
fill with the angels of bread.1
Published in a book of the same title by Norton and
Company. 1997.
Handout continued
Handout
I am the farmer, bondsman to the soil.
I am the worker sold to the machine.
I am the Negro, servant to you all.
I am the people, humble, hungry, mean—
Hungry yet today despite the dream.
Beaten yet today—O, Pioneers!
I am the man who never got ahead,
The poorest worker bartered through the years.
“Let America Be America Again”
by Langston Hughes
Let America be America again.
Let it be the dream it used to be.
Let it be the pioneer on the plain
Seeking a home where he himself is free.
(America never was America to me.)
Yet I’m the one who dreamt our basic dream
In the Old World while still a serf of kings,
Let America be the dream the dreamers dreamed—
Let it be that great strong land of love
Where never kings connive nor tyrants scheme
That any man be crushed by one above.
(It never was America to me.)
O, let my land be a land where Liberty
Is crowned with no false patriotic wreath,
But opportunity is real, and life is free,
Equality is in the air we breathe.
(There’s never been equality for me,
Nor freedom in this “homeland of the free.”)
Say, who are you that mumbles in the dark?
And who are you that draws your veil across the stars?
I am the poor white, fooled and pushed apart,
I am the Negro bearing slavery’s scars.
I am the red man driven from the land,
I am the immigrant clutching the hope I seek—
And finding only the same old stupid plan
Of dog eat dog, of mighty crush the weak.
I am the young man, full of strength and hope,
Tangled in that ancient endless chain
Of profit, power, gain, of grab the land!
Of grab the gold! Of grab the ways of satisfying need!
Of work the men! Of take the pay!
Of owning everything for one’s own greed!
1
Poets.org. From The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes, published by Alfred A. Knopf
Inc. www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/15609.
Activity 3: Learn about the Division Street Riots
Tools
Computer
Paper
Pens
Time
3 one-hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will learn about the role groups and individuals played in
the social, political, cultural, and economic development
of Humboldt Park
>
Students will analyze the impact of historical documents, artifacts, and
places in Humboldt Park which are critical to Humboldt Park history
>
Students will identify the causes of the Division Street Riots through
primary sources
>
Students will gain analytical thinking and writing/reporting skills
>
Students will have an understanding of the causes, events, and
aftermath of the Division Street Riots
14.C.3
Reading of Informational Text: 2
Writing: 4,7,8,10
Activity 3 Learn about the Division Street Riots
Handout
Become a Reporter
You will explore and analyze the Division
Street Riots like a reporter. You will
research and write a one page newspaper
article on the Division Street Riots. Your
article will be based on several sources
including online research, books and newspapers, and interviews with people who
experienced the riots.
2. Think about the following questions:
• What are some of the social issues that
cause riots?
• What would make you riot?
• Government spending
• Racism?
• Erosion of freedoms?
• Taxation without representation?
Let’s start with your own feelings.
Now let’s gather more of the facts by researching the Division Street Riots.
1. Write about a time you can remember
when you felt you were mistreated. In
your writing include what happened, why
you felt you were treated this way, and
how it made you feel. Take 15 minutes
to write about this.
The purpose of this activity is to introduce
the concept of mistreatment that many
people were experiencing in the United
States and locally in the late 1960s and
early 1970s. By relating your own experiences of mistreatment to the experiences
of Chicago’s Puerto Rican community of
the late 1960s in Humboldt Park, you will
gain a better understanding of how citizenresidents were feeling at the time.
• Begin this activity by going to websites and
the library and read through descriptions of
events. Can you find any old articles about
the riots that were written at this time?
• What was the cause or causes of the riot?
Some causes will be direct and some causes
will be underlying.
• Make a timeline of what happened during
the riots. Don’t forget to record what took
place a few days before and a few weeks after
the riots.
• What is the previous history or background
information the reader should know in order
to better understand the riots?
• How did the government react?
• How were the riots quelled? Or how did
they end?
• What effects do you think the riots had on
the community?
Handout
3. Locate a person to interview who lived in
Humboldt Park when the riots occurred or
perhaps even participated in the riots. Ask a
family member, friend, teacher, or librarian
if you don’t know anyone. Make sure you
have a number of questions to ask the person
who you are interviewing. Be prepared. Take
notes and write down some quotes.
4. Prepare for your interview by writing five
questions about the riots. What questions
would you ask a rioter?
Examples:
•
•
•
•
•
• Why did you attend the riots?
• What were your concerns about what was
happening at the time?
• Do you feel you made a difference?
5. As you prepare for your interview, remember
the five words reporters use to write a story:
• Who is involved?
• What is happening?
• Where is it taking place?
• When did it take place?
• Why did it take place?
•
•
•
•
•
•
6. Now that you’ve gathered all of this information, it’s time to start writing.
• Analyze the information and ideas gathered
from a variety of print and electronic sources
•
as well as your interview.
Newspaper article should be written without
bias. As a reporter, you will discover multiple
points of view. It is your job to address
different points of view and acknowledge
where your information is coming from
(point of view is the perspective from
which a person recounts a story or presents
information).
Include quotes from people you interviewed.
Write a headline or title to your article.
Write your byline (a byline is the name of
the person who is writing the article).
Develop a lead paragraph. The lead is the
opening of your article and should draw
in your reader and summarize the most
important information.
The body of the article contains the five
W’s: Who, What, Where, When, and Why.
Give the reader details in the following
paragraphs.
Wrap up or summarize your article.
Proof read your article for grammar, spelling,
sentence structure, and composition.
Make sure your information is accurate.
Have another student edit your article and
give you feedback.
Go back to the article and make any
necessary corrections.
Hand in your article to your teacher.
Abolition the act of doing away
with or the state of being done away
with; annulment
Allegory a story, poem, or picture
that can be interpreted to reveal a
hidden meaning, typically a moral
or political one
Auction a public sale in which
goods or property are sold to the
highest bidder
Bedlam a scene of uproar and
confusion
Bias Prejudice in favor of or
against one thing, person, or group
compared with another, usually in a
way considered to be unfair
Catalyst A person or thing that
causes or leads to an event
Community activism the policy
or action of using vigorous
campaigning to bring about political
or social change
Connive secretly allow (something
considered immoral, illegal, wrong,
or harmful) to occur
Demolish pull or knock down
magical power
of force; subdue or silence someone
Manacle a metal band, chain, or
Simile a figure of speech involving
shackle for fastening someone’s
hands or ankles
the comparison of one thing with
another thing of a different kind,
used to make a description more
emphatic or vivid, using the word
like or as (e.g., as brave as a lion,
crazy like a fox)
Manifestation an event, action,
or object that clearly shows or
embodies something; a theory or an
abstract idea
Metaphor a figure of speech in
which a word or phrase is applied
to an object or action to which it
is not literally applicable (e.g. the
assignment was a breeze, he is a pig
when he eats)
Minuteman (in the period
preceding and during the American
Revolution) a member of a class
of American militiamen who
volunteered to be ready for service at
a minute’s notice
Performance art an art form that
combines visual art with dramatic
performance
Poetry slam a competition using
elimination rounds for the reading
or performance of poetry
Point of view a particular attitude
Doubloons Spanish gold coins
or way of considering a matter
Evince reveal the presence of (a
Preserve maintain (something) in
quality or feeling)
its original or existing state
Foundry a workshop or factory for
Protest a statement or action
expressing disapproval of or
objection to something
casting metal
Lea an open area of grassy land
Levitate rise and hover in the air,
esp. by means of supernatural or
Quell put an end to (a rebellion or
other disorder), typically by the use
Social commentary the expression
of opinions or explanations about an
event or situation relating to society
Social issues controversial issues
that relate to people’s personal lives
and interactions
Spoken word something said in
order to convey information, an
opinion, or a feeling such as in
performance art
Symbolic serving as or expressing
a symbol; something that represents
something else
Symbolism the use of symbols to
represent ideas or qualities
Tyrant a person exercising power or
control in a cruel, unreasonable, or
arbitrary way
Vigilante a member of a selfappointed group of citizens who
undertake law enforcement in their
community without legal authority,
typically because the legal agencies
are thought to be inadequate
Investigation 4
A Symbol is Worth a Thousand Words:
Symbols and Symbolism in Art
Symbols are one of our oldest forms of communication. Many
of Humboldt Park’s murals use symbols to communicate
ideas and represent culture. Students will understand the
nature of symbols and how they work by examining symbols
within the murals as well as symbols that are part of their
daily lives. Symbols used in Taíno culture are found in some
of the murals and provide an opportunity for students to
begin exploring how other cultures represent themselves
symbolically. Finally, students will explore the world of
symbols by developing a personal coat of arms to represent
their individual characteristics and beliefs.
Grades: 6–8
Activity 1: Introduction to Symbols and Symbolism
Optional activities
Activity 2: Detecting Symbols in Your Life
Activity 3: Create a Coat of Arms that Represents Yourself
Activity 4: Taíno Symbolism and History
Activity 5: Create Your Own Pictograph
Investigation 4: Symbols and Symbolism in Art | 43
Activity 1: Introduction to Symbols and Symbolism
Tools
Fieldtrip Worksheet
Analyze a Cultural Symbol Worksheet
PowerPoint: Symbols.pptx
Time
Part one: 1 one-hour session
Part two: field trip, time to be determined
Objectives
>
Students will learn about symbols and symbolism
>
Students will understand that a symbol is a representation
of a larger idea
>
Students will understand the nature of symbols and how they work
>
Students will work on improving their visual skills by learning
to “read” symbols
>
Students will identify symbols from their own culture and explain
how each symbol represents their culture
25.A.3.d | 25.A.3.e
Writing: 4,7,8,10
44 | Investigation 4: Symbols and Symbolism in Art
Activity 1 Introduction to Symbols and Symbolism
Teaching Plan
Part One: Discussion
This activity should precede
the field trip.
• Do symbols allow people to communicate
beyond the limits of language?
Start by showing the Symbols PowerPoint
Presentation and use the following questions
to stimulate discussion on symbols and
symbolism.
• Are symbols a type of language?
• What are the definitions of symbol and
symbolism? Go online and find a few
definitions and then create one for the class
to use.
• What is the difference between a symbol,
an ideogram, an icon, a logo, pictographs,
petroglyphs, a code, and hieroglyphics?
• What does universal language mean? How
does it relate to symbols?
• Are all symbols universal? What are some
examples of universal symbols?
• Why do we use symbols?
• How are symbols useful in our lives?
• Who makes symbols?
• What types of symbols are there? Give three
examples.
• What is a cultural symbol? Give an example.
• Can a symbol have more than one meaning?
Give an example.
• Does a symbol provide information? How?
Give an example.
• Do colors act as symbols? Give three
examples.
Optional activity for either students
or teacher
Find examples of signs, logos, or symbols in your
school environment and take pictures to share with
the class as part of the discussion (For example: a
handicapped parking sign, a school logo, a mascot,
the male/female bathroom symbols, the stop sign
the crossing guard uses).
• Are symbols powerful? Where does the
“power” of a symbol come from?
Fieldtrip Worksheet
Symbols and Symbolism Worksheet
1. Students should look at all the murals to
gather their ten objects to research the meanings.
2. Make a two-column chart. In the left column,
write down objects that you see in the mural.
In the right column, write down what you
think the object symbolizes. Symbols may
have multiple meanings. If you do not know
what it stands for you can research its’ meaning back at school. Choose at least 10 objects
to write down.
Sample chart
Object
Meaning
A rose
Love, beauty, passion
The Puerto
White = purity
Rican Flag
Triangle = liberty, equality,
and fraternity
The Hibiscus
The Puerto Rican national
flower or Maga
flower
A lance
An object that can kill—
the figurative death of Dr.
Albizu Campos
3. While you are on your field trip, take time
to notice the emblems that are attached to
the lampposts on Division Street. They are
excellent examples of symbols. What do these
emblems represent? Add them to your list.
Object
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Meaning
Fieldtrip Worksheet
Part Three: Analyze a Cultural Symbol
Section A
Choose a well-known symbol from your heritage. Conduct research on the symbol you have
chosen. Find a picture or take a picture of the
symbol you are writing about.
Write a paragraph analyzing its meaning.
Include the standard meaning along with a
personal interpretation and a personal interpretation from someone else like a family member
or friend. See if your meanings are the same or
different.
On a separate sheet of paper, answer the following questions about your symbol:
1. What is your symbol?
2. What type of symbol is it? Example:
religious and cultural symbol
3. What culture does it come from?
4. Does it come from history or is it a
contemporary symbol?
5. Why did you choose this symbol?
6. What does it mean? What does it mean to
your culture? What does it mean to you?
7. Does it mean the same in all cultures?
Section B
Choose a symbol representing another culture
and do the same exercise as above.
Example: The Chinese dragon is a symbol of
power, strength, and good luck for the imperial
family and it can also represent the enterprising
and hardworking spirit of the Chinese people.
Example: The Inuit Native American culture
uses the eagle as the Principle Messenger of
the Creator. The eagle is a powerful symbol of
courage.
Example: Mexican masks are symbols for
animals, heroes, spirits of good or evil,
ancestor gods, or spirits of nature. They have
also been used for spoofing people, tricking
people, terrorizing others, as emblems of
special groups, to cause laughter or fear, to
cure disease, and to impersonate people or
supernatural beings.
Example: National symbols have standard
interpretations as well as a personal significance
for each individual. For example, the American
flag symbolizes the United States of America.
The personal significance, however, varies.
A U.S. army veteran cherishes its meaning.
A terrorist, on the other hand, finds it
contemptible.
Activity 2: Detecting Symbols in Your Life
Tools
Homework (page 49)
Worksheets (page 50)
Camera or camera phone
Time
Part one: 2 one-hour sessions
Part two: 2 one-hour sessions
Homework: an activity on the way to or from school and at home and
time to collect data and make a bar graph
Objectives
>
>
Students come to understand that a symbol is a representation
of a bigger idea
>
Teaching plan
For part one, break the class into small groups.
25.A.3.e
Writing: 4,7,8,10
Activity 2 Detecting Symbols in Your Life
Worksheet
Part One: Brainstorm Classroom Activity, Game,
and Graph Problem
Work in small groups for this activity.
Introduction
The American Flag is a symbol of the United
States. When you pledge allegiance to the flag,
you mean you are promising to be true to your
country. Another symbol is the golden arches
of McDonald’s restaurants. When you see the
arches you know it is a McDonald’s restaurant,
even if you are too far away to read the words.
A symbol is something
that stands for a bigger
idea or thing.
If you think for a few minutes you will be able
to come up with lots of other symbols you are
already familiar with. Why are there so many
symbols around? For one thing, they are easy
to remember. They catch your eye and say a lot
in a little space.
Brainstorm
A brainstorm is a quick session in which you
list everything that you can think of without
commenting upon it or interpreting it. Ask
someone in your group to be the secretary.
For the next ten minutes make a list of all the
symbols you can think of in your group. (Hint:
Think about what is on your clothes and shoes,
on cars, sport teams, advertisements.)
1. Now, for every symbol on your list, write
down it’s meaning. (Example: Golden
Arches = McDonalds, etc.)
2. Play a game with the symbols. Have each
member of your group pick three symbols
from the list you made together. On a piece
of paper, write down a clue that describes
the meaning of each symbol you picked.
Your teacher will collect all the clues, and
then will read them one at a time. How
many could you figure out?
Example: This symbol tells you that the number you are reading is an amount of money.
Answer: $
Bar graph
How many symbols do you think your
classmates have in common with you?
• Make a list of all of the symbols.
• Add up the number of times each symbol
was written down.
• Make a bar graph with the data you
collected.
• What information did you discover from
your data?
Activity 2 Detecting Symbols in Your Life
Homework
Part Two: What Symbols do You See?
What are the symbols you see in your everyday life? Examples: a green light tells you to
go; body language has symbols without using
words; authors use symbols in literature to
deepen the meaning of the book; tattoos are
symbols. There are symbols that are verbal or
non-verbal, musical symbols, visual symbols,
written symbols, symbols for ideas, emotions,
and feelings. Even words, letters, and numbers
are symbols.
On your way to and from school write down
as many symbols as you see and write down the
symbols you see at home. If you have a camera
or a camera phone you should take pictures of
them. Then answer the following questions for
each one:
4. What does the symbol represent?
5. Does your symbol have multiple meanings?
6. What words come to mind when you see
each of these symbols?
7. Is the symbol successful? Does it get the
point across?
1. Where is the symbol located?
2. What is it? If possible, take a picture or
draw the symbol in its environment.
3. What do you know about it?
8. How many symbols do you think your
classmates have in common with you?
• Make a list of all of the symbols
• Add up the number of times each symbol
was written down
• Make a bar graph with the data you
collected
• What information did you discover from
your data?
Activity 3: Create a Coat of Arms
Tools
Markers, colored pencils, paper, and color chart
Handout (page 52)
Time
Part one: 1 one-hour session, plus presentation time
Objectives
>
Students will combine a variety of symbols to communicate ideas and
information
>
Students will reflect upon and assess the characteristics and merits of
their work and the work of others
>
Students will reflect on themselves
>
Students will create symbols that represents themselves
>
Students will write an explanation about the symbols they chose and
why they chose them
>
Students will create a piece of art and demonstrate their drawing skills
>
Students will utilize the visual art elements and principles of design to
create an original composition
26.B.3.d
Writing: 4,10
Activity 3 Create a Coat of Arms
Handout
Create a Coat of Arms or a Shield
Create a coat of arms or a shield that represents
yourself. When finished, share your coat of
arms with the class.
1. Draw a shield and divide it into four quadrants. In each quadrant draw a symbol that
represents yourself. In each quadrant choose a
background color that represents you. Color
also has symbolic meaning. Color meanings vary between cultures. When choosing
colors, look up their meaning. For example:
in one quadrant you might draw a symbol
of a soccer ball and players; in your second
quadrant you might draw a symbol of pizza
representing your favorite food; in the third
quadrant you might draw a film strip because
you really like watching movies; and the last
quadrant you might draw a bicycle because
biking is your favorite thing to do on weekends.
2. Develop symbols that represent yourself.
These should be symbols that are important
to you. Maybe they have a cultural meaning. You can show different characteristics
that define you. You can show values such
as courage or loyalty through a color or a
symbol. Remember to recognize that differing personal and cultural backgrounds may
influence interpretation of your symbols.
Make sure your classmates will be able to
interpret them without your input.
final piece of art. Once you have your symbols developed and placed, you want to add
color.
4. Write a short essay explaining the symbols,
images, colors, and shapes in the coat of
arms and how they are significant to you.
Remember you viewed a coat of arms of the
Paseo Boricua on your tour. Each one of
those symbols stands for something. If you
need to, go back and review the two brown
text boxes on each side of the mural 79th by
John Vergara. It will help you develop your
symbols. Do your symbols have a meaning
only to you or are they universal symbols?
For instance, in one culture the idea of
mourning is conveyed by the color black and
in another by its opposite, white. What is
the basis for choosing your symbols?
Example coat of arms:
3. Sketch out your ideas before you create your
Adapted from an After School Matters activity at the Summer Learning Institute. 2009.
Tools
Computers, paper, pens
Handout (page 54)
Worksheet (pages 55-56)
Time
3 one-hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will understand and explain the importance of symbols
and ideas in their historical context as well as today
>
Students will develop awareness and give examples of forms
of expression that depict the history, daily life, and beliefs of a group
of people
>
Students will work on improving their visual skills by learning to
“read” symbols
>
Students will show an understanding of cultural context
>
Students will investigate the Pre-Columbian culture of Puerto Rico
>
Students will interpret and synthesize information from a variety
of sources
>
Students will develop an anthropological understanding of people
in prehistory
>
Students will become familiar with the concept of hieroglyphics and
pictographs
16.A.3.b | 18.A.3 | 25.A.3.e
27.A.3.b | 27.B.3
Reading Informational Text: 1
Writing: 4,7,8,10
Activity 4 Taíno Symbolism and History
Handout
Part One: Learn about the Taíno People and Culture
This activity will introduce you to the indigenous people of Puerto Rico.
1. Split into teams and divide the questions
below into the number of teams you have.
2. Research your questions.
3. Prepare a PowerPoint presentation about
the questions your team has answered. The
presentation can include maps, photographs, music, etc. Cite your sources.
Who are the Taíno people?
Research the following categories of information about the Taíno people:
• history
• geography
• beliefs and/or religion
• foods and/or agriculture
• entertainment and/or sport
inventions
• lifestyle: housing, dress, language
people and the Spanish explorers?
e. What were some of their rituals?
f. Did they have a written language or did they
use pictographs?
g. What was Taíno society like?
h. What is the chronology of the Taíno
culture?
i. What was the island of Puerto Rico called by
the Taínos?
j. What words did they use back then that are
still used today?
k. Were they a warring or peaceful civilization?
l. What was a typical day like in the life of a
Taíno person?
Suggested Resources:
www.elboricua.com/history.html
www.elboricua.com/BoricuaKidsTainos.html
www.topuertorico.org/reference/taino.html
a. Who are their descendants? What became
of the Taíno people?
b. Where did they live? On one island or many
islands?
c. What does Taíno mean?
d. What was the relation between the Taíno
goog.gl/kRm6t
www.harcourtschool.com/newsbreak/taino.html
www.tainogallery.com/symbology/paintings
www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary
Activity 4 Taíno Symbolism and History
Worksheet
Part Two: Taíno Symbols
Since we have been studying symbols, let’s figure out some Taíno symbols. The Taíno used
pictographs as their form of language. Taíno symbols are still found on rocks and caves in Puerto
Rico. Where have we seen these symbols on our mural field trip? Which mural contains Taíno
symbols?
1. Research Taíno pictographs and what they represent.
2. Find ten Taíno pictographs. Sketch and label them.
3. Select another ancient culture. See if you can locate the same symbols you have just
discovered during your research on the Taino.
4. Compare and contrast the symbols you researched.
Worksheet continued
Worksheet
Activity 5: Create your own Pictographs
Tools
Markers, colored pencils, paper
Time
2 one-hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will have an understanding and appreciation of symbols
being used as a form of writing
>
Students will use a set of symbols that communicates specific
ideas/stories
>
Students will hone their drawing skills
26.B.3.d
Writing: 4,10
Speaking and Listemimg: 1,2,5
Activity 5 Create your own Pictographs
Handout
Pictographs
• Write six sentences about yourself.
• Take each of the sentences and draw pictographs to represent each idea in the sentence.
Use at least two pictographs for each sentence.
• A pictograph is a symbol for a word or a
phrase, a picture symbol representing an
idea.
• Make sure your sentences and pictographs
can clearly communicate to another person
what you are trying to convey.
• Don’t tell your classmates what your pictographs mean. Each person should hold up
one of their pictographs and see if the class
can guess what it states.
• Discuss each other’s completed pictographs
and discuss why certain decisions were made.
Example
Pictograph
for food
Pictograph
for sport
Pictograph
for jobs you
do around the
house
When I am at home I help my mom
prepare dinner, I play sports, and
I do my chores.
Symbols and Symbolism in Art
Coat of arms the distinctive
heraldic bearings or shield of a
person, family, corporation, or
country
Code a system of words, letters,
figures, or other symbols
substituted for other words, letters,
etc., esp. for the purposes of secrecy
Cultural meaning relating to the
ideas, customs, and social behavior
of a society
Emblem a device or symbolic
object as a distinctive badge of a
nation, organization, or family
El Dorado Myth the myth of
a lost city of gold which led
conquistadorstres to South America
Hieroglypics enigmatic or
incomprehensible symbols or
writing that emerged from the
preliterate artistic traditions of
Egypt
Icon a person or thing regarded as a
representative symbol of something
Ideogram a written character
symbolizing the idea of a thing
without indicating the sounds used
to say it, numerals and Chinese
characters.
Logo an identifying statement or
symbol; a graphic representation
Petroglyphs a rock carving, esp. a
prehistoric one.
Pictogram a pictorial symbol for a
word or phrase, images representing
things or ideas rather than words
Pictographs a pictorial symbol for
a word or phrase
Quadrant Each of four quarters of
resemblance; especially : a visible
sign of something not seen/
intangible
Symbolic serving as or expressing a
symbol- something that represents
something else
Taíno a member of the Arawak
people formerly inhabiting the
Greater Antilles and the Bahamas
and the Caribbean Sea
Universal symbols a symbol
affecting all people or things in
the world or in a particular group;
applicable to all cases
a shape
Investigation 5
Political Art
The mural La Crucifixion de Don Pedro Albizu Campos is a
mural of great importance to the Chicago Puerto Rican and
the Humboldt Park community. It serves as a powerful display
of political, cultural, and social expression. By studying this
mural, students will learn about some of the heroes who
profoundly affected the Puerto Rican Independence Movement.
They will identify with the heroes by learning about the
qualities, characteristics, and values of a hero. They will
create a drawing for a mural on Puerto Rican independence,
hold a Town Hall meeting about plebiscite, write about a role
model, and write a report on gentrification after studying the
community’s effort to save the mural.
Grades: 6–8
Activity 1: Site Visit to La Crucifixion
Activity 2: Qualities, characteristics,
and values of a hero?
Activity 3: Report on a hero from the mural La
Crucifixion and a hero you admire
Optional activities
Activity 4: Create a Drawing and Hold a Classroom
Town Hall Meeting
Activity 5: Preserving a Legacy: The Saving of La
Crucifixion
Investigation 5: Political Art | 61
Activity 1: Site Visit to La Crucifixion
Tools
Field Trip Worksheet (pages 63-64)
Computers (back at school)
Time
Part one: Field trip time at the mural and 1 one-hour session
at computer lab for research
Objectives
>
Students will consider political art and its role in society
>
Students will gain skills in visual literacy
>
Students will understand the visual arts in relation to history
and culture
>
Students will develop analytical skills in interpreting artwork
14.C.3 | 16.A.3.b | 25.A.3.e
Writing: 4,7,8,10
62 | Investigation 5: Political Art
Activity 1 Site Visit to La Crucifixion
Fieldtrip Worksheet
Political and Hero Worksheet
La Crucifixion de Don Pedro Albizu Campos is the oldest Puerto Rican mural in Chicago.
1. When was the mural painted?
2. Who painted the mural?
3. What do you know about this mural already?
4. What do you notice about the people in the mural?
5. Who are the people represented in the mural? Record this information along with the dates
that they lived. Use the library or computer lab to look up the answers.
Name of person
Dates lived
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Activity 1 Site visit to La Crucifixion
Worksheet continued
Fieldtrip Worksheet
6. Who do you think is the person without any identification? Why is he in the mural? Why do
you think he is not named? What does he represent? What is he doing?
7. Is this a contemporary Puerto Rican flag or one from the past?
8. Does the mural have a point of view?
9. Does the mural tell a story? If yes, what is the story?
10. Is this mural important? To whom? And why?
11. Does this mural have a goal? What is it?
12. How does this mural make you feel?
Activity 2: The Qualities & Characteristics of a Hero
Tools
Worksheet (page 66)
Time
1 two-hour session
Objectives
>
Students will be able to identify the qualities, characteristics,
and values of a hero
>
Students will understand and define the meaning of the words hero
and heroic
Teaching plan
What is the dictionary definition of a hero and heroism? Write the
terms and their definitions on the board.
Activity 2 The Qualities and Characteristics of a Hero
Worksheet
Think, Pair, and Share
You are going to do a think, pair, and share.
You will first think of your own answer to the
question posed, then you’ll be given a minute
to share your thinking with a partner, and you
will be called on to share the ideas you and
your partner had with the whole class.
Discussion: Answer the following questions
Question:
•
What are some qualities,
characteristics, or values
of a hero?
Use the chart below to track your answers.
during a classroom discussion:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Define hero.
Why do we need heroes?
Why are heroes important?
Who are some famous heroes in the
world today?
What can these heroes teach us from
their actions?
Do heroes transcend time?
Are heroes perfect? Do they have flaws?
What are their qualities, characteristics, and
accomplishments?
Do we define our heroes by the heroes we
choose and in turn do they help define us?
Do heroes change as society changes?
Characteristics
of a hero
Activity 3: Report on a Hero You Admire
Tools
Computers and/or notebooks to keep research in
Time
2 one-hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will use chronology to organize historical events
>
Students will consider political art and its role in society
>
Students will identify significant historical events and the people
connected to them
>
Students will read to locate, select, evaluate, and make use of
information from a variety of sources
>
Students will identify and discuss some relevant events and people in
the mural
>
Students will be able to describe the historical contributions of people
and how they affect us today
>
Students will understand what motivates ordinary people to
accomplish extraordinary things
Teaching Plan
Part One: Before asking each student to read their report aloud, review
the definition of a hero and the characteristics of a hero that the class
generated in the previous activity.
Part Two: Students will select a hero they admire. They will determine
how this person’s deed(s) demonstrated heroism and how his or her
behavior reflects the characteristics of a hero.
Reading of Informational Text: 10
Writing: 4,5,6,7,8,10
Activity 3 Report on a Hero You Admire
Handout
Part One: Write about a Hero from the Mural
Select one hero from the mural La Crucifixion
de Don Pedro Albizu Campos to research,
report on, and present to the class.
Make sure you check with the other students
so that you do not all pick the same person.
There are nine heroes to choose from. Each
figure should be reported on. You may write
about other Puerto Rican heroes who participated in the Independence Movement including Julia de Burgos, Consuelo Lee, or Isabel
Rosado. Your report should address the following:
• How does the person’s life and deeds reflect
heroism and hero-like characteristics?
• When and where was your hero born?
• What is a chronological account of the
hero’s life?
• What are the hardships or struggles that he/
she overcame?
• What was this person’s major accomplishments?
• What major events happened in the world
during this person’s lifetime?
• Were they a hero during their lifetime?
• What cause did he/she fight for?
• Did their dream come true during their
lifetime?
• What was the date and place of their death?
• At the end of your report answer the question: How does this person affect my life
today? If you met this person today, do
you think you would like them? Why or
why not?
Report on your hero to the class using the
summary you composed.
Activity 3 Report on a Hero You Admire
Handout
Part Two: My Hero
Select a hero you admire. You will determine how
this person’s deed(s) demonstrated heroism and
how his or her behavior reflects the characteristics
of a hero.
Write a one page paper telling the story of your
hero. Answer these questions in your writing:
• Whose story inspires you?
• What action(s) did her/she take?
• When did he/she take this action?
• Where did the action take place?
• Do you know why he/she took this action?
• How did this action benefit people?
• How does this person affect your life?
Example:
The 26th Ward Alderman Billy Ocasio
helped save the mural La Crucifixion
de Don Pedro Albizu Campos. His
support helped to halt construction of the
condo that was going to make the mural
impossible to see. This action took place in
Humboldt Park and at City Hall during
the early 2000s. The mural was going to be
destroyed and he wanted to save it. Now
the mural has not only been saved but
restored. The whole community can enjoy
the mural and can visit the new park next
to it. Billy Ocasio stood up for something
that he believed in and cared about.
• What qualities and characteristics about this
person do you admire?
Activity 4: Town Hall Meeting / Create a Drawing
Tools
Computers, paper, pens, computers, paper, markers, colored pencils
Time
Part One: 2 one-hour sessions
Part Two: 3 one-hour session
Objectives
>
Students will understand and evaluate a current issue
>
Students will understand the visual arts in relation to history and
culture
>
Student will identify visual images, themes, and ideas for a work of art
>
Students will gain an understanding of the role of public art in the
past and in the present
>
Students will analyze and evaluate the characteristics and merits of a
work of art
>
Students will understand the importance of history as part of the
identity of a people
26.B.3.d
Reading of Informational Text: 2,10
Writing: 4,7,8,10
Speaking and Listening: 1,4,5,6
Activity 4 Town Hall Meeting / Create a Drawing
Teaching Plan
Part One: Classroom Town Hall Meeting
You are going to hold a Town Hall meeting to
debate a referendum about the decolonization
of Puerto Rico from the United States. Divide
the class in half and assign one half to represent a pro-independence viewpoint and the
other half to be against independence from the
United States.
After your students have done their research
on the issue they should have a good understanding of what is taking place and be able to
take a stance. Make sure you have a moderator
for the town hall meeting.
After the meeting, take a vote. Should
Puerto Rico be a state or an independent country? Compare the class votes to those of Puerto
Ricans in their last vote.
Discussion Questions
Puerto Rican Independence
The current political status of Puerto Rico is
the result of various political activities both
within the United States and Puerto Rican
governments. The basic question regarding this
issue is whether Puerto Rico should remain a
U.S. territory, become a U.S. state, or become
an independent country.
Research the following questions to prepare
for a class discussion:
• Why is Puerto Rico important to the
United States?
• What is a referendum?
• What does independence mean to Puerto
Rico?
• What does self-determination mean?
• How did Puerto Rico become an unincorporated territory… and what is an unincorporated territory? When did it become a
territory?
• What was the Nationalist Party of Puerto
Rico? How did they influence current
thinking about Puerto Rican independence?
• Update the class on what Puerto Ricans
living in Puerto Rico think about independence from the United States. What does
the Popular Democratic Party think and
what does the New Progressive Party think?
• Under what circumstances might governments find it necessary to hold a plebiscite?
• What are the advantages and disadvantages
of independence?
• The U.S. Congress can soley determine the
fate of Puerto Rico.
Hold a Town Hall meeting where people can
debate the international idea about the decolinization of Puerto Rico
• Why is the United States holding on to this
territory?
Activity 4 Town Hall Meeting / Create a Drawing
Teaching Plan
Part Two: Create a Drawing for a Mural
on Puerto Rican Independence
Take a moment to look at La Crucifixion again
and facilitate a classroom discussion about the
mural as a political artwork.
La Crucifixion serves as a powerful artwork
for political expression and as a depiction of a
shared history for many people. Why do you
think it is a political mural?
7. Create a team drawing of a mural you think
would represent this concept. Once teams
are finished with the drawings, present
them to the class for discussion.
1. Brainstorm a definition of political art.
What makes an artwork political? What do
you expect to find when looking at art that
is deemed political?
8. Reflection- Discuss with the class whether
the murals convey the intended messages.
If put up on a billboard, would the public
understand what is being expressed?
2. How can you best communicate a political
message to a large group of people today?
3. What is propaganda? Can you find examples of propaganda art?
4. How is art a catalyst for social change?
5. How do artists use symbols and words to
convey political messages?
6. Form teams. Each team is going to create
a mural about Puerto Rican independence.
Think about the following questions as you
plan your mural:
• What ideas, concepts, and images, do you
want to put in your mural? Try to come
up with images that strongly support your
message or position.
• Will your mural support the idea of independence or have Puerto Rico stay a territory of the United States?
Tip: The work of Puerto Rican poets Naomi
Ayala, Julia de Burgos, Martín Espada, and
Clemente Soto Vélez are outstanding poems
of resistance. Reading these poems should give
you inspiration while working on this activity.
Activity 5: Preserving a Legacy: Saving La Crucifixion
Tools
Computer
Handout (page 72)
Homework Articles on CD* (Print out for students):
Albizu Campos bio.docx
Crucifixion WBEZ article.docx
La Voz Crucifixion article.docx
Mural Celebration Honors History and Community article.docx
Saving Murals in HP Windy Citizens articles.docx
Time
Homework: reading the articles about La Crucifixion
and 1 one-hour session*
Objective
>
Students will broaden their understanding of the importance of
preserving our shared heritage
18.A.3 | 27.B.3
Reading for Informational
Text: 1,2,8,10
Writing: 4,5,7,8,10
Activity 5 Preserving a Legacy: Saving La Crucifixion
Handout
Essay: The Saving of La Crucifixion
Read the articles about “La Crucifixion”
and answer the following questions in a
one page essay.
1. What is preservation?
2. What are the reasons we preserve things:
murals, buildings, parks, etc.?
3. Do you think it is important to understand
issues from the past?
Articles provided by your teacher:
Albizu Campos Bio
Crucifixion, WBEZ
Crucifixion, La Voz
Mural Celebration Honors History and Community
Saving Murals in HP, Windy Citizens
4. Why do you think La Crucifixion is
important to preserve?
5. Should it have been saved? Why?
6. Do you think the issue the mural is
addressing is still relevant today? Why?
7. Make a list of what matters to you in your
community. If one of the things on your
list was threatened with destruction, what
would you do?
Political Art
Social commentary the expression
public affairs of a country
of opinions or explanations about an
event or situation relating to society
Political issue topic relating to
Town Hall meeting a meeting
for the administration of local
government to discuss issues or
policies with the people of the area
Gentrification the restoration of
run-down urban areas resulting in
the displacement of residents
Hero a person,who is admired or
idealized for courage, outstanding
achievements, or noble qualities
Heroism great bravery
Characteristic a distinguishing
Independence free from outside
control
Political message a message for
relating to the government or the
society and government
Nationalist Party in Puerto
Rico a political party, founded
on September 17,1922, with the
objective of working for Puerto
Rican Independence
New Progressive Party in Puerto
Rico a political party founded in
1968that advocates for Puerto Rico’s
admission to the United States of
America as the 51st state
Popular Democratic Party in
Puerto Rico founded in 1936 and
Plebiscite the direct vote of all the
members of an electorate on an
important public question such as a
change in the constitution.
became a political party in 1938,
that supports Puerto Rico’s right to
self-determination and sovereignty,
through the enhancement of
Puerto Rico’s current status as a
commonwealth.
Unincorporated territory portions
Legacy anything handed down from
of the United States or another
country that are not within the
limits of any state and have not been
admitted as states
the past, as from an ancestor or
predecessor
Self-determination the process
by which a country determines its
own statehood and forms its own
allegiances and government
Preservation the act of maintaining
in safety from injury, peril, or harm;
protect
Referendum a direct vote in which
an entire electorate is asked to either
accept or reject a particular proposal
Investigation 6
Learning About Voting
The concept that everyone gets to vote is a revolutionary
idea in history. This critical act is the basis of our democracy;
students must learn to become engaged citizens and how to
become part of the political process. The investigation begins
with a discussion about why it is important to vote. Students
will then learn about the Electoral College, make a campaign
fact chart, and create colorful collages about an upcoming
election. The survey activity gives students the opportunity
to expand and solidify the information they are learning in a
real world situation by creating, conducting, and analyzing a
questionnaire about people’s voting habits.
Grades: 6–8
Activity 1: Voting: Class Discussion and Role-play
Optional Activities:
Activity 3: Create and Facilitate a Survey
Activity 4: Explore an Upcoming Election through Media
and Art
Investigation 6: Learning About Voting | 77
Activity 1: Voting: Class Discussion and Role-play
Tools
Handout (page 80)
Time
1 two-hour session
Objectives
>
Students will begin to understand ideas about civic life,
politics, and government
>
Students will develop their persuasive speaking skills and express their
stance on voting
>
Students will understand the importance of voting as a form of
political participation
>
Students will understand that the right to vote is a core component of
any democracy
14.C.4 | 14.C.5
78 | Investigation 6: Learning About Voting
Activity 1 Voting: Class Discussion and Role-play
Teaching Plan
To Vote or Not to Vote
Class discussion
This activity should take place after visiting
the mural I Will…
• In what ways can citizens participate in
government?
Examples: Draft a petition for people to
sign for a cause; serve your city, state, or
country through civil service work; wear a
button for your favorite candidate
• Why do you think someone thought it was
important to create a mural about voting?
• Do you remember seeing a ballot box in
the mural “I Will…”? In the text section of
the mural the viewer is asked to answer the
question “I will…” What do you think the
mural asks you to commit to? How would
you fill in an answer to the question?
• In the mural “I Will…” you can see an
image of the mural “LaCrucifixion.” Why
do you think the artists chose to represent
“LaCrucifixion” in this specific mural?
• Have you ever voted for something?
What was it?
Examples: in a school election, on a family
issue, when you are with friends and trying
to decide which restaurant to eat at
• What do you know about voting?
• Why is voting important?
• What are the goals of voting?
• Why would people not vote?
• Why do you think there is a lack of voter
turnout?
• Is voting a right or a responsibility?
• What responsibilities come with the right
to vote?
• If we don’t vote what happens?
• Does one vote make a difference?
• Are there places in the world where people
do not have the right to vote?
• If you were able to vote today what kinds
of issues would be most important to you?
• Where do you learn about local, state, and
national politics?
Example: watching the news
• Do you know what compulsory voting is?
Answer: It is a law stating that it is mandatory to vote.
• Some nations have compulsory voting laws
while others, such as the United States, do
not. Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium,
Brazil, Singapore, Switzerland, Uruguay
and others have laws on the books that
require citizens to vote. Penalties range
from fines to taking away your vote forever
for repeat offenders. Do you believe the
Unites States should invoke a compulsory
voting law?
1. Break into two person teams
Activity 1: Voting: Class discussion and Role-play
Handout
To Vote or Not to Vote
2. Convince your partner why or why not
to vote
3. First take the role of the voter then switch and take the role of the friend who doesn’t want to
vote.
4. In both roles keep track of your reasons so they can be reported back to the class.
5. List the reasons on the board.
Activity 2: Electoral College
Tools
Handout (page 82)
Computer
Time
1 one-hour session or could be completed as homework
Objectives
>
Students will understand ideas about civic life, politics, and
government
>
Students will understand how the Electoral College works in order to
understand how we elect a president
>
Students will locate, organize, and use information from various
sources to answer questions and communicate ideas
>
Students will understand the roles and influences of individuals in the
political system
>
Students will learn how to reflect on the voting process
Reading for Informational Text: 2
Writing: 4,7,8,10
Activity 2 Electoral College
Handout
In November during Presidential election years, Americans cast their vote for President of the
United States. There is a system called the Electoral College that determines who will win the election. Every voter should know how this system works. Please research and answer the following
questions on separate paper:
1. What is the Electoral College?
2. How does it work?
3. When was the Electoral College system
started?
4. Why does the United States have an
Electoral College system? What is the reasoning behind it?
5. Are we the only country that has an
Electoral College?
6. Who elects the electors? How are the electors chosen?
10. How many electors represent the State of
Illinois? Does each party get the same number of electors?
11. Does the popular vote make a difference?
Why?
12. Do you think the Electoral College is a
good/fair system? Why or why not?
13. If you could, how would you improve it?
14. What happened in the year 2000 between
George Bush and Al Gore? Who won the
popular vote and who won the election?
7. What is the job of the electors?
8. How many Electoral College votes does
a candidate have to receive to win the
Presidency?
9. What happens if there are no presidential
candidates who get the majority of votes
needed to become the party candidate?
*Source: Illinois State Board of Elections. www.elections.il.gov
Tools
Questionnaires, computers, a letter or flyer introducing the questionnaire
project to perspective participants
Time
3 one-hour sessions plus the time to take the surveys
2 one-hour sessions to analyze the data and present it back to the class
Objectives
>
Students will learn how to write a questionnaire and administer a
survey
>
Students will analyze voter participation statistics, interpret the data,
and make inferences about the data
>
Students will use creative thinking skills to generate ideas about
creating a survey
>
Students will participate in group planning and cooperate with others
to accomplish goals
Writing: 4,10
Mathematics: 6.SP-4 | 6.SP-5
7.SP.1 | 7.SP-2
Activity 3 Create and Facilitate a Survey
Handout
Let’s Design a Questionnaire
You are going to create and conduct a survey
of 10–15 people each to determine information about voter participation in an upcoming
national election. Following are the voting
requirements in Illinois.
To vote you must:
• Be a United States citizen
• Be at least 18 years old
• Live in your election precinct at least 30 days
• Not be convicted and in jail
• Not claim the right to vote anywhere else*
Step 1: Design a questionnaire
Think of the follow questions before you
design your questionnaire: What goes into a
questionnaire? What is the best way to collect
answers? Do you think people will write
out their answer or do you think it would
be better if they just have to check a box or
circle an answer? How much time do you
think someone will spend answering your
questionnaire?
Do you think it will be better to have people
fill out the form while you wait or do you
think they will fill it out and give it back to
you on their own?
On your questionnaire, make sure to collect
basic demographic information: age, gender,
occupation, race, ethnicity, what ward, state
and congressional districts they live in, etc.
Sample questions you might include:
• Are you registered to vote?
• What are your reasons for voting?
• What is your level of interest in politics?
very interested, fairly interested, somewhat
interested, not very interested, not at all interested
• Do you identify with a specific political
party? Democrat, Republican, Green, Libertarian, None, Other
• Have you ever volunteered to work on a
political campaign?
• If you don’t mind, please tell us where
you stand on the following scale: Extremely
Liberal, Liberal, Slightly Liberal, Moderate,
Slightly Conservative, Conservative, Extremely
Conservative
• How do you get information about candidates? campaign flyers, radio programs, TV,
debates, newspapers and magazines, neighborhood meetings, friends and family, the web,
other
• Do you currently follow campaign issues?
• What are the issues you are most
interested in?
• Do you participate in any civic/political
activities in the community? Which activities?
• Will you vote in the next national election?
Handout continued
•
•
•
•
Why or why not? Possible answers: It won’t
make a differenc I am too busy; I forgot to
register; I am not interested in politics; I
don’t know anything about the campaigns; I
am not eligible to vote, I have transportation
problems.
Who will you vote for?
Why did you choose this candidate?
What would help make it easier to vote?
Possible answers: being able to vote on-line,
same day voting registration, longer polling
hours, voting by mail, etc.
Should voting be compulsory (required) for
all people over the age of 18 in America?1
Handout
answers? Examples: the median age of voters, who gender is more likely to vote, reasons for voting or not voting, if people are
interested in politics, etc.
• Draw some conclusions about the characteristics of your voters
Finally, write a paragraph about
what you learned from conducting
your survey.
Step 2: Conduct a survey
Who will you survey?
• Try to survey half females and half males.
• The participants have to be 18 or older.
• Tell the participants that they will not be
asked to give their name and tell them the
information is only going to be used in a
class project.
Step 3: Compile the results
Once you have completed your surveys you
will need to compile the information. It can
be compiled in the form of graphs, pie charts,
bar charts, spreadsheets, written or oral reports.
You will need a number of ways depending on
the questions you ask in your survey.
• Compare and contrast the information you
found. What can you determine from the
1 These
questions were adapted from a San Francisco State University Voting Survey.
Public Research Institute. 2004. pri.sfsu.edu/reports/StudentVotingSurveyReport2004.
Activity 4: Exploring through Media and Art
Tools
Computer, sticky notes, student’s choice of materials for their collage,
found materials, art supplies, and poster board
Handout (page 87)
Time
Part One: 2 one-hour sessions
Part Two: 2 one-hour plus time to collect materials for the poster
Objectives
>
Students will use different media, techniques, and processes to
communicate ideas
>
Students will perceive the political environment and develop personal
ideas around a theme to create original works of art
>
Students will compare and contrast ideas
>
Students will interpret information, draw inferences, make
conclusions, and make decisions
25.A.3.e | 26.B.3.d
Reading and Literature: 2,10
Writing: 4,7,8,10
Activity 4 Exploring through Media and Art
Handout
Exploring the Election through Media and Art
Part One: Campaign Fact Chart
In this activity you will research candidates
in the upcoming election, make a campaign
fact chart, and create a collage. Your teacher
will prepare a classroom fact chart with the
candidates’ names listed across the top and ask
all students to research each person and write
one fact about that person on a sticky note.
• Begin researching issues that are being
talked about for the next local, state, or federal election.
• Once you find a piece of information you
think people should know about, write it
on a sticky note. Put sticky notes up on a
wall so others can read them.
For example: This candidate thinks everyone
should serve in the military. This candidate wants to extend the age young people
should stay in school. This candidate does
not support raising taxes. This candidate
wants stricter gun control laws. This candidate wants to reduce the need for more oil
drilling in America, etc.
• Once you have enough information collected on each candidate, choose what
issues you like about each candidate and
what issues you do not agree with.
• Choose the candidate you are most interested in supporting.
• Write a few paragraphs about the candidate
you would vote for and why.
• As you are researching the candidate, collect
pictures for the next activity that requires
making a campaign collage.
Part Two: Campaign Collage
• Create a collage about voting or the
upcoming election and current campaigns.
• Collect images, articles, and other things
you can use to create a collage: newspaper
clippings, photographs, downloading online information, magazine clippings, photo
copies, etc.
• Use a sturdy piece of material to support
your collage.
• Create what you don’t have or can’t find.
Since collage is a combination or blend of
different elements, it lends itself well to
mixed media. You can paint, draw, stamp,
or stencil in between and on top of the elements you find.
• Arrange the elements you’ve collected. You
might want to do this a number of times
until you find the right composition.
• Glue your elements down.
• Write an explanation about your collage to
accompany it. Be sure to explain the different elements in the collage, why you chose
those elements and why you combined
them in the way that you did.
• Put up an exhibit of collages with their
written explanations in the school or
classroom.
Vocabulary for Investigation 6: Voting
the same as its senators and
representatives)
Apathy lack of interest or concern
particular district
Assemblage a collection or
Convention a formal meeting of
members of a party to nominate
candidates to run for president
Federal of or describing a union of
used to cast or register a vote
Crossover vote a vote by a
Franchise the constitutional right
Campaign course of action, such as
member of one party for a candidate
of another party
to vote
gathering of things or people
Ballot a sheet of paper or a card
public speaking or demonstrating,
designed to influence voters in an
election
Candidate person who seeks or is
Delegate a person given power
or authority to vote for others; a
representative
states having a central government
General election statewide
elections held so that registered
voters can decide the state and
national officials who will head the
government
put forward by others for a political
office
Democracy government that is run
by the people who live under it
Gerrymandering the drawing up of
Caucus closed meeting of party
Democrat a member of the
members to determine nominations
Democratic party, one of the two
major political parties in the US
voting districts in unusual shapes in
order to benefit a certain group
Citizen person who was born in or
Government the governing body
of a nation, state, or community
chooses to live in and is a member
of a country. A resident is a person
who lives in a specific jurisdiction
Demographic a statistic
characterizing a segment of human
population
Green Party an environmentalist
Collage A form of art in
Elect to select by vote for an office
House of Representatives
which various materials such as
photographs and pieces of paper or
fabric are arranged and stuck to a
backing
Compulsory voting required by law
or a rule to vote
Congress legislative group
consisting of the House of
Representatives and the Senate
Congressional District a political
subdivision for the purpose of
electing U.S. representatives
Constituency all the voters of a
Election campaign series of
operations designed to win votes
for a certain candidate, party or
proposal
Electoral college a group of
political party
the lower house of the Congress
consisting of 435 members who
each serve two-year terms (and can
be re-elected)
Incumbent a person currently
holding office
representatives chosen by voters
to elect the president and the vice
president of the United States
Independent voter a voter who
Electorate those eligible to vote
Issues problems and ideas to be
Electors the individuals chosen
talked about, questioned, decided
upon, and voted on
by the voters to elect the president
and vice president of the United
States (each state’s electors number
does not belong to a political party
Libertarian a member of the
Libertarian party, the third largest
US political party
Major Party the Democratic or
Republican Party
Nominate to propose or offer the
name of someone for political office
Nominee the person that a political
Pollster person or company that
returns, or the overall results of a
conducts or analyzes opinion polls
vote
Poll to collect opinions about
important issues or events
Polling place or Polls place where
votes are cast
party names, or nominates, to
represent it in a general election
Presidential election an election to
Nonpartisan not associated with a
Primary election preliminary
particular political party
elections in which voters choose
party candidates to run for office on
their party ticket in general elections
Nonpartisan elections elections
usually held at the state or local level:
the candidate’s party membership is
not given on the ballot
Office a political position
Partisan associated with a particular
political party
choose a president and vice president
Propoganda ideas or information
of biased or misleading nature that a
group of people deliberately spread
to try to influence the thinking of
other people
Register the process by which a
gain political power or control
person becomes added to the list of
eligible voters
Party platform statement of the
Republican member of the
principles or beliefs of a political
group
Republican political party, one of the
two major political parties
Plank a stand on an issue by a
Senate the upper house of the
political party; planks comprise a
party platform
Congress, with two members from
each state (100 members total) who
each serve six-year terms
Party an organization working to
Political affiliation the party in
which a voter is registered
Suffrage the right to vote
Political party a group of people
Vote a method by which people
who join together because they share
many ideas about what government
should do
choose their leaders and decide
public issues. To count the votes,
you tally the votes to find out the
Investigation 7
Unidos Para Triunfar
Together We Overcome
Although this mural is not included on the walking tour,
we have included a PowerPoint presentation that can be used
as an introduction. Originally painted in 1971 and revised
in 1974, the mural depicts violence in the community and
conveys hope for change. This investigation considers how
social messages are communicated through art with the
intention to inspire social change. Students will make a
public service announcement or video about gangs and gang
violence. This is the student’s opportunity to create public
awareness around the need for youth-focused efforts aimed at
informing other youth about the perils of gangs. Educating
youth about gangs and gang violence gives them the tools to
make positive choices.
Grades: 6–8
Activity 1: Discussion, Questions, and Writing
Optional activities
Activity 2: How to Create a PSA
Activity 3: Make a Video Documentary
Investigation 7: Unidos Para Triunfar | 91
Activity 1: Discussion, Questions, and Writing
Tools
PowerPoint: Unidos Para Triunfar.pptx
Time
Part one: 1 one-hour session
Part two: 1 one-hour session
Objectives
>
Students will learn about history’s influence on artistic and cultural
movements and developments
>
Students will learn how the visual arts are an effective form of
communication
>
Students will learn about public art and social impact
>
Students will understand the ability of art to influence the public and
make social commentary
>
Students will identify visual images, themes, and ideas in a work of art
>
Students will identify works of art as belonging to various cultures,
times, and places
>
Students will evaluate, analyze, and interpret works of art in relation to
the contexts of history, culture, and place
25.A.3.d | 25.A.3.e | 27.B.3
Writing: 1,4,5,6,10
92 | Investigation 7: Unidos Para Triunfar
Activity 1 Discussion, Questions, and Writing
Teaching Plan
Part One: Presentation
Begin by showing the PowerPoint of Unidos
Para Triunfar (Together We Overcome). John
Weber painted Unidos Para Triunfar in 1971,
revised it in 1974, and restored it in 2004.
Following is a quote from Weber:
“… my mural Unidos para Triunfar [was] first
painted in 1971 and massively defaced the
following autumn. We had included gang colors but had overlooked one group. When we
repainted the mural almost three years later,
the painting was significantly revised, and, I
believe, improved, both thematically and compositionally, made more compact, dense, and
architecturally integrated, with chiaroscuros
imitated from Walker. Also, the tams—berets
with gang-identified colors—were omitted,
and the coffin of a key community organizer,
killed by police in the interim, was added. In
the ensuing twenty-seven years, the mural was
never touched again. I reference this example
not for its aesthetic value but for its illustration
of the importance of understanding context
and involving the community and the original
artist. Much more than mere conservation
was involved—and necessarily so. Simple restoration of the original would not have saved
the mural. Revision was essential based on in
depth consultation and wide-ranging discussions, with the original artist and the local
community sponsors playing central roles.”1
1 Weber,
Notes
• The center of the mural shows clasped brown
and black hands.
• On the right, the mural depicts youth fighting, showing the violent tension among
African American, Latino, and Caucasian
youth that was flaring up when the mural
was originally painted in 1971.
• To the right, the mural shows a mix of people
participating in a unity march.
• The marchers carry a Puerto Rican flag and
signs calling for decent housing, justice, and
unity.
• The coffin was added as part of the 1974
revision and is a reference to the police killing
of a Puerto Rican youth in 1973.
• The sign in Spanish reads: Defense of the
community, from one generation to the next.
The struggle continues.
John Pitman. “Politics and Practice of Community Public Art: Whose Murals Get
Saved?” Los Angeles: The Getty Conservation Institute. Paper presented at the Getty
Symposium “Mural Painting and Conservation in the Americas,” Los Angeles, CA, May
16-17, 2003. (16pp., 348KB)
Activity 1: Discussion, questions, and writing exercise
Teaching Plan continued
Have the students research and discuss
the following questions:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
What messages are addressed in the mural?
What is the goal of the mural?
Is this mural negative or positive? Why?
How are these messages relevant to the community then and now?
What does this mural say about people in
Humboldt Park? Does it only give one
viewpoint?
Does this work reflect the time (1971) and
social culture in which it was made? How?
What lessons can be learned from this mural?
Does this mural say anything about the reality of gang violence in Humboldt Park today?
Do you know what Humboldt Park was like
back in the early 1970’s? Do you know what
the gang situation was like back then?
Part Two: Class Discussion
• What types of violence have you witnessed or
experienced in your community?
• How do you stay safe?
• How does this violence impact you, your
family, your friends, and your school?
• What do you think would help reduce the
violence?
• How do you propose to let people know you
are concerned?
Part Three: Writing on Violence
• Invite the Alderman or a representative from
his/her office, your Principal, and School
Counselor to join in your class discussion
and to listen to your concerns.
• Write letters to the Mayor explaining your
concerns about violence in your community
and offer suggestions about how to make
changes that would keep people safe.
Tools
Audio equipment or video equipment and editing software. This activity
may also be conducted in print format on poster board.
Time
10 to 12 weeks
Objectives
>
Students will create a Public Service Announcement
>
Students will learn about recent gang issues in their neighborhood and
city
>
Students will research, summarize, and communicate information in a
variety of media and formats (textual, visual, audio, and digital)
>
Students will use a wide range of idea creation techniques (such as
brainstorming, collaboration)
>
Students will be able to explain why citizens are concerned about gang
violence and the influence of gangs in their community
>
Students will refine public speaking skills
>
Students will engage in the writing process—preparing, drafting,
revising, editing and publishing
>
Students will make oral and written presentations that demonstrate
appropriate consideration of audience, purpose, and the information
to be conveyed
3.B.3a | 3.C.3a | 3.C.3b
4.A.3a | 4.B.3a | 4.B.3b
5.A.3b | 5.C.3b | 24.A.3a
26.B.3d
Writing: 2,4,5,9
Activity 2 How to Create a PSA
Teaching Plan
Step One: Learning about Public
Service Announcements
Before we begin we need to know what a Public
Service Announcement or PSA is.
What are the characteristics of a PSA?
• They are short messages produced on video
or audio to give to television stations or radio
stations. They can also go up on websites, be
posted to people’s Facebook page, or be in a
print format for a newspaper.
• The objective is to persuade an audience
to take positive action for an institution or
social awareness cause. It is like a “call to
action.”
• PSAs can raise awareness, inspire, inform, or
educate the public about an issue.
• The station or printed media company does
not charge the organization a fee to get their
message out to the public. The only cost is
the production.
• The PSA is usually 30 – 60 seconds.
• Listen to some PSAs to get an idea of what
other organizations do. You can go to the
Ad Council/PSA Central at http://psacentral.
adcouncil.org/psacentral to look at some classic
PSAs and some current ones. Try The Public
Media Center portfolio of print PSAs http://
www.publicmediacenter.org/portfolio.shtml and
look at the More You Know website http://
www.themoreyouknow.com. For examples of
PSAs done by teens, visit http://www.ctvnetwork.org. You may also look on Google for
public service announcement examples.
• After you have looked at a number of PSAs,
have a class discussion about what makes
these PSAs successful and why? What is the
point of the PSA? What is it supposed to do?
How are these PSAs different from commercials? Was it memorable? Was there a great
tag line (a phrase that is easily remembered)?
What are the qualities of a good PSA? Keep
a list of these ideas on the board. You will be
using them later.
Step Two: Developing a Public
Service Announcement
Your job will be to conceptualize, research,
write, and produce a public service announcement.
1. Decide on a topic that relates to the issues of
gangs. Define your goals for the PSA. You
can do more than one PSA. Ask yourselves:
What do we know about this topic? What
questions do we need to ask? Why is this
topic important? The PSA could be about
stopping gun violence, making streets safe,
staying out of gangs, anti-gang strategies,
tools for gang prevention, schools as neutral
grounds, etc.
2. Brainstorm: make a list of possible points and
then decide on the most important point(s)
the class wants to make.
3. Decide which facts your audience needs to
hear. Do your research. Record your sources.
4. Each student should summarize the main
idea they are trying to communicate. They
have one sentence in which to do this.
5. Decide who your audience is. Depending on
the goals of the PSA you may have a target
audience (A target audience is a particular
group of people, identified as the intended
receiver of a PSA). Who needs to hear the
PSA? In this case the PSA would be about
people who are concerned about gang issues.
6. Decide on what ways your class can illustrate
your points. For example: Do you want to
reach people’s emotions or appeal to their
logic? Do you want to be loud and bold or
quiet and subtle? What will make people stop
and think?
7. Create a project checklist of what needs to be
accomplished.
8. Write your script. Your script should grab
attention, get the message across, and be to
the point. Your words need to be compelling. Make every word count. Send a specific,
clear, and simple message. Be persuasive.
9. Think about what the viewer or listener will
take away from the PSA. How will you capture the attention of your audience? Example:
You may want to start off by asking a question... have you ever known anyone who has
been harassed by gangs? How will you make
the PSA relevant to your audience? Do you
want to tell a story? Do you want to do a
skit? Do you want to use characters? What
will the tone be? Do you want to include
quotes? What perspective do you want to
present? Remember, simple is sometimes better. Try not to distract the viewer/listener/
reader. It can take away from the message.
a. You may want to create a tag line. (A tag
line is a memorable phrase or slogan that
will sum up what you want to say. This is
called a “hook.”)
b. When writing, think about a beginning,
a middle, and an end to the PSA. Discuss
the process of developing a narrative: accurate data, concise language, convincing content, etc. In what order will you place your
statements?
c. When organizing information use the
following categories: facts, statistics, statements, and opinions.
d. Do you have the time to tell your audience anything about your school? Who is
the organization making the PSA? Why are
you making it? Are these things you want
your audience to know? Or do you want
to focus on the issue? You have a very short
time to get your point across.
e. Do you want to give people a “call to
action?” Do you want to get people to take
an action? Example: Do you want your
audience to donate to Cure Violence (formerly CeaseFire)? Do you want parents to
talk to their children about the dangers of
gangs? Make it clear what you want your
audience to do after they listen to your message.
f. Do you want to include resources where
people can get more information?
g. Once you have written the script, you
will have to time the length of the speech.
Then you will have to go back a number of
times and edit and refine it.
10. There is a general rule that 60 seconds
gives you anywhere from 130-150 words.
In 30 seconds you have 60-75 words. This
might mean you only have time for 5-7 sentences. In 15 seconds you have 30-35 words.
These figures vary according to who is speaking. As you have very little time to get your
point across you have to focus on one or two
vital points.
11. Class activity: Using the 30 second word
count, write out a sample PSA on a gang
issue.
12. Each student in the class can test out their
PSA. Have each student read their PSA and
other students time them. Take time to analyze what was successful, what was not, and
why.
Step Three: Producing a Public
Service Announcement
1. Cast your PSA. Choose someone or a number of people who are comfortable on camera
or doing an audio recording. You need someone who can communicate effectively and
speak clearly. Depending on their speech pattern it may take one person longer to do the
speech than another. You can do test tapes to
find out who is best for the job. Do you want
to use an adult voice? A male or female voice?
2. Decide on who will do the other jobs: technician, computer editor, fact checker, cue card
maker and holder. Depending on PSA: background music, selecting reproducible images,
and/or special effects may be included.
3. Practice makes perfect. Practice over and over
again before you begin recording.
4. What will you need? Video camera or audio
equipment, blank video or audio tapes, a
backdrop (if you are going to do a video
tape), cue cards. The staging for a video PSA
depends on the type of PSA you are doing.
For example, if you are doing a skit you will
require props.
5. Once you have refined your PSA, find an
audience to test it out. Not every idea may
work. Get their reaction to the PSA. Get a
group of people together, play your video/
audio PSA, get their input, make changes.
Ask them was the PSA successful and why or
why not. Try testing it out on another class or
a group of teachers.
6. Go back and edit and refine your PSA until it
is honed to what you want to achieve.
Step Four: Finding a Place for
your PSA to Air
1. Begin research on what media outlets are
available in your area. Find out if they have
specific requirements for PSAs. Example:
What format they want the PSA in. How
long it can be. Does the station’s announcer
read the PSA or is it played from a recording?
One good source is your local community
access cable station.
2. Write a cover letter to the radio/television
company you want to contact. It is usually
the Public Service or Public Affairs Director.
Tell them what you are doing and why. Ask
for a response. Enclose the tape. Follow
through with a call to the person you sent the
tape to. If they do not want to air the tape
ask if they have any recommendations.
3. You will need to have enough tapes to send
to each station. It is usually not the policy of
the station to return a PSA tape.
4. When the PSA is aired don’t forget to send a
thank you note.
Tools
Computer, video camera(s), video equipment: audio/sound equipment,
tripod, lights, wireless microphone, video editing software: Mac: iMovie
or Final Cut Express, Microsoft: Windows Movie Maker, Mac or
Microsoft: Flip Video or a computer and Powerpoint software if video
equipment is unavailable.
Time
12–16 weeks
Objectives
>
Students will create a documentary
>
Students will learn about recent gang issues in their neighborhood
and city
>
Students will research, summarize, and communicate information in a
variety of media and formats (textual, visual, and digital)
>
Students will utilize brainstorming and collaboration
>
Students will elaborate, refine, analyze and evaluate their own ideas in
order to improve and maximize creative efforts
>
Students will be able to explain why citizens are concerned about gang
violence and the influence of gangs in their community
>
Students will be able to evaluate what local/city/federal government is
doing to track and combat gang violence
>
Students will develop an awareness and appreciation of people in the
community and the services these people provide that enhance the
quality of life
>
Students will refine public speaking skills
>
Students will engage in the writing process—preparing, drafting,
revising, editing and publishing
>
Students will sharpened study skills: organizing and categorizing
information, outlining, summarizing, note taking, and time
management
>
Students will make oral and written presentations that demonstrate
appropriate consideration of audience, purpose, and the information
to be conveyed
26.B.3.d
Activity 3 Make a Video Documentary
Teaching Plan
Anti-Gang Video
The purpose of this activity is to make an antigang video.
The teacher will need to find the video
equipment, editing program, and a small budget for video tapes and someone to teach the
students about using the equipment and editing
program.
This project can be created in a PowerPoint
presentation which still allows students to add
video and sound.
Step One: Presentation
Show and discuss some video documentaries
about gangs including the following, which can
be found on-line:
shows life stories of
young gang members who end up in prison.
Members of different gangs, including the
Bloods, Crips, and Latin Kings, are interviewed.
Gang issues explored include consequences of
joining a gang.
Stories from the Streets
features gang members describing
nearly 30 individual risk factors in their own
words. This topical gang film is designed for
counselors to use flexibly and to select individual risk factors for classroom or group use.
Kids at Risk
consequences of drug dealing, and the experience of incarceration. Interviews with youthful
incarcerated gang members provide a powerful
starting point for group discussion.1
Have the students write a paragraph or two on
one of the videos. How did they feel after viewing the videos?
Step Two: Class Discussion on
Gangs and Gang Violence
Keep a running list on large sheets of paper as
the class answers the following questions:
• What is a gang?
• What are some reasons for joining a gang
Examples: a sense of belonging, the need for
recognition
• What are the risk factors for joining a gang?
Examples: lack of a support network, economic reasons, peer pressure, family history,
negative school environment
• What are some consequences of joining a gang?
Examples: going to prison, violence, etc.
• What are some strategies for keeping kids out
of gangs?
Examples: more after school and early intervention programs
addresses issues such as the decision to join, violent initiations, the experience and consequences of using violence, the
Gang Issues
1 A. R. Phoenix Resources, Inc. 2004-2011. www.phoenixcurriculum.com/films.
Teaching Plan Continued
• What are the best practices communities
should have in place?
Examples: community mobilization, incorporate family services into both community and
school programs
• How can people, schools, and communities
help to alleviate gang violence?
Examples: Schools can start a safe neighborhood program and get young people
involved in civic engagement by giving them
a voice in their community
• What are local anti-gang initiatives?
Example: counseling for teens at a social service agency, parenting courses, helping young
people find employment
• What are government anti-gang initiatives?
Example: Zero-tolerance for weapons in a
school
• What are types of prevention programs?
Example: Age-appropriate training in selfesteem, conflict resolution
Step Three: What Will Our
Video be About?
As a class think about the following questions
before starting the video:
• What is our video about?
• Who is our audience?
• What are the main things we need to communicate to the audience to help meet the
purpose of the video and to get the message
across?
• What types of facts do we need to include?
• Who do we need to include?
• What will our video do? Inform, educate, or
create a strong positive message?
• What will the people who watch our video
see? How will the audience benefit from
watching the video?
• After watching our video what will the
viewer know? Think? Feel?
• What do people need to know about this
issue that they don’t know now?
• What are the 3 key points that we need to
get across in our video?
Divide into groups to continue the discussion and
do some fact-finding.
Group One: Interviews
By talking to different people on camera, you
can convey different facts and different opinions about this topic. Who are the “experts”
that can help to make your three key points?
Make a list of people you would like to interview. Consider interviewing the principal,
Alderman, the Police Captain, a representative
from a local anti-gang advocacy group (such
as Cease Fire) a gang expert, a Juvenile Court
Judge, a social service worker, a Parole Officer,
an ex-gang member who is helping the community, or a neighbor who has experienced gang
activity.
Make a list of questions you will ask the people
you interview. There will be different questions depending on who you are interviewing.
Consider the following:
• What strategies are in place for dealing with
gang prevention? How would you help students make informed choices?
• What are local anti-gang initiatives?
• How do you know if someone is at risk to
join a gang?
• Do you go into the schools to implement
these programs?
• How can schools and communities help?
• Can you give me some examples of how you
keep students safe?
• What would you do if gangs caused trouble
at your school or in your community?
• What are some contributing factors for gang
involvement in your neighborhood?
• What are the consequences of gang
involvement?
• What resources are available in your area for
teens and young people?
• Have you become desensitized to gang violence in Chicago?
• Why do you think gangs often form in
lower income areas or in major cities?
• Are there ways out of a gang lifestyle?
• Are gangs always a negative force in a
community?
• How does your school deal with gang
prevention?
• How does your community deal with gang
prevention?
• How can teachers be involved?
Note to teachers:
Scheduling experts to interview can
be a daunting task. Reaching out to
experts and scheduling interviews
should be done immediatly.
Group Two: Get the Facts
This group will research information and statistics for the video. This research should be a
continuation of the class discussion. Keep track
of where you find your facts so that you can cite
your resources.
• Make a list of local, statewide, and national
gang statistics to put in your video. Include
statistics from past years to compare growth
or recession.
• What is the definition of a gang?
• Why do teens join gangs?
• How do you say no to joining a gang?
• What are the factors that lead to gang
involvement?
• What do gangs do to our neighborhoods?
• How do we stay safe and away from gangs?
• How do we educate the community?
• How can we take action?
Step Four: Preparing for your
video production
Review the facts and interviews that you compiled in Step 3. Which information or interview answers will back up your storyline?
What goes into video production?
(If you do not have video equipment or video editing software. Consider creating a PowerPoint presentation. Most the items listed below also apply to
creating a PowerPoint).
Divide into groups
Group One: Concept and Storyline
Break down issues you want to address. There
are many ways to approach the subject matter.
You have limited time in your video so you will
need to be concise. Decide on what you want
to include in the documentary. Do you want
the video to focus on gang prevention? Do you
want the video to focus on what is happening in Humboldt Park concerning gangs? Do
you want to focus on some compelling stories?
Think of the message you want your audience
to take away. Keep it simple.
Once you have settled on the basic topic, begin
adding on to it. Think about the video in terms
of beginning, middle, and end. You will need
to develop an idea of what is going to happen
from scene to scene. Create an outline or storyboard for the production team to follow.
Start coming up with basic bits of dialogue.
Once you have handed your storyline over to
Group Two for production, document the making of the video with a still camera.
Group Two: Production
This team will be the production crew. You
will need a director, a camera operator, a sound
tech, and equipment assistants.
1. Practice using the equipment. Learn what
the equipment can do. Make some test
videos.
2. Meet with the storyboard team to review
the concepts they have developed. Take the
storyboard and break it into shots.
Decide if you have to shoot the video in a
specific order.
3. Will you need any props? Are there specific
locations or places that you want in your
video? If you are interviewing people, do
you want to stage an area for the interviews
or do you want to achieve an “on the street”
feeling to the interview?
4. Begin shooting. Make sure your speakers
and interviewers rehearse again and again.
It is a good idea to rehearse in front of a
camera.
5. Edit the video: remove unwanted footage,
arrange preferred footage, combine elements
to create a story.
6. Add graphic components and post-production work including: titles and credits, text
and/or titles, captions, and music.
Group Three: Project Management
1. Create a timeline for the project.
2. Develop a budget. Where will the money
come from?
3. Write letters of introduction to the people
you want to interview. Call and schedule
appointments.
4. Cast your video: you may need speakers/or
reporters to learn the script and go on camera, and others to conduct interviews.
5. Make sure to provide video permission/
release forms for people to sign giving
their permission for you to use their image
in the video.
6. Organize still images and keep track of the
accompanying information for them.
7. Keep track of your budget.
8. Plan a screening and distribution of your
video. Who do you want to see your video?
Should you be concerned with the age of
your viewers?
9. Make sure you have a secured/approved
place to screen the video; set up a date for
the screening.
10. Make a list of people to invite. Send out
invitations for the screening. Arrange for a
question and answer session after the screening. Show it at parent night, or school openhouse, post it on YouTube.
Aesthetic value concerned with
Context the circumstances that form
Storyline the plot of a novel, play,
beauty or the appreciation of beauty
the setting for an event, statement,
or idea, and in terms of which it can
be fully understood and assessed
movie, or other narrative form.
Civic responsibility of or relating to
the duties or activities of people in
relation to their town, city, or local
area
Community service voluntary
work intended to help people in a
particular area
Composition the parts of which
something is composed or made
up; the harmonious arrangement
of the parts of a work of art, music,
literature, or video in relation to
each other and to the whole
Concept an abstract idea; a general
notion; a plan or intention; a
conception
Deface spoil the surface or
appearance of (something), e.g., by
drawing or writing on it
Theme the subject of a talk, a piece
of writing, a person’s thoughts, or
an exhibition
Time line a graphic representation
of the passage of time as a line
Essence the intrinsic nature or
indispensable quality of something,
esp. something abstract, that
determines its character
Release forms permission forms
Restoration the action of returning
something to a former owner, place,
or condition
Script the written text of a play,
movie, or broadcast
Investigation 7 Media Resources
Note: Please review each websites for services and fees.
Street-Level Youth Media
Street-Level Youth Media educates Chicago’s urban youth in media arts and emerging technologies
for use in self-expression, communication, and social change. Street-Level’s programs build critical
thinking skills for young people who have been historically neglected by public policy makers and
mass media. Using video and audio production, graphic design, digital photography, and the Internet,
Street-Level youth address community issues, access advanced communication technology, and gain
inclusion in our information-based society.
www.street-level.org
p 773 862 5331
CAN-TV (Chicago Access Network Television)
CAN TV’s nonprofit Services help Chicago nonprofits reach a wider audience through low-cost
promotional opportunities. Nonprofits use CAN TV to bring their message directly to Chicago’s one
million cable viewers – to educate the public about important issues, promote programs and services,
and recruit clients, volunteers, and job applicants.
e [email protected]
www.cantv.org
p 312 738 1400
Chicagoland Public Access Television
Anyone with a non-commercial message or idea can present it on the public access channel. Classes
are free. Public access exists due to an agreement between Comcast and the communities it serves.
Public access programming is community programming on cable TV. It gives you the opportunity
to write, produce, direct, and perform in your own programs. People who normally are not allowed
easy access to the mass media find a powerful resource for local expression through public access.
A majority of public access programs are produced locally by non-professionals. Unlike broadcast
television, the content of your show is controlled by you. It is only limited by the rules and
regulations of public access and certain FCC rules, and it must be non-profit. Public access is a free
service provided by Comcast. Over 1 million households in the greater Chicago marketplace receive
public access as a part of their basic cable service.
www.accesschannel.com
Experimental Sound Studio
Experimental Sound Studio is a resource for audio expertise. It is nonprofit organization founded
in 1986, dedicated to the promotion, production, presentation, and preservation of innovative and
diverse approaches to the sonic arts, and to the integration of these art forms into the public.
p 773 769 1069
www.experimentalsoundstudio.org
Investigation 8
Sea of Flags and Fiesta Boricua
Sea of Flags represents Chicago’s famous Fiesta Boricua,
a Humboldt Park event that transforms the neighborhood
with a celebration of Puerto Rican Culture. The celebration
helps make social connections, has economic benefits for
local businesses, and builds community. This investigation
examines the festival as way to transmit culture. It will
challenge students to gather a variety of images, sights,
and sounds from the festival then reflect on what they have
learned. Students will learn about the history and culture of
Puerto Rico through the lens of music by creating a poster
for the festival, and developing a tour of Humboldt Park
murals full of information to provide to people attending the
festival.
Grades: 6–8
Activity 1: What Do You See?
Optional activities
Activity 2: History and Culture through Music
Activity 3: Create a Poster for Fiesta Boricua
Activity 4: Become a Tour Guide
111 | Investigation 8: Sea of Flags and Festival Boricua
Tools
The Elements of Art Vocabulary (page 23- Investigation 2)
Color Vocabulary (page 24- Investigation 2)
Color Symbolism Chart (page 25- Investigation 2)
Field Trip Worksheet(pages 113-114)
Homework Worksheets (pages 115-117)
Time
On-site time at the mural and 1 homework session
Objectives
>
Students will appreciate works of art in terms of time, place,
and culture in which they were produced
>
Students will deepen their awareness and knowledge about
Puerto Rican culture
Mural
Introduction
Sea of Flags was painted by Gamaliel Ramirez with assistance from Star
Padilla, Luis Ortiz, Moncho, Melissa Cintron, and community members
around Division and Campbell. The mural depicts a street packed with
people waving Puerto Rican flags. In the background is one of the steel
Puerto Rican flags that delineate the Humboldt Park neighborhood. The
mural shows Paseo Boricua during Fiesta Boricua, an annual cultural and
music festival. The mural was inspired by a photograph taken from one
of the stages. The mural was sponsored by Gamaliel Ramirez
Studio, the Near Northwest Neighborhood Network, Batey Urbano,
and archi-treasures.
16.A.3.b | 18.A.3 | 25.A.3.d
27.B.3
Writing: 4,7,8,10
112 | Investigation 8: Sea of Flags and Fiesta Boricua
Activity 1 What Do You See?
Fieldtrip Worksheet
What Do You See?
1. What do you see when you look at this mural?
2. What are the physical characteristics of the mural?
3. What is the content of the mural?
4. How many different types of flags do you see?
5. Who is the mural dedicated to? Do you know why she is famous?
6. Can you locate a person with a mask on? What does the mask look like?
7. What is the main theme of the mural? Does it tell us a story? What is the story?
Investigation 8: Sea of Flags and Fiesta Boricua | 113
Field Trip Worksheet continued
Fieldtrip Worksheet
8. What is the context of the mural?
Social context: How many people do you think were involved in the process of working on the mural—
from getting the idea to the completion? Did community members help work on the mural?
Physical context: Where is it? What is it made of?
Historical context: When was it made?
9. What is the purpose of the mural? Does it sell, promote, advertise, inform, or inspire?
10. How do you think this mural has an impact on the community?
11. What do you know about Fiesta Boricua?
Homework
Part A: Find out about the Puerto Rican Flag
1. What is the symbolism behind the current Puerto Rican Flag?
2. What does the star stand for?
3. What do the colors symbolize?
4. What does the blue triangle symbolize? What does the white star symbolize?
5. In the mural Sea of Flags, why do we only see Puerto Rican Flags being waved?
Why is this significant?
6. Have you always been able to wave the Puerto Rican flag? If, no, why not?
Hint: Research “Ley de la Mordaza.”
7. Who designed the flag?
8. What year was this flag adopted?
Homework continued
Homework
Part B: Answer the following questions:
According to the American Heritage Dictionary, “culture” is defined as “the arts, beliefs, customs,
institutions, traditions, and all other products of human work and thought created by a people or
group at a particular time.”3 Puerto Rico, without a doubt, has many unique characteristics that
distinguish its culture from any other.
9. Can you name the customs, traditions, or products that you might find at the festival?
10. Why do we have festivals?
10. What is the significance of Fiesta Boricua?
11. What other types of festivals can you think of?
12. Who organizes Fiesta Boricua?
13. Have you ever attended the Fiesta?
3
American Heritage Dictionary. www.ahdictionary.com/.
Homework continued
Homework
14. What are your favorite memories of the Fiesta? What associations do you have with it?
15. What type of music is played at Fiesta Boriqua? Why is music important to a culture?
16. What types of instruments are used in the Puerto Rican culture? (Remember to go back in
history to do your research.)
17. Approximately how many people attend the event each year?
18. Other than music, what sorts of things happen at the Fiesta?
19. What does this Fiesta mean to the community?
20. What can a festival teach us?
21. If you could create your own festival, what would you have in your festival?
Activity 2: History and Culture through Music
Tools
Computers and a portable audio device
Time
3 one-hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will explore the Puerto Rican culture through
the study of music
>
Students will listen to analyze, evaluate, and describe music
1.A.3.b | 4.A.3.a | 4.B.3a
4.B.3b | 18.A.3 | 26.B.3c
27.B.3
Writing: 2,4,7,9
Activity 2 History and Culture through Music
Handout
Understanding History and Culture through Music
This activity will help you understand how music relates to our lives and can be used
as a lens to understand the history and culture of a nation.
“From bomba and plena to salsa and reggaeton, music pervades daily life in Puerto Rico.
It’s the key to the island’s cultural identity and is the one thing that binds all Puerto Ricans together.” 1
Break into teams
Each team will research different aspects of Puerto Rican music and prepare a presentation
for the entire class.
Team A
Team B
Find examples of different types of Puerto
Rican music and explain the characteristics
of each. Select recordings of your choices of
music so the class can hear them during your
presentation. Analyze the piece of music.
Research the history of Puerto Rican music
and select recordings of historic music to play
for the class.
1. What is the song about? Does it reveal
something about the Puerto Rican culture?
2. What is the tone of the music? What are
the lyrics? Can you hear influences from
other musicians or cultures?
3. What types of instruments are used to
perform the song?
4. What type of style is it? Is it reggaeton,
Puerto Rican rock, bomba, plena, salsa,
seis, decima or a combination of styles?
5. How does Puerto Rican music coincide
with Puerto Rican history?
6. Is there any music that can be traced back
to Pre-Columbian times?
7. What styles (genres) of music are there?
8. Describe the differences between various
forms of music.
9. What types of instruments are used?
10.
Are musicians still using some of the
same instruments that came from earlier
times?
Resources
Music of Puerto Rico. www.musicofpuertorico.com
Thornton, Jerry. “Parks Deny Monument of Campos.” Chicago Tribune. August 11, 1993. goo.gl/EolXV
Joravsky, Ben. “The Puerto Rican statue flap: Who was Pedro Albizu Campos and why is he unfit
for public property?” The Reader. September 30, 1993. http://goo.gl/Toq4V
1
Welcome to Puerto Rico. www.topuertorico.org/culture/music.shtml.
Activity 3: Create a Poster for Fiesta Boricua
Tools
Art supplies: poster board, paint, markers
Handout (page 121)
Time
3 one-hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will create a poster illustrating a local cultural event
>
Students will use spoken, written, and visual language to communicate
effectively
>
Students demonstrate creative thinking skills in creating a poster
>
Students will produce two dimensional works of art that communicate
thoughts, feelings, and ideas for specific purposes and to specific
audiences
>
Students will be able to make recommendations, assess value, and
critique art
Teaching plan
Before starting this activity with your students, contact the Puerto
Rican Cultural Center at 773-278-6737 and ask to view past posters
advertising the festival.
Invite the festival organizer to come and speak with your class about this
year’s festival. Ask them to talk about what they want from a poster.
When the class is finished with their posters, make an appointment and
25.A.3e
Writing: 5,6
Activity 3 Create a Poster for Fiesta Boricua
Handout
Fiesta Boricua!
Introduction to creating a poster
• You can use computer programs to help you
create your poster or you can do it by hand.
• Remember that this poster will mix art and
commercial interests.
• How will your poster deliver a message?
If the viewer of your poster carries away only
one idea, ask yourself: “What do I want it
to be?” Your answer will become the theme
and focal point of your poster. Things you
include in your poster should support that
theme.
• What message do you want to deliver?
• What actions or ideas do the words ask the
observer to take away from it?
• How do the words and pictures together
convey a stronger message?
• How does the placement of the words and
pictures add to the impact of the message?
• What feelings do you want the poster to
convey?
• What are you “selling”?
• Think about your audience. Who will be
seeing the poster?
• Remember, you are trying to persuade
people to attend the festival.
• Be clear about your message.
• Posters communicate information to people
on the move. Too much text and they might
not respond to it, too little text and they
might not know what is taking place. Find
out how long the average person looks at
•
•
•
•
•
•
poster art – is it 3 seconds, 10 seconds, or
longer?
Create your own image that is creative and
has appeal. You can use clip art, photographs
or images from past festivals. Get permissions to use images if needed.
Gather all of the information you will need
to complete your poster. This might include
the festival logo, dates, times, location, contact information, and sponsors. Go back and
look at previous posters from the festival to
get an idea of what has been done in the past
and what information was included.
Try a number of fonts to make sure they
are readable. For free fonts you can go to
1001freefonts.com. It is a great database of
fonts that you can download (for PC and
Mac users).
Now start thinking about your design. First
make a rough draft and share it with a group
of your classmates for feedback, then make
revisions. Once again, go back to the class
for feedback. Make revisions until you are
satisfied with your poster design.
When designing your poster, use your hand
outs about the elements of art and the principles of design. Think about the elements
of art such as line, texture, color, shape,
direction, and value. As you work, also think
about the principles of design such as movement, balance, and unity.
Make an appointment with the festival
organizers to get their feedback about your
posters.
Tools
Computers and pictures of all of the murals on the tour
Time
6 - 8 one-hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will learn to create a tour for other students
>
Students will share their ideas about an artwork with other groups
of students
>
Students will learn how to research and contextualize information
>
Students will understand the arts in relation to history and cultures
>
Students will learn to write, draft, edit, and refine scripts
>
Students will directly observe and analyze artworks and convey the
information they have learned
Teaching plan
Note: The purpose of this activity is to have older students become mural tour
guides for younger students.
If you can not arrange to take the 5th grade students on a tour, consider asking
your students to create a mural tour brochure for younger students.
1.B.3a | 4.A.3b | 4.A.3c
4.B.3a | 4.B.3b | 5.A.3a
5.B.3a | 5.C.3a | 25.A.3e
Writing: 2,4,5
Speaking and Listening:
1,2,4,5
Activity 4 Become a Tour Guide
Handout
Create and Lead a Tour!
You have come upon many murals during
your field trip. Do you think you can become
a tour guide and tell what you have learned to
other people?
You and your classmates will create and lead
a tour for the 5th grade classes at your school.
The tour is through the streets of East Humboldt Park with the intent of teaching about the
murals.
Step One: Research and write
Break into nine teams. You are going to research
one mural from your tour. This research will
become the start of your script for your mural
tour guide to use.
1. Write a script about the mural you were
assigned. The object is to share with the 5th
grade class what you know about this mural
and what is important for them to understand when looking at the mural.
Include: Artists name, title of the mural, year
the mural was painted
Example: La Crucifixion de Don Pedro Albizu
Campos was painted in 1971 by the Puerto
Rican Arts Association. The artists are:
Mario Galán, Jose Bermudez, and Hector
Rosario.
2. What is the story the mural is telling?
Example: This mural is about the heroes who
worked on gaining independence for Puerto
Rico. La Crucifixion pictures Dr. Pedro
Albizu Campos, the leader of the Nationalist
Party in Puerto Rico during the 1930’s. The
other figures represent…
3. Describe the murals’ physical characteristics
and qualities. Select and describe different
parts of the mural to illustrate your point.
Example: On the mural La Crucifixion you
will notice the background colors are red,
white, and blue. These are the colors of the
Puerto Rican flag and they stand for…
4. Are there any symbols or symbolism you
need to explain? Example: In the mural La
Crucifixion the spear and the man thrusting it are symbols of power. The man holding the spear was at one time the Governor
of Puerto Rico and responsible for Puerto
Rico becoming a Commonwealth of the
United States. This is not what the Puerto
Rican people wanted. They wanted independence from the United States. The spear is a
symbol of a weapon being used against the
leaders as a threat to stop the independence
movement.
Handout continued
5. What can you learn from looking at this
mural? Example: La Crucifixion is about
political issues and the heroes of the Puerto
Rican independence movement.
6. What are the facts?
Examples:
Fact: In 2011 the mural La Crucifixion
turned 40 years old.
Fact: This mural was saved from destruction
and was almost lost to the community. A
new condominium was planned and if built,
would have blocked off the mural The community rallied to save the mural when a condominium slated for the site broke ground.
The community camped out to help save
the mural from destruction and the condominium was never built on the site.
Fact: The mural was restored in 1990 and
then again in 2011.
Step Two: Practice your script
Once you have written out your script, practice
reading it aloud and see how long it takes you to
read it. Each stop at a mural on the tour should
take approximately five minutes. You may have
to edit the script to make it five minutes or less.
As a group, decide on what information is most
important to include in the script.
1. Take turns being the tour guide for your
group. Each person in your team should
Handout
have a chance to be the official tour guide
and use the script to tell the fifth graders
about the mural. The rest of your team will
pretend to be fifth graders.
2. Revise, edit, rewrite, or try a new approach
if things need changing.
3. Decide on who the main tour speakers will
be from each group (Who was the easiest
to understand? The most fun to listen to?).
This person will be responsible for speaking
about your mural on the field trip. This can
be done with one or more speakers if you
divide the script into sections.
4. Practice the timing. Practice the script so
you feel comfortable speaking it.
5. Perform the revised speech in front of an
audience.
Step Three:
Consider creating a worksheet the 5th grade
students can fill in while on the walk or back to
school.
Handout continued
Class Discussion:
Planning the Fieldtrip
Questions for the whole class to think about:
• What is the educational value of this trip?
• How long should the tour take? If we are
at each mural five minutes how long will it
take? How long will it take to walk between
each mural?
• How many 5th grade students do you think
we can handle in a group? The 5th grade
class might need to be divided into smaller
groups. You may also have two or more 5th
grade classes to host.
• What safety issues might we encounter?
• What jobs do we need to take care of before
going on the tour?
• What jobs do we need to take care of while
we’re on the tour? Examples: headcounters,
timekeepers, speakers, organizers, safety officers, etc.
Step Four: Preparing for the tour
Each team will be assigned specific jobs in order
to prepare for the tour.
Group A: Write a proposal to the 5th grade
teachers and the Principal. Explain why you
are writing. Ask for permission to take the
5th grade classes on a field trip to look at
Humboldt Park murals. Tell them why this field
trip is beneficial to the students.
Handout
Group B: Write a short presentation telling the
5th graders about what they will be doing and
why. What are the objectives of the field trip?
What activities will they be doing? Field trips
expand students’ learning through active handson experiences through the rich resources of
the local community. Ask permission from each
5th grade teacher to come into class and give a
presentation.
Group C: You are in charge of obtaining per-
mission slips from parents. Remember, if a
student does not return a permission slip signed
by a parent or guardian, they can’t go on the
field trip. Ask your teacher if there are standard
school permission slips. If not, you will need
to create your own. Permission slips usually
include: date, times, clothing for the trip, trip
schedule, student medication issues, emergency
numbers, place for parent signature and date.
Make sure you get the permission slips sent out
early in the planning stage.
Group D: Find and organize chaperones. There
is a student/chaperone ratio that is required by
CPS. You will have to ask your teacher for this
information. For example: One adult chaperone
to every five students. Give the chaperones a
list of the students they will be responsible for.
Provide them with a schedule for the trip along
with a map.
Handout continued
Group E: Prepare a list of rules for how students
should behave while they are on the field trip.
This will be reviewed with each student before
going on the field trip. Explain to the students
that appropriate, orderly behavior is expected
during the field trip. Use simple rules of respect
while out in the community.
Step Five: During the tour
Each team will be assigned a job to complete
while the tour is taking place:
Handout
the students not going on the field trip. Make
sure each student has a bottle of water to keep
hydrated on the walk. Plan an alternate date in
case the weather is bad.
Group E: Documentarians. You are responsible
for taking pictures during the tour. Arrange
to bring along a number of cameras. Keep
track of who is in your pictures so you can put
their name along with a caption in the school
newspaper.
Group A: Timekeepers. You are reponsible for
Before you leave
making sure the tour is leaving on time, running on time, and returning back to the school
on time.
Make sure that everything is in order before
you leave the school premises. Have a nice time
with the 5th graders.
Group B: Headcounters. You are responsible for
making sure everyone is accounted for on the
field trip. You might ask the students to all wear
the same color shirt that day so that they are
easy to recognize.
Group C: Safety Officers. You are responsible
for keeping everyone safe on the tour, along
with the adult chaperones. Prepare nametags for
each person. Be sure to introduce the chaperones so everyone can recognize them. Arrange
to take along at least one cell phone that can be
used in case of emergencies. Also take a complete first aid kit.
Group D: Organizers. Assign each student a
partner. Provide alternative arrangements for
After the tour
At the end of the field trip take time to evaluate
the trip. Write a one page evaluation sheet for
the 5th graders to fill out. Ask questions such
as: did you learn new information about the
murals? Was the tour too long? Were the presenters easy to understand?
Sea of Flags and Festival Boricua
Bomba music musical sounds of
the Afro-Puerto Rican population
Characteristic a distinguishing
Cultural identity identity derived
from our sense of belonging to a
particular cultural or ethnic group
Fiesta Boricua in Chicago an
annual Puerto Rican Parade
celebrated every September that ends
with a procession down Division
Street
Historical context the
circumstances that form the setting
for an event, statement, or idea, and
in terms of which it can be fully
understood and assessed belonging
to the past, not the present
music of Puerto Rican origin,
characterized by a fusion of Latin
rhythms, dancehall, and hip-hop or
rap
Rough draft a preliminary version
of a piece of writing; a plan, sketch,
or rough drawing
Salsa music a type of Latin
American dance music incorporating
elements of jazz and rock
Social context material of or
relating to society or its organization
Legislature the legislative body of a
country or state
Liberation freedom from a
situation, esp. imprisonment or
slavery
Physical context the space around
something and how that influences
how people see it
Reggaeton music a form of dance
Investigation 9 Lesson Plan Resources
Community Beginnings: Chicago’s Puerto Rican Community
Written and edited by Allen Schwartz and Marilyn Turkovich
Location: Chicago Metro History Education Center, in the Newberry Library
www.chicagohistoryfair.org/for-teachers/87-curriculum-projects-teachers/152-chicagos-puerto-ricancommunity.html
p 312 255 3661
© Copyright Chicago Metropolitan History Fair
Lessons plans from Community Beginnings: Chicago’s Puerto Rican Community presents life in the early
years of the Puerto Rican community in Chicago from 1940-1960.You can download the lessons and
teacher background materials. It includes a student workbook.
Investigation 9
Aesthetics and the Art of Graffiti
Contemporary urban graffiti art originated in the 1960s but
the debate still goes on about its status as a “genuine’ art
form. After viewing the graffiti-like mural by Co-Op Image on
Division and California, this investigation helps students try
their own hand at developing their own style of graffiti art.
Students will learn some graffiti history and finally they will
hold a debate as to the pros and cons of graffiti as part of the
urban landscape.
Grades: 6–8
Activity 1: Visiting a Graffiti Mural in Humboldt Park
Optional activities
Activity 2: Learn More About the History of Graffiti Art
Activity 3: Create Your Own Graffiti Art and Tag
Activity 4: Take a Stance Debate about Graffiti Art
Investigation 9: Aesthetics and the Art of Graffiti | 129
Tools
Handout (page 131)
Computers
Clip boards
Time
Field trip time and 1 one-hour session back in classroom
Objectives
>
Students will demonstrate an understanding of graffiti and its
context within the art world
>
Students will examine the use of graffiti as an urban art form, as a
popular movement, and as either a high or low form of art
>
Students will develop basic vocabulary terms for thinking and writing
about graffiti
>
Students will be able to make and justify judgments about aesthetic
qualities in graffiti art
>
Students examine the possible consequences of graffiti on the
community, their neighborhoods, their families, and even themselves
Teaching plan
Before going on the field trip distribute this handout and listen to three
short news stories about graffiti art from around the world (page 131).
The questions on the Field Trip Worksheet (pages 132-135) are based
of the Co-Op Image Graffiti Mural, but can be applied to any graffiti
mural.
25.A.3.d | 25.A.3.e
Writing: 4,10
130 | Investigation 9: Aesthetics and the Art of Graffiti
Activity 1 Visiting a Graffiti Mural in Humboldt Park
Handout
This quote comes from an exhibition about graffiti held at The Brooklyn Museum, Graffiti: Art
Off the Street:
“Graffiti explores how a genre that began as a
form of subversive public communication has
become legitimate—moving away from the
street and into private collections and galleries. Forms of graffiti have been discovered on
ancient Roman and Mayan architecture and like
today were illegal and a form of communication.
Modern graffiti, which is associated with hiphop culture and spans all racial and economic
groups, began in the mid- to late 1960s. It made
its way to New York City and quickly became
a phenomenon. Urban youth used the sides of
subway trains and buildings as their canvases,
reclaiming sections of their neighborhoods by
“tagging” them with stylized renditions of their
names or the names of the groups they formed.
The self-taught graffiti artists turned the walls
of public (and sometimes private) buildings into
giant panoramas and subway cars into moving
murals. Later, graffiti artists began to paint on
canvas or large sheets of paper, attracting the
attention of art dealers and collectors.”1
Another quote from Graffiti: Art Off the Street:
“Many communities consider graffiti art to
be a menace and defacing of property. The
primary reason for this is that some graffiti artists post art on private property without the
permission of the owners. At any rate, graffiti
art is illegal in most communities and the artists usually have to run and hide from the law
after leaving their mark. Graffiti art is not the
same as tagging. Tagging usually involves only
a black spray can that is used to paint initials
or other tag. Usually the tagger just wants their
name to be known in the area and feels a sense
of pride when he/she sees the tag. Graffiti art
involves the use of color and may or may not
contain alphabetical letters. Much of it is beautiful to behold, but is usually temporary as it is
painted over by business owners. Graffiti artists have also been fined and arrested. When a
good graffiti artist paints a work of art with the
permission of the owner of the property, it not
only can be considered a work of art, it can be
lucrative for the artist.”2
Following are some interesting stories on
graffiti art from National Public Radio (NPR).
Listen to the stories.
Del Barco, Mandalit. “Style Wars: Documenting Graffiti
Artists.” Morning Edition. April 25, 2003. www.npr.org/
templates/story/story.php?storyId=1242898&ps=rs.
Brand, Madeline. “Graffiti Reflects Life in Baghdad.”
Day to Day. March 19, 2004. www.npr.org/templates/
story/story.php?storyId=1778622&ps=rs
Harris, Emily. “Artists Seek Compensation for Berlin
Wall Graffiti.” Morning Edition. July 18, 2003.
www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=
1340567&ps=rs.
1. The Brooklyn Museum. An exhibition: Graffiti. June 30–September 3, 2006. Curated by
John and Barbara Vogelstein. www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/graffiti/
2. Graffiti: Art off the Street. Incredible Art Department. Incredible Art.org. Art News.
http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/news/issues/feb2009.html#graffiti
Activity 1 Visiting a Graffiti Mural in Humboldt Park
Fieldtrip Worksheet
On-site Worksheet: Graffiti Art
During your field trip you will visit the Co-Op Image Graffiti Mural. Answer the first 11 questions
while viewing this mural
1. Is graffiti art a form of communication?
2. Does it always convey a message?
3. If you said yes to the above question, what are some of the things graffiti communicates?
4. What do you see overall in this mural?
5. What images do you see? Name at least five images within the mural. What do you think they
symbolize?
6. What do the words say? Can you tell?
7. Can you tell who sponsored the mural?
8. If someone sponsored the mural is this an advertisement?
Fieldtrip Worksheet
9. Who created the mural?
10. Why do you think the artists used spray paint as opposed to regular paint?
11. Do you like this type of mural? Why or why not?
Once you have toured the murals and are back in the classroom, refer to the following questions during a
discussion about graffiti art.
12. What do you think of when you think of art?
13. Is most of the art you see in a museum or outside of a museum?
14. What is your attitude regarding graffiti?
15. What makes something graffiti or art? Or are they both art?
Fieldtrip Worksheet
16. Describe the difference between traditional art and graffiti art.
17. Look up the terms “fine” art and “lowbrow” art or “low” art. What is the difference?
Do you think there is any difference?
18. How many pieces of art do you think you see in a week?
19. How much of it is graffiti art?
20. When is graffiti art illegal?
21. What sort of places have you seen graffiti?
22. Who pays to clean up illegal graffiti? How much do you think it costs to clean up one piece of
graffiti? You may want to have one person from the class call the Alderman’s office and ask.
23. Should the City of Chicago offer graffiti artists a place to work that is legal?
Fieldtrip Worksheet
24. Why do you think people make graffiti?
25. Do you think most cultures have a form of graffiti?
25. Why do people tag? Why do taggers use nicknames as opposed to their real names?
26. Does graffiti deface things or does it make it beautiful?
27. Is most graffiti an eyesore?
28. Do you like some pieces and not others?
29. Which ones do you like?
30. Think about a piece of graffiti that you like. How does it make you feel?
Activity 2: Learn More about the History of Graffiti Art
Tools
A computer
Handout (page 137)
Time
4 one-hour sessions or can be done as homework
Objectives
>
Students will research and learn about the history of graffiti art using
the internet and library
>
Students will view, discuss, and write about works of graffiti art
>
Students will reflect upon their learned knowledge of the background
of graffiti and graffiti artists
>
Students will analyze contemporary and historic meanings in specific
artworks through cultural and aesthetic inquiry
25.A.3.d | 25.A.3.e | 25.B.3
27.B.3
Reading for Informational Text: 2
Writing: 2,4,7,8,10
Activity 2 Learn More about the History of Graffiti Art
Handout
Graffiti Art and Artists
Part One: What is the history
of graffiti art?
Part two: Inspire yourself by looking
at graffiti artists.
Write a paper on the subject. Your teacher will
specify the length
1. Go to the computer lab and find some contemporary images of graffiti.
Go to the computer lab and check out some
sites. Make sure you record your resources.
Include some images of graffiti art from the
past in your paper. As you are doing your
research, think about the following questions:
2. Pick an artist whose work you like.
• What was the first culture to produce
graffiti art?
• Why did it happen?
• Does graffiti art from different cultures look
the same or different? What do the images
have in common?
• Select examples and report on them.
• Describe the images you chose.
• In what time period were they made?
• What are some of the symbols?
• Do you know what they mean?
• What type of profession “translates” these
images and texts?
3. Write a paragraph describing the artwork
and write a paragraph about the artist.
4. Write your opinion about his/her work.
Analyze the graffiti work.
This site lists different websites on graffiti and
the artists involved: www.graffiti.org
On this website you can create your name in
graffiti using the different fonts on the website:
www.Graffiticreator.net
Here are some graffiti websites for you to look up:
• The Painted Rocks: History, Art or Graffiti?
www.nysm.nysed.gov
• Graffiti History: www.graffiti.org
• History of Graffiti: www.endoxa.it
• The Graffiti Source: www.fortunecity.de
• Graffiti Net: www.graffiti.org
Activity 3: Creating Graffiti Art
Tools
Computer and a printer
Markers, pencils, and cardboard
Handout (page 139)
Time
Part one: 1 one-hour session for on-line activity
Part two: 2 one-hour sessions for creating the artwork and tag
Objectives
Teaching plan
>
Students will apply the techniques of graffiti art to create their
own artwork
>
Students will design a personal and stylized signature or “tag”
>
Students will refer to symbols and the symbolism of colors
>
Students will explore a positive issue to create graffiti artwork
>
Students select and use the qualities of art to communicate their ideas
>
Students will develop their own style of graffiti
>
Students will develop confidence in their ability to express creative
ideas and imagination through visual arts
>
Students will demonstrate critical thinking skills and support
interpretations and opinions when responding to their art
In part two, give each student two pieces of cardboard cut to 12 x 18
inches. It will require a large amount of markers to do this art project,
including neon colors.
26.B.3.d
Writing: 4,10
Activity 3 Creating Graffiti Art
Handout
Create Your Own Graffiti Art and Tag
Part one: Create your own on-line
graffiti
There is a great museum graffiti website where
you can make graffiti online. Try it out! One
is at the Tate Modern Museum in London,
England:
www.kids.tate.org.uk/games/street-art
This is another website where you can try your
own hand at drawing graffiti art:
www.graffiti.playdo.com
This will prepare you for creating your own
piece of graffiti art.
Part two: Creating graffiti-inspired
artwork: designing your tag
You are going to create a graffiti image or
images that represents something positive and
create a tag that represents you.
• Begin sketching out some images – but
do this on working sheets of paper not on
the cardboard yet. Refer back to the Color
Symbolism Chart (page 25).
• Incorporate a word or words into your
design.
• When you feel that you have an image that
you like transfer it to the cardboard. Color
your image and remember to make it look
like the style of graffiti.
Move on to the second panel: you are going to
create your own tag.
• First go to the computer lab and look at
some different types of lettering or fonts that
taggers use. You can use any font you wantthere are hundreds to choose from.
• Design a tag that represents yourself.
• If you choose to use your own name that is
great, but you can also come up with a nickname – but you will be asked to explain why
you chose your nickname.
• You can leave the letters with no color or fill
in the letters with color. Experiment with
shading, patterns, or texture. Colors can be
overlapped to create a mixed color effect.
• You can download some new fonts to your
computer. There are lots of sites that offer
free fonts. To start with, try DaFont at www.
dafont.com or Urban Fonts at www.urbanfonts.com
Reflect on your artwork and tag. Compose a
two paragraph artist statement and reflection.
Activity 4: Take a Stance: Four Corner Debate
Tools
Signs and index cards
Time
2 three-hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will listen to a statement on a controversial topic and
decide if they strongly agree, agree, disagree, strongly disagree
>
Students will work in groups to record information/opinions in
support of their position
>
Students will write a statement expressing their opinion about
the statement
Reading Informational Text:
1,2,7 (6th grade),10
Writing: 1,4,10
Activity 4 Take a Stance: Four Corner Debate
Teaching Plan
Take a Stance Debate about Graffiti Art
Debate over a sanctioned mural being painted
over by an Alderman. Begin by asking your
students to read the articles and watch the videos listed on the next page. Create four signs
printed in large letters with the following labels,
one label per sign:
Strongly Agree
Agree
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
Part 1
1. Put each sign in a corner of the room.
2. Create a number of statements for the students to respond to. The statements should
encourage discussion.
Examples: The Alderman was right to paint out
the mural. The Alderman has the right to
be the moral guardian for his Ward. It is
the responsibility of the City to make a rule
about what images are appropriate or inappropriate for a public mural. Censorship of
public art should be allowed. Freedom of
expression should be allowed. Provocative or
controversial art should not reach the public. The artist shouldn’t have used “offensive” images. Is the purpose of art to challenge us even if we do not agree with the
content of the artwork? Let the politician’s
morality and taste dictate what others can
look at or listen to.
Note:
Look over the sites to select articles and
have them printed and ready for the
students.
Leave room for students to jot down a statement they may want to add to the debate.
4. Hand out the worksheet of the statements.
The students should mark their opinion and
provide a brief, supportive explanation.
Part 2
5. In between the two sessions, choose statements for the Four Corner Debate from
what the students turned in. Write them up
as a handout with lines by each statement so
students can jot down their initial responses
before having the Four Corner Debate.
6. Read a statement to the class.
7. Have the students move to the corner of
the classroom they think best suits their
opinion.
8. Ask a number of students from each group
to defend their positions. Another option
is: once students are in their chosen corners,
assign a note-taker, discussion leader, and
presenter. Have the group discuss their
position and reasons to support their position. At the end of the discussion time, have
the presenter present their group’s position.
9. After listening to each group defend their
position, give everyone an opportunity to
Activity 4: Take a Stance: Four Corner Debate
change their mind and allow them to move
to their new position (Keep a tally on the
board of initial positions and then change of
positions. Students who changed their positions should identify the ideas that influenced their reason for changing).
10. At this point open a class discussion and let
students question each other’s arguments
and opinions.
Resources
The following articles and video are some information regarding a recent incident in Chicago
about a sanctioned mural and an Alderman
who had graffiti blasters paint over it.
www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/Chicago-GraffitiTask-Force-Paints-Over-Artists-Commissioned-MuralGabriel-Villa.html
chicagoist.com/2009/05/16/alderman_covers_artists_
bridgeport.php
www.wbez.org/episode-segments/bridgeport-muralsparks-censorship-debate
artcensorshipinchicago-gabrielvilla.blogspot.
com/2009/06/art-censorship-in-city-of-chicago.html
Alderman Destroys Public Art (with transcription and
audio) http://www.chicagopublicradio.org/Content.
aspx?audioID=34234
Alderman says he had this mural destroyed (blog with
comments) http://apps.wbez.org/blog/?p=3526
http://www.bluecanvas.com/magazine/articles/artistvs-system
http://www.artnet.com/magazineus/reviews/velez/
chicago-build-up1-29-10.asp Scroll down to censorship on the South Side
www.gazettechicago.com/index/2009/07/balcer-orders-city-to-paint-over-mural-on-private-property/
Video
www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/Chicago-GraffitiTask-Force-Paints-Over-Artists-Commissioned-MuralGabriel-Villa.html
Activity 4 Take a Stance: Four Corner Debate
Worksheet
Four Corners Worksheet
Write a brief explanation or defense of your opinion about the following statements.
Statement 1:
Circle one:
Strongly Agree
Agree
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
Strongly Agree
Agree
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
Explanation:
Statement 2:
Circle one:
Explanation:
Activity 4: Four Corners Debate
Worksheet continued
Statement 3:
Circle one:
Strongly Agree
Agree
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
Explanation:
Statement 4:
Circle one:
Strongly Agree
Agree
Explanation:
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
Aesthetic beauty or the appreciation
Sponsor a person or organization
of beauty; giving or designed to give
pleasure through beauty; of pleasing
appearance
that provides funds or support for
a project or activity carried out by
another
Architecture the art or science
Stylized to restrict or make conform
of building: specifically the art or
practice of designing and building
structures and especially habitable
ones
to a particular style; something that
is stylized is shown or done in a way
that is not natural in order to create
an artistic effect
Deface spoil the surface or
Subversive ruinous or destructive
appearance of (something), e.g., by
drawing or writing on it
Symbolize be a symbol of or
Eyesore something that is
unpleasant or offensive to view
Tagging unsolicited form of
represent by means of symbols
communication and signage
Fine art creative art, especially
visual art, whose products are to
be appreciated primarily or solely
for their imaginative, aesthetic, or
intellectual purposes
Fonts a set of type of one particular
face and size
Graffiti writing or drawings
scribbled, scratched, or sprayed
illicitly on a wall or other surface in
a public place
Lowbrow art (low art) not highly
intellectual or cultured art
Panorama an unbroken view of an
entire surrounding area
Sanctioned give official permission
or approval for an action
Investigation 10
Make Your Own Mural
Students have learned about the murals in their neighborhood
and public art. This investigation provides guidelines for the
collaborative process of making a mural. Making a mural
is a wonderful project-based learning experience and can
be as simple or complex as the situation allows. Students
will create a class mural that illustrates something they
would like their community to know, a collective community
expression. The mural-making process is broken down into
phases: planning, designing, creating, and celebrating the
mural.
Grades: 6–8
Recommended activity
Activity 1: Planning, Designing, Creating, and
Celebrating Your Own Mural
147 | Investigation 10: Make Your Own Mural
Activity 1: Make a Mural
Tools
Phase One: large sheets of paper and markers, journals/notebooks
Phase Two: large sheets of paper and markers, colored pencils, and paint
Elements of Art Vocabulary (page 23)
Phase Three: ballots
Phase Four: surface material, primer, paint, paint brushes (all sizes) tape
measures, masking tape, a projector, drop cloths and sealant. Other
materials may be required depending on type of mural.
Phase Five: poster/flyer, food and drinks, tables and chairs, and a place
to host event
Time
Phase One: 1 three-hour session
Phase Two: 3 one-hour sessions
Phase Three: 2 one-hour sessions and school assembly time
Phase Four: Contingent on type and size
Phase Five: 2 one-hour sessions, plus celebration time
Objectives
>
Students will understand the role of an artist
>
Students will understand how art can be created in a team
>
Students will think in a creative manner
>
Students will understand how artwork may elicit a variety of responses
>
Students will be able to collaborate and problem solve with others
>
Students will develop project and time-management skills
>
Students will produce a piece of art
>
Students learn how to share and to negotiate the distribution of
responsibilities in the mural making process
>
Students learn how to identify individual tasks that must be
coordinated in order to complete a large mural
>
Students will apply the mathematical concepts of scale
>
Students will apply artistic concepts of color and composition
>
Students learn how to select subject matter and/or symbols related to a
situation or issue that concerns them
18.A.3 | 25.A.3.d | 25.A.3.e
25.B.3 | 26.A.3.e | 26.B.3.d
Speaking and Listening:
1,2,4,5,6
Investigation 10: Make Your Own Mural | 149
Activity Make a Mural
Teaching Plan
Planning, Designing, Creating, and Celebrating
Your Own Mural
Phase One: Planning Your Mural
Introduce the idea of working together as a class
to create a mural by describing the process as
taking place in four phases: planning, designing, painting, and celebrating. The mural will
relate to an issue or situation that is of concern
to your school or to your community.
Class Discussion
Remind the class of the murals that they have
seen on your field trip and review the themes
and/or ideas that were addressed in each of the
murals. Ask the students to imagine themselves
as the artists who created those murals. “Why
would you decide to paint a mural? What is the
goal of creating a mural?”
Examples might be:
• Artistic expression
• Camaraderie
• Collaboration
• Social commentary
• Civic engagement
• To inform or educate
• To stimulate or enliven the environment
• To spark imagination in viewers
• To learn about thought-provoking issues
Make sure that each student has a journal to
record the process of making the mural from
start to finish. That means recording the planning, designing, creating, and celebration
phases. This information will be important at
the end of this project when students will be
asked to write a paper on their experiences.
Brainstorm Session
1. To begin the process, break the class into
teams.
2. Ask each team to brainstorm a theme or
themes, and begin to discuss some of the
elements to include in the mural. Have
students take notes. Have students present
their ideas to the class.
3. Ask students to think about:
• What message do they want to convey?
• Why do they think the message is
important?
• How can a mural convey this message?
• Who is the audience for the mural?
• What do they hope to accomplish with
the mural?
• Will they use protest or persuasion to get
their point across?
• Discuss ideas the mural can be about.
Continued
mural. The range of possibilities is extensive:
from a simple mural on paper that is hung
in the hallway to an outdoor mural painted
directly on the exterior of the building.
4. Remind students to think of examples for
the murals they have seen such as:
• Community heroes
• The importance of voting
• Unity
• History of Puerto Rico
Phase Two: Designing Your Mural
5. Ask students what is an important topic that
everyone at school is interested in or should
know more about? Some ideas might be
bullying, physical health, the importance of
education, families, saving the environment,
etc.
Each team will design their own mural. The
designs will be presented to the whole school.
The students, teachers, and administrators will
decide on which mural design will be created.
Mural designs should be to scale, but smaller
than the final piece.
6. Each team shoul brainstorm ideas for the
mural. Ask one team member to write each
idea on a large sheet of paper. Have students
begin to draw out some images they think
are important to have represented in the
mural. On the side of the mural students
should keep a written record of the images.
Presentation
Prepare large sheets of paper that are the same
size and shape as the final mural, but smaller.
You might want to visit the Ket Scale City
website on mural scale at www.ket.org/scalecity/worldofmuralpainting.html. For a detailed
instructions on grid enlargement, visit www.
art-is-fun.com/grid-method.html. Make sure that
each team has at least two sheets of paper during the team session to work out their designs.
Ask each team to present their mural concept to
the class and ask for feedback.
Homework
At this point students will need to have a discussion with the principal about where a mural
can be placed (inside or outside of the school).
The location will dictate the size, shape, and
materials to be used in creating the mural.
Students will also need to discuss whether it
will be a temporary mural or a permanent
Have students research the theme or ideas that
their team has decided on and either print, cut
out, or make quick sketches of the images they
think would be good to incorporate in their
team’s mural. At this point in time, the drawings are not being judged for their merit but
chosen to express ideas.
Continued
Team session
Each team should meet to review homework
sketches or materials. Each team member
should discuss why she/he chose their images
and what they have to do with the mural topic.
1. Have students look at all of the drawings
and materials and choose which images team
members think would be good to include in
the mural.
2. Place the images, by team consensus, into
the following three categories:
• include in mural
• don’t include in mural,
• maybe include in mural
3. Students should decide if the team wants to
make one overall image in the mural or if
they want to include multiple images. (This
can mean including smaller narratives in the
mural.)
4. Once the team has decided what elements
they want to include in their mural they
should begin to sketch out a design. At this
point the team may want to cut out some of
their images and shapes to be able to move
them around.
5. Remind studentsto consider the Elements of
Art and Principles of Design.
6. As the teams are working on their designs,
remind them to take a break and discuss
what needs to be changed and what needs to
be added or deleted. Continue to refine the
drawings.
Presentation
Once the team thinks they have a design, each
team should present and explain their design
to the class. The teams can ask the class if they
think their ideas are complete or if they think it
is missing something. The presentation should
explain the team’s process as well as the elements, meaning, and content of the mural.
Questions
Did students understand what the team was
trying to say in the mural? How could the team
make their ideas clearer?
Another team session
The teams should go back to the drawing
board. This is considered the time to edit the
mural imagery, taking into consideration comments from classmates. Initiate a group discussion and brainstorming session to see if the final
configuration inspires additional ideas, and
whether it is possible to include ideas or drawings that were excluded earlier in the process.
On a clean sheet of paper, do a final drawing
with everything placed where the team wants it
to be. Finalize the mural drawing in pencil, correcting the proportions of the drawing as much
as possible.
Continued
The team can now color in the mural, using
markers, color pencils, oil crayons, pastels, or
paint.
4. Prepare ballots to distribute at the assembly.
Each member of the school will get a vote on
which mural design will be chosen to paint.
Phase Three: Displaying Mural
Designs and Voting.
5. The ballots can be collected at the assembly or from each class after students have
had time to look over the murals again and
make a decision.
It is now up to the school to decide on which
mural design will be chosen to become the final
artwork.
1. Display the colored mural designs in the
hallway for a week and schedule an allschool assembly to present the murals.
2. Have one student from the class tell the students and teachers why their class is doing
this project.
3. Each team will then give their presentations
to the assembly including:
• What is the title of their mural?
• What is the theme of the mural?
• Why did the team choose the topic or
theme?
• What message does it convey?
• Why is it an important message?
• Describe who and what is in the mural
• What other important details do you
need to inform the audience about?
• Are there symbols in the mural and if so,
what do they mean?
6. Once the decision is made we are ready for
the next phase in the process.
Phase Four: Creating the Mural
By now the team should know if their mural
will be indoors or outdoors. The team should
also know if the mural will be painted directly
onto a wall, on panels that are then attached
to a wall, or on another material such as cardboard, paper, or fabric that can hang on a wall.
Outdoor murals:
There are three options for painting murals for
the outdoors: paint directly on the wall, paint
on plywood panels that can be attached to the
wall, or paint on fabric that can be attached
directly to the wall.
Painting directly onto exterior walls:
Note: You will need help from the school
engineer for the wall inspection and repair.
Prepare the surface. Make sure all existing paint
is scraped or sandblasted off and the wall is
power washed, cleaned, and left to dry. Inspect
Continued
all mortar joints of brick or concrete block
masonry and tuckpoint them smooth if necessary. If the masonry has been parged with a
thin coat of cementitious material (looks like a
stucco), then inspect the surface for cracks and
or delamination from the underlying masonry.
Have it professionally repaired if necessary.
Once the surface is clean and smooth, apply a
coat of exterior grade primer formulated for the
surface the students are priming and the topcoat paints they will be using.
Painting on plywood panels for the outdoors:
There are a number of different types of exterior grade plywood. We suggest using Zmedium
density overlay panels (MDO). MDO plywood
is produced with a weather-resistant, resintreated fiber overlay with just the right tooth for
rapid, even paint application. MDO is readily
available at lumberyards in 4’ by 8’ sheets in
3/8”, ½”, or ¾” thicknesses, single or double
sided. If your mural is larger than 4’ by 8’ the
students will have to design a technique to join
the panels together. Apply a coat of exterior
grade primer formulated for wood and the
topcoat paints students will be using. The panels can be anchored directly to the wall using
Tapcon masonry fasteners or installed into a
metal frame that is anchored to the wall. Murals
painted on plywood can be, depending on their
size, attached to fences or freestanding on posts
driven into the ground.
Painting onto fabric for the outdoors:
The big advantage of painting onto fabric is
that it can be done inside on the ground and
then installed outdoors on a wall or panels. This
eliminates the need for students to work on
scaffolding or having to work around changing
weather conditions.
We suggest using a non-woven interface fabric
like parachute cloth easily purchased from fabric and sewing stores. Prime and then paint the
mural on the fabric and glue it to the exterior
wall surface using gel medium. Apply the gel
medium to both the wall and the back of the
fabric and squeegee the fabric to the surface.
You will need adults to help you with this step.
Indoor murals:
You have more options for painting indoor
murals. In addition to the three above, students
can paint on canvas, cardboard, or Gatorboard
and then attach these to a wall or hang them
from a ceiling.
Painting directly onto interior walls:
If the wall is concrete, brick, or concrete block
masonry then follow the instructions above.
You do not need to strip off existing paint if
it is bonded securely to the surface, just prime
over it with a primer/sealer that is formulated to
work with the topcoat paints they will be using.
For other wall surfaces (plaster, drywall, or
Continued
wood), choose your filler accordingly to repair
and prepare for a flat and smooth surface. joint
compound is a good product as it does not
shrink like spackle.
Painting onto plywood panels for the indoors:
In addition to the MDO plywood described
above you can use Luan plywood, medium density fiberboard (MDF), hardboard Masonite,
and regular plywood. If you choose regular
plywood, we suggest grade A1 or AA Fir or
Maple plywood for their flat and smooth surfaces. Apply the appropriate primer and attach
directly to the walls with cleats, screws or
Tapcon masonry fasteners.
Transfer the design
Draw or print the design on a piece of acetate
and then project the image to scale using an
overhead projector or you can project directly
from a computer using a digital projector. Trace
the projected design on the mural surface.
Another method for transferring the design is
the grid system. Draw a grid over the design
and then using chalk or pencil draw the same
grid proportionally larger onto the mural
surface. Then sketch the design by hand
on the surface using the grid as a guide to
proportionally enlarge the image.
Paint the mural
• Figure out how much paint you will need to
purchase by calculating the square footage of
the final mural.
• Purchase the paint for either interior or exterior application. You can either purchase the
premixed individual colors or primary and
secondary colors to mix your own.
• Make sure the students have containers with
lids to store the paint in so they can divide
the colors up between themselves and while
they work on the mural over multiple days.
• Assign students different areas to be painted.
• Make sure to let areas dry first before moving
to an adjacent area to paint, otherwise the
paint will smudge.
Seal the mural
Seal the mural so it will stay safe from fingerprints, food spilling on it, and or weather.
Select a sealant that is appropriate for either
indoor or outdoor application.
Install
Once the mural is ready to install you will have
to enlist the school engineer to help. If you have
used plywood, the panels are heavy and they
will need to be careful lifting and moving them.
If you used paper, it will be susceptible to tearing and should be handled carefully.
Phase Five: Celebrating
Now it is time to prepare to show the class
mural to everyone. Event planning is a job in
itself and you may want to create teams to work
on specific tasks such as: marketing, finding a
space and setup, program development, and
food.
Marketing team:
Write a press release about the project and send
it to local media outlets to see if they will do
a story on it. Be sure to include the five W’s:
Who, What, When, Where and Why.
1. Create a poster or flyer to advertise the project. Plan an opening event.
2. Ask students who they want to attend their
event and figure out how to get them there.
Space planning team:
Find a place to host the event. Indoor events
and outdoor events require very different types
of planning.
Find out from the Program Team and the Food
Team what they will need for the event. How
many tables? Will they be cooking food or
grilling or will everything be prepared ahead of
time? Will they need a microphone? Will the
program be so long that people will need chairs
to sit on or can they just stand around?
Plan the jobs each student will have at the
event: greeters, speakers, people to document
the event, food hosts, set up crew, clean up
crew, etc.
Food team:
Don’t forget to ask the administration if the
class can serve food and what type of food it
can be, what rules they have to follow to have
food and drinks at an event.
Make sure that they have everything that they
need for people to enjoy the food. Do they
need plates, napkins, cups? Do they want to
serve pre-chilled cans or bottles? Will people
need forks? Where will attendees put their
trash?
Program team:
Decide who will speak at the presentation.
Students might ask one person to introduce
the project and a different student to describe
each phase of making the mural. Another student can talk about the meaning of the mural
and the images and colors within it.
Remember they can show all of the team mural
designs at the event and talk about the voting
process.
When the celebration is through, they should
write about the experience, referring back to
their journals.
Make Your Own Mural
Civic engagement working to make
a difference in the civic life of our
communities
Collaboration the action of working
with someone to produce or create
something
Crementitious a material that sets
up to form a concrete layer over
brick; having characteristics of
cement
and accessible to all
Scale a proportion used in
determining the dimensional
relationship of a representation to
that which it represents
Social commentary commentary
on social issues or society
Delamination the process of
splitting apart or separating
resemblance
Hypothetical assumed or thought
Theme a unifying or dominant idea
to exist
Maquette small preliminary model
Tuckpoint mortar joints between
bricks or stones
or sketch
Masonry stonework or brick bound
together by mortar
Parameters a factor that determines
a range of variations; a boundary
Parget a coat of plaster over a
surface such as brick
Primer a material used to coat or
seal a surface
Proportions agreeable or
harmonious relation of parts within
a whole; balance or symmetry;
to adjust so that proper relations
between parts are attained
Public venue a public social space
such as a town square that is open
Investigation 10 Staff Resource: archi-treasures
archi-treasures is a great resource. archi-treasures has developed a knowledge base of experience that
we can offer. archi-treasures can provide support through all stages of your project: plan, design,
build, celebrate, and sustain. These phases might include: partnership/community development,
artist recommendations, site selection and logistics coordination, marketing, volunteer development,
technology and material needs, project management or assistance, event planning, and educational
support. archi-treasures has the staff, tools, and resources to make the job easier. There is a fee for
services.
Executive Director: Joyce Fernandes
Associate Directors: Ralph Hoffman and Karen Indeck
www.architreasures.org
Facebook and Twitter @architreasures
p 773 772 4416
Investigation 11
Happy Feet
Happy Feet is about being physically active and incorporating
physical activity into your school day. Walking to see the
murals is just one way to integrate physical activity into
education. Being physically active provides health benefits
but can also be used as a teaching tool. The activities
included in this investigation give students the opportunity
to see physical activity in new ways. Students will learn
about pedometers, keeping a daily activity diary, creating a
school walk-a-thon or school-wide walk-to-school day, among
other undertakings.
Grades: 3–8
Activity 1: Part One: Learning About a Pedometer
Part Two: How Many…?
Part Two: Physical Activity
Part Three: Activity Diary
Optional activities
Activity 2: Create a Walk-To-School Lesson Plan
for Grades K-2 (6–8)
Activity 3: Create a School-Wide Walk to School Day (6–8)
Activity 4: Hold a School Walk-A-Thon (all school)
Activity 5: What My Feet Would Say During the Day (3–5)
Investigation 11: Happy Feet | 159
Activity 1: Part One, Two, and Three
Tools
Computers, pedometers,
Worksheets (163-164 and 165)
Time
Part one: 1 half-hour session
Part two: 1 half-hour session
Part three: a quarter-hour each day for a week
Part four: 1 half-hour session
Objectives
>
Students will understand what makes up their activities during
a day. They will plot their activities for a week
>
Students will understand how walking helps to achieve daily physical
activity recommendations
>
Students will be able to select and use appropriate math to solve
problems
>
Students will collect and organize data using observations and
measurements
>
Students will be able to construct and draw conclusions from
6-8.10 | 19.A.3 | 20.A.3b
20.B.3a | 20.B.3b
160 | Investigation 11: Happy Feet
Activity 1 Part One
Teaching Plan
Part One: Learning About a Pedometer
This activity should be conducted prior to the
field trip.
Introduce students to a pedometer so they can
gather data on the mural field trip
Each pedometer has different functions and
instructions. Teaching the use of a pedometer
will depend on the different instructions. It is
easy to set it up for counting the steps. Once
you get the pedometer, you can write a worksheet of instructions for the students. Have each
of the students learn how to use the pedometer by walking around the perimeter of your
classroom.
During the mural field trip, one student should
wear the pedometer to record how many steps
were taken. Back in the classroom, ask that student to report to the class.
Class discussion
• What is a pedometer?
• What does it do?
• What does a pedometer measure?
Activity 1 Part Two
Teaching Plan
Part Two: How Many...?
Each student should have a chance to
wear a pedometer. The class may have to
do this activity in segments and share the
pedometers.
• Walk in place for a minute, then try three
minutes.
• How many steps did each student take in
the one minute and three minute timeframes?
• Ask the students to analyze the data by
combining everyone’s score and come up
with an average for the class. Demonstrate
how to average numbers. Have the students
chart the data.
• Research the number of steps a person
needs to take to keep highly active, active,
somewhat active, not very active in a day.
• How active is each student in a day? How
many steps do they think they need to take
in a day? Have them write it down and tell
them to save the number. Use a pedometer
and find out how many steps they actually
take during the day. Is the actual number of
steps more (>) or less than(<) or equal to (=)
their estimate? If you do not have enough
pedometers, the activity can take place over
time depending on the number of pedometers you have available.
Activity 1 Part Three
Worksheet
Part Three: Physical Activity Worksheet 1
1. What are the effects of physical activity?
2. How many minutes or hours of physical activity do you need during a day? Find the answer
for both youth and adults… are they different?
3. How many steps should a youth take in a day?
4. How many steps should an adult take in a day?
5. What activities do you do throughout the day that use up energy? Examples: breathing, raising
your hand in class, playing jump rope
6. What do you like to do for physical activity? Example: walking the dog, playing sports
7. What are the benefits of walking?
Activity 1: Physical Activity
Worksheet One Continued
Worksheet
8. Is walking an exercise?
9. Do you walk to school?
10. What should you eat and drink to stay energized during the day?
11. How can you stay energized during school hours?
12. How do you feel if you don’t eat breakfast? Why is breakfast the most important meal
of the day? Example: Do you feel tired, feel hungry, feel cranky, can’t concentrate?
13. What do the terms aerobic and anaerobic mean?
Activity 1 Part Three
Worksheet
Physical Activity Worksheet 1
Keep a physical activity diary for a week.
Day
Number of minutes you
did this activity each day
Activity
Day one:
Day two:
Day three:
Day four:
Day five:
Add up the minutes of activity for the week:
Did you do the same amount of physical activity a day?
yes
no
Did you do more activity in one day and less in others?
yes
no
What did you like about being active this week?
If you are supposed to do 60 minutes a day of activity
how many minutes is that a week?
Are there more times in your day when you can add activities?
What would they be?
Activity 2: Create a Walk-to-School Lesson Plan for K–21
Grades
6–8
Tools
Computers, pedometers
Time
4 one-hour sessions
Objective
>
Students will engage in pyhsical activity
>
Students will collect and analyze data
>
Students will engage in a school-wide project
3.B.3a| 4.B.3.a | 5.C.3a
20.B.3a | 20.C.3.b | 20.C.3c
22.A.3b | 3c.3a
1. Some of the information in this lesson plan is based on a lesson plan
from Pennsylvania Safe Routes to School Resource Center. 2011. www.
saferoutespa.org/walking-lesson-plans.
Activity 2 Create a Walk-to-School Lesson Plan for K–2
Teaching Plan
Create a Lesson Plan
Class discussion
• What goes into making a lesson plan?
• What is the purpose of a lesson plan and
how is it used?
• What are our lesson plan objectives?
• What do the K–2 students need to learn?
• What type of activities do you want the K–2
students to do?
• What do we want to convey to the K–2
students?
• What materials will we need to complete
the lesson plan?
• How much time will the lesson plan take
for the K–2 students?
• How will information be presented?
(Power Point, printed material)
• Should we include worksheets?
Arrange an opportunity for your students to get
to know the K–2 students by making classroom
visits. Have your students ask the K–2 students
some questions:
• How many of you walk to school?
• How many of you are driven to school?
Take a count.
• Is walking fun?
• Can you think of three things that would
keep you safe on the walk?
• Why should we walk to school? (it is good
for the environment; it is good for exercise;
it helps us learn safety issues along the way)
• What other ways can we get to school? (bus,
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
scooter, train, bicycle, skate board, car)
How do you stay safe when you walk to
school?
Do you have to cross at a busy intersection?
Is the traffic busy or not busy on your walk
to school?
Do you walk alone or in a group?
Do you walk with a parent or a sister or
brother?
What time do you walk to school?
Do you see any murals when you walk to
school?
How many buildings are on your block?
How many blocks is it to school?
How many feet are there in a block?
How many feet do you think it takes to get
to school?
How many minutes does it take to walk to
school?
When we walk to school do we burn up
energy?
Divide the class into small groups and ask each
group to write a walk-to-school lesson plan.
Make sure you come up with some walking
exercises the K–2 graders can do.
Present your lesson plan to the K–2 teachers to
review and make suggestions. Revise lesson plans
based on what the teachers said. Ask the K–2
teachers to test the lesson plan with their students.
Activity 3: Walk to School Day
Grades
6–8
Tools
Paper, printer, poster board, color markerson
Handout (page 169)
Time
5 one-hour sessions
Teaching plan
Work with your students to create a school-wide Walk to School Day.
The purpose of the Walk to School Day is to encourage students to engage
in physical activity, to collect data about the students, and the neighborhood.
Before starting the project, talk with school administration and see if this
project is feasible.
Divide the class into small working groups. Ask each group to design a
poster for Walk to School Day and to prepare a presentation inviting another
classroom to participate in Walk to School Day.
3.C.3b | 20.A.3b | 20.C.3b
20.C.3c | 26.B.3d
Writing: 1,4,5
Activity 3 Walk to School Day
Handout
Create a School-Wide Walk to School Day
You are going to organize a school-wide Walk
to School Day. The goal of the project is to see
how many students in your school you can get
to walk to school on a specific day. You are also
going to collect some information from other
students about walking to school.
1. Create a presentation that will convince a
classroom of students to walk to school.
Why is walking important? What are the
benefits to a student? How could parents
benefit from their children walking to
school? How could the community benefit?
2. Create a poster(s) to put up at school and
make copies of it to send home with parents
to advise them about what is taking place.
3. Create a worksheet for each classroom to
complete on Walk to School Day. What
type of data do you want to collect? What
do you want other students to learn? How
can you make walking to school a fun
activity?
4. Create activities for different classes to perform on their walk to school.
For example:
• Create walking warm ups and stretches
students can do on the way to school.
Example: hop on one leg for 15 steps;
do some knee bends before you start to
walk, etc.
• Make maps of the neighborhood. Pass
them out to all of the grades and have the
students draw their routes to school.
• Create a log for students to keep a record
of their walking times and distances for a
week.
• Are there historical locations students will
pass on their way to school?
• What plants and animals do students see
on their walk to school?
• If you have a camera, photograph your
walk to school.
5. Create handouts for each class with descriptions of what you want them to do. Be very
specific.
6. Once everyone gets to school you can collect their worksheets and then analyze the
data and publish it for the school.
7. Write letters to the teachers thanking them
for participating in your project.
Activity 4: Whole School Walk-A-Thon
Grades
6–8
Tools
Handout (page 171)
Parental/Adult help, flyers, permission forms, banners,
and sign-up sheets
Supplies for the event: tables, water, permission waivers, people at each
station, safety cones marking the route, clipboards,
pens, cash box, sign-in sheets, etc.
Time
10 one-hour sessions, plus set-up, event, and clean-up
Objective
>
Students will engage in physical activity
>
Students will engage the community
>
Students will organize a fundraiserty
>
Students will create a map
>
Students will create a marketing and event plan
>
Students will learn how to create a budget
20.A.3b | 20.C.3a| 20.C.3b |
22.A.3a | 22.A.3b
Writing: 1,4,5
Activity 4 Whole School Walk-A-Thon
Handout
Hold a School Walk-A-Thon
Plan a family Walk-A-Thon to raise money
for your school.
Walk-a-thons are events that consist of noncompetitive walks that raise money for charity
or a good cause. The Walk-A-Thon will raise
much needed funds, while at the same time
promoting physical fitness for the students.
Things to think about during the planning process:
• Ask permission from the administration to
do this project.
• Ask the Local School Council at your school
to help organize the Walk-A-Thon with your
class. They can help you organize parent volunteers and other aspects of the project.
• Make a plan of what you will need, what
you will be doing, and the action steps it will
take to accomplish your goals.
• Decide on the length of yourWalk-A-Thon.
• You could hold it on a Saturday (in good
weather) and walk through Humboldt Park.
• Decide on a dedicated route where participants can walk at their own pace. Make sure
the route is paved.
• Create a schedule and time line for the event.
• Contact the Chicago Park District to get
approval for the use of Humboldt Park.
• Contact the local police department.
They may help manage traffic.
• Create a marketing plan. How will you
recruit walkers?
• There should be rules: example: parents must
walk along with children under 5 years of age.
• How many people will you need to help
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
with each activity. Example: people at the
finish line, people at the water stations, people to collect money, a host or announcer.
Do you require a budget?
What will you charge people to register?
(walk-a-thons can raise money through
pledges. a pledge from a neighbor for $1 per
mile)
You can also find sponsors for yourself. This
means people will pay to have you walk if
they cannot participate in the walk itself.
You will need a registration application.
When people register have them sign a
waiver of liability form.
Ask local businesses to sponsor the event.
Businesses can support the project in different ways: they may be able to gift you prizes
or gift certificates to hand out or they might
set up the drink stops and handle that part
of the event for you.
Promote your Walk-A-Thon using banners,
press releases, and flyers.
You might give a prize to the family that
raises the most amount of money or the
classroom that brings in the largest percent of
money.
Plan to set up water stations to keep people
hydrated and plan for first-aid emergencies.
Think about other activities that could take
place along the way. Examples: exercise stations, a scavenger hunt, music.
Thank people for attending and pass out
evaluation forms to see how you did.
Activity 6: What my feet would say during the day
Grades
3–5
Tools
Pencils and paper
Time
1 one-hour session, plus time during the day to record information
Teaching plan
> Read the sample story to the class.
> Ask students to write a story entitled, “A Day In the Life
of My Feet.”
3.B.2a | 20.A.2a| 20.A.2b
Writing: 3
Activity 6 What my feet would say during the day
Teaching Plan
A Day In the Life of My Feet
Example to read to the class:
My feet hit the floor ready to go today. I put on my slippers and went to get ready
for school. First I hit the bathroom, then my feet rested while I ate breakfast,
then I dressed for school and put on my walking shoes.
I walked to school with Juanita. She walks faster than I do. Does that mean she
takes more steps than I do? I will have to ask.
My first class was gym. My feet ran around the gym for three laps. There are
150 steps around the gym. So for three times around I ran 450 steps. Then we
played dodge ball I used up 1020 steps. Then we walked to our second class:
65 steps back to our classroom. We stayed in class until 11:30 so we did not move
around a lot.
My next walk was to the lunch room. That took 86 steps. I walked through the line
to get milk and back to my seat. That was 38 steps. I had lunch with Maria, Lathia,
and Eduardo. After lunch the teacher decided to see how many steps it was from
our classroom to the front door, to the office, and to the bathroom. It was 210 steps
to the front door, 167 to the office, and 23 to the bathroom. Then we decided to see
how many steps it took to walk around the school block. It was 550 steps.
By the end of the day I walked 2,604 steps.
Resources
Heart Foundation
www.heartfoundation.com.au
Pedometer information
1000 Steps Program
www.10000steps.co.nz/faq.htm
Pedometer information
Step into Health
www.stepintohealth.com
About.Com
www.walking.abou.com/cs/
measure/a/locke122004.htm
Happy Feet
Aerobic exercise a typically long-
duration exercise that increases
the need for air such as jogging or
swimming
Anaerobic exercise any typically
short-duration exercise that is
powered that does not use much air,
such ast weight-lifting or sprinting
Exercise activity requiring physical
effort, carried out esp. to sustain or
improve health and fitness
Lesson plan detailed description
of the course of instruction for an
individual lesson
Logo a symbol or other small
design adopted by an organization
to identify its products, uniform,
vehicles, etc.
Pedometer an instrument for
estimating the distance traveled on
foot by recording the number of
steps taken
Poll a record of information
obtained.
Scavenger Hunt a game, typically
played in an extensive outdoor area,
in which participants have to collect
a number of miscellaneous objects
Walk-A-Thon an organized walk to
raise money for a cause
Investigation 12
A Symbol is Worth
a Thousand Words
In this Investigation students will explore the impact and
meaning of symbols. Symbols allow people to communicate
beyond the limits of spoken language. Sometimes we can use
symbols to express an idea and never say a word. On the
field trip, students will discover the symbols in the mural
79th and will understand symbolism and the visual arts in
relation to history and culture. Next is an exploration into a
non-traditional approach to portraiture encouraging students
to think about themselves in terms of symbols. Finally,
students will reflect on their self portraits and describe their
choices regarding personal symbolism.
Grades: 3–5
Activity 1: Understanding Symbols
Part One: Understanding Symbols
Part Two: Make Your Own Coat of Arms
Part Three: Create a Classroom Coat of Arms
25.A.2d | 25.B.2
Writing: 2e
Language: 1f,3a
175
Tools
PowerPoint: A Symbols Is Worth a Thousand Words.pptx
Color Symbolism Chart (page 183)
Paper, rulers, pencils, colored pencils, colored paper, colored markers,
scissors, glue sticks, graphic logo images from various magazines and the
internet, foam core, x-acto knife (for teacher’s use only), and paint
Time
2 one-hour sessions, plus field trip
Objectives
>
>
Students will come to understand that a symbol is a representation
of a bigger idea
>
>
Students will learn that an object can take on a meaning beyond what
it appears to be
>
Students will work on improving their interpretation skills
by learning to “read” symbols
>
Students will practice their fine arts skills
>
Students will utilize the visual art elements and principles of design
to create an original composition
>
Students will reflect on their unique selves
>
Students will create a “symbol” that represents them
>
Students will write an explanation about the symbols they chose
and the reasons for choosing them
176 | Investigation 12: A Symbol Is Worth a Thousand Words
Activity 1 Understanding Symbols
Teaching Plan
Part One: Understanding Symbols
This activity should take place in the classroom
before the field trip. Begin by showing students
the PowerPoint presentation on symbols.
Class discussion
• What is a symbol? A symbol is something
that stands for, or represents, something else.
• Why do we use symbols?
• Why do we use symbols instead of words?
• Where do we see symbols?
• Who uses symbols?
• How are symbols useful in our lives?
• Can one symbol have more than one
meaning?
• What are symbols students see around
the school? Examples: Female and male
images on bathroom signs, an exit sign, a
handicapped parking sign, a school logo, a
mascot.
• What are America’s national symbols?
Give the example of a flag. A flag is a symbol. Most countries have flags but each flag is
unique to each country and the images and
the colors on them are symbols that stand for
something. What do the stars and stripes in
the American flag stand for? Like flags, most
national symbols are unique to each country.
Ask students to name people, places, and things
that they believe represent the United States of
America and that are unique to the nation.
Examples: The Statue of Liberty, George Washington, American currency, the White House,
the U.S. Capitol, the Star Spangled Banner, the
Pledge of Allegiance, Mount Rushmore, and
the Liberty Bell.
One symbol like the Statue of Liberty has many
different symbols designed into it. For example:
the broken chains at the bottom of her feet
symbolize freedom. The statue faces away from
the U.S. and towards France as a symbol of the
everlasting friendship between the two countries. It was a French artist named Bartholdi
who designed the Statue of Liberty. The seven
points represent the seven continents. The statue holds a tablet in her left hand. It is a book of
law that symbolizes the founding principles of
America.
Activities
• Ask the students to give examples of
national symbols and find out what they
symbolize.
• Have the students choose a national symbol
and write a paragraph about it. What does
it symbolize? What does it mean to them?
Then, ask them to ask a classmate, what it
means to them. Do they both have the same
answer?
• Homework: Ask the students to bring in 20
examples of symbols with an explanation of
what they symbolize.
Investigation 12: A Symbol Is Worth a Thousand Words | 177
Activity 1 Understanding Symbols
Field Trip Worksheet
Part Two: Worksheet: 79th mural
Take a look at the Coat of Arms on the mural titled 79th by the artist John Vergara. The reason this
mural is titled 79th is because there are 78 municipalities (counties) in Puerto Rico and the artist felt
that Chicago’s Puerto Rican community should be the honorary 79th municipality of Puerto Rico.
Humboldt Park is the only officially recognized Puerto Rican neighborhood in the United States
recognized by the Puerto Rican government.1
1. What do you see in this mural?
2. What do you know about this mural? Where can you find this information?
3. Why did the artist use these symbols in this particular community?
4. Can you think of some examples of symbols you have seen on the walk today?
1
Puerto Ricans in Chicago. www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Ricans_
in_Chicago,_IL
Field Trip Worksheet
5. While looking at the murals write down what symbols you see and what you think they mean.
In the left column, write down the visual object. In the right column, write what it symbolizes.
Object
Meaning
Example: The color white in the Puero Rican Flag
Symbolizes the rights of man and freedom of
the individual
6. While you are on your field trip, take time to notice the emblems that are attached to the
lampposts on Division Street. They are excellent examples of symbols. What do these emblems
represent? Add them to your list above.
Activity 1 Coat of Arms
Teaching Plan
Part Three: Create Your Own Coat of Arms
This activity should take place after the field
trip. Introduce this activity by reminding
students about the mural 79th painted by John
Vergara. The mural is the new Coat of Arms
for Humboldt Park. The following website has
a short interview with the artist John Vergara.
(www.humboldtparkportal.org/news/2514).
A Coat of Arms is an emblem, sign, or crest with
symbols on it. “The design is a symbol unique to
an individual person, and to his family, corporation, or state.”1 Historically, lords and knights
used Coats of Arms in the mid-12th century on
battlefields as a way to identify allies from enemy
soldiers. The Coat of Arms was worn either on
clothing or a protective shield.
1. Distribute the Coat of Arms handout and
ask students to develop symbols that represent themselves. Tell students these should
be symbols of things that are important to
them and that they can show different characteristics that define or tell us something
about themselves. Values such as courage or
loyalty can be shown through a color or a
symbol. Remember to recognize that differing personal and cultural backgrounds may
influence interpretation of symbols.
symbol that represents themselves.
Example: In one space they might draw a
symbol of a soccer ball and players representing their favorite sport/in the second
quadrant they might draw a symbol of a
pizza representing their favorite food/in the
third quadrant they might draw a film strip
because they really like watching movies/
and in the last quadrant they might draw
a skateboard because skateboarding is your
their favorite thing to do on weekends.
4. In each quadrant ask students to choose
a background color that represents themselves.
5. Review the color chart. Do certain colors
mean certain things?
Example: stop lights are red.
6. Ask students to sketch out ideas before they
create their final piece of art. Once they
have their symbols developed and drawn
into each of the four sections, add color.
7. At the end of the activity, ask students
should to share their “self-portraits,” with
the class, explaining the significance of their
symbols.
2. Have students draw a shield and divide it
into four quadrants.
3. In each quadrant, have the students draw a
1
Coat of Arms. www.coatofarms.com
Activity 1 Coat of Arms
Handout
Part Three: Make Your Own Coat of Arms2
Here are some examples of different shapes for a Coat of Arms. You can pick one of these
or you can make up your own shape1.
1. Draw the outline of your shape on a piece of paper. Divide the shape into four sections, or
quadrants.
2. In each section draw something that symbolizes YOU.
3. Now, write a paragraph explaining the symbols, images, colors, and shapes in your Coat of Arms
and what the symbols and colors mean to you.
1 Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. April 23, 2012. www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Coat_of_arms
2 Adapted
from an After School Matters training activity.
Activity 1 School Coat of Arms
Teaching Plan
Part Three: Create a Coat of Arms
for Your School or Classroom
Have the class brainstorm and come up with a classroom Coat of Arms.
1. What are images and colors that represent your school or classroom?
2. Remember each symbol must have a meaning.
3. Select a shape for the Coat of Arms then cut it out from foam core.
4. Select a number of students to paint the Coat of Arms.
5. Hang it up in the classroom or by the main office so everyone can see it along with an
explanation of the symbols.
Space for Teacher Notes:
Activity 1: School Coat of Arms
Color Symbolism handout
Handout
Color Symbolism Chart
Colors mean different things to different people and cultures, but their meanings often overlap. This is just one of
many types of color charts. You can go online and view more.
Red: Excitement, energy, love, desire, speed, strength, power, heat, aggression, danger, fire, blood,
war, violence, and all things intense
Pink: love and romance, caring, tenderness, acceptance and calm
Beige and ivory: unification, Ivory: quiet and pleasantness, Beige: calm and simplicit
Yellow: joy, happiness, betrayal, optimism, idealism, imagination, hope, sunshine, summer, gold,
philosophy, dishonesty, cowardice, jealousy, deceit, illness, hazard and friendship
Blue: peace, tranquility, cold, calm, stability, harmony, unity, trust, truth, confidence,
conservatism, security, order, loyalty, sky, water, and technology
Turquoise: calm, Teal: sophistication, Aquamarine: water.
Purple: royalty, nobility, spirituality, ceremony, mysterious, transformation, wisdom,
enlightenment, cruelty, and mourning
Lavender: femininity, grace, and elegance
Orange: energy, balance, enthusiasm, warmth, vibrant, expansive, and flamboyant,
Green: nature, environment, healthy, good luck, renewal, youth, spring, generosity, jealousy,
inexperience, envy, misfortune, and vigor
Brown: earth, stability, hearth, home, outdoors, reliability, comfort, endurance, simplicity, and
comfort
Gray: security, reliability, intelligence, dignity, maturity, solid, conservative, practical, old age,
sadness, boring; Silver symbolizes calm
White: reverence, purity, birth, simplicity, cleanliness, peace, humility, precision, innocence,
youth, winter, good, death (Eastern cultures), cold, and clinical.
Black: power, sophistication, formality, elegance, wealth, mystery, fear, evil, unhappiness, depth,
style, evil, sadness, remorse, anger, anonymity, underground, good technical color, mourning, and
death (Western cultures)
Investigation 13
Learning about Maps and Mapping
In this investigation students will explore the world of
maps, link maps to the physical world, and think spatially.
Map reading helps students improve problem-solving and
reasoning skills. Students will learn about types of maps,
develop map skills, and experience map making. They will
travel routes, identify places central to their environment, and
understand characteristics of places that give them meaning.
Grades: 3–5
Activity 1: Learning About Maps
Part One: Class Discussion on Maps
Part Two: Types of Maps
Part Three: Directions
Part Four: Make Your Own Compass
Part Five: Map Keys/Legends
Part Six: Map Scale
Optional activities
Activity 2: Mapping Your Fieldtrip
Activity 3: Mapping Your Community
Activity 4: Locating Myself in the World
17.A.2b
Reading: 3
Writing: 3
185
Activity 1: Learn about Maps
Tools
Part One: None
Part Two: Computer
Part Three: Worksheet (pages 189-190)
Part Four: Needles (about 2" long), thread, pencils, glasses, and magnets
Part Five: Graph paper and colored pencils
Handout (pg. 194-195)
Part Six: Maps with a scale, pencils, Handouts
Time
Part One: 1 half-hour session
Part Two: 1 half-hour session
Part Three: 1 one-hour session
Part Four: 1 half-hour session
Part Five: 1 one-hour session
Part Six: 1 half-hour session
Objectives
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
Students understand how to use and construct maps to locate and
derive information about people, places, and environments
Students will learn compass directions
Students will know how to use maps and geographic representations or
symbols to acquire, process, and report information
Students will use a map to determine different routes
Students will comprehend and use written directions
Student will link written words to the things they represent
Students will learn about scale
Students will learn how to use the scale on a map to determine distance
186 | Investigation 13: Learning about Maps and Mapping
Activity 1 Learn about Maps
Teaching Plan
Part One: Class Discussion on Maps
Before starting the activity about maps,
ask the students:
6. Can you name types of maps? (climate,
physical, topographic, political, road)
1. What is a map? (a drawing of a real place)
7. Does anyone know the different parts of a
map? (key or legend, color scheme, scale,
title, compass rose)
2. Why do we use maps?
3. What is a cartographer? (a person who
makes maps)
4. What does a compass rose show us? (directions)
5. Why do we need different types of maps?
8. What is scale on a map? (the distance from
place to place)
9. What does a map key or legend contain?
(the symbols for things on the map, such as
towns, highways, schools, or mountains)
Teaching Plan
Part Two: Types of Maps
Have the students spend time on the computer locating five types of maps and what they are used
for. Ask students to put up examples of the type of maps they have selected. Have them write a list
on the board of all of the types of maps they found and what they are used for.
Investigation 13: Learning about Maps and Mapping | 187
Teaching Plan
Part Three: Directions
1. Ask your students, which way is north,
south, east, and west in their classroom.
7. The intermediate directions are northeast,
southeast, southwest, and northwest.
2. On a map, how do you tell which way is
north, south, east, and west? (the compass
rose)
8. Explain that not everything is directly
north, south, east, and west of another
point. There are four additional directions:
northeast, southeast, southwest, and
northwest. These are called intermediate
points. Example: the door is northwest of
the blackboard, the coat rack is southeast of
the teacher’s desk.
3. Explain to students that north is at the top
on most maps. (There are exceptions to the
rule.)
4. What is a direction?
Explain to the students that a direction is
the point toward which something faces.
For example, when you ask all the students
to face forward, forward is a direction.
When they put their right hand out and
point that is another direction.
9. Talk about relative location. Explain how
we can use north, south, east, and west to
talk about where one place on a map is in
relationship to another.
5. The cardinal directions are north, south,
east, and west.
6. Maps use a set of directions: north, south,
east, and west. East is the direction in which
the sun rises. West is the direction in which
the sun sets. When facing west, north is
to the right, south is to the left, and east
is behind. These four directions are the
cardinal points; they are the same every
place on Earth, except at the North and
South Poles. Example: The teacher’s desk is
north, the blackboard is east, the windows
are west.
Worksheet
Part Three: Directions: Point to the Right Direction
Pretend you are standing in the center square. It is 8:00 in the morning and you have just
arrived at school. The sun is to your east. See how many of the cardinal and intermediary
directions you can name. Fill in the blank squares. Label where some objects are in your
classroom.
You are here.
Worksheet
Part Three: Directions: Mind Mapping
Practice using your directions. Select the
appropriate direction to answer the following
questions. Use your direction chart. Label
the cardinal and intermediate directions in
the classroom. Use eight different colors of
construction paper for the labels.
1. My home is
of my school.
7. The entrance to the school is on the
side of the building.
8. My favorite store in my neighborhood is
from my home.
9. My favorite park is
of my school.
(number of directions)
2. I walk
directions to get to my school from my
10. My favorite neighborhood restaurant is
of my home.
home. They include:
11. When I look outside my bedroom window
.
I am looking
12. The kitchen in my house is on the
side of the building.
3. The playground at my school is
13. My best friend lives
of my house.
of the school building.
4. The School Office is
14. The firehouse is
of my classroom.
of the school.
5. The classroom clock is on the
15. The police station is
of my house.
side of the classroom.
6. The teachers park their cars on the
16. The closest hospital is
side of the school.
of my house.
Teaching Plan
Part Three: Directions: My Route to School
1. Ask the students to take notes on their way
to school listing the street names and which
direction they are heading on each street.
2. Give the students a blank piece of paper
that is large enough for them to map out a
route. Ask them to map out the route they
take from their home to their school.
3. If you want to make it a little easier for the
students you can distribute maps of the
neighborhood with a compass rose. The
students should be able to draw a line of
their route to school once they have taken
their notes.
What is a Compass?
A compass is a device used to determine
or find geographic directions. Compasses
have a magnetic needle or capsule that floats
freely on a central pin, so that it can align
itself with the earth’s magnetic field.
A Compass Rose is used on maps to show
north, south, east, and west.
Handout
Handout
Tools: Needles (about 2" long), thread, pencils,
glasses, magnets
This is called a Chinese Hanging
Compass.
Step 1: Tie the end of a short piece of thread to
the center of the magnetized needle.
1. To magnetize a needle, place the needle on
a table and rub the magnet over the needle
many times. The needle will want to jump
and attach itself to the magnet. Hold it
down to the table.
2. Always rub the magnet in the same direction.
Make sure you apply some pressure to the
magnet as you slide it across the needle.
3. Keep sliding the magnet past the end of the
needle.
4. If the needle does not magnetize, rub it
again until it does.
5. Turn the needle over and rub the magnet on
the other side of the needle.
6. Rub the needle on each side at least
50 times.
Step 2: Tie the other end of the thread to a
pencil. Do this very gently. Slide the thread to
the center of the pencil.
Credit: Publications International, Ltd. 2007. www.tlc.howstuffworks.com/family/
science-projects-for-kids-magnets-and-metal4.htm.
Step 3: Place the pencil over the rim of a glass.
The magnetized end of the needle should
point north.
What has happened?
Magnetic fields are areas that contain a force
created by moving electrical charges. Earth produces a magnetic field. This field is very weak,
but it is sufficient to align magnetized objects—
such as your needle—that are free to rotate.
By floating the needle on a pencil you allow it
to rotate freely so the needle becomes lined up
with Earth’s magnetic field, and points toward
the north.
Handout
Part Five: Map Key/Legend
Do you know what a map key is?
the use of a key.
A map key (also called a map legend) is the
section on a map that gives descriptions of what
symbols are used on the map and what the
symbol stands for. These symbols might include
things such as sports arenas, picnic areas,
animal watching areas, and campgrounds.
Maps use a key, or legend, to explain the
meaning of each of the symbols used in the
map. These keys usually show a small picture
of each of the symbols used on the map, along
with a written description of the meaning of
each of these symbols.
The objects on a map are represented using
symbols. A symbol is a picture on the
map that represents something in the real
world. Understanding these symbols requires
Look at the map below. Use the
legend to find the objects on
the map.
Map Key
Contour Lines
Lock
River
Forest
Moorland
Mountain Peak
Beach
Cliffs
Houses
Log Cabin
Ferry
Bridge
Road
Handout
Part Five: Map Key/Legend: Create a Map of Your Classroom
1. Make a list of items you see in your classroom including the tables, the doors, the clock, the
teacher’s desk and chair, the bookshelf, the windows, the coat room, pencil sharpener, etc.
2. Now draw a picture of everything on your list.
3. Draw an outline of your classroom and use the symbols you created to show where everything
is located.
4. Make a map key/ legend of your symbols with their definitions. Note: A symbol can also be a
texture or color that represents something in the classroom.
5. Draw a compass rose on your map.
6. Write down information on how you spend your day including direction points.
For example: I come in the door that is on the north side of the classroom. I go to hang up my
coat in the coatroom that is east of the door that I just entered. I go south out of the coatroom
to my desk that is northwest of the coatroom. I listen to the teacher who is standing at the front
of the class that is southwest of my desk. I look up at the clock on the northeast wall to see
what time it is.
Teaching Plan
Part Six: Map Scale
1. Explain to the students that the size of
the area on the map and everything inside
has been proportionately reduced to fit
on to a piece of paper. Proportion means
the relation of one thing to another or the
whole with respect to size. To find out how
much smaller this illustration or a map
is than the actual area on the ground, we
refer to the scale on the map. The scale on a
map is usually located in the legend. People
use scale to find the distance between two
places. The scale of a map is in proportion
to the area it represents. Example: 1' = 100'.
Explain that map scales vary according to
the map maker.
2. Give the students a map with a scale and
roads. Have the students take a piece of
paper and duplicate the scale that is on their
map. They can also do this activity with a
ruler. Have the students follow a road from
point A to point B to discover the distance
between the two.
Activity 2: Mapping Your Field Trip
Tools
Handout (page 198)
Time
1 half-hour session
Objective
>
Teaching plan
After going on the field trip, distribute handout with map to the students.
Students will hone direction skills they have just learned
Activity 2 Mapping Your Field Trip
Handout
Map Route of our Field Trip
Starting with letter A, name each direction you walked (from that mural to the next) during the
field trip. Use the map for reference.
A.
E.
B.
F.
C.
G.
D.
H.
Activity 3: Mental Mapping your Community
Tools
Butcher-block paper, markers, colored pencils
Handout (page 200)
Time
3 one-hour sessions
Objectives
>
Students will identify geographic places of importance to them
>
Students will share why this place has prominence in their lives
>
Students will organize and display information about the location of
geographic features and places by using mental mapping skills
>
Students will use the elements and principles of design and art
vocabulary to visually express and describe individual ideas
>
Students develop conceptual maps of their own neighborhood or
community
Teaching plan
1. Ask students if they know what a mental map is. (A map which
represents the perceptions and knowledge a person has of an area.)
2. After the maps have been completed, hang the maps up so the class can
see what other students created.
3. Bring the class together and have a few students volunteer to share their
special place with the entire class.
4. Guide students in reflecting on what all of their special places might
have in common. Answers will vary, but may include things like nature
trails, family homes, place of birth, favorite stores, the zoo, etc.
5. Have the students make a list of all of the places they share in common
6. Ask students to come up with a general statement that answers the
question of how these many different places say something collectively
about the community.
Activity 3 Mental Mapping your Community
Handout
Mapping Your Community
1. Draw a map of your community as you
imagine it.
2. You will make a map that shows the things
that make your community a special place
to live. This map should show the places in
your community that are most important to
you and where they are.
3. Make a list of at least five special places
to include on your map. Think about
the places you go to regularly in your
Credit: Treehugger. 2007. www.treehugger.com/culture/mapping-art-kids-and-carbon.html
neighborhood such as places where relatives
or friends live or hang out, your favorite
stores, or where the local museums are
located.
4. Now, take a 24" x 24" sheet of butcher-
Places you may include on your map
Streets
Schools
Homes
block paper. In pencil, draw lightly until
Parks, zoos, recreation centers
you get your special places located. When
Playgrounds, swimming pools, park district
you have sited all of your places, then fill
buildings
in the map with colored pencil or marker.
Religious places
Show the streets or pathways you use to
Stores and restaurants
get to your special places. Your map doesn’t
have to be exactly how it is in real life. Do
not worry about scale. Be creative.
5. Make sure that you label all the features
of your map so that others can tell what
they are.
Buildings: libraries, museums
Nature areas: (Example: ponds, streams,
lakes, rivers, canals)
Bike paths, nature trails, the beach
Sports fields and arenas
Government buildings (fire and police
stations, post offices)
Activity 4: Locating Myself in the World
Tools
Handout (page 202)
Time
15 minutes
Objective
>
Teaching plan
Ask students to put an “X” on each map to mark where they live. Explain
the difference between their neighborhood, city, state, country, and the
world.
Students will learn where they live in relation to their city, state,
country, and the world
I.C.2f
Activity 4 Locating Myself in the World
Handout
Where do you live?
Mark with an “X” where you live on each map.
1. Where do you live in relation to our city?
2. Where do you live in relation to your state?
3. Where do you live in relation to your
country?
4. Where do you live in relation to your
world?
Investigation 14
Create a Travel Brochure
or Scrapbook on Puerto Rico
For a small island, Puerto Rico has an impressive amount
to offer. In this investigation students are going to discover
the many facts about its geography, history, and culture that
make Puerto Rico a place like no other. Students will learn
fun facts and quirky tidbits such as: El Yunque is the only
tropical rainforest in the U.S. National Forest System; the
island of Vieques has glow in the dark fish; Puerto Rico’s
unofficial mascot is a tiny tree frog; and that Puerto Rican
Cuisine is a blend of Spanish, African, Taíno, and American
culinary traditions. From the beaches to the cities, students
will create a guide that family and friends will be able to use
to learn about Puerto Rico.
Grades: 3–5
Activity 1: Making a Scrapbook or Travel Brochure
about Puerto Rico
17.A.2b
Reading: 3
Writing: 3
203
Activity 1: Create a Travel Brochure or Scrapbook
Tools
Library resources, travel brochures and posters (these are available from
a local travel agency), books and reference materials, photos, drawings,
cutouts, clip art
White card stock paper (8 ½” x 11”), scissors, markers, crayons, colored
pencils, patterned paper, magazines, colored construction paper, glue,
color printer. More elaborate scrapbooks can use rubber stamps, craft
punches, stencils, computer generated patterns.
Time
4–5 one-hour sessions
Objectives
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
Students will make a scrapbook or travel brochure about Puerto Rico
Students will use online resources to find information about their
assigned topic and create a scrapbook
Students will understand that studying geography, history, and social
studies allows them to encounter different cultures, people, places, and
environments
Students will organize and evaluate information
Students will understand that all countries have distinctive features
Students will acquire basic research skills by collecting facts
Students will learn facts that make Puerto Rico unique
Students will draw inferences and make conclusions about life in
Puerto Rico based on their research
204 | Investigation 14: Create a Travel Brochure or Scrapbook
Activity 1 Create a Travel Brochure or Scrapbook
Teaching Plan
Discovering Puerto Rico:
Create a Travel Brochure or Scrapbook
Show students the image of the mural Honor
Boricua painted by the artist Hector Duarte
in 1992. The mural is about the exchange
of culture, ideas, and resources between the
Humboldt Park Puerto Rican community and
the Island of Puerto Rico. The flag goes both
ways between San Juan, Puerto Rico
and Chicago.
1. Ask students what know about Puerto Rico.
Keep a running list on the blackboard so
you can go back at the end of the activity
and see if their facts were correct.
2. Split the class into teams. Students will
make a scrapbook with information about
different aspects of Puerto Rico. Explain
that each team will make a six page presentation to go into the scrapbook (it can be
larger depending on how much information
they want to include). Assign each team a
topic from the list below and ask them to
find information about Puerto Rico using
books, encyclopedias, atlases, the internet,
Google images, magazines, photos, newspaper clippings, articles, etc.
3. Ask students to find a minimum of ten facts
about the topic for their scrapbook pages.
Tell them to identify key elements about
their topic. Fun facts are always interesting.
It would be useful to bring in a scrapbook so
the students can see an example. A visual aid of
what you are looking for sets expectations and
helps students formulate ideas. Some of the students may have a scrapbook of family trips they
could bring in to share with the class.
Topics list
Government
Animals and plants
History: Pre-colonial times
to the present
Climate and Ecosystems
Culture: music, dance,
theater, poetry, visual art
Customs
Festivals and holidays
Food
Geography
Population, demographics,
ethnic composition
Puerto Rican flag and anthem
Money
Religions
Myths, legends, and folktales
from Puerto Rico
Sports and games
Original inhabitants of Puerto
Rico: Indigenous people
Natural resources
Major cities and towns
Examples: Lares for the revolution, Loiza for the African
presence, Ponce for the trade
and culture
Places of interest (Where
would you go sight seeing?)
Investigation 14: Create a Travel Brochure or Scrapbook | 205
Activity 1: Discovering Puerto Rico
from Puerto Rico so the class can see
and taste them.
• Holidays: students might make a calendar of Puerto Rican holidays that can be
celebrated throughout the school year.
Building the Scrapbook
Scrapbooks are a wonderful way to compile
information. They can be organized by type
of research, layout, topic, or design elements.
Most scrapbook pages use several types of elements, including backgrounds, text, photographs, and embellishments.
1. Talk about the need for captions and
descriptions. Make sure the students keep a
list of citations.
2. Ask the teams to research their topic.
Encourage the students to print out everything they can find on their topic. The more
material they have, the more they will have
to work with when making their scrapbook.
3. Begin to put together scrapbook pages.
Students can use a variety of media in their
projects. Put out materials like scissors, glue,
construction paper, tape, markers, pens, colored pencils, etc. They will cut and paste the
printed items into the scrapbook and write
captions and/or descriptions of information
or pictures.
5. After the presentations, students should
determine whether each presentation is a
good representation of Puerto Rico.
6. Have students write a reflective essay about
what they learned about Puerto Rico to add
to the back of the scrapbook.
Conclusion/Finished Work
Teachers should laminate pages (if possible)
or use clear contact paper to encase each page.
This will protect the scrapbooks so they stay
sturdy. Make sure the scrapbook has a cover and
an index. Reasearch the many ways to bind this
document to find out which is appropiate and
cost effective.
Note: November is Puerto Rican Heritage Month,
a good time to plan a study of the island.
4. Ask teams to present the information they
learned to the class. For example:
• Myths, Legends, and Folktales: this team
might share a folktale.
• Geography: this team might make their
own maps.
• Food: students bring in some snacks
Activity 1: Discovering Puerto Rico
Possible follow-ups to the project:
password – pcs)
• Display the student’s work at tables during
lunch periods where their peers could visit
and read through the book.
Welcome to Puerto Rico. www.welcome.topuertorico.
org/people.shtml
• Produce a “library presentation day” in
which other classes visit the library, in a
scheduled manner, and view the presentations. The students would be avaliable
to answer specific questions about their
research. They could fill out a ballot voting
for their favorite, with the winners getting a
certificate.
• Create posters to advertise the events.
Boricua Kids. www.elboricua.com/BoricuaKids.html
Music of Puerto Rico. www.musicofpuertorico.com
Olympic athletes of Puerto Rico. www.en.wikipedia.
org/wiki/Category:Olympic_athletes_of_Puerto_Rico
Familiar Faces: Athletes of Puerto Rico.
www.gopuertorico.about.com/od/thelocal/ig/
Puerto-Rican-Athletes
Puerto Rico Sports. www.puertorico-guide.info/
activities/sports
Puerto Rico El Yunque Rainforest and Beaches Travel
Guide. www.elyunque.com/index.htm
Resources
Sol Boricua. www.solboricua.com
Puerto Rican Encyclopedia. 2005-2012.
www.enciclopediapr.org/ing
Lonely Planet: Puerto Rico.
www.lonelyplanet.com/puerto-rico
A Vision of Puerto Rico: The Teodoro Vidal Collection.
The Smithsonian National Museum of American
History: Kenneth E. Behring Center.
www.americanhistory.si.edu/vidal
Puerto Rico Guide. www.puertorico-guide.info
History.com. www.history.com/topics/puerto-rico
Fact Monster. www.factmonster.com/search?fr=
fmtnh&query=Puerto+Rico
Info Please. www.infoplease.com
“Puerto Rico” article from Encyclopedia Britannica
Elementary version www.school.eb.com/elementary/
article?articleId=346196&query=puerto%20rico&ct.
(You need login: username-pomfretpcs,
Investigation 14: Create a Travel Brochure or Scrapbook | 207
Investigation 15
Petroglyphs, Pictographs,
and the Taíno Culture
Rock art is the only historic record we have of many cultures.
The Taíno people did not leave a written record of their lives
but we can study the pictures they created and learn valuable
information about their culture. As a class, students will be
looking at images of rock art created by the Taíno people.
Challenge your students to try and decode the rock art.
Students will then create images and tell a story of a day in
their life using petroglyph-like and pictograph-like images.
Tell them to design their petroglyphs/pictographs so that if
an archeologist discovers them thousands of years from now,
he or she will be able to learn about a day in their life.
Grades: 3–5
Activity 1: Taíno Culture, Petroglyphs, and Pictographs
Part One: Introduction to Taíno Culture
Part Two: Making Petroglyphs and
Pictographs
Part Three: Story Telling and Petroglyphs
26.B.2d
Speaking & Listening: 1a, lc, 1d
209
Activity 1: Taíno Culture, Petroglyphs, & Pictographs
Tools
Part One: PowerPoint presentation: RockArt.pptx
Taíno article (This can be read with the students.)
Part Two: Brick of red clay or Model Magic, carving utensils, tempera
paint, brushes, string
Time
Part One: 1 two- hour session
Part Two: 1 two- hour session
Objectives
>
Students will explore the use of symbols and rock art as a form of nonverbal communication
>
Students will demonstrate an understanding of how to interpret
petroglyphs and pictographs and learn about their importance in
cultural heritage
>
Students will observe images left by ancient cultures and create images
similar to traditional petroglyphs and pictographs
>
Students will tell a story about themselves or an important event using
symbols
>
Students will learn how to use different arts media and techniques to
apply them in new and different ways
>
Students will discover how symbols can convey meanings and how
difficult it can be to interpret symbols
210 | Investigation 15: Petroglyphs, Pictographs, and the Táino Culture
Activity 1 Taíno Culture, Petroglyphs, & Pictographs
Teaching Plan
Part One: Introduction to Taíno Culture;
Petroglyphs and Pictographs
1. Begin with a short introduction to the Taíno
people and rock art accompanied by the
PowerPoint presentation.
2. Remind the students where they viewed
Taíno Indian symbols on their field trip.
Mural: Escuelita Tropical
Date: 2005
Artist: Eren Star Padilla
3. Refer to the following notes whil viewing
the Powerpoint
Rock art is all we have left of the history of the
Taíno people who lived on the island of Puerto
Rico. The Taíno did not have a written language so they used rock art as a form of communication. In rock art, pictures are carved,
drawn, or painted on rock surfaces. Images
that are carved or engraved into rock are called
petroglyphs. Images made with paint or other
pigments are called pictographs. Petroglyphs
and pictographs made by the Taíno help convey
significant information about daily life, ideas,
and events. This is one of the ways historians
and archeologists today understand the past.
They put together stories and history from
these images. The pictures function as symbols.
The symbols convey meaning.
Many cultures from around the world have
used petroglyphs and pictographs. They represent peoples’ first attempts at preserving ideas in
a picture format using materials that were readily avaliable. Symbols were often versions of the
real thing although some symbols were abstract.
These symbols must have made sense not only
to the people creating them, but to those viewing them. They gave messages about where to
find water, where to hunt, about ceremonies,
planting sites, where to find trails, or maybe
animal symbols representing the characteristics
of a family or clan. Some archaeologists think
rock art is a type of storytelling. Others believe
it depicts religious or spiritual beliefs, while
still others regard it is an artistic expression.
Petroglyphs and pictographs help us understand
the world of the Taíno people. These drawings
give us clues about what happened long ago,
especially when there are no written records left
behind.
Pictographs use paints and dyes to make
rock art by mixing ground-up substances such
as plant extracts or charcoal with a binder such
as animal fat, fish oil, or plant oil. They would
grind the pigments with a stone into a powder
and then add a binder. They may have used
twigs, feathers, fingers, or animal hair brushes
to apply the paint to the rocks. Petroglyphs
were made by using a hard rock to peck away
on a softer rock surface. They would use a stone
Investigation 15: Petroglyphs, Pictographs, and the Táino Culture | 211
Activity 1: Taíno Culture; Petroglyphs and Pictographs
chisel and a hammerstone.
Archaeologists and scientists have various
ways of dating rock art. Some methods measure chemicals in the desert varnish, which is a
natural material that gradually builds up over
the surface of the petroglyphs. At painted sites,
the organic material in the paint may be dated.
Rock art has been found in caves, on cliff walls,
and on boulders.
When reading this article by Dr. Lynne
Guitar to the students, it would be good to
show a map of the Caribbean. It would be a
good idea if you had a map of the Caribbean
when reading this article to the students.
Dr. Lynne Guitar is an administrator, cultural guide, teacher, and writer. Her education:
M.A. and Ph.D. in Colonial History (with
Anthropological focus) from Vanderbilt University
in 1998. Fulbright scholar to the Dominican
Republic in 1997. Two simultaneous B.A.s
(History and Anthropology) from Michigan State
University in 1992, with a Certificate in Latin
American and Caribbean Studies.
Guitar, Dr. Lynne. The Táino and Their Use of Caves. September 2004.
www.centrelink.org/TainoCaves.html
The Taíno and their Use of Caves
by Dr. Lynne Guitar
The Taínos’ ancestors began settling
on this island as early as 6,000 to
4,000 B.C.-8,000 years ago!--arriving
in canoes from today’s Yucatan and
Belize in Central America, going
first east to Cuba, then southeast to
Hispaniola, which Native peoples
called Quisqueya, Haití, or Bohío.
Later groups arrived from northern
South America, primarily from the
Orinoco and Amazon River valleys
and the Caribbean coast of today’s
Venezuela, canoeing northwestward
from Trinidad and Tobago, one by
one up the chain of islands to Puerto
Rico and Hispaniola. There were at
least four different “waves” of Native
peoples who came here, all of whom
eventually merged to become Taíno,
which is what we call the Natives who
were living here when the Spaniards
arrived in 1492, though they used to
be called Island Arawak because their
language is based on Arawakan from
South America. The Taíno sent out
colonies to Jamaica, eastern Cuba,
and today’s Bahamas. We know more
about the Taínos’ culture than about
their ancestors’ culture, but the Taínos’
spiritual ideas obviously developed
from those of their early ancestors-a
blend of ideas from several regions of
the Americas. Caves played an important role in their spiritual beliefs and
customs, in part, perhaps, because this
island has so very many caves.
The Taínos’ origin myth is centered around a cave that was right
here on the island of Hispaniola. They
say that the ancestor spirits lived in
this cave, coming out only at night
to eat jobos, a small plum-like fruit.
One night the jobos must have tasted
especially good, for some ancestor
spirits were still outside the cave eating them when the sun came up and
turned them into human beings. Did
the Taíno really believe that there
were no people on earth until this
happened? I don’t think so. Myths
like this are teaching stories. This one
appears to have been told in order to
keep the people safely in their homes
at night, except for special nights
when their cacique (chief) said it was
OK to go out and hunt hutías, a small
nocturnal mammal. The Taíno weren’t
really afraid of the dark, but they
taught their children that the nights
belonged to the opia, ancestor spirits,
who walked about trying to charm
any young women who were outside
instead of safe at home with their
families. (Opia acted and looked just
like human men except that they had
no belly buttons.)
Although the Taíno were a StoneAge people, even their earliest ancestors were already advanced to the stage
that they did not live in caves. (They
are called Stone-Age because they
did not know how to smelt metal of
any kind, so all their tools were made
of stone, bone, and wood-they did,
however, make beautiful adornments
that they covered with gold “foil,” gold
that they pounded flat and attached
with a natural glue.) The Taíno were
agriculturalists. They planted fertile
gardens called conucos. Their principle
crops were yucca, corn, beans, squash,
peanuts, and peppers--and they had
advanced methods of irrigation. They
also gathered fruit that grew abundantly in the forests, had fish farms in
the rivers and incredible techniques
for catching large ocean fish and
reptiles, water birds, and the island’s
only mammals, the hutia and a similar
rodent called a soledonon. The Taíno
built large, comfortable, round homes
of woven straw called bohíos, with
palm-thatched roofs to keep out the
rain and heat. Inside they decorated
the walls with what the Spaniards
called “tapestries,” woven out of colorful fibers that they collected, and
they wove cotton hamacas to sleep
on, attached to the bohío’s central
pole and support poles along the
walls. They lit small fires inside their
bohíos at night, whose smoke kept
mosquitoes away. The caciques and
their families lived in larger, rectangular homes called caneyes, which also
housed the statues representing the
cacique’s spiritual guides, his zemies,
who protected the yucayeke (town) and
helped the cacique make good decisions for the welfare of all his people.
(The Taíno didn’t worship the statues
of the zemies, just like Christians don’t
worship the cross; they worshipped
what the zemies stood for.) The caneyes had roofed porches where the
cacique and other wise men of the
yucayeke could sit in comfort, shaded
by the sun during the day. The caney’s
porch faced the batey, a central plaza
where special events like their ballgame
(also called a batey) or their areitos,
community-wide song and dance festivals, took place. The Taíno only used
caves as shelters in times of emergency,
like during hurricanes, or to escape
from Spanish military patrols--but
mostly they used caves for religious or
spiritual purposes.
Each Taíno yucayeke had two leaders, who were complementary, like day
and night, or yin and yang. One was
the cacique, who, by consulting his
zemies, made decisions on behalf of
his people about when to plant, harvest, hunt or fish, and how to divide
not only the labor but the food thus
obtained. The other was the behique,
who was a combination doctor and
spiritual leader. The behique was
responsible for training the young boys
who would one day inherit the role
of cacique (interestingly, these were
the sons of the current cacique’s oldest
sister, not the cacique’s own sons, for
inheritance was through the maternal line). He was also responsible for
healing the ill, for acting as “referee”
during the game of batey, which was
not just played for sport and exercise
but which was also a religious ritual,
and for everything that had to do with
funerals and with worship of the spirits of the dead ancestors.
It is believed that caves were used
by behiques as “classrooms” for the
future caciques, or perhaps where the
final lessons just before graduation
were given and/or where the graduation ceremony was conducted. Some
of the Spanish chroniclers mentioned
this, and cave drawings of caciques
in full ceremonial dress and of the
cohoba ceremony appear to confirm
this, although the trainings and ceremonies were conducted in secrecy,
so we don’t know much about them.
The cohoba ceremony, by the way,
was a very sacred ceremony done by
both caciques and behiques, wherein
they inhaled a hallucinogenic powder called cohoba, made from the
powdered seed of a sacred tree, probably mixed with powdered green
tobacco, in order to go into a trance
and communicate more easily with
their zemies, their spiritual guides.
Many cave drawings, which specialists call pictographs, celebrate the
sacred cohoba trance--you can clearly
see the dujos, the low stools on which
the cacique or behique reclined while
taking the cohoba drug, and the long
tubes called tobacos that they used to
inhale the cohoba. Many caves also
have piles of shells lying around. The
behique ground the shells into a powder that he mixed with his cohoba, for
the calcium acted as a catalyst to put
him into a trance state more quickly.
A few Taíno were entombed in
caves, along with their possessions:
beautifully decorated ceramic bowls
with bats on the handles, gourds for
water, necklaces of shell, bone, seeds,
teeth and stones, elaborate stone mortars and pestles. They must have been
special individuals, for most Taíno
were not even buried, and Taíno caciques have been found buried in cemeteries, not in caves. The Taíno who
were buried were first smoked to dry
out their bodies, then wrapped in cotton cloth, and buried seated on their
dujos, surrounded by their beautifully
decorated possessions-sometimes they
were accompanied by the body of one
of their wives, who had been buried
alive! But who were those select Taíno
who were not buried but instead laid
to rest on natural shelves within caves?
Probably behiques, who were also
probably the artists who painted the
pictographs inside the caves.
Most pictographs were painted
on the walls with sticks dipped into
powdered charcoal mixed with animal
fat or bat droppings, though in some
caves they used natural white chalk or
red clay. The artist drew the foods that
sustained the Taíno population. There
are drawings of corn (maize), birds,
fish, frogs, turtles, insects, iguanas,
and sea mammals, as well as of dogs,
which were the Taínos’ pets as well
as companions for hunting hutias at
night. There are drawings of guayos,
stone graters, and of the cibucán, the
woven tube the women used to extract
the poisonous liquid from bitter yucca
to make the bread called casabe. They
drew hunting and fishing scenes, pictures related to child birth and reproduction, pictures of their caciques, of
the behiques’ fierce ritual masks, sick
people, babies, and their creator spirits as well as the spirits of the wind,
rain, and sun. No doubt these drawings were painted while the behique
conducted special rituals and prayed
that the harvest would be good, the
schools of fish would increase, the
sick people would get better, babies
would be born without problems, the
cool breeze wouldn’t turn into a hurricane.... They drew many pictures of
just heads because the Taíno appear
to have believed that a person’s soul or
essence was inside the head. In fact,
many important Taíno were buried
headless, for their heads were kept in
a basket or other decorated container
in the family home. Ready for another
surprise? The Taíno appear to be the
inventors of the “happy face”!-you can
see drawings of these smiling heads,
many hundreds of years old, in caves
all over the island.
The Taíno cave artists drew many
pictures whose meanings we can only
guess at. For example, two petroglyphs in the cave called Guácara de
Sanabé, near Cotui, clearly indicate
two men carrying another who is
tied up and trussed to a pole-but the
Taíno were said to [be] peaceful! And
we know they were not cannibals (in
fact, although they said their enemies,
the Caribs, were cannibals, we know
today that was not true). So what do
these scenes represent? No one knows
for sure, but Domingo Abreau, a
Dominican anthropologist, believes
they represent sick people being carried to the cave to be cured. There are
some other drawings that we think we
have figured out, too, and they give
us a glimpse into the complexity of
meaning that was probably embedded into all of them. For example, it
appears that birds represented humans
in the pictographs-painted on a wall
at the dark entrance to a tunnel might
be a drawing of several birds, with the
first bent low, a second twisting to the
left, a third standing tall but bending
to the right, etc., indicating the height
and direction of the tunnel. Some
experts believe that a drawing of five
birds sitting on a branch in the cave
called Pommiers near San Cristobal
represents the five cacicazgos (main
chiefdoms) that the island was divided
into in 1492. Not all birds represented
man, however, for owls and bats, the
night “birds,” appear to have represented the spirit world and/or death.
Some caves, even though they are
near places that used to have large
Taíno populations and have smooth
walls on which it would have been
relatively easy to paint pictures, have
no pictographs at all. Other caves are
full of them-they fill the walls, stalagmites, stalactites and ceilings. Why? A
friend of mine who is a psychologist
and is fascinated by the Taínos’ use of
caves believes that some of them gave
the Taíno a special spiritual feeling
and others did not. He calls it their
sense of “caveness.” He explained that
caves were natural portals, doorways,
between the two separate worlds that
the Taíno knew existed-the physical
world of human beings and the spiritual world of the zemies. Caves were
special places, neither here nor there,
neither fully light nor fully dark. They
were a place where humans and zemies
could meet and try to come to agreements that would benefit both worlds.
The Taíno who had classes within
the caves, the ceremonies held within
caves, the pictographs, and the
bodies of those [who] were buried
in caves, were special, sacred, secret.
To ensure that no one interrupted a
ceremony or entered an important
cave without first being spiritually prepared, someone, probably a
behique, sculpted a cave guardian
out of a stalactite or stalagmite that
faced the cave opening-that required
many, many more hours of work
than painting a pictograph. Because
the Taíno had only stone tools, they
had to “peck” out the shapes of the
guardian slowly and carefully, which
is why this type of carving is called
a petroglyph. Sometimes the cave
guardian was painted on a wall, rather
than sculpted, like the guardian figure
in the cave called Peñón Gordo in the
East National Park near La Romana.
It appears, however, that a painted
guardian needed something special to
help him protect the cave-this one has
eyes in his hands as well as in his head.
If you are lucky enough to be able
to explore one of Hispaniola’s caves
with petroglyphs or pictographs inside
it, don’t just look around you. Feel
the cave. Reach into the darkness
with your mind, not just with your
flashlight. Do you have a sense of
“caveness”? Imagine how you would
feel if you were a Taíno behique inside
the cave right now, all alone, with just
a torch, a gourd full of black “paint”
that you had made, and a homemade
“brush” made out of a stick with a
shredded tip. What would you draw
on the wall that would represent
your most important prayer for your
people’s welfare?
Class Discussion
• What are ways people communicate ideas?
• How can you tell a story or give information
without using words?
• What can we learn about people who lived
in Puerto Rico long ago if we only had the
petroglyphs and pictographs to look at?
• What did we learn about the Taíno from
reading this article?
• What do you think the Taíno petroglyph and
pictograph designs mean?
• What conclusions can you make about the
culture of the Taíno people based on their
rock art?
Teaching Plan
Part Two: Making Petroglyphs and Pictographs
1. Make a clay rock panel by slicing off sections of prepared clay. Red clay works well
and is the color of a lot of rock art.
2. Pound out the segment of clay into irregular
shapes. Shapes should be large enough for
students to easily draw and carve on them
(approx. 8" x 8").
3. Let the prepared clay dry completely.
4. With flat brown paint, paint one side of the
clay. This is so when the students carve into
the dried clay they will be able to see the
image.
5. Make two holes at the top of each segment
to be used for hanging the glyphs.
6. On a sheet of paper, have the students plan
their images by drawing them.
7. Once they are satisfied with their drawing, ask them to create pictographs on the
unpainted side of the clay rock by transferring the image from their drawing.
8. Have the students create petroglyphs by
carving on the painted side of the clay rock
with the paper clips, plastic spoons, forks,
and knives, popsicle sticks, and/or pencils.
Note: If you do not want to work with clay you
can use brown butcher paper. Ask the students
to cut out irregular shapes of butcher paper and
then crinkle them up to look like the surface of
a rock. They can use one sheet of butcher paper
to create a petroglyph and another sheet to create a pictograph.
Note: Crayola makes a product called Model
Magic. It’s extremely lightweight and soft, and
it air dries in 24 hours without needing firing
or baking. It is non-toxic. Once dry, Model
Magic can be carved. Tempera paint easily
adheres to it. It is non-greasy and does not flake
or crumble. This makes it an easy clean-up for
students. There are other brands on the market
that do the same thing.
Teaching Plan
Part Three: Story Telling with Pictographs
1. Give each student a piece of butcher paper.
Make sure it is large enough to draw a pictograph story on it. Each student should
draw pictures about what he/she did last
Saturday using only pictographs. They may
not use any letters or numbers.
2. Have each student wad-up their paper into
a ball. They should then hand their pictograph to a classmate.
3. Tell your students that they are a team of
archaeologists and because they are experts
they have been called in to interpret recently
found pictographs.
4. Ask the students to write down their interpretations of the pictographs.
5. Have each student present their interpretation to the class.
6. Ask the students: How close are the interpretations to their intended meaning?
Petroglyphs, Pictographs, and the Taíno Culture
Abstract a non-realistic
representation of something
Pictographs ancient drawings or
paintings on rock
Archeologist a person who studies
Rock art panel a group of rock art
prehistoric people and their cultures
figures
Geoglyphs large images made on
Rock art a general term for the
the ground by removing or piling
earth
pecking, incising, or painting of
designs onto rock surfaces
Petroforms involves laying out
Symbol a thing that represents
rocks on the ground to form images
something else
Petroglyphs ancient images carved
on a rock surface
Root words
“glyph” carved work (Greek)
“graph” to write (Greek)
“petro” rock (Latin)
“picto” to paint (Latin)
Investigation 16
Puerto Rican Music
In this investigation students will develop a basic
understanding of Puerto Rican music. Puerto Rican music
has its roots in African, Spanish, and Caribbean cultures.
Your students will recognize styles of Puerto Rican music and
begin to think about how music reflects a community and its
culture.
Grades: 3–5
Activity 1: Music in Sea of Flags
Activity 2: Learn about Puerto Rican Music
18.A.2 | 25.B.2
Writing: 2a, 2b, 2d
219
Activity 1: Puerto Rican Music and Instruments
Tools
Computers, pens, paper, music player, and Puerto Rican music,
Time
Part One: 1 two- hour session
10 minutes each day for a week
Objectives
>
Students will understand music in relation to Puerto Rican history and
culture
>
Students will listen to, analyze, and describe Puerto Rican music
>
Students will conduct online research
>
Students will discuss different types of instruments and music that are
related to Puerto Rican culture
>
Students will be able to identify the types of music studied by listening
to clips
>
Students will be able to identify musical instruments when listening to
recorded music
220 | Investigation 16: Puerto Rican Music
Activity 1 Puerto Rican Music and Instruments
Teaching Plan
Part One: Music in Sea of Flags
1. Remind the students of the mural Sea of
Flags that they viewed on their field trip.
Mural: Sea of Flags
Date: 2004
Artist: Gamaliel Ramirez with assistance
from Star Padilla, Moncho, Luis Ortiz, Melissa
Cintron, and members of the community
The inspiration for this mural was a photograph taken from one of the stages for Fiesta
Boricua. Festival Boricua is all about Puerto
Rican music. Every September thousands of
people gather on Division Street under the
Puerto Rican flags, in Paseo Boricua, to hear
Puerto Rican music, eat traditional Puerto
Rican foods, and experience Puerto Rican traditions and culture. The annual festival was
started in 1993. The festival has a great diversity
of Puerto Rican music from plena to bomba
to salsa. Some of the Puerto Rican instruments
that are used today can be traced back to the
Taíno culture. The individual sounds of Puerto
Rican music reflect the native and colonial cultures that shaped the island’s culture.
Play various forms of Puerto Rican music for
the class. The following are forms of Puerto
Rican music: aguinaldo, bomba, danza, décima,
plena, reggaeton, salsa, seis chorreao, soca.
It is a good idea to play the piece of music more
than once so students can begin to identify the
differences between the types of music. You
might play one type of music every day over a
week then play them again the next week prior
to beginning the activity. After listening to
the music, refer to the following questions to
launch a class discussion:
• Have you ever heard this kind of music
before? If so, where did you hear it?
• What kind of music does it remind you of?
• Can you identify any of the instruments
you hear?
• What words describe the music?
After completing the discussion and listening
activities, students should be given the activity sheet to complete by using the internet as a
research tool. After the research is completed,
students will share the information they gathered with the class.
Investigation 16: Puerto Rican Music 221
Activity 2 Puerto Rican Music and Instruments
Worksheet
Puerto Rican Music
Choose a form of Puerto Rican music you want to learn about. Forms include: aguinaldo, bomba,
danza, demica, plena, reggaeton, salsa, seis
The following are resources to help you choose a form of music:
Music of Puerto Rico. www.musicofpuertorico.com/index.htm (You can find audio clips and more
about Puerto Rican music.)
Boricua Kids. www.elboricua.com/BKsongs.html (examples of children’s folk songs)
The Puerto Rican Music. www.santiagoramos.com/the-puerto-rican-music-homepage (a Site Dedicated
to the music of Puerto Rico)
Welcome to Puerto Rico. www.topuertorico.org/culture/music.shtml (a good site to explore Puerto
Rico
National Geographic Website. www.worldmusic.nationalgeographic.com/view/page.basic/country/
content.country/puerto_rico_12/en_US (free music downloads)
Puerto Rico Boriken – Music www.prboriken.com/music.htm (videos of musicians, definitions of
types of music, links to other music sites)
Puerto Rican Folkloric Dance www.prfdance.org/history.htm (history of Puerto Rican music and
dance) and www.prfdance.org/chorreao.htm
Questions:
1. What is the definition of the type of music you have chosen to research?
2. What is the history of the musical type you chose? (lines continue on next page)
Worksheet continued
Worksheet
3. List some instruments used to make this type of music.
4. Write a paragraph about Taíno music and instruments.
5. Collect five interesting facts about Puerto Rican music.
10. List the sources you used in your research, including ones from the previous page.
Investigation 16: Puerto Rican Music 223
Investigation 16 Resource Videos
Chicago’s Puerto Rican Story
Filmmaker: Antonio Franceschi, Producer and Director. New Film Production
Chicago’s Puerto Rican Story, a PBS premiered, documentary is the first documentary ever made
about Chicago’s Puerto Rican community. “Chicago’s Puerto Rican Story, an 80 minute film, paints an
inspiring portrait of the Puerto Rican experience in Chicago. It probes the early years of migration,
settlement, and struggles. It recollects the events and influences that shaped the political awareness
and activism of the community. And it highlights the many contributions made by generations of
Puerto Ricans who called Chicago home.
“Through the use of vintage photographs and film footage--plus interviews with early migrants,
community leaders, and noted historians- Chicago’s Puerto Rican Story explores the wide range of
social themes that include family, work, housing, and education. Here, are the results of integration as
seen in the employment of Puerto Ricans by local police and fire departments, as well as the election
of Puerto Ricans to local, state and federal offices. The film also emphasizes the accomplishments
of political activism: social successes such as community organizations, educational reforms, health
centers and clinics, and the creation of a vigorous cultural-commercial business district known as
“Paseo Boricua.” (text copied from the New Films Production website)
You can view a short segment of the video by searching for it on YouTube.
www.newfilmproduction.com
www.chicgaospuertoricanstory.com
You can purchase a copy at: www.newfilmproduction.com/documentary.html
Five Decades of Chicago’s Puerto Rican Music Scene
Posted in CAN TV Video
Cultural activist Carlos Flores shares his personal recollections, the people and places that brought
Puerto Rican music to Chicago.
www.cantv.org/watch/index.htm
Investigation 17
The Tale of Two Cultures
The Taíno people had to have been surprised when they saw
Christopher Columbus and his men come ashore. In this
investigation, students will learn about dual vantage points
and explore how two cultures collide. Students will write a
document from the perspective of a Taíno person and from
the perspective of one of Columbus’ men. They will recognize
how Columbus’ discoveries affected an indigenous culture.
They will learn about the people who travelled with Columbus.
Students will discover that the Taíno had a complex religious,
political, and social system. The exercise will culminate with
a discussion of the pros and cons of “discovering” new lands.
Grades: 3–5
Activity 1: The Taíno People Encounter Columbus
Part Two: Perspective
Part Three: Further Discussion and Research
16.A.2a | 16.A.2b | 16.A.2c
16.D.2(w) | 17.A.2b | 18.A.2
Reading: 1,3,9
Writing: 1,2,3,4,6,7,8
Speaking and Listening: 1,3,4,5
Language: 1,2,3
225
Tools
Computers, resource books, printer, paper and markers for journals and
guidebook
Handout Group 1 (page 229)
Handout Group 2 (page 230)
Time
Part One: 5-7 one-hour sessions, plus time to read books
Part Two: Reading (to be determined) and 5 one-hour session
Part Three: 1 one-hour session
Objectives
>
Students will investigate the Pre-Columbian culture of Puerto Rico
>
Students will develop an anthropological understanding of people in
prehistory
>
Students will interpret and synthesize information from a variety of
sources
>
Students will know how various societies were affected by contact and
exchanges with the Taíno
>
Students will understand that there is often more than one perspective
of an historical event.
>
Students will deduce both European and Native American perspectives
of the beginning of colonial exploration of the Americas
>
Students will understand about the expanding world view of European
nations and their desire to acquire land and wealth
>
Students will exercise group interaction skills and experience the effects
of synthesizing information within a group setting
226 | Investigation 17: The Tale of Two Cultures
Activity 1 The Taíno People Encounter Columbus
Teaching Plan
Part One: Class Discussion
By now we know that Christopher Columbus
did not discover the “New World” but more
accurately bumped into it and then decided it
was his to “take” for Spain.
As part of this activity, students will write documents from the point of view of the Taíno
people and also through the eyes of one of
Columbus’ men. The point is to have students
think critically about past historical events and
their ramifications. It is also to have students
understand that history is configured differently
depending on who is writing it.
Begin by asking students:
• What do you know about Columbus’
arrival in the ‘New World’?
• Did Columbus really discover America?
• What do you know about the indigenous
people who already lived in the Americas?
How might the indigenous people have
felt when they saw strangers coming to
their land?
• Was life ever the same for the indigenous
people after that day in 1492?
Continue the discussion:
• What does perspective mean? (In this case
it means: a tendency to view unknown
groups or cultures from one’s own
viewpoint).
• Are there multiple perspectives in most of
oral and written history?
• Do the people who write history books
explain history from only one perspective?
• We know that what you learn about
depends on who is writing the history and
who is interpreting the history. How you
see something might not be how someone
else sees it.
• How do you think the story of Columbus
“discovering” America changes when
it is told from a different point of view
other than the Spanish historian who first
recorded his adventures?
• Christopher Columbus and the indigenous
people of the Americas can be viewed as
heroes, villains, savages, and/or victims,
depending upon viewpoint.
Investigation 17: The Tale of Two Cultures 227
Teaching Plan
Part Two: Perspective
Ask students to read the following book(s) about what it was like to be a Native American on
the island where Christopher Columbus first landed and what it was like to be with Christopher
Columbus during the voyage:
• Morning Girl by Michael Dorris (Hyperion, 1992)
• The Taínos: The People Who Greeted Columbus by Francine Jacobs (Putnam, 1992)
• Encounter by Jane Yolen (Harcourt, Grace, Jovanovich, 1992)
• Pedro’s Journal: A Voyage with Christopher Columbus, August 3, 1492 - February 14, 1493,
by Pam Conrad (Scholastic, Inc., 1991)
Divide the class in half. Ask half of the class to write a page about Christopher Columbus’ landing
in 1492 from the viewpoint of a Taíno person. Ask the other half of the class to write from the
perspective of a European who landed on Puerto Rico with Columbus.
228
Investigation 17: The Tale of Two Cultures
Handout
Group 1: Who Are the Taíno?
Create a guidebook about the Taíno people by talking about their daily life as though you are a
Taíno person. Think about your guide book as an introduction to what Columbus would want
to know about the Taíno. Columbus and his men know nothing about the Taíno and it is your
job to inform them. In order to combat the ignorance of the European explorers about the Taíno
people, try to create and present a comprehensive picture of their life and culture. The presentation
should include both written descriptions and images. Your presentation can be in the form of a
PowerPoint presentation or a guidebook.
Be sure to include the following information:
Who are we…?
• What is the history of the Taíno?
• Who are our leaders? How are decisions made?
• Describe daily life. What type of houses do we live in? What did men do and what did
women do? What was life like for children? What do we wear? Do we decorate our bodies?
• What language or symbols for communication do we use?
• What types of food do we eat? Do we grow our food? Do we hunt or fish?
• Do we have a creation myth? A creation myth tells a story about the beginning of time and
the beginning of the world. Who are our gods and what are our ceremonies?
• What art, dance, and music do we enjoy?
• What types of sports do we play?
• How do we interact with people from other islands?
• Show where Columbus landed on a map.
• Create a drawing of the village.
Be sure to include pictures and illustrations.
Handout
Group 2: A Traveler’s Journal
Invent a person who sailed with Christopher Columbus to the New World. You can be a sailor, a
ship’s boy, a documentarian, an Admiral, or anyone else who may have been on the ships in 1492.
This person kept a journal. Your journal entries should trace or make notations of the trade route
the sailors were taking and a timeline. You should include illustrations of what they would have
seen. The style of writing should be in the form of journal entries. Your presentation can be written
out like a journal or can be in the form of a journal-like Power Point
Think about including the following:
• Let me tell you something about myself. My background is… I am from...
• My jobs on the ship are…
• We are going to…
• Why did I choose to sail with Columbus? He is like…
• The aims of my voyage are…
• My daily life is …
• All I eat is…
• I saw so many new things on the water as part of my voyage - things like…
• Where did I think we were going when we set out on our voyage?
• Is this island we landed on where we set out to go?
• Upon my arrival I saw such wonders as…
• My reaction when I saw people living there was…
• What was the land like when I first saw it?
• By what right did Columbus have to take this island? Do I agree with what he did?
• How am I supposed to communicate with the Natives?
• Why did Columbus call the natives “Indians”?
• The people are …
• How has this journey affected me?
• What do I hear, see, taste, realize, and wonder about the Taíno?
• They are so different from me…
230
Investigation 17: The Tale of Two Cultures
Teaching Plan
Part Three: Further Discussion and Research
After activities have been completed, use the following questions to focus a class discussion:
• What happens when cultures collide?
• What were the consequences in the lives of indigenous people and Europeans after Columbus
arrived in the Americas?
• What happened to the indigenous people after the arrival of Columbus? What happened on
his second and future voyages? How did he view the indigenous people?
• What attitudes did Columbus have about the people he encountered?
• What attitudes did the Taínos have about the visitors?
• How has public perception of Columbus changed in the past fifty years? Why?
Video Resources:
The Columbus Controversy: Challenging How History Is Written. www.youtube.com/watch?v=icekNPezHA
Website Resources:
El Boricua. www.elboricua.com/history.html
El Boricua. www.elboricua.com/BoricuaKidsTainos.html
Welcome To Puerto Rico. www.topuertorico.org/reference/taino.shtml
History of the Taíno Indians. www.indians.org/articles/taino-indians.html
Taíno Gallery. www.tainogallery.com/history/lifestyle
Caribbean Education. www.caribbeanedu.com/odyssey/Timeliner/arawaks.asp
Examining the Reputation of Christopher Columbus. www.hartford-hwp.com/Taino/docs/columbus.
html
Columbus in the Caribbean. www.caribbeanguide.info/past.and.present/history/columbus
The Journal of Christopher Columbus. www.historyguide.org/earlymod/columbus.html
1492: An Ongoing Voyage. www.loc.gov/exhibits/1492/intro.html
The Columbus Navigation Homepage. www.columbusnavigation.com/index.shtml
A Note on Taínoa: Wither Progress? www.hartforhwp.com/archives/41/013.html
Fun Facts About Christopher Columbus. www.funtrivia.com/en/subtopics/christopher-columbus-theexplorer-96107.html
The Taíno People Encounter Colombus
Agriculture the art of producing
crops and livestock
Anon Taíno fruit
Anthropologist a person who
studies people and their cultures and
histories
Arawakan People a group of people
who lived in northeastern South
America at the time of the Taíno
Areytos a religious ceremony
Batey a special plaza for ceremonies
in Puerto Rico
Jurakan a god who was always
angry and ruled the power of
hurricanes
Maboyas a night time god who
destroyed the crops and was feared
by the Taíno
Mamey Taíno fruit crop
Myths a story that explains a
practice or belief
and games around which the Taíno
built their settlements
Petroglyphs Taino form of
language that are symbols in carved
stone
Bohique a village priest or medicine
Pre-Columbian the time before
man
Columbus arrived in the Americas
Bohlo round straw hut
Sacrifices offerings to the gods
Caciques chiefs
Taíno People a people who lived in
Puerto Rico during and after PreColumbian history
Calabashes a dried and hollowed
out gourd for drinking water and
catching parrots
Caneyes straw rectangular huts
Canoas a boat made from a dug out
tree that was the Taíno means of
transportation from island to island
Caribs a warring people of South
America
Cassava Taíno crop used to make
bread
Traditions an inherited, established,
or customary pattern of thought,
action, or behavior (as a religious
practice or a social custom)
Yauatias A Taíno crop
Yuca the Taíno roote vegetable. A
staple food also called manioc
Yams Taíno starch crop
Yocahu the supreme Creator
Guava Taíno fruit crop
Guanicat the largest Taíno village
Video Resource:
The Columbus Controversy: Challenging How History Is Written.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=icek-NPezHA.
Resource websites:
El Boricua. www.elboricua.com/history.html
El Boricua. www.elboricua.com/BoricuaKidsTainos.html
Welcome To Puerto Rico. www.topuertorico.org/reference/taino.shtml
History of the Taíno Indians. www.indians.org/articles/taino-indians.html
Taíno Gallery. www.tainogallery.com/history/lifestyle
Caribbean Education. www.caribbeanedu.com/odyssey/Timeliner/arawaks.asp
Examining the reputation of Christopher Columbus. www.hartford-hwp.com/Taino/docs/columbus.
html
Columbus in the Caribbean. www.caribbeanguide.info/past.and.present/history/columbus
The Journal of Christopher Columbus. www.historyguide.org/earlymod/columbus.html
1492: An Ongoing Voyage. www.loc.gov/exhibits/1492/intro.html
The Columbus Navigation Homepage. www.columbusnavigation.com/index.shtml
A Note on Taínoa: Wither Progress? www.hartforhwp.com/archives/41/013.html
Fun Facts About Christopher Columbus. www.funtrivia.com/en/subtopics/christopher-columbus-theexplorer-96107.html
Investigation 16: Puerto Rican Music | 233
234 | Investigation 17: The Tale of Two Cultures
Investigation 18
Heroes: Follow the Leaders
Everyone has a hero – someone to look up to and admire.
Kick off your investigation by asking your students if they
have ever done something heroic. Introduce them to some of
the heroes you admire and share your reasons for why they
are your heroes. Through these investigations, students will
begin to learn what characteristics make up a hero, identify
heroes in their own lives, and recognize and honor heroes in
their own community. They will think about the differences
between a hero and a celebrity. Students will discover ways
they can become everyday heroes and understand that they
have a hero inside them.
Grades: 3–5
Activity 1: What is a Hero?
Activity 2: Someone You Look Up To
Part One: Someone You Look Up To
Part Two: Everyday Hero
16.A.2a | 16.A.2b | 16.A.2c
Reading: 9
Writing: 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d, 4,7,8
Language: 3a
235
Activity 1: What is a Hero
Tools
Worksheet (page 283)
Time
1 one-hour session
Objectives
>
Students will be able to define a hero
>
Students will be able to identify historic and contemporary figures who
exemplify the characteristics of a hero
236 | Inestigation 18: Heroes: Follow the Leaders
Activity 1 What is a Hero?
Teaching Plan
Part One: Class Discussion
Show the students a picture of the mural La Crucifixion De Don Pedro Albizu Campos. Remind
them that the mural is about Puerto Rican heroes. Ask the students:
• Do you know anything about the men and woman in the mural?
• Do you know why the figures in the mural are heroes?
Collaboratively have the students generate a description of the term hero. Write it on the
blackboard. Ask the students:
• Can anyone become a hero?
• Is there a difference between a hero, an idol, or a celebrity? What are the distinctions?
• On the blackboard make four columns: historical heroes, current heroes, local heroes, comic
book heroes.
• Ask the students to answer the following questions. Write the answers in the appropriate
column.
• Name some people from history you think are heroes. What did they do to become a hero?
• Name some heroes living today. What did they do to become a hero?
• Name some local heroes. What did they do to become a hero?
• Name some comic book heroes. What did they do to become a hero?
• What can we learn from these heroes?
Inestigation 18: Heroes: Follow the Leaders
237
Activity 1 What is a Hero?
Worksheet
Characteristics of a Hero
Question:
What are some qualities, characteristics, or values of a hero?
Use the chart below to track your answers.
Characteristics
of a hero
Space for Ideas and Planning:
238
Activity 2: Someone You Look Up To
Tools
Computer, paper, pens, colored pencils or markers, and envelopes
Worksheet (page 241)
Time
Part One: Homework to research a hero
Part Two: 1 one-hour session
Objectives
>
Students will select, read about, and report on a hero
>
Students will identify how their real-life hero matches their criteria and
characteristics
>
Students will learn how everyday people can be heroes and
demonstrate an understanding of how famous heroes and real-life
heroes are alike
>
Students will compose letters of appreciation and respect to their reallife hero
>
Students will use their writing skills and the visual arts to
communicate effectively
Investigation 18: Heroes: Follow the Leaders 239
Activity 2 Part One
Teaching Plan
Part One: Someone You Look Up To
Ask the students: Who are your heroes?
Examples: George Washington, Spiderman, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Roberto Clemente, Harry
Potter, Cesar Chavez, a soldier, and Derrick Rose.
Review the definition of a hero and the characteristics of a hero that the class generated previously.
Ask students to select and research a hero of their choosing. They should determine how this
person’s deed(s) demonstrated heroism and how his or her behavior reflects the characteristics of a
hero.
Ask the students to tell their hero’s story by answering the following questions:
• Whose story inspires you? Why?
• What action(s) did her/she take to become a hero?
• When did he/she take this action?
• Where did the action take place?
• Do you know why he/she took this action?
• How did this action benefit the community or the world?
Ask individual students to make an oral presentation about the hero they researched accompanied
with a picture of the hero.
240
Activity 2 Part Two
Worksheet
Part Two: Everyday Hero
Think about the people who serve as heroes in your community. You might think about a
community volunteer, a teacher, a fireman, a minister, a nurse, or a coach. Choose your favorite
community hero.Now answer the following questions about your hero:
1. The person who is my hero is:
2. This person is my hero because:
3. Name five words that describe this person:
We know that these men and women deserve our respect and praise. Write a letter of appreciation
to your hero thanking them for the work they do. Create a drawing to accompany the letter.
• In your letter, tell your hero why you admire them.
• Draw a picture that shows what you admire about your hero.
When your letter is complete, hand in your letters and drawings to your teacher and he/she will
make sure they are delivered to your hero.
241
242 | Inestigation 18: Heroes: Follow the Leaders
The Mural Bike Tour
The second portion of the the Teaching Toolkit
references murals included in a two Bike Tours
of Humboldt Park.
Murals with Investigations
These murals may be viewed in person, or their
images are included on the PowerPoints and
Articles CD. You can project them in your classroom or at home.
Mural G: Investigation 20
Mural F: Investigation 19
Mural: Untitled (Black/Brown Working Group)
Mural: Release
If you decided to go on a field trip to view
these murals, the field trip may be completed
by walking or biking. Your class may visit the
all the murals, or only the ones included in
Investigations.
See page vii for Field Trip Planning and Day of
Tour advice. If you wish to complete the field trip
using bikes, see the safety and resource recommendations on the next page. The bike tour can also be a
weekend activity for families. Be sure to wear a helmet, take all safety precautions, follow all laws and
stay hydrated when riding!
HP MAP Teaching Toolkit Part Two
243
Bike Tour Guides
Bike Tour Planning
archi-treasures recommends professional instruction and education before completing a bike
tour. The following organizations provide bike
training and resources:
1. West Town Bikes
A community bicycle learning workshop
located in Humboldt Park. West Town Bikes
offers bicycle mechanics workshops, youth
programs and special events to members of the
community. Contact:
www.westtownbikes.org
[email protected]
p 773 772 6523
2. Active Transportation Alliance
Chicagoland’s voice for better biking, walking,
and transit. A member-supported nonprofit
transporation advocacy group. Contact:
www.activetrans.org
p 312 427 3325
Check the weather forecast as part of your planning and make arrangements for an alternate
tour day if there is inclement weather. See page
vii for more planning advice.
• Conduct a pre-visit tour to familiarize
yourself with the route.
• Consider all safety issues and inform participants about proper bike safety.
• Kids ages 12 and under are allowed to bike
on sidewalks. Adults are not legally allowed to
bike on the sidewalk.
• Make sure each participant’s bike is in proper
working condition including frame height, seat
height, brakes, tires, pedals and handlebars.
Also, ensure each participant has a properly fitted helmet.
• Review all Safety and Education materials
before going on a tour. The City of Chicago
offers these resources online at:
www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/cdot/provdrs/
bike/svcs/bike_safety_education.html
244
Tour 1 (North)
The route highlighted above in red is the suggested bike route. White arrows indicate one
way streets. Off route one way streets are not marked.
Mural A
Mural B
Mural C
Mural D
Mural E
Mural F
Mural G
Mural H
Mural I
What Do You Need to Know?
Calling Forth the Spirit of Peace
Unity: A New Dream
For the People of the Future
Positive Moves in the Game of Life
What’s Going On (After Marvin Gaye)
Untitled Black/Brown Working Group
Release
Sunrise of Enlightenment
245
Tour 2 (South)
The route highlighted above in red is the suggested bike route. White arrows indicate one
way streets. Off route one way streets are not marked.
Mural
Mural
Mural
Mural
Mural
Mural
Mural
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J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Urban Worlds at the Crossroads
Sankofa
The Right Connections
Celebrating Rosa Parks
The Murals
Tour 1 Murals (North)
Mural A
•
Title: What Do You Need to Know?
Date: 1998
Artists: Olivia Gude and Juan Chavez
•
Location: 3320 West Hirsch Street (Lowell School)
• The murals are vignettes about the astonishments
and amazements of education. The murals aspire
to inspire the students. Strategically placed at the
entrances to the school, the murals indicate the
importance of education and how it can “open doors”
for students.
• Combining a variety of techniques–collage, text,
and photorealistic portraits of students–the mosaics
are an art education in themselves. They include the
systematic charts used to teach color theory as well
as whimsical drawings by primary school children
suggesting that good education is both logical and
magical.
•
•
•
•
a smooth surface.
This mural demonstrates how art and social justice
come together. The message is about the need for
peace in the area.
The two conga musicians are “invoking the spirit of
peace, personified by a Taíno figure.” The Taíno are
the indigenous people of Puerto Rico.
A show of good faith between people is represented
by the word bread (pan), a colloquialism as in
breaking bread with your enemies to create peace.
Lizards have been common throughout history
as symbols of many things; in this mural they are
intermediaries between the physical world and the
spiritual world.
The tree may represent an olive tree that is symbolic
of peace or it may be a metaphor for the Tree of Life.
The placement of the mural on a National Guard
Armory building references peace keeping, one of the
missions of the Guard.
Mural B
Mural C
Title: Calling Forth the Spirit of Peace
Title: Unity: A New Dream
Date: 1993
Date: 1983
Artists: Jeffrey Cook, Phil Schuster and the Youth
Artists: Judy Morris Peracque and Serge Muschajew
Service Team
Location: 3121 West North Avenue (on the northeast
side of the National Armory)
• The text on the mural banner “Paz, Pan, y Libertad”
translates as Peace, Bread, and Liberty.
• The mural is constructed of sculpted polychrome
concrete. The technique is bas relief, created either by
carving away material or adding material to the top of
Honinow
Location: 1603 North Springfield
• This mural expresses a shared vision of vitality, unity,
hope, and inspiration. The artists are asking the
viewer to see the neighborhood with a new set of
eyes, paying more attention to the good things that
happen.
• This mural offers the viewer an unpretentious, candid
247
glimpse into the activities and environment of daily
life.
• The image of the dove emerging in flight is symbolic
of death and/or renewal.
• In Spanish, esperanza means hope; amor means love;
unidad means unity; and paz means peace.
Mural D
Title: For the People of the Future / Para la Gente del
Futuro
Date: 1980
Artists: Lynn Takata, John Pitman Weber, Jose
Guerrero and the Youth Services Project
Location: 3909 West North Avenue
• This hand-sculptured mural uses concrete, mosaics,
and sgraffito instead of paint for the materials.
• Sgraffito is a process of cutting or scratching away
parts of the surface layer to expose a different color
below, helping to emphasize the image. In this mural,
the underlying color is from a faded sign that was
previously on the wall.
• The large circular mosaic form is reminiscent of a
Pre-Columbian calendar representing the past. The
hand grasping a banner is communicating a message
– a call to action. The stylized vegetation and wildlife
represent nature.
• The theme of the mural is the “duality of human
action” referring to the paradox of the human
experience: the positive and negative consequences of
our actions on earth to mankind and nature.
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Mural E
Title: Positive Moves in the Game of Life
Date: 1988
Artists: Jose Berrios and Concetta Morales
• The mural represents the dreams and hopes of innercity youth struggling with difficult lives. It depicts
youth overcoming today’s challenges and engaging in
the positive alternatives and enrichment opportunities
available to them at organizations like Youth Service
Project. The mural reads from left to right starting
with a bolt of lightning and a whirlwind next to a
youth pondering his/her reflection in a mirror. Images
of game pieces symbolize the dangers that are in their
way including: drugs (the white horse), dice (taking
unpredictable chances), a baby bottle and a rabbit
holding a clock (teen pregnancy and time running
out), the jester (a fool or trickster who heralds
apocryphal news), and an arrow pointing downward
(the wrong way to go).
• As you continue looking to the right, youth will
be going in the “right” direction focusing on
their interests, and strengths: education (books
and diploma), employment opportunities (job
application), arts and culture (artists tools), baseball
cap (positive recreation), and hats representing
professions and trades.
Mural F
Mural G
Title: What’s Going On (After Marvin Gaye)
Title: Untitled (Black/Brown Working Group)
Date: 2013
Date: 2009
an archi-treasures project by artist John
an archi-treasures project by artist Bernard Williams
with members of the West Humboldt Park Black/
Brown Working Group
• This mural is the result of a collaboration between
artists and community members, resulting in art that
rises from the community.
• The concepts for this mural derived from workshops
with the Black/Brown Working Group of West
Humboldt Park, a group of Latino and African
American residents convened by the DePaul
University Egan Urban Center to foster civic dialogue
on community issues, especially race. The painting
incorporates signs and symbols from issues, events,
and ideas generated during workshop discussions
organized by archi-treasures and facilitated by Dr.
Ceasar McDowell.
• The mural evokes a complex story of the community.
The subject matter references life in West Humboldt
Park including issues about identity, gender, racial
harmony, cultural respect, poverty, health care, aging,
immigration, and housing. Notice the references to
African and Latino heritage including flags, Kente
cloths from the Akan culture, slave ship versus
Gabon-Kota Reliquary Figure from Africa, and a
Conquistador meeting a Taíno person (the indigenous
people of Puerto Rico), alluding to the Spanish
conquest.
• The collage aesthetic lends itself well to a
collaborative practice. The mural is reminiscent of
quilts that historically served to preserve memories
and events, tell stories, and serve as a message board.
Vergara and stakeholders in the Humboldt Park
community who are committed to changing its
culture of violence
• The concepts for this mural were developed in
workshops facilitated by Keith Lewis of DePaul
University’s Egan Urban Center. Using a methodology
called “Critical Moments Reflection,” a targeted
group of people who live or work in Humboldt
Park came together to discuss issues of violence in
the community. The group included case managers,
artists, a grandmother, community organizers,
violence prevention workers, and others.
• Deeply personal stories were shared and participants
openly discussed strategies for change. Throughout
the workshop, artist John Vergara sketched ideas that
arose from listening to the conversation.
• The mural features themes such as violence, housing,
family, gentrification, and other community issues.
• The mural is titled “What’s Going On” after the song
by American recording artist Marvin Gaye. The song
is about police brutality and protests held by anti-war
activists during the 1960’s and 1970’s.
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Mural H
Mural I
Title: Release
Title: Sunrise of Enlightenment
Date: 2010
Date: 1987
an archi-treasures project by artist Damon Lamar
Reed with volunteers from the Transitions to Careers
program at Association House
Location: 4243 West Grand
• The mural is a testament to the strengths, dreams,
and challenges facing ex-offenders in the community.
The participant/artists attend a program at
Association House called Transitions to Careers where
adults with criminal histories receive job training
and counseling to help guide them back into the
workforce.
• The mural was developed during workshops in which
participants discussed the commonalities around
their past and current situations. Working with artist
Damon Lamar Reed, participants put their feelings
into personal collages. The artist then chose images
from the collages for the mural design.
• The daffodils symbolize rebirth and new beginnings.
The bird being released from a person’s hands is
a symbol of freedom. The tree serves as a symbol
of personal growth. The words are promises and
pledges. The butterfly stands for metamorphosis and
change. The construction worker is about rebuilding
oneself and family. Release is a mural of hope that
tells the story of one and many at the same time. It
demonstrates that the greatest things in life really are
free.
Artists: Nina Smoot Cain and Mirtes Zwierzynski
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Location: 4127 West Hirsch Street (Noble Elementary
School East side entrance)
• According to the book Urban Art Chicago by Olivia
Gude and Jeff Huebner, Sunrise of Enlightment is
the first community mosaic to enhance a Chicago
public school. The mural transforms a bland entrance
into an engaging and attention-getting way to greet
students, teachers, and parents.
• The school exterior provides a backdrop for a mural
about learning and diversity, stimulating cultural
awareness by drawing on the backgrounds of the
students.
• The mural includes symbols of a Pre-Columbian
figure and an African mask. Additional symbols
represent math, language and nature.
Tour 2 Murals (South)
Mural J
Title: Urban Worlds at the Crossroads
Date: 1997
Artists: John Pitman Weber and Bernard Williams
Location: 784 North Pulaski Road
• To create this mural, the artists interviewed West
Humboldt Park residents to learn about the current
climate and culture of the community. The issues
that emerged from the interviews are associated with
family, education, community development, and
culture were used to generate the images. Even more
beautiful than the mural itself is the story it tells and
the stories it sets in motion.
• The deconstructed mural method seen here
departs from traditional narrative murals. It is not
a single narrative; it is a different type of visual
communication referencing how our lives are made
up of bits and pieces, fragments and parts, just like a
collage. While designing the mural, the artists used
cut paper, moving fragments and images around to
form a cohesive composition.
• The images of transportation allude to all who travel
the streets at Chicago Avenue and Pulaski, a major
intersection in West Humboldt Park.
Mural K
Title: Sankofa
Date: 2004
Artists: Damon Lamar Reed and Kristal Pancheco
Location: 712 North Pulaski Road (at Orr High
School in the Little Hands Playground on the South
exterior wall)
• Sankofa (the title of the mural) is an Akan word
symbolizing the importance of learning from the past.
The Akan people are from Ghana and the Ivory Coast
in Africa. The symbol of Sankofa is that of a mythic
bird whose head is facing in the opposite direction
of its body – holding an egg in its mouth. The egg
symbolizes the future.
• Other images in the mural are metaphors for the
importance of play in promoting healthy child
development. Play contributes to the cognitive,
physical, social, and emotional well-being of children
and is represented by the building blocks, paper
planes, planets, toys, and running figures.
Mural L
Title: The Right Connections
Date: 2004
Artists: John Pitman Weber and Bernard Williams
Location: 786 North Lawndale
• This mural is not just a representation of any
community; it speaks to the struggles and challenges
of this particular community. It is a fragment of
neighborhood life that can be viewed many times
over, reminding people of who they are and where
they came from. The mural conveys both the
collective and individual impact of people in the
neighborhood.
• This mural is a great example of understanding
community context and celebrating community
character while creating and enhancing a sense of
place.
• The text in the mural is meant to send positive
messages for reflection and provide inspiration.
Murals M,N,O,P
Title: Celebrating Rosa Parks
Date: 2010
an archi-treasures project by community
volunteers and Bickerdike residents working with
artists Rey Jackson and Roz Cohen
Locations: (M) 526 North St. Louis, (N) 532 North
Trumbull, (O) 541 North Homan, and (P) 3341 West
Ohio
• These murals are a good example of communitygenerated public art. The artists and an
intergenerational collective of neighbors came
together to create four mosaics honoring the
inspirational messages and wisdom of Rosa Parks. The
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murals celebrate the legacy, goals, and vision of their
namesake.
• It was the vision of the developers and architects
to include public art as part of the construction of
new affordable housing in West Humboldt Park. It
illustrates the concept of placemaking, which engages
people from the beginning of a project to the end,
creating and transforming a place while fostering
community life and improving a neighborhood.
• Each of the quotes are by Rosa Parks and were
selected by a group of community volunteers to
represent the different stages in her life.
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Investigation 19
Cracking the Code
The focus of this investigation is the use of symbols as a form
of communication in murals. Students are asked to decode
a series of symbols in a mural by artist Bernard Williams
located at Los Vecinos, an affordable housing building at
4250 W. North Avenue. Students will create a portrait of
their own community using symbols to communicate their
ideas.
Grades: 6–8
Activity 1: Cracking the Code
18.A.2 | 18.A.3 | 18.B.3b
Language Arts: 4
Listening and Speaking: 8
253
Activity 1: Cracking the Code
Tools
Colored pencils, a roll of white craft paper, magazines
and computer-generated images
Powerpoint: Cracking the Code.pptx
Time
Part One: one 90 minute session
Part Two: one 45 minute session for research and three
45 minute sessions for creating individual community
portraits
Part Three and Four: three 45 minute sessions to
complete team community portraits
Objectives
>
>
>
>
>
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Students will apply their understanding of the
community to create a mural depicting their own
community issues, places and environments
Students will identify and understand symbols and
their meanings
Students will explain what a symbol is and use
symbols to represent words and thoughts
Students will discuss different ways of representing
ideas and conveying them to others
Students will gather and use information for research
purposes
Students will display effective interpersonal and
communication skills
254 | Investigation 19: Cracking the Code
Activity 1 Cracking the Code
Teaching Plan
Part One: Introduction to the Mural
Show the PowerPoint Cracking the Code.pptx and use the following notes when discussing
the mural, Untitled: (Black/Brown Working Group), with your students.
Artist: an archi-treasures project by artist Bernard Williams with members of the West Humboldt
Park Black/Brown Working Group
Title: Untitled (Black/Brown), 2009
Murals enhance the environment, create a sense of place, express community values and identity,
and can bring people together to focus on a community’s challenges. Many murals are not
individually authored, but are collaborations between artists and community members, resulting in
art that rises from the community rather than being imposed upon it.
archi-treasures is a non-profit organization that facilitates these types of collaborations. For this
mural, archi-treasures organized workshops with members of the Black/Brown Working Group and
artist Bernard Williams. The Black/Brown Working Group was a grassroots group of Latino and
African American residents of West Humboldt Park that came together to foster civic dialogue on
community issues.
archi-treasures reconvened the group to generate the themes for this mural. Workshop discussions
touched on issues such as identity, gender, race, culture, poverty, health care, aging, immigration,
housing, and more.
At first glance, the mural seems to be made up of Egyptian hieroglyphs or Aztec pictograms. The
artist, Bernard Williams, developed a system of pictures and symbols that form a larger story and
Investigation 19: Cracking the Code 255
represent ideas that were discussed. These symbols are not placed in any specific sequence, but are
vignettes. This work is not “read” in a normal sense, but is deciphered like a puzzle in which the
images provide clues to what is going on. You have to study the clues to crack the code.
Symbols, depending on your viewpoint, have multiple meanings. Discuss with your students:
• The homes under the waves refer to the recent housing crisis. The homes are “underwater”
when people owe more money than the value of their home.
• The slave ship next to a Kota Reliquary Figure from Gabon Africa refers to the practice of
slave trading in the New World. These two images comment on the history of slaves being
torn away from their families. Kota statues stood guard over boxes that contained the skulls
and bones of important ancestors, an important part of a family’s religious and social life. The
practice of ancestor worship was stopped by the slave owners once the slaves came to America.
• Ponce de Leon meeting an Arawak person (the indigenous people of the Caribbean) alludes to
the Spanish conquest. The irony of this image is that Ponce de Leon came to the Caribbean
to look for the fountain of youth, yet explorers brought to the West diseases that wiped out
entire indigenous civilizations.
• The segment with an old woman walking with a cane refers to the elderly, and the difficulty
of not having enough money to live on. The large hand juxtaposed with a bag of money refers
to the high cost of health care and dwindling social security. Seniors are being “disabled” by
the lack of funding.
• The heads talking to one another suggests communication and “seeing eye to eye.”
• The man with fire can be viewed in multiple ways: anger, a burning passion to do something
or a reference to the 1970s Humboldt Park arsons that devastated the community.
• In the upper, right-hand section of the mural is a female figure in flight. This suggests soaring
to new heights, or aspiring to a new level of understanding. She is flying over Kente cloths
which were originally woven by women in the Ashanti and Akan cultures native to the Ivory
Coast or Ghana. Initially the cloths were reserved for royalty as a symbol of prestige. There
are over 300 types of cloths, each with a name and a meaning. The colors are chosen for their
symbolic meaning.
• There are references to money and the deteriorating economic conditions facing Humboldt
Park residents that also embody many aspects of the national economic and housing crisis.
• A man balancing houses at the end of poles refers to housing equality.
• One person giving a hand up to another suggests giving a hand up, not a hand out. It is like
the adage, teach a man to fish instead of giving him a fish.
• The red rose can symbolize a number of things: blood, love, respect, passion, or devotion.
• The flags represent the diversity of cultures and races in the community.
• The circle with radiating lines is about the Humboldt Park community being the center of
one’s life. The world above it refers to a world of possibilities.
• The man on crutches refers to veterans returning to their community in need of assistance.
Ask students to think about communicating ideas without writing. How would they send
a message to someone? Brainstorm this concept until someone suggests drawing pictures, a
pictograph, a picture or symbol standing for a word or group of words.
Ask the students: Do symbols serve as a secret language or code? Do symbols have to be
familiar to the reader to understand what the message? Ask students if they have ever seen
Egyptian hieroglyphs, Aztec pictograms, or Chinese writing. These are good examples of signs,
representations, and marks that embody likenesses, ideas, events, items, entities, persons and more.
Next, write a series of text messages on the blackboard using emoticons. Ask the students to
translate them. Ask if the students use emoticons when they are texting, emailing or tweeting.
Have a short discussion about the following:
• What makes this style of communication different from the written word?
• Are emoticons a universal language or does each language have different emoticons?
• Do you only use them with certain people?
• Why do people use this form of communication?
• What are the advantages or disadvantages of using this form of communication?
Ask two students to interpret specific square of the mural (shown on the PowerPoint). Ask if they
know what the symbols mean. Give them a time limit of 30 minutes to write a description of what
they see in each square. They can think about the following questions:
• What community issue or story do they see? Explain the issue or story
• What power do these images have?
• Are the colors in the mural symbolic?
• Are there cultural patterns and colors?
• What do the words represent?
• Is there an overall message?
• Are there negative and positive messages/symbols?
• What statement did the artist and community participants make in this mural?
Ask each student to present their conclusions. After cracking the code, ask the students if they feel
the mural is an honest profile of their community. Does it represent what everyone is thinking or
just a few people?
Activity 1 Part Two
Part Two: Community Portraits
Ask students to consider the following questions:
• Do you have a vision of community?
• What does your inner voice have to say about community issues?
• Are your issues positive, negative, or a mixture of both?
• What makes your community unique? What types of images/symbols would you select to
recreate the mural we have been discussing?
Instructions for Part Two:
• Give each student a large sheet of white paper, colored pencils and other art materials.
• Inform students that they will be creating their own community portrait.
• Give students time to research community issues they wish to use in their artwork. Ask them
to bring photos of their community to class.
• Their community portrait does not have to look like the mural they have just studied. Be
creative, but use symbols for everything you want to convey.
• Ask students to use 8-10 community issues or stories in their portrait. The ideas and
issues they think are important to address in their community should show the unique
character of the community. Examples: bullying, a community garden, school drop-out rate,
unemployment, parent volunteers and more.
• Before drawing, have students make a list of the stories and issues they want to address and
why they have chosen these issues.
• Students can read local newspapers for ideas, talk with family members, ask a local business
owner, ask the Local School Council, etc.
• Students can add to their drawings with photographs, magazines images and other collage
materials.
Ask each student to present their artwork. While each student is presenting their community
portrait, another student should record the issues on the chalk board. Once finished with the
presentations, ask the students if they feel they have covered most of the important issues in their
community. What have they not covered?
Activity 1 Part Three and Four
Teaching Plan
Parts Three and Four: Collaborative Mural
• Divide the class into teams.
• Each student should bring their personal
community portrait to the table.
• Explain to students that individual
sections of their community portraits
will be combined with others, from their
team, to make a new mural. They should
think about what components from the
individual community portraits they
would most like to see represented and
the reasons to use that particular image or
symbol. Ask them to select their top few
images from each and every community
portrait.
• Give the students another 24” x 36” sheet
of paper gridded into 6” squares and 24 6”
squares of paper that are already cut out.
• Ask students to brainstorm with team
members how they will design, lay out
and execute a new mural that combines
the best ideas from each team member’s
portrait.
• After making their selection of the top 24
images, ask the students to re-draw each
one in a 6” square.
• Once they have completed their drawings,
ask them to arrange and rearrange a
number of times before selecting a
final configuration. To remember each
arrangement take a picture. Think about
how the mural will be read by the viewer.
• Glue the final arrangement of 6” squares
onto the 24” x 36” sheet of paper.
Have teams present their artwork. Each student
should take a section of the artwork to explain.
Part Four: Can Others Crack the Code?
When finished with the presentations, ask
students to present them to another class. Are
other students able to interpret the artworks?
See if other students can crack the code.
Field Trip Suggestion: Take your students
to visit another neighborhood in Chicago.
Visit important sites and take pictures.
Upon returning, ask students to create a new
community portrait of the neighborhood you
visited.
Vocabulary for Investigation 19: Cracking the Code
Collage an artistic composition
Iconography pictorial material
made of various materials (as paper,
cloth, or wood) glued on a surface;
a work (as a film) having disparate
scenes in rapid succession without
transitions
relating to or illustrating a subject
Cryptogram a communication in
cipher or code
Cryptographer one who deciphers
messages
Emoticon a group of keyboard
characters that typically represents
a facial expression or suggests an
attitude or emotion and that is
used especially in computerized
communications
Perspective a point-of-view.
Example: two people looking at the
same image see it from different
perspectives.
Pictograph a symbol that conveys
information nonverbally
Underwater (housing) the state
when a homeowner is left with
more debt on their home than what
it is worth on the current market;
they now have what is called an
underwater mortgage.
Vignette a short written description
Hieroglyphs a character or
characters, that are pictorial in
nature, used in a system of writing
Investigation 19: Cracking the Code | 261
Investigation 20
The Concept of Freedom:
From Prison to Home
The effects of incarceration and the re-entry process can be
grueling. This investigation will focus on the positive aspects
of transitioning back to society and will increase student
awareness of the obstacles that ex-offenders face on release.
The path for ex-offenders should lead to a better life. The
more information we know about ex-offenders the more we
can help them become productive members of society and
understand what they are going through.
Grades: 6–8
Activity 1: Part 1: Discussion on Freedom
Part 2: Create a Collage
2C.3b | 3.A.3 | 4.A.3b
4.B.3a | 5.A.3a | 5.A.3b
18.B.3a | 26.A.3e
Language: 2,3
Listening and Speaking: 1
Writing: 8
263
Activity 1: Discussion on Freedom
Tools
Large index cards, pens, pencils, other art supplies
Powerpoint: Collage.pptx
Time
3 one-hour sessions
Objectives
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Students will examine their own views on freedom
Students will acquire a basic understanding and
appreciation of freedom
Students will gain knowledge and skills necessary for
being an effective group member
Students will discuss different ways of representing
ideas and conveying them to others
Students will gather and use information for research
purposes
Students will display effective interpersonal and
264 | Investigation 20: The Concept of Freedom
Activity 1 Discussion on Freedom
Teaching Plan
Part One: Discussion on Freedom
Much of this investigation is based on class discussion and team work. “When individuals work
together with others in a group to make decisions, the quality of the decisions is generally better
because: (1) Collectively groups bring more knowledge, a broader array of experiences and
increased creativity to the decision-making process; and (2) Groups encourage greater participation
from larger numbers of people, and the result is greater buy-in and support for the decision.” ¹
Begin by showing your students the mural, Release, either as part of a field trip or in the
classroom as a projected image.
Artist: an archi-treasures project by artist Damon Lamar Reed with volunteers from the Transitions
to Careers program at Association House
Title: Release, 2010
This mural project was organized by archi-treasures with Association House’s Transitions to
Careers program. The mural Release, was created by artist Damon Lamar Reed and was based on
workshops with ex-offenders participating in the Transitions to Careers program. Following is a
statement by the artist about the mural and how it was made:
“To come up with the content and theme for Release, archi-treasures first held several
discussions with volunteers from the Association House. Led by Ceasar McDowell, these
volunteers discussed a commonality between them all. Each individual had previously been
incarcerated and now worked with the Association House in their job training program. At
the conclusion of Ceasar’s process, I instructed an art workshop where they put their feelings
into a collage format. I then chose some of their cut and pasted construction and magazine
pieces and used them as central theme and backdrop for the mural design...
(continued on next page)
¹
Tools for Effective Group Discussion. http://srpln.msstate.edu/
seal/03curriculum/organizing/group/lesson.htm
Investigation 20: The Concept of Freedom 265
“Release represents the journey into freedom that many of the volunteers at the Association
House dare not take for granted. Just a breath of fresh flowers brings joy to those who were
once incarcerated. The mural starts with a bird being released from a person’s hands, a bold
symbol of freedom in itself. After their release, begins the personal growth and rebuilding
phase. A tree serves as that symbol, along with edifying and self-assuring words scattered
throughout the mural. As individuals, they make a complete change, a metamorphosis as
that of a butterfly that a woman holds. Only then do they have true freedom. While some
were incarcerated they pondered the life and relationships they once took for granted. Once
out, they pick up the pieces, rebuilding the connections that were lost, and begin on a
journey to fulfill dreams that were once void. An image that I believe displays this so well is a
construction worker that has just come home from work embracing his son. Release truly is a
mural of hope and freedom that tells the story of one and a multitude at the same time, and
proves that the greatest things in life really are free(dom).”
– Damon Lamar Reed
Class discussion:
One of the prominent themes in Release is freedom. The artist states “the greatest things in life
really are free(dom).” Ask the students to write their answers to the following questions on index
cards:
• What does freedom mean to me?
• What does the lack of freedom mean to me?
• In what ways do I consider myself free or not free?
• How does being free impact my daily life?
On another index card ask students to research and write their definition of freedom. Does
freedom mean different things to different people? Collect all of the cards. How many definitions
did they come up with? What are the differences in the definitions?
Next focus the discussion on the meaning of freedom for ex-offenders. What do the students think
freedom means to the previously incarcerated individuals who were involved in creating the mural?
Examples: The participants are making commitments to change and plan for a constructive future.
They are free to make decisions and choose what direction they want to go. They are free to set
goals and implement them. They are free to determine what people, places, and things they need to
live a productive life.
Discuss with the students some of the inequities that persist in American society for
ex-offenders. Have students reflect on the plight of the previously incarcerated using some of
the following thought-provoking questions:
• What do ex-offenders face coming out of prison?
• Are they stereotyped or profiled? How?
• Are ex-offenders discriminated against? Why? Example: When filling out a job application they
might not be selected even though they are more qualified to do the job than other people
who are applying. They are usually required to state on their application that they are an
ex-offender.
• If an ex-offender serves time for crime, why are there still consequences after they get out?
• Does society have the right to know a person is an ex-offender? Why of why not?
• What do you think it would be like to transition from incarceration to freedom?
• What types of emotions do you think re-entry brings up for someone returning to the
community after being in prison? Examples: shame, isolation, coping, compassion, etc.
• What issues do ex-offenders have to cope with? Examples: finding employment, reconnecting
with families, access to health care, finding a safe place to live, etc.
• Put yourself in the place of an ex-offender and answer the following question: How would you
plan for a constructive future? Examples: assess yourself; create a plan and set goals; expand
your skills; make good decisions, make amends for your crime, etc.
• What people, places, or things do ex-offenders need to change in order to live a more
productive life and stay out of prison? Example: Not hanging out with gang members.
• Do ex-offenders deserve a second chance?
• If people do not help re-establish ex-offenders back into society what can happen?
• Even though ex-offenders have been released from prison, are ex-offenders really “free” when
they get out of prison?
Have the students break into teams and brainstorm challenges for ex-offenders and possible
solutions. What types of support do ex-offenders need?
• Example: The City of New York is challenged by the number on prisoners returning to the
City who cannot find jobs.
• Solution: In 2003, the City created a plan to help ex-offenders get city jobs. The ex-offenders
are paid minimum wage. The job is cleaning New York City neighborhoods of litter and
graffiti and learning the value of earning a weekly paycheck that, hopefully, will translate into
a steady job.
Investigation 20: The Concept of Freedom 267
Activity 1 Part One and Two
• Example: The cost of living has gone up considerably since the ex-offender entered prison.
How are they supposed to pay for housing once they are released?
• Solution: Offer ex-offenders free re-entry housing for “X” amount of time and assist them with
finding a job to be able to pay for housing.
Ask the students to provide a concluding statement and support their claims and reasons. Wrap
up the discussion by asking the students: Why is it important for society to help ex-offenders?
Imagine what would happen to our recidivism rates if society could accept that ex-offenders can
help change our communities for the better. As a final project, ask students to do some online
research. Ask each student to bring in a positive story about an ex-offender. Once you have
reviewed the stories ask a number of the students to read their stories aloud. There are many good
stories that are positive and focused on the future.
Part Two: Create a Collage
Collages provide students with a way to express their thoughts, ideas, and feelings about a specific
subject they are studying. Rather than just a single image, collage provides an opportunity to
include many images and text within one composition. Begin by showing the PowerPoint Collage.
pptx.
Distribute materials to the students and encourage them to express their opinions about the topic
of freedom. Tell students to:
• Choose the pictures you want to use in the collage.
• The collage can include other materials such as paint, markers, stamps or stickers.
• Plan the basic layout of your design.
• Think about where your main focal point and secondary focal points are located to establish a
balance in the overall composition.
• Think about visual variety: texture, color, juxtaposition of elements, shape, line, and value.
• Arrange the pieces. Experiment with several variations and notice the different overall effects of
your design variations. Add or subtract elements until you are satisfied with your composition.
• Apply glue to the back of each element (one at a time) and position them on your support.
Vocabulary for Investigation 20: The Concept of Freedom
Collage an artistic composition
made of various materials (as paper,
cloth, or wood) glued on a surface;
a work (as a film) having disparate
scenes in rapid succession without
transitions
Incarcerated to put in prison or
subject to confinement
Recidivism a tendency to relapse
into a previous condition or mode
of behavior; especially: relapse into
criminal behavior
Stereotype an often unfair and
untrue belief that many people have
about all people or things with a
particular characteristic
Inequity lack of fairness; unfair
treatment; injustice
Investigation 20: The Concept of Freedom | 269
Investigation 21
Conflict Resolution 101
Conflicts are an opportunity for growth! We come into
contact with conflict on a daily basis but many of us have
never learned the skills necessary to resolve conflicts. This
investigation encourages students to think of non-violent,
alternative ways to solve problems and learn skills to solve
conflicts. Students will learn to think flexibly in order to
come up with a solution that fits the situation. They will
begin to see that they have a range of choices in any given
situation and they will expand their repertoire of ways
to respond. In short, they will learn that conflict is not
synonymous with anger or violence.
Grades: 6–8
Activity 1: Take a Survey
Activity 2: Discussion on Conflict Resolution
Activity 3: Conflict Resolution Skits
Activity 4: Conflict Resolution Rules
4.A.3a | 4.A.3b | 4.B.3b
5.A.3b | 5.C.3a | 3.B.3a
1.C.3a
Writing: 3, 3a, 3b, 3d, 3e
Listening and Speaking: 1,
1b, 1c, 1d, 2, 3, 4
271
Activity 1: Take a Survey
Tools
Blackboard, props for skits, large sheets of paper, survey
Time
8 one hour sessions (plus time to practice skits)
Objectives
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
272
Students will demonstrate the ability to practice
health-enhancing behaviors and avoid or reduce
health risks when resolving conflicts
Students will generate creative solutions for resolving
conflicts peacefully and cooperatively
Students will learn how to identify strategies for
solving problems, learn conflict resolution skills and
techniques and improve their conflict management
skills through positive verbal and nonverbal
Students will identify causes and consequences of
conflict among youth
Students will demonstrate skills essential to avoiding
dangerous situations
Students will develop conflict resolution rules for
their classroom and create a mediation system
Investigation 21: Conflict Resolution 101
Activity 1 Take a Survey
Worksheet
Personal Conflict Resolution Survey
Circle (or check) the answer you feel bests suits you.
1. I feel annoyed or irritated when people try to question my opinions.
Strongly Agree
Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
2. Only actions matter: talking about problems never solves anything.
StronglyoAgree
Agree
Neutral
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
3. I don’t care what other people think.
StronglyoAgree
Agree
Strongly Disagree
Neutral
Disagree
4. In order to prevent violence, it is important to avoid conflicts with people.
StronglyoAgree
Agree
Neutral
Disagree
5. I get into arguments with friends, family members, and teachers.
Almost Always
Usually
Sometimes
Strongly Disagree
Almost Never
6. When I am stressed out, I find positive ways to release my energy (exercise, music).
Almost Always
Usually
Sometimes
Almost Never
7. When someone has wronged me, I find I want to retaliate.
Almost Always
Usually
Sometimes
Almost Never
8. When someone disrespects me, I have the urge to injure or harm that person, or to break or
smash things.
Definitely
Probably
Maybe
No
9. When in a conflict with someone who loses his/her temper, the best response is_________.
to fight back
to explain why they are out of line
not to engage or allow them to vent
not to lose
F
F
F
F
273
Activity 1 Take a Survey
Worksheet
10. What is the most effective way to handle a dispute?
use neutral body language and tone F
keep the focus on yourself F
listen to the other person’s point of view F
11. Conflict is __________________?
the result of an aggressive person who cannot control his/her anger
a natural part of life when two or more people don’t see things the same way
a failure to get along with others
an excuse to blame someone for one’s own personal problems
F
F
F
F
12. Compromise means _________________?
no one gets what they want
you have no pride/losing face
both sides give and take
agreeing to disagree
This survey has been adapted from the Urban Tech – The National Urban Technology Center
website’s Youth Leadership Academy – Curriculum Guide/Conflict Resolution. (Page 12) http://
www.urbantech.org/yla_cg_samples/YLA_Conflict_Resolution_Sample.pdf
274
F
F
F
F
Activity 2 Discussion on Conflict Resolution
Teaching Plan
Part One: Conflict Resolution Web Chart
Violence, either at school, on the streets, workplace, or home, is a national problem. It is important
to learn the skills and techniques of conflict resolution in order to address our conflicts rationally
and non-violently.
Write the word conflict on the board. What is the definition of conflict? Before going to the
computer or dictionary see if you can arrive at a mutual definition.
What do you think of when you hear the word conflict? Brainstorm words, phrases and
associations. Make a web chart on the board to see if connections can be made. Ask students to
think of the following:
• Which words, phrases, or associations were negative or positive? What are some causes or
factors of conflict?
• What are some responses to conflict?
• Do you see conflict as positive or negative?
• Is it possible to stay objective during a conflict?
• Is it O.K. to disagree with others?
• Can the way you react to a conflict have an effect on escalating or de-escalating a conflict?
• Can you think of some conflict resolution approaches? Example: collaboration, avoidance,
problem solver, peace-at-all-costs, sharing, etc.
• Can your choice of words and body language influence or show respect or disrespect for the
other person’s feelings in a conflict?
Web Chart Example:
war
anger
battle
emotion
bad
conflict
disagree
argue
dispute
solve
275
Teaching Plan
Part Two: Conflict Resolution Discussion
There are healthy and unhealthy ways of managing and resolving conflict. This activity is about
decision-making, problem solving, and learning conflict resolution skills. Look over the surveys
from Activity 1 to get an idea of how students experience and manage coflict in their lives.
Divide the blackboard into two sections. Make a list of healthy and unhealthy responses to
conflict. Give the students some of the following examples to get them started:
What are healthy conflict resolution strategies to use?
• Identify the problem – Discuss what caused the situation
• Be aware of and respectful of people’s differences
• Opponents can become problem solving partners – deal with the issue as a mutual issue to be
solved rather than a win or lose competition
• Be willing to resolve the issue
• Use your critical thinking skills and problem solving skills
• Negotiate – be fair and just
• Manage your emotions and stress levels
• Think about multiple options before making final decisions
• Think before you respond: Take a few minutes to step back, breathe, and think before you
speak - postpone the discussion if you do not feel it is the “right” time to have it – if you are
mentally not able to discuss the conflict, or if you do not feel safe and/or in control – use a
cooling off period
• Broaden your perspective: suggested solutions are offered in terms of how they affect
the broader context beyond the issue
• Stay positive: make all your points from a positive perspective
• Understand that conflicts don’t need to be volatile, aggressive, or negative
• Make sure your position is clearly stated/communicated – be assertive but not aggressive
• Make sure that all the people involved are identified and their issues are addressed
• Listen to what the person is saying and do not interrupt – pay attention to other people’s
feelings
• Don’t assume anything – ask non-judgmental questions – get more information
276
• Restate what you heard the other person say in your own words. Include their feelings and
concerns. Make sure you understand what is being said and show the other person that you
are listening.
• Win/Win solutions: brainstorm ideas and come up with one that is good for both parties
• Focus on the facts
• Be prepared to compromise or make a deal
• Mediate - ask an objective third party or mediator to help you sort out the problem
• Accommodate – allow the other person to have their experience and perception of the
situation and look for a common ground
• Consider that there may be other reasons and factors at play for the behavior of the other
person – there may be a root cause to the conflict that comes from another place
• Focus on one problem at a time
• Be ready to forgive and forget – move past the conflict
• Communicate your needs clearly and effectively
• Show empathy: understand what is really bothering the other person – try to understand their
perspective – acknowledge the other person’s point of view and give it some value
• Non-verbal communication: Be aware of body language. Try to use neutral body language
• Know when your argument is not working – be able to let go – agree to disagree
• Create a plan of action – get commitments
What are unhealthy conflict resolution strategies?
• Don’t postpone dealing with the problem – don’t let the situation get worse
• Don’t use threatening verbal language or body language
• Don’t put people down
• Don’t jump to conclusions
• Don’t be quick to judge
• Don’t let the other person force you into fighting back or escalating the conflict
• Don’t back a person into a corner – give people space
• Don’t use name calling
• Don’t interrupt a person while they are talking
• Don’t bring up any past grudges
• Don’t assume you have all of the answers
277
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Don’t use accusing statements
Don’t make assumptions about what you think other people are thinking
Don’t use wrong information, data, or facts – Don’t introduce irrelevancies
Don’t shut down during a conflict
Don’t be so entrenched in your own perspective that you are not hearing what the other
person is saying – Don’t be stubborn and not see the other person’s side
Don’t ignore or be unresponsive to things that matter to the other person
Don’t react by being explosive, hurtful, angry, or resentful
Don’t be isolated, get help solving the issue
Don’t use disrespectful words or actions
Don’t play the blame game, it can perpetuate the conflict
Don’t attack a person’s character
Don’t close down communications if you don’t agree – try again
Don’t get even
Don’t be bossy
Don’t make excuses
Closing discussion questions:
• Is there more than one problem in a particular situation?
• When is conflict constructive? When is conflict destructive?
• Were responsible decisions made?
• What are conflict indicators?
278
Activity 3 Conflict Resolution Skits
Teaching Plan
Conflict Resolution Skits
Students will create conflict resolution skits and present them to the class. Start by asking:
• What are some examples of conflict that you experience at school, on the streets or at home?
• Tell a story about an experience when you encountered conflict. Explain your solution to that
experience. What was the situation? When did it happen? What was the cause of the conflict?
How was it resolved? Were there any consequences? Were you happy with the conclusion?
Read the following story aloud to your students, then discuss:
Angelina recently moved to a new neighborhood and goes to a new school. She is having trouble
trying to connect to the other kids. It is her first year in this 7th grade class (where most of the kids
have known each other since Kindergarten). Angelina has been bullied since she first arrived. Lakisha
has been at the school all of her life. Lakisha has started making slurs against Angelina. Lakisha has
been using inappropriate language about Angelina. Some of the kids have been mocking her accent
and following Lakisha’s lead and using prejudicial words to describe her. Lakisha says Angelina
doesn’t belong here and that she should go back home.
Today Angelina walked into the cafeteria and Lakisha said something about Angelina’s family,
which we cannot repeat. Angelina asked Lakisha to knock it off. Lakisha responded by threatening to
punch Angelina. Lakisha thinks she has the right and might to intimidate Angelina because she has
been at the school longer and has friends who will back her up. Lakisha thinks she is smarter than
everyone else. To Lakisha this is about being “the leader” and having power. Since it is Lakisha’s
school, she feels entitled to say who is accepted and who is not. Lakesha doesn’t like “outsiders” and
wants Angelina to go back to her own country.
Angelina is tired of being bullied and called names. Angelina is angry, hurt, sad, scared and
outraged. Her first reaction is to retaliate and show the class she is not afraid of them and their name
calling. She would like to hit Lakisha, tell her off, and threaten her about doing it again.
Questions: What is a positive outcome to this situation? What is a destructive outcome? What are
Lakesha’s and Angelina’s choices? Is it possible for them to predict the results or consequences of
their choices? What are the different ways they might deal with the situation? What do you think is
the right thing for Lakisha and Angelina to do in this situation?
Divide the class into teams of four and ask each team to develop a short skit that
demonstrates a conflict. Remind them that conflicts have many possible outcomes. Ask them to
write two different outcomes to their conflict – one that is positive and one that is destructive.
279
Handout
Develop a Skit About Conflict Resolution
1. Decide the type of conflict your team is going to write a script about.
2. Review and discuss the types of conflict listed below.
3. Talk about different conflicts that you have experienced. Identify what type of conflict it is.
Which story will make a good skit?
4. Discuss the conflict your group has chosen. Why was the conflict chosen? Record or take
notes during the discussion.
5. Determine what the message is that you want to convey. Each skit should present a real-life
situation.
6. Discuss scenarios, events, settings, consequences, and tone. Set strategies for developing the
skit.
7. Discuss and decide on possible outcomes – both positive and negative. There are a number of
conflict resolution approaches: accommodate, collaborate, avoid, compromise, etc.
8. The skit should have two endings: a destructive outcome and a positive outcome.
9. Create a storyboard so everyone can work out the skit visually. Include characters, plot,
dialogue and scenes. Your characters should drive the action for the skit. An example of a
storyboard is on the following page. Include text and images. You can use movable sticky
notes as an easy way to develop the storyline.
10. Write dialogue for each character. Make sure your characters have their own personas.
11. The skit should last about five to seven minutes.
12. Write your skit, defining each performer’s lines and actions. Make sure that everyone in the
team has a part to play in the skit. Create a conflict between characters.
13. Practice your skit and time your performance. Make sure your script does not exceed the
required length. If it does, cut some dialogue.
14. Think about the props you will need or things that will contribute to your skit.
15. Practice, refine, practice, refine, make adjustments as you are practicing. Practice.
16. Perform your skit on the assigned date – ___________________________________.
17. After your performance, explain the conflict and explain how you chose your two
resolutions to the class.
18. The class will critique the skit and performers. Did the team use effective body language,
choice of words, tone of voice, etc.? How was their presentation of the scenario? Was it “good”
team interaction? Did they speak clearly? Did they stick to their topic? Did they solve the
conflict? Was it an appropriate conflict resolution?
280
Handout
Resource: Types of Conflict
• Verbal harassment: name-calling or taunting about a particular behavior or physical attribute
• Gossip: spreading rumors about a person
• Exclusion: from a party, group, or activity
• Peer pressure: being pressured by a person or group to participate in an objectionable or
offensive act
• Cyber bullying: an electronic posting of mean-spirited messages about a person
• Discrimination: treating someone unfairly based on race and ethnicity, ageism, sexual
orientation, religion or belief, gender or disability
• Stereotyping: a standardized mental picture that is held in common by members of a group
or individual and that represents an oversimplified opinion, prejudiced attitude, or critical
judgment about a person or group of people
• Interpersonal: a conflict with a family member, friend, co-worker, peer, etc. – when people
don’t get along
• Values: conflicts arise when one person tries to enforce his or her own values on another
person
• Miscommunication: poor communication between people
• Cheating: break rules to gain advantage
Resource: Example Storyboards¹
¹ Storyboard Techniques. http://www.savoyhill.co.uk/technique/
storyboard.html
281
Activity 4 Conflict Resolution Rules
Teaching Plan
Develop Conflict Resolution Rules
Have the class develop a set of rules to follow when a conflict arises between two or more
people in the class. Set up a site for peer mediation and the ground rules and expectations the
class will follow during mediation sessions. Example of rules:
• Treat people with respect.
• Honor differences.
• Treat each person as you would want to be treated.
• Attack the problem/conflict not the person.
• If an apology is in order, apologize.
• Don’t jump to conclusions.
• Thank people for listening.
Set up a time each week for peer conflict mediation. Depending on the degree of conflict and
circumstances involved, peer mediation will hopefully resolve the conflict. Set up a protocol for
mediation with ground rules and expectations in a neutral and calm spot.
• Have each party involved in the conflict write out their version and submit it to the mediators
a few days before the meeting. This will give the parties time to think about the conflict again,
verify the facts and put their emotions in check. It will give the mediators time to explore
possible options and solutions for mediation.
• Explain the rules of the mediation (Example: tell the truth, one person talks at a time, etc.).
• Ask each person to explain the conflict.
• Give each person time to respond to the other person’s story.
• Listen and focus your attention on the speaker.
• Breakdown the conflict: gather information about the conflict.
• Ask each party how they want the conflict to be resolved.
• Develop a list of outcomes (Example: agreed on solution through compromise or negotiation).
• The mediators should repeat what they have heard back to the people involved.
• Ask each party if they agree to the solution(s).
• Decide if there should be an appeal system.
• Make a plan for resolution with the parties. Follow through to see if the plan is working.
282 | Investigation 21: Conflict Resolution 101
Vocabulary for Investigation 21: Conflict Resolution 101
Accommodate to bring into
Perpetuate to make something
agreement; to adapt oneself; to give
consideration to
continue or last
Collaborate to work with another
person or group
Compromise a concession;
to adjust or settle by mutual
concessions
Disputant one that is engaged in a
disagreement or argument, generally
in court
Empathy the ability to imagine
Perspective a particular evaluation
of something; an evaluation of a
situation or facts, especially from
one person’s point of view
Prejudicial leading to premature
judgment or unwarranted opinion;
biased
Repertoire the range of techniques,
abilities, or skills somebody has; a
list of capabilities
oneself in another’s place and
understand the other’s feelings,
desires, ideas, and actions
somebody in response or revenge for
a harm he or she has done
Escalating to increase in intensity
Scenario a plot outline or synopsis;
or scope
a sequence of events usually used by
actors; a set of circumstances
Intimidate to make timid or fearful;
implies inducing fear or a sense of
inferiority into another; bully
Irrelevancies unrelated to the
matter being considered
Mediation intervention between
conflicting parties to settle or
compromise a dispute
Negotiate to attempt to come to
an agreement on something through
discussion and compromise
Retaliate to deliberately harm
Storyboard a method of organizing
images displayed in sequence for the
purpose of visualizing a play, motion
picture, animation, etc.
Synonymous having the same
meaning; an alternative name for
someone or something
Volatile unpredictable or changing
suddenly; changeable in mood or
temper
Perception an attitude or
understanding based on what is
observed or thought
| 283
284 | Investigation 21: Conflict Resolution 101
HP MAP Teacher Survey
This questionnaire is aimed at evaluating and collecting information and
suggestions on the usability and effectiveness of the Teaching Toolkit.
Name:
School or organization:
Number of years teaching or working with youth:
1.
How many times in the past six months have you taken your class to visit the murals?
0
1
2
3
4 or more
2.
Please rate the quality of the learning material.
Excellent
Good
3.
4.
5.
6.
Average
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Please rate the relevance of the learning material.
Excellent
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Average
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The investigations and resources enriched the curriculum I am using
Yes
Please rate your level of interest in using the Teaching Toolkit.
Very high
High
Average
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No
Very low
Is there a reason you would not use the Teaching Toolkit? Please explain.
HP MAP Teaching Toolkit Resources | 285
7.
Were there problems with the Toolkit itself? Please explain.
8.
The Toolkit integrates various subject areas effectively.
9.
10.
Yes
No
Yes
No
Yes
No
The information included is well structured and organized
The CD resource was easy to use
11.
Please rate the learning material used in the Toolkit on its ability to engage young people.
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12.
Approximately how many investigations did you use?
13.
Thinking about the average time allotted for the investigations were they:
Not enough time
Just right
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Would you recommend the Teaching Toolkit to others?
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Definitely not
14.
Probably not
15.
Would your school have benefitted from a Professional Development Workshop before using
the Toolkit?
Yes
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286 | HP MAP Teaching Toolkit Resources
16.
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17.
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18.
How can the Teaching Toolkit be improved?
Please forward the completed surveys back to:
archi-treasures
3339 W. Division Street
or email: [email protected]
Thank you very much for your cooperation.
Some survey questions were adapted from the website Teacher’s Surveys:
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HP MAP Teaching Toolkit Resources
Books
Encyclopedia of Chicago
www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/1027.html
The Electronic Encyclopedia of Chicago © 2005 Chicago Historical Society.
The Encyclopedia of Chicago © 2004 The Newberry Library. All Rights Reserved. Portions are
copyrighted by other institutions and individual
A Guide to Chicago’s Murals
Mary Lackritz Gray
Published by the University of Chicago Press. 2001.
ISBN: 978-0-226-30599-8
Urban Art Chicago
Olivia Gude and Jeff Huebner
Published by Ivan R. Dee Publisher. 2000.
ISBN: 1-5663-284-6
Online Resources
The American Bar Association Conflict Resolution Guide
Dispute Resolution Processes Guide: http://www.americanbar.org/groups/dispute_
resolution/resources/DisputeResolutionProcesses.html
archi-treasures
There is a free PDF of the Humboldt Park Mural Tour brochure online. The pdf can be downloaded
in two formats at:
www.architreasures.org/portfolio/map-teaching-toolkit
Humboldt Park Portal
A Web-based mural guide lets you view a customized map with a key and information about the
murals in Humboldt Park.
www.humboldtparkportal.org/Community-Info/Community-Info/Humboldt-Park-MuralArts-Program.html
The Chicago Department of Transportation Complete Streets
The City of Chicago is committed to building Complete Streets to ensure that everyone –
pedestrians, transit users,bicyclists and motorists – can travel safely and comfortably along and across
a street. Complete Streets give Chicagoans of all ages and abilities safer, cheaper, and healthier travel
options.
www.chicagocompletestreets.org
Laws: www.chicagocompletestreets.org/your-safety/enforcement-laws
The Chicago Public Art Guide
Department of Cultural Affairs – Chicago Office of Tourism
An introduction to public art in Chicago
www.explorechicago.org/etc/medialib/explore_chicago/tourism/pdfs_guides_and_maps/
public_art_guide
Chicago Transit Authority – Public Art on the CTA
Online resource guide: www.transitchicago.com/art
The City of Chicago Bike Safety and Education
The City of Chicago offers a kids on bikes guide, bicycling in Chicago guide, helpful biking tips and
additional information such as Chicago bike laws and how to register your bike.
www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/cdot/provdrs/bike/svcs/bike_safety_education.html
Mural Manual: A Resource Guide
A resource for information from working with a community to organizing the painting of a mural.
Written by Virginia Price, Genesis 21
Produced by the Museum and Cultural Affairs Department
City of El Paso, Texas. Copyright 2008
www.genesis21.biz/Mural%20Arts%20Program%20Guide.pdf
Organizations
Active Transportation Alliance
Chicagoland’s voice for better biking, walking, and transit. A member-supported non-profit
transporation advocacy group.
9 W. Hubbard Street
www.activetrans.org
p 312 427 3325
Division Street Business Development Association
Take a guided walking tour of the East Humboldt Park murals. Learn about the imagery of the
murals and their historical connections to Puerto Rico and the surrounding neighborhood of East
Humboldt Park.
Contact: Eduardo Arocho, Executive Director
Chicago, IL 60622
Tour request form: www.dsbda.org/requestform.php
Divvy Bikes
Divvy is Chicago’s bike sharing system with 4,000 bikes and 400 stations across the city. Intended to
provide Chicagoans with an additional transportation option for getting around the city.
www.divvybikes.com
p 855 553 4889
Institute for Puerto Rican Arts and Culture Museum
Located in Humboldt Park, in the heart of Chicago’s Puerto Rican community, the Institute of Puerto
Rican Arts & Culture (IPRAC) is the only self-standing cultural institution in the nation devoted to
showcasing Puerto Rican arts and historic exhibitions year-round.
www.iprac.org
p 773 486 8345
Puerto Rican Cultural Center Juan Antonio Corretjer
Founded in 1973, the Puerto Rican Cultural Center Juan Antonio Corretjer is a non-profit,
community-based umbrella institution, which seeks to serve the social/cultural needs of Chicago’s
Puerto Rican/Latino community.
www.prcc-chgo.org
p 773 342 8023
West Town Bikes:
A community bicycle learning workshop located in Humboldt Park. West Town Bikes offers bicycle
mechanics workshops, youth programs and special events to members of the community.
www.westtownbikes.org
[email protected]
p 773 772 6523
Internship Programs
This is a way to get help in your classroom..
Columbia College – Columbia Works
www.colum.edu/Students/Career/Student_Employment/recruiting.php 312.369.6844
DePaul University – Department of Art, Media, and Design
p 773-325-7565
Northwestern University – Department of Art Theory and Practice
Volunteer website: www.weinberg.northwestern.edu/advising/research/internships/volunteering.html
School of the Art Institute of Chicago – Cooperative Education Internship
[email protected]
p 312.629.6810
Illinois Institute of Art
[email protected]
p 312.280.3500
University of Chicago – Department of Visual Arts
[email protected]
p 773 753 4821
University of Illinois Chicago – School of Art and Design
www. adweb.aa.uic.edu/web/resources/opportunities.php?internship
Note: They will not post unpaid positions

The Murals - Archi

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