If we start at the "line up" tree and walked into the Forest is it possible to end our walk at the "line up" tree?
Oliver felt that this was possible BUT only if we walked into the forest facing forward and then returned to the school walking backwards.
The rest of the class was either not sure or thought that this was not possible.
We documented our many experiences walking into the Forest. The children expressed the walk in different ways and together compiled a shared language.
What are the landmarks? What parts of the walk held meaning for us? We named these parts and sketched maps.
Several children went to the Studio with Anna to reflect, discuss and document the perspective of their "mind's eye".
How do the children perceive the path through the Forest?
What shape does the path take in their mind?
What parts of the path resonate most?
When they recall their memory of the Forest walk what does it look, feel, smell and sound like?
As Fiona completed her two dimensional map of the Forest walk she asked to begin a "raised map". This work was appealing to others and led us to consider an aerial viewpoint.
The path was becoming more defined.
Was it a circle?
The children did feel it was now possible to start and finish the walk through the Forest at the "line up" tree.
As one learning community we will represent the path one final time.
Pippin creates the impossible....a circle cavas or perhaps we should refer to it as an inverted zoetrope (refer to earlier posts).
This is illuminating--it shows all of us-- practitioners, parents, academics--the myriad ways there are to support children in thinking about the same problem. I love seeing them all together. And too, ironically, distilling the many, many hours of the children's work into this array of products highlights the value of process--it allows for so many different pathways.
ReplyDeleteBut to those folks who haven't read about the process in Mary's earlier blogs--treat yourself!