Maddie and Rachel lead chapter 16

The Social Imagination

Chapter 16 illustrates the message "Teamwork makes the dream work."

Even though the teachers described in this chapter were in a discouraging situation with low morale, together they supported each other while developing curriculum that would better suit their students through an arts- integration curriculum focused on student inquiry and reflection. The teachers conveyed genuine interest in what was happening in the children’s worlds, both inside and outside of the classroom and provided with a variety of materials (music, literature, art supplies) to deepen their learning.
The arts were embedded into the curriculum, rather than being viewed as something peripheral. The students were engaging with and developing their own ways of rich storytelling. Students were given the chance to make meaning and voice their thoughts. The children were involved in the process of observing and asking questions about themselves and the world around them, as well as learning to understand the perspective of others.

1.) Chapter 16, describes a story of a school being reborn with art infused learning. The school benefited by art being more than just a craft but instead immersing into other classrooms. How may you collaborate with other teachers to benefit your future students?

2.) How can encouraging student voice and sharing experiences help your students to imagine a better future and how can you encourage student storytelling and voice in your art classroom in order to take action?

3.) Maxine Greene writes, “Social imagination is the capacity to invent visions of what should be and what might be in our deficit society, in the streets where we live and our schools. Social imagination not only suggests but also requires that one take action to repair or renew” (Greene, 1995).

Part of developing resilience for difficult times in the classroom is the ability to see beyond what is happening now into the possibilities for the future. In Chapter 16, the teacher had students write “I wonder” statements about a book they read in class. Instead of about a book, please write four “I wonder” or “I imagine” statements about the potential future of education in general or in your future school or class. Then digitally or physically create a small poster , postcard, or bumper sticker featuring these statements, and upload a photo of the poster to your blog.