Field Notes: Educating for Change

Our Latest Featured Teacher & Featured Student

Fri, 29 Mar 2024 17:34:25 GMT

A Teacher's Perspective & What One Student Thinks

We’re delighted to have a teacher and student share their perspectives about the importance of creativity in the classroom and the benefits of engaging in #CreateConnectCare.

A Teacher’s Perspective: National Board Certified Teacher Carrie Renfro Discusses the Benefits of Creative Action in the Classroom

"I teach Career & Technology courses in the Family & Consumer Sciences pathways for Human Services, Hospitality & Tourism, and Health Sciences at John Marshall Enterprise High School to 9-12th grade students.

I love creating using traditional and nontraditional mediums. Art is an outlet for expression, healing, voice, and purpose. In my previous career as a chef, I filled the need to create and express myself using food as art. As a teacher, I dig into my entrepreneurial creativity through purposeful lesson planning that includes creation as an authentic assessment. #CreateConnectCare appeals to me because it empowers my students to locate and then use their voices. I love that this opportunity inspires me to reach into my creative pool and is a door to a global audience for my students.

#CreateConnectCare provides time for self-expression that can be easily integrated into an academic assessment as well. It benefits teachers by giving them a window and insight into student thoughts and understanding. If we have a digital assignment, I always invite students to add digital art to their discussion submissions to support their thoughts. I often find more value in their creative expressions than their scholastic writing. Words can be copied, but creativity tends to reflect the true nature of my students. I notice that many students are most thoughtful and reflective during the process of creative expression. Selfishly, it brings me joy to watch them create.

While participating in CreateConnectCare. I discovered my students were unfamiliar with haiku, and counting syllables was difficult for many students. I provided students with an emotional wheel to look for words connected to their core feelings that they might be able to use as an anchor for their deeper thoughts. It proved to be very enlightening for me and my students. They had a lot more to say than they realized, and they really needed to have that outlet to express their inner thoughts. My students also responded to a CV Changemakers ’ creative call to action for mental health-related memes. I learned where their technology gaps were in creating digital art and provided additional technological guidance. Some students who tend to be less vocal could share some deep thoughts through their images. This creative approach allowed them to share their stories. I think when students are in the middle of the swamp, it is hard to be funny. Attempting to reframe negative experiences with humor was a low-risk way to help students express themselves.

I believe it is vital to provide time for students to express themselves in an artistic way during any class, and I strongly encourage teachers to incorporate #CreateConnectCare into their lesson plans. There are some excellent resources for students and educators on the #CreateConnectCare site with tangible ideas for how to get students engaged."

What Does One Student Think? High School Junior Sophia Shares Her Perspective About Creative Action and #CreateConnectCare in the Classroom.

"Participating in CreateConnectCare as a student taught me the transformative power of creativity, connection, and compassion in promoting mental health awareness. Through sharing stories and experiences, I learned that creative expression breaks down barriers, reduces stigma, and fosters understanding and support within our community. This initiative reinforced the importance of solidarity and using our voices to advocate for mental wellness. #CreateConnectCare inspires me to continue making a positive impact.

I believe students should participate in CreateConnectCare because we can contribute to breaking down the stigma surrounding mental health while also gaining valuable insights into our own emotions and experiences. Additionally, #CreateConnectCare offers an opportunity to connect with peers who may share similar struggles. It’s so important to build a supportive network and nurture empathy for ourselves and our peers. By joining this initiative, students can only make a positive impact and become advocates for mental wellness, contributing to a more compassionate and understanding school environment.

As a student, I've found that being creative to promote mental well-being has significantly improved my mood. Engaging in activities like #CreateConnectCare has given me a constructive outlet to express my thoughts and emotions, providing clarity and solace during challenging times. Witnessing the positive impact of my creativity within our community has been incredibly fulfilling and has boosted my sense of purpose and happiness. I encourage other youth to give it a try because creativity has the power to uplift, inspire, and heal. #CreateConnectCare helped make our classroom a safe space for self-expression and connection with others."

Building a Sustainable Future: Teachers on the Art of Real-World Instruction

Wed, 24 Jan 2024 22:47:18 GMT

Building a Sustainable Future: Teachers on the Art of Real-World Instruction

A Word from Jess Burnquist, VP of Impact Education

On International Day of Education , the world celebrates the transformative power of learning. This year, we turn our spotlight to teachers, the architects of inclusive and equitable classrooms that empower students to thrive in the present and become responsible global citizens prepared for the future.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development recognizes education as the cornerstone for achieving all 17 goals. Sustainable Development Goal 4 aims to ensure "inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all."

But how do we translate this global ambition into real-world action within the walls of our classrooms?

Join the Conversation!

We invite teachers across the nation to share their experiences and insights using the form located on the right:

How are you fostering inclusivity and equity in your classroom? Share your innovative approaches to ensure students feel seen, heard, and empowered to learn.
What skills are you most passionate about equipping your students with? What qualities and competencies will enable them to adapt and thrive in a world of constant change?
Does creativity play a role in your teaching methods? How are you harnessing the power of imagination and self-expression to unlock understanding and engagement?

Empowering Young Changemakers

Discover our CV Changemakers Lessons , a collection of free, downloadable, and standards-aligned resources designed to engage students in real-world issues and inspire them to become active changemakers. Explore these easy-to-follow activities and ignite creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking in your classroom.

Together, let's celebrate the vital role of teachers in building a more sustainable future, one inclusive and equitable classroom at a time. Share your stories, ideas, and inspirations to spark conversation and connection about the future of education!

Make sure to sign up for updates regarding our programming and educator opportunities.

Jess Burnquist, VP of Impact Education

Giving, Thanking, and Storytelling

Fri, 15 Dec 2023 09:42:06 GMT

Giving, Thanking, and Storytelling

A Word from Miriam Scott, Director of Impact Education

Here's My Story:

I live in a small house with a very large olive tree that bears an abundance of fruit every two years. As I am not a skilled harvester of olives or any other fruit, I have never successfully collected the olives and brined them. Instead, I find myself sweeping up the green and black baubles by the hundreds and depositing them into the garden waste bin every few days. I grumble about the mess as I go about that chore. The olives, if not picked at the right time, become the homes of tiny worms that burrow into the fruit and grow there until they transform into fruit flies. It’s a nasty business, really, except for one thing: The worms attract a multitude of birds to the tree. They descend in droves onto the full branches to eat the precious delicacy buried deep in the flesh of the olives. And so when I look out my office window, I see the continual flurry of colorful activity: yellow-rumped warblers, red-breasted robins, and white-crowned sparrows. To them, the old olive tree isn’t a mess maker but rather a tasty buffet of rare treats filling their colorful bellies. And in those moments, as I watch them, I become grateful for that messy old tree, that giver of life.

And that, to me, seems fitting this time of year when we talk about giving and gratitude. According to every advertisement I see on TV right now, we are supposed to be uniting with lots of loved ones, eating lots of food, drinking lots of drinks, and giving lots and lots of presents to each other. Give from your heart, give from your pocketbook; all this is founded in a deep sense of tradition and perhaps obligation for some.

But what if not all gifts can be bought in shops? What about gifts that come from a deeper place? One of my favorite gifts, for example, is that of storytelling. A very smart young woman I met a few weeks ago told me that “stories are data with soul.” They deliver all the information needed to understand an idea, but they do it with feeling. That sense of feeling is so powerful in stories that it compels us to make change within our communities and within ourselves. Stories are the constant in all of humanity’s existence that have propelled us forward while connecting us. They are the foundation upon which Creative Visions was established and remain the inherent element at the center of our work. As a member of the Impact Education team at Creative Visions, I have the pleasure of experiencing the power of stories as they are told by youth from all over the world, whether through our Creative Changemakers curriculum or through our mental health campaign . I see young faces light up and lives transformed as students share and listen to each others’ stories. It’s holiday magic all year long.

What’s Your Story?

So, think about this as you slot branches of the artificial tree into place, unwrap colorful trinkets from dilapidated cardboard boxes, pull turkey platters from the back recesses of the kitchen cupboards, or get ready to light candles to cast out the darkness: What’s your story? How will you share it? Will you write it down? Paint it? Film it? Dance it out?

I am not going to tell you what you should be grateful for, but I do hope that every single person reading this blog is given the space and time this month to share their story, feel the warmth of connection, and give a small part of themselves to those they cherish.

Miriam Scott, Director of Impact Education

Learn more at: https://www.createconnectcare.org/

#CreateConnectCare

Wed, 06 Dec 2023 17:51:39 GMT

#CreateConnectCare

A Youth Mental Health & Well-Being Initiative

It's a Complex Issue

According to a large multi-year study conducted by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health from 2016 - 2019, “21.8 percent of U.S. children ages 3 to 17 have one or more of the common mental, emotional, and behavioral health conditions… .” These commonly diagnosed conditions vary and include anxiety, OCD, ADHD, and depression.

Beyond the diagnosable conditions, many more kids are struggling to manage “healthy emotions” in a very demanding and ever-changing world, which can be overwhelming for the best of us. The onslaught of messages via social media, for example, can lead youths to cycle through ten different emotions in one scroll of their feed. Add the stress of academic pressures. Economic demands. Climate change. Interpersonal relationships with friends and family. A world at war. It’s a lot! As an educator and a parent, I’ve asked myself numerous times, how are kids supposed to weather all of this?

I haven’t found an answer. I am not a mental health expert. I do know that mental health and well-being are complex because human emotions are complex, even at the best of times. Every single one of us is an amalgamation of joy, fear, sadness, anger, love, etc. We cycle through emotions at mind-blowing speeds and are capable of feeling any one emotion at any given time in conjunction with any other emotion(s). We carry our feelings with us through the years as we are marked by past experiences or triggered by singular events. These invisible etchings begin before we are even born into this world. When my 9-year-old brings me one of his drawings, I am overwhelmed by joy and love while at the same time feeling annoyed by the lack of time I have to spend with him and the stress of balancing a professional and personal existence.

#CreateConnectCare

In response to all the complexity of emotions experienced by our youth, Creative Visions launched the first phase of a youth mental health initiative. We are calling it #CreateConnectCare because it seems like those three words are intrinsically linked together. Invariably, artists create to connect with others; through that connection, people are compelled to care for one another. It’s a simple and beautiful formula, and we hope young people in all communities will latch onto it by submitting their creative responses to questions such as “What does mental well-being mean to you?”

This morning, I sifted through the current submissions for the CreateConnectCare initiative. I was stunned, moved, and warmed by what I saw. The work ranged from a simple but poignant line drawing of a young boy “leaving the bad behind” to a song by a teenage girl explaining that she was just “tired.” A young rapper chronicled the deaths from gun violence in his neighborhood, while another student chose to illustrate the uniting of hands to show that “we can accomplish anything with our own two hands.” As I scrolled through the manifold submissions, one thing became clear: through their acts of creation, these kids are showing us what they feel, how they feel, and why they feel. They are connecting with us, the grown-ups in the room who talk about them incessantly, often without even listening. These kids are not just joining our initiative but leading the conversation about an issue that touches them all in one way or another. They are also connecting to each other, finding one another, and learning that they are not alone. And in that moment, as I was sifting through the submissions, I felt the loveliest pang of hope and purpose. #CreateConnectCare is accomplishing precisely what it set out to do.

If you are between 11 and 18, please join #CreateConnectCare. If someone in your life falls into that age group, encourage them to join our initiative with their creative response. Submissions for phase one will be accepted through December 15th, 2023.

Miriam Scott, Director of Impact Education

Learn more at: https://www.createconnectcare.org/

* Citation

Meet Devin Saragosa-Harris of Directing Change

Tue, 21 Nov 2023 06:17:24 GMT

Voices from the Field:

Inspiration from Others in Changemaking Spaces

The Impact Education team at Creative Visions is excited to collaborate with Directing Change, one of our activation partners for #CreateConnectCare , our youth mental health initiative.

Directing Change is a California-based program that supports statewide efforts to prevent suicide, reduce stigma and discrimination related to mental illness, and promote students' mental health and wellness.

Recently, we spent time with Devin Saragosa-Harris, the Senior Program Manager at Directing Change, and her work knocks us out. We know you’lll be inspired by her, too.

Meet Devin Saragosa-Harris of Directing Change

"Hello! I am a senior program manager with Directing Change and have been part of the organization for five years. I lead our statewide mini-grant program, which provides funding to schools and community-based organizations to help with both the program's implementation and dissemination of these youth-produced films at local events. I also manage operations around our annual statewide film contest and evaluation efforts.

I got involved because I wanted to work upstream to prevent mental health challenges from developing and to encourage youth not to wait so long to get help, which is a major focus of Directing Change’s programming. I strongly believe in Directing Change’s mission of empowering youth to share their experiences and perspectives around mental health and suicide prevention; by giving young people a way to express themselves on these topics, we give them space to both learn about mental health and to teach others in a way that is authentic and powerful.

California youth, teachers, and any schools or organizations that work with young people are welcome to participate in our free program – learn more and access our resources on our website: https://directingchangeca.org/ . If you are interested in helping us review and score the films we receive from youth, we are always recruiting judges. Judging is done completely online and takes about two hours each spring. You can sign up to be a judge here: https://directingchangeca.org/judging-application/ ."

You Have Arrived!

Tue, 14 Nov 2023 19:56:37 GMT

You Have Arrived!

A Note from Jess Burnquist, VP of Impact Education

Welcome to CV Changemakers. Perhaps you’re a teacher or youth leader. Maybe you are working at a like-minded organization or searching for meaningful enrichment for the youth in your life. No matter how you find your way here, there is something to be gained by showing up. I know this firsthand.

A little over seven years ago, I taught English at a high school in an unincorporated town outside the Phoenix metro area. My students were, like many, unlimited in their potential but performing below their ability. I noticed how siloed they were from one another and the world around them. Over the winter break, I discovered the Creative Visions curriculum, formerly known by a different name but with the heart of our CV Changemakers lessons front and center. I used the lessons with my students, and the effects were profound.

Why?

The learning was student-led and relevant. Students were tasked with becoming storytellers for change and to be heard beyond the four walls of our classroom. I’ll never forget the students who presented a film about the adolescent brain’s need for later school start times to the school board. They were successful, but they also began to relate to one another with more generosity of spirit and empathy.

As my students became unified around an issue and utilized their individual talents to illuminate others about their cause, something shifted their perspectives of one another and their own ability for the better. Their writing improved. Their research skills improved. Their speaking and listening skills improved. Their sense of where and how they belong in the world improved. Most noticeably, their overall desire to learn improved.

After using this approach, I reached out to Creative Visions to speak with and thank the originators of the changemaking curriculum, and the rest, as the saying goes, is history. It is an honor to lead the Impact Education department and link arms with others who believe in the power of meaningful education.

We invite you to explore our site. Check out the lessons and resources , and spend time with our newly featured projects section, which amplifies creative responses from youth about the pressing issues of their lives. We will continue to share opportunities to connect with one another, tricks of the changemaking trade, and respond to current events with meaningful resources. One such opportunity is #CreateConnectCare , our youth mental health initiative that calls for youth ages 11-18 to submit their creative expressions regarding their experiences with mental well-being.

I still vividly recall how connected and supported I felt after using the educational resources and spending time with the team at Creative Visions. You’re here now, too. Welcome– you’ve found your people.

Jess Burnquist VP, Impact Education

Be sure to reach out with any questions, submit your student’s work, and bookmark this space to hear from other teachers and partners in the field of changemaking.