In the beginning of the school year, the EW teachers noticed the children had a common interest in creating books. They were working on their own individual books that they then placed in their file folders and took home. Reflecting on our values of community and collaboration, the teachers strategized possibilities to bring these beginning writers together while honoring their individual creativity. We wondered how these books could reveal the value of community.
Clarke: We could make a copy and leave one for the school.
Hazel: Or we could write one for the school.
Teacher Cindy: The first page of this books says that it belongs to Clarke.
Hazel: Well, we could make a book together.
Clarke: Yea, It could be Moo Mat and The Princess.
Jillian: Wait. It could be a movie.
Revisiting this idea, a story began to develop and over the course of several weeks, the small group elicited the support of peers to be co-authors and illustrators. Images were drawn, painted, and cut out.
Next, the children referred to a favorite book for backdrops.
Once the visuals were composed, the children recorded their story and used iMovie to finalize the project.
Later, it was shared with the whole classroom. All of the children enjoyed the Moo Mat and the Princess movie and wondered when they could work together again on a story. (password is venice1987)
As a result, visual and audio partner stories are now being created throughout the school. -Atelierista, Cindy