Classroom Activities
Guided Three-Read Close Reading using Turner’s Slave Ship
Using the three-read close reading technique, I will use this painting to introduce the difficult subject of the horrors of the slave trade while also teaching students the skill of close reading a work of visual art. On their first “read” of the text (Allow students to view for thirty seconds.), students might notice the violent ocean waves, the dark storm clouds in the sky, the vibrant reds, oranges and gold of the sunset, the ship sailing away, the contrast of the sky’s colors on the left and right sides of the painting. After this read, ask students what they think the painting is “about”? What is its subject? What emotions does the painter want viewers to feel when viewing this painting? (Consider withholding the title of this painting until students’ second read—until after they start to notice the people in the ocean.) Then, for the second read, display the painting for another thirty seconds. Ask students to identify what else they notice about the painting. They might elaborate on what they noticed in the first read or observe new details. Once students notice the people drowning in the water, present Turner’s title. Now return to the questions discussed after the first read. How have students’ answers changed? Next, for the third read, display the image again. This time guide students in considering how Turner’s purpose and technique align, using this question: What is Turner’s purpose in creating this work, and how do his choices and visual techniques help achieve that purpose? Consider using the write-pair-share method to allow students time to process and support their thinking before bringing it to the whole class space.
Racism, Migration North, and Pittsburgh Gallery Walk
Post the images under the section titled Racism, Migration North, and Pittsburgh around the classroom. Travelling in small groups, students should walk around the room to examine each image. Encourage them to talk to each other about what images are most interesting, their reactions to the different images, etc. Then, each group should select one image from each category (racist propaganda images, photographs of Pittsburgh, and Romare Bearden collages) and complete Three-Column Analysis Notes for each of those three images. Groups will need to rotate among the various images. Allow twenty minutes or so for students to complete this activity. In the whole-class discussion space, groups will explain their observations about each image. Use questioning and guidance as necessary to correct any misunderstandings or fill in any major oversights. Then, each group will select one image and use the Values, Identities, and Actions (VIA) thinking routine from Harvard’s Project Zero to explore the civic implications of the image’s messaging42. Work with the class to ensure that most of the images are represented within the groups’ conversations. Students should record their answers to the VIA questions in their notebooks and prepare themselves to explain their thinking to the class. Allow groups five to ten minutes to discuss and record their answers. Then, groups will explain their VIA thinking about their selected image in the whole-class space. Debrief the activity with the following question, which students should answer individually on an exit slip: Based on today’s discussion, what do you think would be the biggest challenges for African Americans living in Pittsburgh in 1904? Support your answer with details from at least two of the images we discussed.
Best Representation of Black Mary
Engage students in this activity after they have read Act I, Scene 4. In groups of two to three, students should examine the four images under the section titled Black Mary: The Protégé (Representation of African American Women). Give each group color copies of the images or links to view the images on their computers. Students should take Three-Column Analysis Notes in their notebooks and discuss the images with each other as they take notes. A brief explanation with artist biographical information and a little bit of contextual information for each image might help students get started with their observations. After students have had 10-15 minutes to take notes on the images, discuss students’ observations in the whole-class space to clarify any misunderstandings and assess their understanding of the purpose and themes of each work. Students should add notes from the whole-class conversation to their individual observation notes. Then, working individually, students should select the one image they believe to be the best representation of the character Black Mary. To justify their response and demonstrate their understanding of the image and Wilson’s characterization of Black Mary, students will write a paragraph answering this question: What image is the best representation of Black Mary? Justify your answer with analysis of evidence from the image you selected and Gem of the Ocean.
Culminating Assessment: Representing African Diaspora Museum Exhibit
To demonstrate their understanding of this unit’s topics and their skills in analyzing literature and art, students will create a museum exhibit entry that pairs a passage from Gem of the Ocean with a selected work of visual art. The passages and images students select should both speak to the unit’s guiding question: How can representation of African diaspora history and culture enslave people, empower people, or overcome the past? The passages and images could relate to each other in a variety of ways--complementing, challenging, exemplifying, opposing, etc. Each exhibit entry display will include the selected passage with one to two paragraphs analyzing how that passage responds to the guiding question, the selected image with one to two paragraphs analyzing how the image responds to the guiding question, and one to two paragraphs explaining how the literary passage and the image interact with one another. Students will create a museum exhibit with each of their displays and will explain their pairings to exhibit visitors. This assessment will challenge students to find overlapping themes and perspectives in multiple works of art, communicate close analysis of both visual and literary text in writing, and practicing analytical writing skills, such as developing strong controlling main ideas and embedding quoted evidence to support analysis.
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