Rising Out of the Shadows Using History to Teach Empathy 2019/20 PEAC Institute | Peace Education & Art Communication For further questions visit us online at: http://education.peacinstitute.org Guide Email us at: [email protected] 2 Contents ROOTS Overview 3 Lesson Overview 4 Day 1 | History & Narratives 5 Day 2 | Creative Expression 6 Day 3 | Shadow Art 7 Word Bank 8 Suggestions 10 Assessment 11 Appendix 12 Handouts Core Standards 14 Writing Rubric 16 Shadow Art Rubric 18 Critical Thinking Rubric 19 Scoring Sheet 20 Selection from Hiroshima 21 Photographic & Film Details 22 Character List 26 Notes on Dada Artist & Alex Webb 32 Rising Out Of The Shadows Guide 3 ROOTS OVERVIEW Lesson Overview Rising Out Of The Shadows, ROOTS, was inspired by the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. The shadow people were created by the heat and light of the bombs which left printed shadows on streets, bridges and granite steps. In this program students will look at Shadow Art stories of survivors and then write narratives from one of the survivor’s perspectives. Then they will choose a moment from their narratives and create a Shadow Art collage. Learning Objectives Students will be able to: • Discuss visual media and write a descriptive narrative using sensory details. Materials • Identify what life was like leading up to the atomic bombings, • Clips from That Day and Hiroshima speculate what life was like Revealed directly following the bombings • 5 x 8-inch cards and what life is like now. • Student Handout: Photographic & • Explore empathetic learning Film Details Original Shadows through writing journal entries from the perspective of a survivor. • Examples of art created by past participants • Solidify the empathetic journey by making a work of creative • Hiroshima by John Hersey (The expression (Shadow Art) from the New Yorker, August 31, 1946) perspective of another. (optional) A pre-packaged, powerful lesson which is already • Glue • Paper linked to the Common Core State Standards and comes • Drawing materials (markers, pens, complete with examples & assessment/scoring rubrics. crayons, etc.) Students will learn about war & peace in an empathetic way. Give your students a chance to travel to Japan and/ or get involved with an international community of young thought-leaders. 4 Rising Out of the Shadows Using History to Teach Empathy LESSON PLAN Grades: Junior High and High School (6–12) Subjects: Language Arts, Visual Arts, History, Social Science, Humanities Time Required: 3-4 class periods plus independent research (based on 50min class periods) Lesson Overview Lesson Steps: Students will write narratives from the Days 1 and 2 perspective of atomic bomb survivors depicted in rare photographs and 1. Show the film multimedia biographical information. clips and display the They will then engage in creative photographs included expression (a collage) depicting a with this lesson plan. moment from their narratives. Have students take the time to look closely at the photographs. Learning Objectives Then ask them the following questions: Students will be able to: • What do you see? • Discuss visual media and write a descriptive narrative using sensory • What do you notice about these details. people? What else? • Identify the events leading up to the • What are these people wearing/not atomic bombings and speculate what wearing? life was like directly following the • What else do you notice? bombings and what life is like now. • Look closely at the background. What • Write journal entries from the can you identify? perspective of a survivor. • What is on the ground? How do you • Create a collage in response to a know this? moment from their narratives. Materials MEDIA ASSETS • Media clips & photographs Link • 1 5x8-inch cards per student • Glue, paper, drawing materials PHOTO ASSETS • Student handouts: Link • Photographic & film details • Character list from Hiroshima, by John Hersey HANDOUTS • Hiroshima by John Hersey (The New Link Yorker, August 31, 1946) (optional) Rising Out of the Shadows Using History to Teach Empathy 5 2. Distribute 5 x 8-inch cards and ask students to write a paragraph that describes the film and photographs which includes a minimum of five sensory details. Instruct students to consider what they could see, hear, smell, taste, or touch if they were in the photographs. Next have students select a single figure from the film or photographs. Pass out the handout Photographic & Film Details. Instruct students to look closely at all the details about the person they choose to focus on, and then answer the questions in the handout. Discuss responses as a class. 3. Instruct students to identify the events leading up to the atomic bombings. The following Web resources might be helpful: “HIROSHIMA AND NAGASAKI REMEMBERED” on the Hiroshima and Nagasaki Remembered website: http://www.hiroshima-remembered.com 4. Distribute the character list from John Hersey’s Hiroshima. Explain that these people, like most of the stories of what happened directly following the atomic bombing, were almost invisible in U.S. history. Additionally, you could have students orally recite one of the character synopses. You may want to take a look at “Hiroshima” on The New Yorker‘s Website: http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1946/08/31/hiroshima 5. Have students select one person from the videos, photographs, or book and write five (5) to ten (10) journal entries from the perspective of that individual. Explain that they will create journals in a biographical narrative format. Further explain that all information surrounding the bombing was censored by both the US & Japanese governments. Possible journal topics could include the following: • Type of work they did before the bomb • Details about their family • The day the bomb was dropped • Their day-to-day life after the bomb • A dramatic moment • How they felt 5 years, 10 years, 20 years, 50 years after Remind students to include many sensory details in their writings. The journal entries should span the years of the individual‘s life from right before/right after the bomb to now. Students can conduct research with Web resources like “Hiroshima” on The New Yorker‘s Website: http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1946/08/31/hiroshima 6. Tell students to select a moment from their journals and develop a collage that illustrates the moment. Show students an example of such artwork from the past workshops: https://youtu.be/yLtD06_hjWA HOMEWORK CORNER | DAY 1 Have students finish their journal entries and begin to think about what they will do for their collages. 6 CREATIVE EXPRESSION Materials journals or a reaction to the Paper, crayons, markers, survivors’ story from which watercolors, paint, they will create their collage. contemporary magazines, 4. Have the students choose 3 scissors and provided to 5 words or symbols from images. the word bank and 3 to 5 images for their collages. Lesson Steps: (Students are welcome to Days 2 through 4 add their own images or words.) 1. Show students examples 5. Have the students begin from the Dada Collage’s & manipulating the images Alex Webb’s photographs. by cutting them and (See the image bank and rearranging them. Ask them descriptions of the Dada to find two different ways movement and Alex Webb’s of arranging them. Have photographs) the students think about 2. Ask the students what the meaning they want to they believe the artist was portray and how to combine trying to say through their the images, words and color art. Have them break into to get their point across. groups and discuss. 6. *Bonus - Ask the students if 3. Tell students to select a they can make the opposite dramatic moment in their meaning with the same 7 images and words. final discussion: 7. Before the student’s finalize • What are shadow people? their collages, by gluing • Are their any shadow them down, have them pair people in your life? up and ask the following • What current events are questions: happening now that involve • What feelings or emotions shadow people? come up when you look at • If you were a world the collage? leader what would you • Where do your eyes go? change now that you have • What do you focus on? learned more about what 8. Have the students finalize happened in Hiroshima & their collages by gluing Nagasaki? down the images and words. • Are there things in your Have them add color to schools that you don’t like? make their statements How can you change them? stronger. • Was dropping the bomb an 9. Here are some questions extreme form of bullying? you can ask for a HOMEWORK CORNER | DAY 2-3 Final journal entry: Imagine you are one of the US leaders or bombardiers, what would you say to the character you chose? 8 Collage Process Step 1 Step 3 Step 5 Choose the words, Think of the meaning you Before finalizing the symbols and images collage get into pairs you will work with. We wish to portray and how to combine the images, and ask the following recommend 3 to 5 words questions: Where did your and symbols and 3 to words, and color to best get your point across. eyes go? On what did 5 images. Students are you focus? What feeling/ welcome to use their own. emotion came up for you? Step 2 Step 4 Step 6 Play with the images. Cut them and move Can you use the same Glue down your images them around. Find images, words and and words. Add color to two different ways of colors to make the make your statement arranging the images. Opposite meaning? stronger. 9 WORD BANK 10 Rising Out of the Shadows Using History to Teach Empathy Suggestion: Give added value to the art-creation process by reading an excerpt about shadow people from John Hersey’s Hiroshima.