October 26, 2010

By: Aruna A. from Philadelpha, PA
Comments: 26

Posted By: Aruna Arjunan
On: 12/3/2006 6:23:50 PM

At our school, we are writing our own curriculum. I am finding that for my content area, social studies, I am often able to use design as a lens to study the world and what happened in the world throughout time. It is a lens which learners understand, and find interesting.

Posted By: Lisa Verrilli
On: 12/4/2006 2:52:18 PM

It's funny that once you learn about something you can see it in everything around you. Also, a subject which some students may feel is boring, can now become interesting to them when they look at it in a different way - from a different perspective.

Posted By: Sandy Van Dyk
On: 12/21/2006 9:30:09 PM

What I am interested in is in seeing examples of how you apply design thinking to the field of social studies and/or history. I can see problem-based projects working very well to teach problem-solving and critical thinking skills, but how do you convey content in a particular area?

Posted By: Aruna Arjunan
On: 1/6/2007 11:48:06 AM

Sandy - There are SO many ways to use design as a lens for social studies / history. For example, the design of many cities have changed over time as a result of the people inhabiting it, and the businesses that were dominant in the times. Thus, design would allow discussions of economics, and sociology. Content would not be taught in a normal sequential manner, but within themes. It's difficult to do, and requires ALOT of extra work by the teacher, but makes for a much more meaningful learning experience, and literally brings history alive to many students, for whom history often seems worthless and dead.

Posted By: Kim Rakosky
On: 2/8/2007 3:48:36 PM

After learning so much about design from the folks at Cooper last summer, I also have found myself using design as a lens for many learning opportunities. For example: My 4th graders just read about the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis. The former Lorraine Motel where Dr. King was assassinated has been transformed into the museum. It is also a symbolic site because it was the only lodging in town for African-Americans. Beginning with the question of "why?" (would museum planners do this), we generated a great discussion about how the site choice was excellent for honoring Dr. King and the many African-American people who had suffered from racism and discrimination. The kids said that the the designers "made the rooms look like history was frozen in time." We discussed how the stark monotone of the sculpture reminded us of the many unknown people who struggled alongside the leaders of the movement. We concluded that the best way to understand history is to put yourself in it, which was the museum designers goal.

Posted By: Lisa Liu
On: 3/28/2007 5:45:43 PM

My students are involve in a program that visits several historical houses in the city. One of the houses we visited was a stop on the Underground Railroad. In studying the Underground Railroad, it's interesting to discuss the ways in which a house's a design that allowed people to hide. This link shows a hidden cupboard in an underground railroad house where escaping slaves would hide. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/railroad/kids.html I never viewed this through a "design" lens before. Incoporating design into social studies (or other subjects) doesn't necessarily involve anything new, but as you said the lens through which to put things into perspective.

Posted By: Kim Rakosky
On: 3/29/2007 9:49:24 AM

My 4th grade students are also participating in the same History Hunters program. In studying these colonial homes we frequently use design-centered questions to begin discussions about the use of the homes, roles of the inhabitants, the relationship of "technology" of the day to the design logistics of the homes. We saw lots of evidence of social roles in colonial society by examining design elements of the homes. For example, the larger homes have back stairwells for the slaves and indentured servants to keep out of sight as they went about their duties. Books were rare possessions in the colonies, but we visited the homes with intact library rooms,, which evidenced the wealth and status of the owner. The children drew conclusions about design elements such as separate kitchens (safety) separate privies (sanitation) windows on sunny sides of buildings, function of shutters, 4 poster beds built for curtains to keep in warmth, etc. It's interesting how even my most unfocused 4th graders notice every minute detail of these homes and are excited to talk and write about them--many times through a "design lens"!

Posted By: Leslie Lami-Reed
On: 4/7/2007 5:53:47 PM

Hey, I designed an underground railroad unit with my 4th graders in art class. I wrote a grant so they could go to see an excellent play that travels around the country called Freedom Train. Next, they went to tour an actual underground railroad stop at a Quaker doctor's house here in Schoolcraft, Michigan. I purchased some books, called "Clara and the Freedom Quilt" and "Follow the Drinking Gourd", great for that age. Then, using a skill that is often associated with African-American art, we made a quilt, each square drawn by one child, representing a shelter on the underground railway. They drew corncribs, barns, cabins or houses in the era of the 1800's. Some students incorporated symbols of the flight north; the north star, the Ohio River, the Great Lakes to Canada. It's beautiful and unique! Leslie

Posted By: Lisa Liu
On: 4/22/2007 1:22:42 PM

Leslie, That sounds great. Here is a great website with great background on the Underground Railroad and interactive acitivites: https://pathways.thinkport.org/flash_home.cfm My students enjoyed interactive activity where they had to make decisions on the path to escaping North. It's like a choose your own adventure book (but on the computer).

Posted By: Nancy Katz
On: 4/26/2007 12:47:23 PM

This goes back to Sandy's post of using design in social studies and history. Wonderful Underground Railroad and architecture connections. Thank you ! Social studies and history has long been a very strong link for me in teaching art. It is all about how people lived and solved problems, adjusting to various situations- political, natural, climatic, geographic,etc. The things people leave behind-objects, buildings, writings, governmental systems are all the clues we have to learn about the past. Design is an integral part of history as it is of the world we live in. A few past projects that have incorporated history and art and design: 1. 4th grade- students designing a gift of a toy- American colonist child for a Native American child and vice versa. 2. 5th grade- Designing a tool for navigation for an explorer setting out to sea. Students researched particular explorers, their routes and took that info into account to devise some technological tool that would aid their journey. A parallel project had to do with creating sea monsters- creatures these ships might encounter on their journey on the open seas. THis connects with literature as well. many others involved murals, sculpture, bookmaking and writing. Looking at first hand sources whether be writing or objects makes a world of difference for students.

Posted By: Lisa Liu
On: 4/29/2007 10:12:22 PM

Nancy, I'm interested in the designing a toy project that you did. That sounds really interesting. My students went on a trip where they made a toy that colonial children use to play. I wonder if there's a toy that children play today that they could "give" to colonial children to (one that does not involve the technology that we have today) or have the traditional games been around for hundreds of years in one form or another? :) My question to you is what criteria did the students use to design a toy for American colonist children or Native American children? Did students research common toys or did they just have to use the materials that were avaliable at that time, and common to that culture?

Posted By: mel ruth
On: 6/11/2007 12:02:07 PM

We use design as a catalyst for learning at CHAD. I have seen great improvements when the students apply the design template for anhy and all projects or personal problems. i teach psychology and we often use the design process to work through personal problems...it is exciting to see the students make the connections.

Posted By: George Latos
On: 6/11/2007 12:20:27 PM

This is a very interesting idea. I have often thought of using design as a lens for language learning. I just picked up some ideas to help me focus. Thanx.

Posted By: Kathleen Lee
On: 6/11/2007 1:25:13 PM

Our learners are having fun designing their own clothes for their final assessment on design. We have also used the design process to create houses. The love it.

Posted By: Stephanie Mulvihill
On: 6/19/2007 10:02:37 PM

I think designers have to incorporate all disciplines when they create solutions to design problems. One of my collegues created a project that when along with a ecosystems and ecology lesson. Students had to choose one ecosystem and create a dwelling made with only the materials found within that ecosystem--no outside materials. They made scale models of thier designs.

Posted By: John Galt
On: 6/20/2007 1:21:42 PM

Following your lead, Aruna, and looking at science through the design lens I have realized something interesting. Design is a big part of science. Scientists have to use the design procedure when designing their research. The design of the experiment is essential to its validity and usefulness. But science is two things, a method for getting knowledge and the collection of knowledge gained by using this method. When I think about science classes, students are usually only learning the body of knowledge gained by the scientific method. All the design part of science is missing in the science class. When students do experiments in science class, they are just repeating past experiments. They are following procedures. They are not DOING science, because doing science involves design. And unfortunately, design is the interesting part of science because it leads to discovery. It is not so much fun learning about other people's discoveries, it is more fun to do your own. How can we put the design back in science?

Posted By: Catherine Perry
On: 6/21/2007 11:49:22 AM

The school I worked at for the past 2 years is completely interdisciplinary and uses the arts as a lens for learning all content areas. Most of the teachers we hired has some background in the arts (our ESL teacher is a professional singer, our ELA teacher is a clothing designer, playwright and dancer, our math teachers are a graphic designer, former architect and guitarist, respectively, the social studies teacher is a music historian, etc. etc. We have a designated common planning period each day and have a great time doing our lesson planning. Once you focus your lens, so to speak, the whole way of looking at a content area seems to change. In terms of looking at design, the possibilities are endless!

Posted By: Vicki Dalton
On: 11/15/2009 10:28:28 PM

I loved this whole link. I am particularly interested in the Undergroud Railroad info. One of the books I read with my students deals with the Underground Railroad. I love the idea of working this websites into the process. Even more, I love the ideas of working design into the Underground Railroad unit.