The instructions at the top read "Wonder Wall: Ask a question that begins with Who-What-When-Where-Why-How". The shelf below holds a bin with sticky notes and pencils. An 8x10 photo taken by a student is posted, a study in bright orange with concentric circles that lead to a slightly darker point in the middle. A dozen or so sticky notes surround the picture.
My assistant, getting the stop sign from the shelf for her afternoon crosswalk duty, reads several of the notes. "Is it a .... Is it a ...." she repeats several times. "Take those down," I say from the circulation desk, shaking my head.
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I put up the Wonder Wall during my first year in the library, to spur questioning and critical thinking; it was a practice I had seen in classrooms at my former IB-PYP campus. I quickly discovered that many students preferred to guess what the picture was, rather than ask questions about it. I had to reiterate the instructions, taking the guesses down in front of them and throwing them away, yet it still happens.
One of my teachers had everyone in her class do an independent study project, after most of them couldn't fill the blanks on an "I wonder about" poem. Another teacher recently told me that when she gave a writing prompt of "describe a special day in your life", one of her students would only talk about school, homework, and chores.
So many of our students think inside the multiple-choice boxes with one right answer, and that is what they strive for. I worry that they've lost their sense of wonder. Somewhere, sometime, the imagination that takes flight in toddler years was told to land.
So true and so sad, Chris. Children do start out life so curious, and then it fades away over time. Fortunately not in all, but in so many. We launched a formal Wonder area in our Library this year, using a Wonderopolis "Wonder of the Day." We post a printed copy, have iPads cued up to the page on the Wonderopolis website, and then lots of books and materials around to pursue that particular wonder. The students have really enjoyed it. The Olympic wonders were a huge hit!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea, Christie! I have the iPads and the space; I hope you don't mind if I replicate your idea, though I may not be able to keep up with a daily wonder. I used to be better at changing out the picture every two weeks, but our campus has grown so much that just keeping up with 57 classes keeps me busy.
DeleteI really like this idea. I may use it for my school. It sounds to me like even though it isn't going quite as you expected...you are getting the kids to think...which is a start. They are looking at that picture and thinking about it. They may not be doing exactly what you want them to do, but they are taking the time to stop and write something. That is a good start, I'd say. Again, I love this idea!!
ReplyDeleteIt's simple, yet powerful, Samantha! Last year, they had students take pictures with iPads in the Makerspace lab for me to use; this particular one is the inside of a traffic cone. I also use our Britannica Imagequest database and search for "unusual" or "weird" images. Sometimes I let the students know what it is, sometimes I don't!
DeleteCan you hear me cheering you on over those last lines, that whole last paragraph?? For you're so right; the learning experience too often degenerates into creating automatons trying to pick right answers instead of imagining, developing awe, and wondering what if ... and for WHAT?
ReplyDeleteIt's a sad situation, Fran. I have to literally talk teachers and parents alike into the benefits of reading fiction, fantasy, and scifi books over nonfiction. They don't always realize that it is just such imagination that moves our world forward!
DeleteOur Elementary principal's wonder wall does the opposite. Starts the wonder wall with a question. This IB-PYP Elementary school has a huge wonder wall against the principal's office with weekly questions or wonderings. It sometimes gets a lot of answers and statements. As our students are used to wondering, I think using an image could be more popular. Thanks for the ideas.
ReplyDeleteI love the fact that your principal models wondering! My students are used to answering questions with the "one right answer", hence the need to practice questioning themselves.
DeleteI spend a lot of my summer talking about curiosity and wonder and how to keep that going with kids. When we teach students that there is one path or one answer or one way of doing things (which we often do unintentionally), wonder goes out the window.
ReplyDeleteAs a coach, I have found the same thing of my teachers. Rather than experimenting or trying or playing, they want to know what to do and how to do it, not to figure things out on their own.
Something to ponder for sure. What can be some everyday actions or language or practices to ensure people stay curious and wonder and question?
I think the system needs to change, too, Ashley, where we can be rewarded for playing and taking risks. Unfortunately, current teacher and student assessments do the opposite.
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