Humanities: Composition & Culture Presentations

Today we will present the rest of our Composition & Culture presentations -- pecha kucha style.


ASSESSMENTS.

Blog. 3+ Posts
Req'd Post 1.  Students Making a Difference Playlist.
Create a playlist of three videos showing students making a difference in their local, national or global communities.  Post these videos on your blog and explain what the student did and why you chose to include it in your playlist.   Be intentional.

This playlist is only one of your posts for the week and will be our pre-work for our final project of the year.

Req'd Post 2.  Composition & Culture.  Create a slideshow or video of your presentation that can be shared with a wider audience.  Post it on your blog.  Include voice over or typed commentary and music -- the qualities that you know will appeal to your users based on our empathy conversations.

Due. Friday, May 1st.

Culture & Composition.  
Export your slideshows as QuickTime movies OR PDFs and put in your Humanities IN folders along with your rationales and self-assessment (Four Corners).
Due. ASAP.

Humanities: Culture & Composition Photo Essay DT Challenge Rubric

Humanities: Empathy Phase: Photo Essay Challenge

Last Wednesday we mapped our our cultural identities based on the eight components of culture.  Each circle represents a component, the placement and overlapping reveal how much, or how little, each plays a role in our lives.  After personal maps, we collaborated in groups on maps of our community culture.  This worked served as part of our Discovery phase.

This is a shot of my #sketchnotes plan for the day.

Here are some of the insights and trends we mapped after looking at our models.

This gave us some fuel for going into Thursday where we spent our energy identifying the various users we may have for our photo essays.  This marked our first day of Empathy phase in our DEEP design thinking process.  

What did we notice from our culture work on Wednesday?  We revisited it on Thursday.

And that led us to Friday where we had at the opportunity to talk with the crew from South Carolina again, if only briefly.  We had a couple of class leaders take on the task of conducting an empathy conversation.  This gave us some valuable insights as to how we should shape our photo essays this week.

This takes us into Monday . . .

Monday we dive into Experiment mode.  Folks should be coming with photos they've taken so far and start playing with formats for their photo essays.

There's time to brainstorm and play and sketchnote and storyboard.  We'll be using some of our 8 Box techniques and other means of getting to great photo essays.

Tuesday will be more experimenting and then Wednesday, we practice.

ASSESSMENT.

BLOG.  3+ Posts.
Req'd Post.  Explore Pecha Kucha and Ignite.  Find an example here or here.   In your blog post explain why you chose this sample as a mentor text -- a model you can follow for you own.  What made it great and interesting to you?

PHOTO ESSAYS.
Friday.  Friday.  Friday.

Humanities: DT Challenge: Photo Essay

HMW use our knowledge of composition and culture to reveal our culture through image?

8 Components of Culture.

5 Elements of Composition.



Use 5 to Reveal 5.
5 Elements of Composition to Reveal 5 Components of Culture

Choose a Focus: Personal, Local, School



Today, we start DISCOVER phase of DEEP design thinking.

KNOW/NEED to KNOW/BRIDGE the GAP

What do we know about photo essays and documentary?  What do we need to know?

How might we bridge the gap?



Use the Photo Essay doc in Google Drive to help


Images. Due Monday, April 13

Presentation Practice.  Wednesday and Thursday.  April 15 & 16.

Presentation.  Due Friday April 17.

ASSESSMENT.

BLOG.  3+ Posts.
Req'd Post.  Photo Essay/Documentary Mentor Text.  Find a photo essay or documentary you want to use as a mentor text for your product.  Identify three moments/images from that mentor text that speak to you and explain why you want to emulate them in your work.
Due. Friday, April 10.

AP Lit: Poetry as Design Challenge: Experiment Phase & More

EMPATHY & EXPERIMENT PHASES.

Monday and Tuesday, we have several vital signposts ahead of us.

One.  We need to explore some more poetry structures.  Sestina. Gazhal.  Villanelle.  This week.  In class.  (I promised no piling on.  I meant it.)


Two.  We need to examine results of empathy work and map our insights.


Three.  We have to determine which experiences we want to install and who will work on each.


Four.  We need a schedule for this next week and a half.  We will be installing on the 15th, due to step up day for the middle school crew.  Folks need to know what to finish and for when.

Five.  We need to engage the DEEP board so we can better keep track of who is doing what and when.

This is where it gets both nuts and amazing.  Just like any good design challenge should.

Reminder of Expectations.

1.  DESIGN a POEM.  Craft an original piece that evokes the theme of happiness or connectedness.  It must use at least 7 poetic devices from this menu.
Due. April 15.  Poem for installation.
Due. April 16. 1 page analysis.

2.  DESIGN an INTERPRETATION of a POEM.  Craft a visual/audio/tactile interpretation of any poem you feel suits this theme.  Consider using Poetry Foundation  as a starting point for  your search.
Due.  April 15.  Interpretation for installation
Due. April 16.  1 page analysis.  Use poetic devices from this menu as backbone of this analysis.

3. DESIGN an EXPERIENCE with POETRY.  Design an interactive experience for students on campus that uses elements of poetry and increases happiness and/or connectedness at Mt. Blue Campus.  This is where the crux of our design work occurs.
Due. April 15.  Installation.
Due.  April 16.  Collection of poems explored.  Three analyses completed using SCOUT & CRAP. 
Due.  April 16.  Documentation.  DEEP. Discovery. Empathy. Experiment.  Produce.  Req'd Blog Posts for the Week.  Have documentation of every phase and explanations ready for viewing.

This is also our pre-cursor to the big end of the year Watchmen installation.  This is really an extended flashlab to help us get accustomed to this work.

ASSESSMENT.

Blog.  3+ Posts.
Req'd Post This Week.  SHOW YOUR WORK.  DEEP.  Discovery.  Empathy. Experiment.  Any component of the installation.  Show it.  Record it.

AP Lit: Poetry as Design Challenge: Empathy Phase Into Experiment Phase

We had a powerful Thursday and Friday last week.

Empathy phase abounded with composite users and user mapping.

We created composite users on Wednesday and Thursday and the put them onto a spray chart to better define our core and fringe users.

This was certainly one of our biggest A-HA's above . . . we thought of other contexts where the users who MOST NEED a product those LEAST LIKELY to use it, and those with LEAST NEED are MOST LIKELY to use it.

And this is the tension we are facing with our Poetry as Design installation.

PIE.  This captures the project well.  Poem. Interpretation. Experience.  

That is what you are designing.  Three products.  

Perhaps we should make three point one four products.

On Monday, we should be getting first of our empathy conversation work.

I like that we are using the term empathy conversation.

The intention behind that choice makes me happy.  Talk.  Not mine.

We also need to find our users.  Figure out where best to install our experiences so that we are reaching the users where they are.   Map 'em.  See 'em.

Tuesday we will get these results.

Humanities: Firing Up & Making Happiness. DT Flashlab.

This week we revisit two projects that are unresolved: fidgets and Romeo & Juliet.  To do so, we've got to re-familiarize ourselves with the DEEP design thinking process and today's class is intended to do just that.

LNG.

We'll start with a quick LNG.  We want to have a nice collection of evidence from all of you that you are understanding these texts and demonstrating those understandings.  It's why we keep hitting on this.  It is also how we tackle our current events portion of the curriculum.

During this time, we'll be circulating around and giving you lengths of blue painters tape.  We want you to make your desk into quadrants.

DEEP DT. DESIGN THINKING FLASHLAB. HAPPINESS IS A MANILLA FOLDER.

Materials. You will each be given a manila folder, 4 paper clips, and a length of tape. You may also access your design kits and the two drawers of markers, pencils, glue and scissors in the design cabinet.

Your challenge is:  HMW increase happiness at Mt. Blue Campus?
Constraint: these materials, graphic organizers, and 45 minutes on the clock

Process.  You may follow the DEEP DT process in whatever order you like.  If you already want to experiment, go for it.  If you want to jump right into empathy, that's okay as well.  If you want to go in order, that's why it's called a process.

Why the quadrants?  To help us track your progress through the 45 minutes, you will be putting evidence of each phase in the boxes as you complete the phase.  This way we can observe your process, offer guidance, ask questions, and generally assist you to the end.

If you would like a larger space to work, we've the tables in the room at your disposal or you may double up two desks.

HOMEWORK.
Blog. 3+ Posts.

Req'd Blog Post.  Choose any of the TED Talks posted here and on Google Classroom. (I've got a list going of three/four choices.) 

Explain how your folder challenge product relates to the ideas presented in that TED Talk OR how it doesn't connect at all.  Prove your case with specifics. (NOTE.  That last part is important.  We are stepping up the blog posts.  These should be demonstrating more and more evidence of your thinking and understanding moving forward.)

Some thinking prompts.
How would your product be similar or different had you watched this TED Talk first?
How does your product reflect the spirit of that TED Talk?
What might that speaker say about your product?
What kind of feedback would you expect from that speaker?

Due. Friday, Feb 27.

Humanities: Design Thinking: Empathy

Hi folks,

Most of you folks will be conducting empathy interviews this week.  Before you go about doing so, take a look at these videos.  A lot of helpful information in here.  You needn't watch all of them.  Jump around.  See which seem to have what you find most helpful.

NOTE: The second one does a great job of explaining empathy vs sympathy.

Humanities: Whole New Mind & Empathy

Today we dug into the empathy sense from Dan Pink's Whole New Mind. Pink believes that better understanding others, can better help us solve problems and meet client/customer/employer needs.

We started with a quick improv pattern game to help us keep names straight, but more importantly, to find out how one another are feeling about the start of the school year so far.

We then set up our Google Drive inboxes for Humanities.

From there, we watched this video about a hair stylist in Manhattan, Mark Bustos, who provides homeless folks with haircuts on Sundays.

That led us to complete a I Notice/I Wish/I Wonder activity to help us better share our thinking about this video.

We noticed that a lot of folks wish more people demonstrated the brand of empathy and took the types of actions Bustos takes each week.  

Thursday night, folks were asked to look through the Empathy Portfolio section of Whole New Mind.  We'll be completing a Three 4 Thinking or I Notice/I Wish/I Wonder experience about that section on Friday morning.

HOMEWORK.

Explore, Read, Skim:  Empathy Portfolio Section in Whole New Mind.
Due: Friday, Sept 19

Past Due Work: Three 4 Thinking: Whole New Mind Intro; Text Features Analysis Maatrix, Signature sheets, Resumes Fro 10 Years in the Future, Design Kits, Remind sign ups
Due: ASAP

AP Lit: Watchmen DT Installation Experiment Phase Moving to Production Phase

We've spent two days now in the workshop with people messing with ideas, Roman numerals being built, installation locations being determined, groups forming and gestating and gelling ideas.

WE ARE DEEP IN EXPERIMENT AND ABOUT TO MOVE INTO PRODUCTION PHASE of DEEP DT! 

This is exciting stuff.

There's gonna be a big clock.

Some things we need to keep in mind.

1) We need TEXT for the lobby.  We've determined that this should be a place where we have quotes from literary sources and beyond that relate to the themes of the installation -- Watchmen, any of our year texts, any music, any film, any history -- think like Moore, think like Gibbons, layer them in there.

We need a plan for displaying them.  Fonts to use.  Methods for display.  We have that cut printer which can create some cool stuff.  Maybe we can experiment a little with it on Tuesday and Wednesday.  I sent everyone the software to download if you'd like to get a head start.

One method we plan to use is sidewalk chalk if the weather cooperates.  That should be awesome.

2) We need a plan for the discrete Watchmen connections display outside the principal/tech director office.  Zack got started on this today, highlighting key panels we should incorporate.  We know we want to put masks in that display case.  And . . . ?

3) We need to communicate about what we are all doing.  I'm seeing awesome, awesome things happening.  And we need to make sure we are using the shared docs to convey information.  Also, make sure you know just where your installation locations are and be certain to plan your positive and negative connotations accordingly.   Everything is deliberate.

Here are some pics of the work we've been doing.

Deep diving into Watchmen

Applied mathematical knowledge in a literature course

Shaping one of the installation features

This thing looks really cool -- DaVinci & digital and mirrors and ... woah...

Prepping for B roll footage to be used in the documentary

Roman numerals

3D printing cheaper alternatives to the metal plates

HOMEWORK

Blog: 3+ POSTS

Req'd: #REMASH reflections; look at your own as well as several others; what trends do you notice in the #remashes?  In the interpretations?  What has this project revealed to you about language?  Poetry? Communication?  These are just prompts to get you started.  Looking for some meaningful critical commentary about the thinking evident in this project as we consider further collaborations down the road.

Also...

Document Your Watchmen Work!   Share! Connect!

COMPLETE: Analytical & Composition Process Project

DUE: Long time ago!

COMPLETE: #AyuhAloha REMASH! If you haven't.

AP Lit: Watchmen Themes & Installation Structure (Disc/Emp/Exp)

Friday was a very big day for the Watchmen DT Challenge.

One, we got approval on the documentary.  It's happening.  Ralph King and his crew will be here on May 28 and 29 to document the installation and the reaction of the campus to what you create.

Two, we determined the major structure, shape, and scope of the project.

I cannot overstate the importance of this.  This is huge.  It gives us direction moving forward that we need.

Of course, as I write this, the cards with the specific structure are in the classroom.  Still, two of the three classes saw it and I think I can recreate it well enough below.

Start in the Lobby.

The Lobby with the Giant Clock Is XII.  Hands at XII.  We fill the lobby with other content that brings all of the themes and concepts together.

Then, users can travel either up the stairs to the balcony or along main street.

Traveling up the balcony, you will find the numbers I, II, III, IV, V and VI to your right.  These will be roman numeral style and large physical objects, uniform in size, but then decorate to reflect the themes.  These will likely be made of wood.

Mirroring the numbers on the right, will be corresponding XI, X, IX, VIII, VII on the left.

Each pair of numbers represents a polarity of themes.
For example: XI & I  may be used to represent ISOLATION & IMMERSION.  These two ideas are clearly at other ends of a spectrum.  Thus,  the features around XI would be about isolation and those around I would be about immersion.

Each pair of numbers has a set of themes like this.

Truth/Fact
Purpose/Aimlessness
Internal/External
Control/Power
Idealism/Harsh Reality
Creation/Destruction
Heroes/Humanity
Isolation/Immersion
Nostalgia/Regret
Amorality/Morality

There's another pair needed that we debated and couldn't decide upon between the two classes.

Here's where it gets trickier. We need an inverse of the above pairings as well.

We want TWO CYCLES, one that emphasizes dark (the right side) and light (the left side.).  We want users to be able to flow through the experience from either end of the installation and get a full experience.

THUS, if you go up the balcony, you have numbers going up on your right.  That will be likely be the darker/negative version of the number on your right, the number on your left the more negative.  When you get to end of balcony, you go down the stairs and take a left to go along Main St.  with the numbers increasing on your right.

If you go along main street, the number on your right is more positive, the number on your left more negative.   Then users go up the stairs and continue through the progression on their right.

Thus, we need to have not only ISOLATION/IMMERSION but also SOLITUDE/SUBMERSION -- do you see how those four relate to one another based on positive/negative connotations.

So what that means in terms of workload is that we need FOUR people for every pair of numbers.  That four must communicate and collaborate in whatever way works for that quarter to create the balcony pairing as well as the main street pairing.

Let's keep going with that example above.  If it was Dunbar, Tierney, Sheldon and I, we would take on Numbers I and XI.

For the balcony, we'd have Isolation on the right at I.  We'd design the I to represent that idea of being separated from the whole.  We'd surrounded it with an installation experience using Watchmen techniques to show it.  Perhaps some poetry.  Perhaps some addtional imagery. Perhaps a color scheme.

On the left, for XI, we'd have the more positive image of immersion.  Using same techniques, we'd emphasize that idea of being fully integrated with the whole.

Now, on the main street installation, our I would be more positive and about solitude.  And our XI on the other side of the hall would be about submersion, drowning, lost in the sea of other.

Maybe Dunbar and I would handle the balcony set, while Tierney and Sheldon would handle the main street.  And maybe Dunbar and I work on everything together while Tierney and Sheldon communicate but work individually.  And then we make sure everything looks like a cohesive part of the whole.

We know everything will be bound together by the same scope and dimensions of the numbers as well as the physical space it occupies -- another way to create structure.

Hoping this makes sense to all.  Communicate!!!!!!!  There's a shared Google spread sheet for people to sign up for themes!  By Tuesday, everyone needs to have their teammates and themes chosen.  Then propose installation concepts by Thursday for approval on Friday.

LOTS! Happening!