Okay, I'll begin:) It is in chapter five that I run into the words" the debilitating influence of judgment" and later the words (paraphrased): the power of discovering the capacity of their own minds...
Three big connections I make to these ideas are the teaching of drawing, the book called "Flow" written by researcher Csikszentmihalyi, and the use of art to teach thinking. I took art all my life and as an adult I began to teach drawing to other adults through a local college extension program. It was such a joy teaching people who wanted to come in and discover that side of themselves. One book I used to help me train others how to draw was Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain has these activities that you do as warm up--things like drawing with the wrong hand, drawing without looking at the paper, and drawing something upside down. These warmups are NOT usually the most attractive artworks, but they accomplish an important thing. The writer of the book says they chase out the "left" or judgment side of the brain because the left side simply cannot do these kinds of activities. Once the judgment side is quiet, the rest of the brain is free to really "see" and to draw well. Now, I realize this may sound like a bunch of nonsense, but I have seen it work again and again and I believe it to be true, even though I know we are truly "whole" brain all the time. The judgment part of our wiring is important, but it also is the part with a big ego. It really believes it is good at everything, when, in fact, it exists for specific purposes not always conducive to creative and original thought. I would love to develop some writing and reading activities (equivalent to the drawing activities) that help students see the truth of this. The only one I know of that has some similarity is the fast write, and only if the students really allow themselves to let go of judgment, difficult to really do. but so essential to developing joy and capacity. Judgment IS debilitating when we are learning. It stands in the way. It makes me think of so many things we need to change to make classrooms conducive to the best learning. For one, back to a big BLAH on grading elementary children... My second connection, Flow, is a book that tells about Csikszentmihalyi's research on happiness. He discovered, by setting up people around the world with pagers and asking them to record their thoughts, activities. and feelings each time they were paged, that people are happiest under a number of conditions, one of which is the condition of Flow. Flow means working at something that you like to do that keeps you challenged and interested. (Anyone thinking Zone of Proximal Development here?) I think what Ellin is saying is all about flow. I believe I am pretty good at getting into flow (maybe a little too good-my family would tell you). I love to get lost in work. I ENJOY it. I do not think of teaching work, or learning work, or art work as drudgery (albeit housework is....). Anyway, I believe Ellin is looking to help us find a way to help children to understand flow and yes, flow is better than any external rewards we may entice them with (but not until they experience it). It does require the suspension of judgment AND it requires allowing a struggle to occur. Kids will struggle through video games over and over, what makes us think they are incapable of struggle on school stuff when the rewards are greater? Unfortunately, since we tend to train children that we will show them how to do everything, they are quick to wait for instructions and less willing to persist through trying out things, learning , trying again... I see this most pronounced in math--students wait for the step-by-step. You give them problem and persistence is not there--only a few are willing to step in and try something. I feel like I work all year to fight that lethargy and then it comes to me again the next year (hence my dislike for textbooks). In reading I see this sometimes in decoding, they just stick in a word whether it will fit or not and go on...or they wait for someone to jump in and give them the word. Lack of persistence in understanding is more deeply disguised, but it is there. I think of the resistance to rereading, or stopping to think. Students who say, "Just tell us," and expect answers to all their questions. If we, as teachers, do not allow the struggle, relish the struggle, we will take away the gift that understanding provides. That gift is not nearly so special if you do not unwrap it yourself. Finally, (hey-blame Jennifer-she said I could go on over one item per chapter), I am thinking about the use of art to teach thinking. I love that Ellin uses art in this book to show how the strategies help us to make sense of art. I have this book (and highly recommend it) called Smart Art. In it, the authors teach children how to suspend judgment when they first approach a work of art. Then it teaches children to think about three possible purposes: formal (line, shape, color, design); emotional (meant to evoke a response); and imitational (trying to copy from nature). By suspending judgement and considering elements and characteristics, students learn to first think, then use strategies to understand, and in the end to interpret and make personal opinions. I love the process and I teach it to my students every year. I plan next year to deepen the use of this process and bring more art into my reading instruction as a result of seeing how art can translate into what we are trying to do with reading. (And interestingly, I find children feel like they are automatically experts in art--allowed to have opinion--allowed to feel the way they feel). Enough from me. Everyone else? :)Bonita _______________________________________________ Understand mailing list [email protected] http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/listinfo/understand_literacyworkshop.org
