Alison B. Kennedy
Once we have begun to complete both the poetry and the mapping portions of the unit we will begin to plan for our presentation of our work. Ideally I would like to the students to help choose a place within the community that would be willing to display our work, where we could present some of the project (the group map of the neighborhood for example) as a gift. I think that to celebrate the community we need to work within it. However, a significant place in the surrounding city would be suitable if we were to display our work in more than one venue. I want the students to participate in the process of organizing and executing the presentation as much as possible so that they feel as if it is their creation and can truly celebrate their hard work. The students can decide how they would like to present, who will be invited, and how they will be invited and what the presentation should include. This is another area of the unit where parent participation will be extremely helpful, as parents can guide students in their decisions, assist with the execution of the presentation, support them during the process. There are a number of ways in which this type of activity can be successful. Unfortunately it is hard to plan beforehand, as location, timing, and who is involved is so specific to each teachers and communities resources and accessibilities. There is a list of ideas of possible venues, and presentations that would be appropriate culminating activities for this type of unit in the appendix section of this unit. As a teacher, the venue that I end up picking will be most appropriate if it is very accessible to students and parents, the outside organizations are enthusiastic and helpful, and it is somewhere the students feel comfortable and can feel that they are an important part of the community. If a venue is missing any of these elements, the experience may be more difficult than it is worth, and I would encourage looking for one that has at least most of the criteria listed above.
I hope that this culmination of the unit will allow students to feel pride in sharing a project they worked hard on. I also hope that it will give them a sense of their potential to be an important member within their community, and how they can bring positive elements into their neighborhood. I also hope that it gives other members of the community a chance to know them and see their capabilities and potential. Seeing the final products of the students poems and maps will not only allow the adults involved to see the possibility in the students, but also to see how the children perceive the neighborhood, and perhaps get a new perspective on it themselves.
