Explore Great Britain's geography, cultural landmarks, and historic sites to revitalize a middle school English curriculum with a unit on heritage and literature that expands a nature writing component and brings Shakespeare’s works to life.
One learning experience that stands out is interviewing the education outreach director for the National Theater in London. Interviewing someone with a lifetime of knowledge in theater education was inspiring and invigorating. We had a phenomenal rapport, I was able to bring my own ideas to the table, and I left the conversation with not only a toolbox of practical applications for my classroom, but also an invaluable new professional connection.
Personally, I learned a true joy in finding a connection between my different areas of knowledge and interest. For example, when the tour guide mentioned the Gunpowder Plot at the Tower of London, I was able to connect that to the socio-historical context influencing how Shakespeare wrote Macbeth. This, in turn, validated my commitment to project-based, interdisciplinary learning. Students also find joy in making connections between their different subjects and incorporating their own interests.
An unexpected outcome was the revelation that using theatrical studies in my classroom will not only influence how I teach “plays” in my classroom, but it will also revolutionize my very pedagogy. Using the physicality and movement central to theatrics in my teaching practice is another avenue to differentiation and accessibility. By bringing a concept, text, or skill to life, and having students physically manipulate and interact with it, I’m unlocking another conduit toward understanding.
I was able to collect amazing resources for my 7th-Grade Nature Writing Unit, including breathtaking nature photography and original nature writing pieces from my journal. I’m eager to use these tangible artifacts as inspiration and learning models. I’m also very excited for all the information, writing, photographs, and artifacts I collected while exploring my cultural heritage. I’m going to directly incorporate this learning, and the questions that arose, during my 6th-Grade project.
While in Bath, I was inspired to capture photographs, take notes, journal, and collect information I plan on directly utilizing for a pilot 6th-Grade interdisciplinary project-based learning unit on civilizations. In collaboration with the History and Latin teachers, we’ll be coaching students in creating their own civilizations. Starting with artifacts from Roman-era British Isles will serve as a solid foundation from which students can then explore, discover, and create with autonomy.
In the 7th-Grade, students participate in an interdisciplinary, student-led, project-based unit on Shakespeare, Theater, the Arts, and the Renaissance (STAR). This has become a cornerstone experience for the middle school students for over the past twenty years. Using what I learned, the tours I took, the photographs I collected, and the performance I experienced, I’ll be able to coach my STAR colleagues with the best practices I acquired, and use that to help revamp the unit.
Students benefited from my learning because I was able to engage them with exciting, tangible, and real-world artifacts. For example, I was able to share photographs from the Roman Baths in Bath, England as an introduction to our Civilizations Project. Moreover, I was able to share related artwork and paintings throughout the school year. Students were immediately invested, especially when they learned the multimedia was from my fellowship. The loved learning about my own learning!
One project that was immediately impacted by my fellowship was an Original Graphic Novel project in the 6th-Grade. Students engaged in a graphic novel literature circle in which they self-selected, closely read, and visually analyzed a graphic novel about culture and identity. Students then used their understanding to research about the culture of their choice and craft original graphic novels. I was able to embed and share everything I learned about identity and culture from my travels.
My fellowship inspired me to collaborate with the 6th-Grade History teacher to create an interdisciplinary, student-led, and project-based unit on Civilizations. Students first read "Animal Farm" and learned about Ancient Civilizations. In groups, they then created original civilizations and participated in a Model United Civilizations conference in which they worked together to propose solutions to the climate migrant crisis.
This opportunity was transformative for my teaching because it confirmed best practices, such as student-choice and genuine student engagement, while also exposing me to new ideas, practices, and techniques. I am working on building an inquiry-based classroom community, and many of the museums I visited were at the forefront of question formation. I have worked hard to incorporate this mindset into my teaching and develop question-asking as a concrete skill.