Building Communities of Inquiry
teaching experiences with the Lagniappe Project
I have excerpted some notes from Lagniappe artists to offer some sense of the activites that we do.
Azya Maxton describes some of her drama activities:
Zip-Zop-Zooop (I usually play Zip-Zap-Zop, but the kids had played Zooop before, so okay)
Thumper warm-up (each person has a line of dialogue or phrase and gesture, and they call on each other by doing their own and then the phrase and gesture of anyone else in the circle, who will then do their own phrase and gesture and someone else's)
Lesson on Elements of Theater: Character, Setting, Plot and Action, Objective/Problem, Solution
Character and centering exercises (Characters can be lead by any part of the body i.e. head, chest, stomach, etc.) Another way of differentiating characters is vocal: changing tone, pitch, volume, etc.
What are you doing? (Game where two teams form lines and one person from each team asks the other member what they are doing. The person who asks the question then has to perform the activity suggested by the other person, and then come up with their own suggestion for the other's activity when asked the same question. Hesitation or repeats get you out of the game. The team who stays in the longest wins.)
Story Circle (each person says one word, and we try to tell a story that makes some sense, using the elements previously discussed)
Yes game (Emphasizes listening. Someone in the circle calls the name of someone else in the circle. That person answers yes. The first person can then move to that person's spot, but only after receiving the yes. The person answering must call another person, and be on their way to another spot before the first person gets there, or they can be tagged out).
"Yes, and" lines. (The first rule of improv is Yes, and. You want to agree with your partner, and then add something to build the scene.) Freeze Tag (Two people start a scene, and at any time members of the group can yell "Freeze" and tag into either person's position. They then begin a new scene justifying the first position)
Again, the kids who were present Saturday did an awesome job with all of this. I have really been impressed with this group.
Susan Dolan describes one of her sessions:
This has been my sixth time at Woodbourne Residential Treatment Center, Sat.(10-11:30). I called Mr. G before I came so he could get the staff to gather the boys up. Today I had five boys that brought their sketch books with them, signed in and worked together to prepare for the class by moving tables, chairs, placing canvas on the desks, arranging tools, getting cups of water, obtaining last week's clay work from the staff room, and taking out baked pieces of clay from the box and placing them on a table where they paint them with glass glaze. We had stations for sketching their ideas, working with glaze, selecting pieces for painting, the handbuilding area and the area to place the wet pieces of ceramics. They all say they like the medium of clay. They are learning the basic techniques of handbuilding, such as, pinch, coil, score and slip, to make their artwork.
David Cunningham writes about his experiences:
Well, today went well. We finished our mural. We had a lot of folks in the room -21. Perhaps 15 worked on artworks for the mural. There are many impressions welling up inside within the type of interaction I experience at Bon Secours. I love it. J, one of the Psychologists, stated that R didn't want to be discharged until he had a chance to work again the mural. He knew what he wanted to work on. I didn't know that until later after the session. I felt completely at ease today and can't wait to create another work. Markers and templates would help me to reach some of the more tired folks. Really, I am always suprised as to who is present to our work. I feel you are there with me as a spirit in the process.
A came over two times with excitement in seeing the eventual finished product. I met a gentlement Mr. B who made an amazing drawing entitled- NICHE. He had quite a command for spelling and art. He seemed to have a facility for expressing himself. He was quite humble. He made a pencil sketch on the EcoSystem. I have several prolific artists on Thursdays. M and L kept working. Today, R, a new visitor, worked as a painter, filling in between the collaged elements in our mural. She was so great as a painter. B made a fantastic artwork with a flower and a Jazz-like pattern.
This is a wonderful complement to the Day Program. Even during lunch, there was such a calmness. No one raced to play cards or put the TV on.
Carol Sharp at HopeWell writes this about Andy Cooper:
I wanted to let you know about our recent hootenanny here at HopeWell. Andy came out this past Friday, October 19th. We had a very good turn out for this first time program, 23 people (7 of which were kids.. Andy focused on a few kids songs in the beginning of the evening. We then offered the kids an opportunity to get involved in arts & crafts activities while Andy transitioned into more adult oriented songs. I think the group really enjoyed the opportunity to join together in community singing. Andy got the group slapping their knees and tapping their feet, too. In fact, after the program, several people expressed an interest in having a singing group on some kind of regular basis.
All in all, we received very good feedback. It was a fun filled and relaxing evening. On behalf of everyone at HopeWell, I want to thank you and the Lagniappe Project for your support and for making this program possible. It was a very welcome addition to our calendar of activities.
Azya Maxton describes some of her drama activities:
Zip-Zop-Zooop (I usually play Zip-Zap-Zop, but the kids had played Zooop before, so okay)
Thumper warm-up (each person has a line of dialogue or phrase and gesture, and they call on each other by doing their own and then the phrase and gesture of anyone else in the circle, who will then do their own phrase and gesture and someone else's)
Lesson on Elements of Theater: Character, Setting, Plot and Action, Objective/Problem, Solution
Character and centering exercises (Characters can be lead by any part of the body i.e. head, chest, stomach, etc.) Another way of differentiating characters is vocal: changing tone, pitch, volume, etc.
What are you doing? (Game where two teams form lines and one person from each team asks the other member what they are doing. The person who asks the question then has to perform the activity suggested by the other person, and then come up with their own suggestion for the other's activity when asked the same question. Hesitation or repeats get you out of the game. The team who stays in the longest wins.)
Story Circle (each person says one word, and we try to tell a story that makes some sense, using the elements previously discussed)
Yes game (Emphasizes listening. Someone in the circle calls the name of someone else in the circle. That person answers yes. The first person can then move to that person's spot, but only after receiving the yes. The person answering must call another person, and be on their way to another spot before the first person gets there, or they can be tagged out).
"Yes, and" lines. (The first rule of improv is Yes, and. You want to agree with your partner, and then add something to build the scene.) Freeze Tag (Two people start a scene, and at any time members of the group can yell "Freeze" and tag into either person's position. They then begin a new scene justifying the first position)
Again, the kids who were present Saturday did an awesome job with all of this. I have really been impressed with this group.
Susan Dolan describes one of her sessions:
This has been my sixth time at Woodbourne Residential Treatment Center, Sat.(10-11:30). I called Mr. G before I came so he could get the staff to gather the boys up. Today I had five boys that brought their sketch books with them, signed in and worked together to prepare for the class by moving tables, chairs, placing canvas on the desks, arranging tools, getting cups of water, obtaining last week's clay work from the staff room, and taking out baked pieces of clay from the box and placing them on a table where they paint them with glass glaze. We had stations for sketching their ideas, working with glaze, selecting pieces for painting, the handbuilding area and the area to place the wet pieces of ceramics. They all say they like the medium of clay. They are learning the basic techniques of handbuilding, such as, pinch, coil, score and slip, to make their artwork.
David Cunningham writes about his experiences:
Well, today went well. We finished our mural. We had a lot of folks in the room -21. Perhaps 15 worked on artworks for the mural. There are many impressions welling up inside within the type of interaction I experience at Bon Secours. I love it. J, one of the Psychologists, stated that R didn't want to be discharged until he had a chance to work again the mural. He knew what he wanted to work on. I didn't know that until later after the session. I felt completely at ease today and can't wait to create another work. Markers and templates would help me to reach some of the more tired folks. Really, I am always suprised as to who is present to our work. I feel you are there with me as a spirit in the process.
A came over two times with excitement in seeing the eventual finished product. I met a gentlement Mr. B who made an amazing drawing entitled- NICHE. He had quite a command for spelling and art. He seemed to have a facility for expressing himself. He was quite humble. He made a pencil sketch on the EcoSystem. I have several prolific artists on Thursdays. M and L kept working. Today, R, a new visitor, worked as a painter, filling in between the collaged elements in our mural. She was so great as a painter. B made a fantastic artwork with a flower and a Jazz-like pattern.
This is a wonderful complement to the Day Program. Even during lunch, there was such a calmness. No one raced to play cards or put the TV on.
Carol Sharp at HopeWell writes this about Andy Cooper:
I wanted to let you know about our recent hootenanny here at HopeWell. Andy came out this past Friday, October 19th. We had a very good turn out for this first time program, 23 people (7 of which were kids.. Andy focused on a few kids songs in the beginning of the evening. We then offered the kids an opportunity to get involved in arts & crafts activities while Andy transitioned into more adult oriented songs. I think the group really enjoyed the opportunity to join together in community singing. Andy got the group slapping their knees and tapping their feet, too. In fact, after the program, several people expressed an interest in having a singing group on some kind of regular basis.
All in all, we received very good feedback. It was a fun filled and relaxing evening. On behalf of everyone at HopeWell, I want to thank you and the Lagniappe Project for your support and for making this program possible. It was a very welcome addition to our calendar of activities.
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