This semester, our class had the privilege of visiting a local school to help students create dioramas based on animals they were interested in. The project began in class as each teacher candidate was assigned a student who had chosen an animal that they were interested in. Teacher candidates then created individualised booklets for the students featuring their names on a title page, a fun fact, a word search, the Ktunaxa name for the animal and a page about self-assessment. We then went to the classroom and read a story about animals and habitats, worked on our booklets, and spent two days helping the students create their dioramas and posting about them on their class app.
The Experience
My buddy loved their book and really appreciated that it took their interests into account and included so many fun facts. I think it meant a lot to receive a personalised gift. The project was a hit as well. We outlined the design together and put all my buddies’ ideas on paper. Next, we made a list of art supplies that we would need. After that, we began to build. I tried my best to have my buddy delegate the design and work on the parts they were most excited about. I worked on the smaller pieces that required a little more dexterity and prompted them with questions. like “what can I help you with next? This created an environment in which my buddy was in control of the project’s vision and major elements. It was wonderful to have two days to work on the project together and bond over our shared love of foxes with my buddy. This extra time also allowed us to work on our fox facts and on the pronunciation of the Ktunaxa word for fox, Na-Kyu.
Conclusion
Creating dioramas is something I have avoided in the past. This is because I think it’s easy to pick them and forget the learning intention connected to them. Dioramas can quickly become art projects with little meaning. However, this project and seeing how engaged the students were have changed that opinion. I believe this is because the dioramas focused on clear connections to animals, habitats, and Ktunaxa animal names. I can envision students taking a project like this home and telling parents everything they learned about their animal and its habitat, and that’s exciting! I will consider using dioramas in my future practice and try to create a lesson plan with equally strong connections to the subject matter.