Multi-genre Projects & Understanding Teaching for Social Justice

B.B. was asked to focus her multi-genre project on teaching for social justice. She created a hand-painted booklet filled with original writing and quotes from well-known figures.

 

 

 

 

 

Changing the World: A Multi-genre Paper about Teaching for Social Justice by B.B.

Teaching Empathy

Please take a look at JM's multi-genre project by visiting her webpage.

BH's Multigenre Paper

B. H., A creative Approach to Tuck Everlasting

The project is based on the man in the yellow suit.
B asks, What if he didn’t die?
She named him Steel Spring.

The genres: 
Wanted Ad searching for the music box

Business card for the man in the yellow suit.
B says he opened a business called Perpetual Springs.

Bottled water (She did research on when people actually started bottling water.)

Angus Tuck sent the man in the yellow suit a birthday card and a present, trying to convince him not to drink or sell the water.

B says Tuck gives a rock to symbolize the man's life never moving or changing.

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LB's Multigenre Project

L.B. focused on Toning the Sweep.

L says she put things Emily collects while she is on the last visit to Ola in California in a yellow hatbox.

                   Genres in the hatbox:

Obituary

Acrostic poem with Ola’s name

Brochure about Little Rock, CA (She had to do research to come up with the brochure.)

Picture of a Joshua Tree

Note from Ola

Flyer about a Supremes concert (L did research and found the price of concert tickets)

Recipe book of southern yellow foods (Symbolism of yellow in the novel.)

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JB's Multigenre Project

J. B. chose to do her multigenre project on Angela Johnson’s Toning the Sweep.

J chose to create a memory box, something Emily might have maintained for herself.

J.D.'s Genres:

Map of park

Diary

Found poems

Legend of the Joshua Tree

Map of Joshua Tree National Park in California

Montage picture of the grief that controls Emily’s family

Invitation to the party for Ola

Ola's will

Montage of Grief

Found Poem

JD's Multigenre Project

J. D. Tuck Everlasting—perspective of the toad

Genres:

Song, “Toad Song” use the tune of Yankee Doodle

Poem, “Toad’s Lament”

Interview with the toad

Warning Sign the toad might put up by the water.

Created a journal based on the appearances of the toad throughout the story

KW's Multigenre Paper

K.W. did her project on Esperanza Rising.

In her preface, K says she chose to focus on memories and set her project eight years into the future to Esperanza and Miguel's daughter's first birthday.

Genres:

Letter

Recipe for tea

Directions to crochet (plus yarn)

Words of wisdom from grandma

Flashcards to learn English                                     

M's Multigenre Project

M  based her project on Esperanza Rising.

The genres focused on the theme of hope in the year of Esperanza’s life.

 Genres include:

A diary (with pictures from the time period)

“I” poem

Recipe box for her family based on the fruits/vegetables mentioned in the book

Map of Esperanza’s journey

An afghan, fruits, and vegetables line the basket

PH's Multigenre Project

P. H. wrote about Toning the Sweep.

Messages from heaven is the theme. The messages in the box are to Emily. She is to read them at significant moments in her life. Here's P's preface:

Imagine living with the fact that your husband has been murdered.  You will never see him again and now you have been left with the daunting task of raising a child on your own.  For some, this would be a pain too hard to bear.  This was certainly the case for Ola.  For that reason, she ran.  She ran far away from the life she knew to one that would help her forget; one that would ease the pain of her terrible loss.  Her daughter, however, wanted to be close to the things that reminded her of her father.  

 She did not want to be torn away to a strange place to live.  For Ola, this was the only way to survive.  She didn’t realize, though, that she was also losing a part of her daughter in the process.  Now she is facing her own death because she has been diagnosed with an incurable cancer.  Her granddaughter, Emily, helps her see that she should die the way she lived.  Ola should embrace her family and friends, enjoy the little things in life, and stop running.

“Messages from Heaven” is in response to Toning the Sweep by Angela Johnson.  The messages have been placed in a beautifully decorated mailbox which Ola is leaving to her granddaughter, Emily, upon her death.   Ola has written specific directions, in a letter to Emily, to open these messages when special occasions arise in her life.   Ola wants Emily to know that she is with her in spirit even if she cannot be there physically after her passing.  In addition to the letter, other genres include a will, a poem, a lullaby, and the song “Tears in Heaven.”

The Last Will and Testament contains provisions for Ola’s worldly goods to be distributed among her heirs, namely her daughter and granddaughter. This includes Ola’s prized-possession, the one which represents freedom, the old Buick!

 Ola has also written a poem for Emily on her wedding day.  She hopes Emily can carry it with her as she walks down the aisle and takes her vows, perhaps in her Bible.  It represents something old, because it was written long before the special occasion, something new, because it contains wishes for a new, wonderful life with her husband, something borrowed, because it was written on paper she took from her own wedding album, and something blue, because the blue ribbon attached to it is one that Emily wore in her hair as a young girl. 

  The lullaby was written for Emily to sing to her first-born child.  Hopefully the newborn will hear her great grandmother’s voice as Emily sings the lullaby, feels the warmth of her skin against her cheek, and rocks her back and forth…..the things Ola longed to do with Emily. 

 

            The song, "Tears in Heaven," is for Emily to listen to when she suffers a loss.  Hopefully it will bring her strength; the strength that Ola did not possess when her husband passed; the strength she will need to carry on, until one day she is able to reunite with her grandmother and meet the grandfather she never knew in heaven.

What's in the mailbox?

Ola’s Will (Filled with instructions to Emily.)

A Letter

Wedding Day Wishes (poem )

Lullaby (to the tune of “Hush Little Baby”) 














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KH's Multigenre Project

K.H. created her project  about Tuck Everlasting.

K says it is a family history book from Winnie’s perspective.



The history book has the following in it:

Family tree

Wedding Invitation

Tombstone                                                                                      

Letter to family

Pictures from the movie

2 Letters to Jesse

CJ's Multigenre Project

C.J. focused on Tuck Everlasting.

C's Genres:
 
A Song to the tune of "Amazing Grace"

Acrostic Poem

Letter to Jesse

                      Series of pictures, including some  from the movie

Multi-genre Projects (MGP) Spring 2011

K.L. decided that all of her genres for Toning the Sweep would be placed in

a care package that Emily would send to David Twostar.

The envelope had actual CA addresses and stamps and it was filled with a postcard to Martha from Ola, a CD with an original song K.L. wrote and sang with her daughter, and a letter. And, yes, she put it all in a mailbox.

Multi-genre Projects (MGP) Spring 2011

 
 
 
 
 



P.S. decided that since Ola was dying in Toning the Sweep, she’d probably create a bucket list. She’d travel back to Alabama and plant a Joshua tree. P.S. included a poem, menu, trowel, map, and other genres.
 
 

Multi-genre Projects (MGP) Spring 2011

*L.C. used a family vessel to house items relevant to the family in Toning the Sweep: Newspaper article, letter, mother’s day cards, and more genres.

There’s a map in the container because Ola travels from Alabama to Littlerock, CA. Diane takes the carving her father created with her.

  

*When I use initials, I am trying to protect a person's identity for privacy purposes.

Multi-genre Projects (MGP) Spring 2010 2

As I wrote last semester, I learned how to do MGPs by reading Tom Romano's books.

J. J. also focused on Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt. Her project was presented in a booklet. She had several genres that worked well with the themes in the book, but here I am sharing her monologue.

J.G. chose Toning the Sweep by Angela Johnson. Of course I was happy about this because I focused on this book when I wrote my dissertation, and I wrote a book about the author, Angela Johnson: Poetic Prose. Besides, I believe it is beautifully written. Her project was presented as a scrapbook. She included song lyrics and different types of poetry. Here is a photo of her yellow collage. Yellow was a prominent symbol in the book.