Talking Walls:

Fitting software into a constructivist model

Jeanne Pfeifer

Susan O’Hara

Talking Wallswww.edmark.com

www.csus.edu/indiv/p/pfeiferj

A treasury of fine lessons on multiculturalism, world issues, and history….a jubilant celebration of diversity in today’s world culture imparting optimism in the human

journey

Talking Walls: Unit Plan

Students read Talking Walls and Talking Walls: The Stories Continue in teams, choose stories

Explore software appropriate to the stories Each team will devise symbols related to their stories and enter

symbol on a classroom world map and timeline Students categorize stories in different ways and begin to focus

on differences and similarities across cultural perspectives Communicate with students in other parts of the world to ask

about walls in their community Students explore the meanings of customs, traditions, and

values Students go out into their own community to find and take

pictures of walls (digital or scan) Students build a web based wall of their community

What Walls? Talking Walls:•Great Wall of China•Aborigine Paintings•Lascaux Cave Paintings•Wailing Wall (Jerusalem)•Mahabalipuram’s Cliff carvings (India)•Decorated walls of Ka’aba (Mecca)•Green Granite Walls (Zimbabwe)

•Cuzco Wall (Peru)•Taos Pueblo•Diego Rivera Murals•Limestone Walls of Canadian Museum of Civilization•Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall •Nelson Mandela’s Prison Walls•Berlin Wall

Talking Walls: The Stories Continue

•Peace Wall, Moscow•Walled City, Morocco•Prayer wheel Walls (Tibet and India)•Wat Po Temple (Thailand)•Divali Wall paintings (India)•Dog Wall (Tokyo)•Peace lines (Belfast)•Pable Neruda’s Fence (Chile)

•Friendship, Maine•Murals at Bonampak (Mexico)•Hadrian’s Wall (G.B.)•Wall of Remembrance (Holocaust)•Ndebele (South Africa)•Levee Wall (Mississippi)•Chinese Immigrant Wall (Angel Island)•Anti-Graffiti Network (Philadelphia)

Classroom Map of the WorldStudents will create symbols representing the Talking Walls and place them appropriately on the world map

Categorize different “walls”: (time)

15000BC 2001

Cuzco PeruLascaux

Nelson MandelaGreat Wall

1AD 1400

Wailing Wall

Mahabalipuram’sWall

Peace Wall

Berlin Wall

961 BC

Hadrian’s Wall

138 AD

CP

Holocaust Wall

Other Ways of Categorizing Cultural Identity

– Cuzco Wall– Ndebele Wall

Political– Nelson Mandela– Peace Wall– Berlin Wall– Holocaust Wall

Religious– Cuzco Wall– Peace Wall

Artistic Story Telling Inside Out

– Nelson Mandela– Cuzco Wall– Peace Wall

Educational

Other Categories?

Cultural PerspectivesStudents will examine both the timeline and

categories What are the cultural perspectives embedded in the

various walls? What specific values do these seem to represent? What are some of the positive and negative impacts

of the manifestation of these values? What seem to be some lasting/common values across

cultures? Are there specific values represented during different

time periods? What is fascinating about differences in cultures? How can we value and respect multiple perspectives

and learn from them?

Walls Around the World

Using email students will communicate with other children around the world

They will describe what they have been exploring with Talking Walls

Students will ask: – What walls are important in your community? – Will you send a description and some pictures or drawings of

these walls? Students will make symbols for new walls and add to

classroom World Map

What Purposes do Customs and Traditions Serve any Culture?

How do customs and traditions differ from routines?– Name a routine that you have– Describe traditions from your culture– Describe customs from your culture– Have any of these changed over time and why?

What types of customs and traditions from your culture did you see in any of the stories?

How are customs and traditions passed down from generation to generation?

How do customs and traditions reflect the values people hold?

Our Community Wall

Students will explore and photograph walls in their own community and/or school

Students will scan pictures or use digital cameras Students will build a virtual, hyperlinked wall, which tells

the story of their own community Students will present their personal Talking Walls in a

multimedia presentation.

Topics for Discussion

What kinds of Talking Walls do you think students might focus on?

What components of this unit infused the technology into a constructivist learning environment?

What other ideas do you have for using software in a constructivist way?

Can all software be adapted for use in constructivist learning environments?

Talking Wallswww.edmark.com

www.csus.edu/indiv/p/pfeiferj

A treasury of fine lessons on multiculturalism, world issues, and history….a jubilant celebration of diversity in today’s world culture imparting optimism in the human

journey