Story Through Pictures & Personal Narratives

Educator: Yousra Benslama - ELA Teacher

Other Participating Teachers: English co-teacher Laura Parker

Cultural Partner(s): Paul Rodriguez - Personal Narrative through the creation of comic strips

School: Candlewood Middle School, Grade 6

District: Half Hollow Hills CSD https://data.nysed.gov/profile.php?instid=800000037344

Summary

This partnership empowered students for whom English is a New Language (ENL) to refine their communication and ability to form a narrative with written and spoken word as well as visual communication and organization of sequences of images to tell a story. Working individually and as a community, they explored career skills of communication, collaboration, and critical thinking.

Rationale

We wanted these students to explore the following questions: How can creating visual images help with writing? How can personal narrative help students understand that writing takes many different forms? How can students apply this project in school and beyond?

What learning goals/standards did this meet?

Arts

Connect

Relate and synthesize knowledge and experience to investigate ways that artistic work is influenced by social and cultural norms.

Create- Generate, conceptualize, develop, and refine new artistic ideas and work.

CCCR

Welcoming & Affirming Environment

Contribute to shaping an environment that welcomes and allows unique expression

of identities, cultural backgrounds, and beliefs.

CR-S

High Expectations & Rigorous Instruction

Hold high expectations for all in an academically rigorous setting by encouraging positive self-image and personal empowerment.

Outcomes 

Students’ learning has expanded as a result of this project because now they…

KNOW… the different parts of a plot diagram that form a personal narrative.

UNDERSTAND… that learning comes in different forms such as combining words with art in the form of comic strips to express complex thoughts, feelings and connections to academic and personal knowledge.

ARE ABLE TO… write their personal narratives and illustrate them with their original art in comic strips.