Intro to Identity Tattoos

Last week went by in the blink of an eye with a Tuesday-Friday work week and the introduction of our first project- Identity Tattoos! It was also a milestone week because all of my seniors had the chance to meet Emily, our YESS College Navigator.

The Coat of Arms lesson has been modified for the high school level with a project that is more fit for their interests and age group. In this project they are exploring who they are and what is important to them. Some key terms that were broken down related to material and non-material possessions and students were challenged to explore what they are most passionate about and what they value most. They are to take these material objects and concepts and turn them into a composition that mimics that of a tattoo, complete with hidden descriptive words and their favorite quote/life motto in the banner. Luckily, I had many examples from last year to show them that you do not need to be an artist to have fun or to make a good grade on this project, you just need to put in some time and effort into expressing yourself creatively.

We also broke down the benefits of being creative! We took cues from this image I found online:

We ended the week with our first go at a meditation session as well. Some students were reluctant and I accepted that as a natural response and encouraged them to do what feels comfortable but that with time they will learn to ease into this new unfamiliar skill.

With a good chunk of the week being instruction, they were given this current week as well to finish their tattoo designs and will be presenting soon. I cant wait to see the kind of visuals they come up with to represent themselves! I encouraged going off the template and creating bigger pieces as long as they meet all of the requirements, I love that there is a lot of freedom and autonomy with this project and the kids seem to be taking advantage of that. 

For those wondering, No Place for Hate is getting off to a great start. We have been meeting every day after school- that's right... Every... Day... to prepare for homecoming week/BMX Assembly on the 12th/Homecoming Parade. As it turns out, running a club is a LOT of behind the scenes work. Spreading our club's message is so worth it, though!

P.S- We also have a class competition going on, but more on that in my next entry...

Until next week,

Ms. C