Idea from: Geoffrey Vitale (retired University of Quebec), TESL-L
Using Art in the Classroom
My favourite writer in this area has always been Andrew Wright - his books are
practical, hands on - and they work. They include 'How to enjoy painting'
(unfortunately out of print), '1000 pictures for teachers to copy' (Pearson)
and, my favourite: "Pictures for Language Learning" (Cambridge Handbook) - all
identifiable in Amazon.com - but go by title, not author - there is more than
one Andrew Wright.
Just one example of what I have done with a class, more specifically involving
drawings - though one could also use readymade paintings etc -= but this is more
fun (Taken from PLL) I divide the board into four - with chalk strokes. In the
first area I make a drawing. It can be figurative/abstract or a mixture. For
example - a cross, a coffin, a house, a stick figure, a moon. These may be very
ambiguous and interpretable as other things. The class is in groups of four
-each group studies the pic and starts writing a story involving the content.
The member of the group discuss what the story line can be and one of them
writes it down. I wander round the class - give the chalk to a student, tell him
or her to put up a second drawing. Shy at first - then eager! Tell the students
this is the continuation. Do that twice more - much emphasis when student goes
up to draw last pic that this is the finale, the culmination.
Then the writer in each group reads that group's story to the rest of the class.
Very different stories - total student participation - enormous fun -- thank
heavens for people like Andrew Wright.
