Introduction
I have used this scenario as a reference for my implementation story, because it has allowed me to work with my class of 24 pupils aged 10 in 4th grade of primary school, divided into groups of 6. We approach the analysis of an image objectively, taking into account the true context of the image, avoiding making assumptions or establishing erroneous conclusions and thus obtaining tools to extrapolate this knowledge acquired in the classroom to situations in their lives outside of school. In this way, we foster students with a critical capacity, given that nowadays, images are used on social networks, in the press or in advertising to make us act automatically or to make us buy a product or idea, without us being sufficiently autonomous or reflective to decide for ourselves. This scenario has also helped me to work on empathy and the emotions that a body posture, a colour or a gesture can transmit.
Stages of implementation
Starting from the idea developed in the scenario I have chosen for my story, I have used different Europeana resources and proposed different activities to my students:
Introductory activity: Let’s reflect
- Resource: //www.europeana.eu/es/item/401/item_3KEMXVKVZHALOVQSO3LPOOXSBHI3BO3Y
- 2 sessions of one hour.
- 24 students divided into 6 groups of 4 people.
- We chose a spokesperson to communicate the group’s conclusions.
- For this activity, we started by showing the image and in groups they wrote possible dialogues between the characters based on the context imagined by each one from the elements contained in the image itself.
- In the following session, each group read and shared their short dialogue with the rest of the class, using intonation appropriate to the context and the spelling used in each case.
Preparatory activity: We document ourselves
- Resource://www.europeana.eu/es/item/91627/SMVK_EM_fotografi_1472238
- 1 session of one hour.
- Group-class.
- I started by showing the projected image for the whole group of the characters from “The Adventures of Tin Tin” and asked them if they knew them and then we looked on the Internet for the covers of their stories.
Preparatory Activity: The Comic Strip and its Elements
- Resource: //www.europeana.eu/es/item/2022711/urn_repox_ist_utl_pt_MH_22613
- 1 session of one hour.
- Group – class.
- I showed the image on the screen for the whole group and asked my students what reminded them of the structure and what elements it contained related to the comic and which ones were missing, thus, we introduced the elements and vocabulary of the comic: vignettes, types of balloons or speech bubbles depending on the type of dialogue they contain.
Final product activity: Our comic strip
- 4 sessions of one hour.
- Groups of 6 people.
- Each group created a comic. We started by writing a story with the chosen characters and then we put our comic on cardboard. Finally, we have obtained the product of our implementation story.
Outcomes
Objectives as a teacher
I am very satisfied with the realisation of my proposal for classroom implementation. My aim was to help my students to develop a critical spirit towards what they see and thus to be aware that the same fact can have more than one interpretation if we do not have enough information to give an opinion or to give truth to what we see or read. I have succeeded in teaching my students to question what they see, to ask themselves questions, to find out and to be responsible when giving their opinion.
Final product and student learning
The final product of my implementation story has been a comic book, in which my students, in groups, have combined the knowledge acquired throughout the different sessions and activities proposed with graphic material from Europeana. The creation process has helped my students to realise the importance of the different elements of communication, in this case, the image and the text, and that the image accompanying a text has a clear intention, sometimes to give graphic support to the text and other times to try to deceive or instil a thought in those who see it or read it, as in the case of “fake news” or images shared on social networks by a private individual.
Europeana resources
We had never worked with Europeana resources before, but without a doubt the wide variety of resources it provides and the freedom of use to achieve different objectives in a dynamic and motivating way, encourages me to continue using its resources in future activities, as my students have asked me to do. In addition, I will share with my school colleagues all that Europeana can contribute to our teaching programme.
Link to the learning scenario implemented: //teachwitheuropeana.eun.org/learning-scenarios/what-would-they-say-ls-fi-139/
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CC0 1.0: the featured image used to illustrate this article has been found on Europeana and has been provided by the Art Museum of Estonia.
