I chose this picture because it is one of Pablo Picasso's paintings. I think it signifies creativity and passion similar to the students writing fan fiction.
The idea that kids are able to create and manipulate what is already there is interesting. We don't want them to be like robots and just regurgitate information. Education is shifting to inquiry based learning and asking questions and critical thinking. This is a great activity to get your students thinking. Not only do they think, but they feel too. The passion that both girls had when creating their dialogue was great. I think many of us have lost some passion in some of the things we do. This is a way to spark what interests kids and also have them thinking, feeling, writing, and creating.
The role-playing mentioned still requires thought, reflection, planning, and prior knowledge. This also allows for collaboration which is an integral part of our teaching and their learning. The use of literary techniques plays a major role as well and inferences and predictions come in to play. Fan fiction writers take personal stories and choose to use these to create and expand character emotion. Others relate to her character and can therefore relate to her. There is a social comfort that comes with this. I think this could be a way to differentiate and allow student creativity.
I agree that passion is missing from most of the writing assignments we assign our students. Kids writing on these fan fiction sites have opportunities to be creative and engaged in their stories, while also improving their writing skills. I was also surprised to see how kids are incorporating literary techniques, like foreshadowing, to their creative writing on these websites.
ReplyDeleteI also believe this is a great way to spark what interests kids and also have them thinking, feeling, writing, and creating. Like the girls, students use writing as a way to put their own emotions and experiences in a character they write about allowing them to get the emotions out there that they may not otherwise express verbally to someone. Collaboration is key to learning for students. It helps them to see others viewpoints not just their own. You are right, education is moving toward inquiry based learning which means with teachers and students asking questions and using critical thinking.
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