COMMUNITY ACTION INQUIRY
Exploring Creative Responses
DAY 1 ACTIVITY
15-20 Minutes
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Look at photographs to see what some people are doing to encourage their community
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Explore challenges faced by your community
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Think about how your special skills and talents could help your community
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Paper or notebook
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Pencil, pen, or other writing tool
THIS WEEK
We’re thinking about
the question:
“How can we support and encourage our community during difficult times?”
Your challenge this week is to design and perform an “Uplifting Action” to support and encourage your community.
Let's Get Started!
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Look at this picture of someone’s front door.
Ask yourself:
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How can art help us encourage others and help them feel hopeful?
encourage:
to give someone support, to help them feel hopeful
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In this moment, people are staying apart to be healthy. When people do this, it is called social distancing.
In many places, schools and businesses are closed.
People are separated but are finding new ways to connect with others.
social distancing:
staying a safe distance from other people (except people in your home) and not getting together with large groups of people
All over the world, people are finding ways to encourage and uplift their communities.
uplift:
to bring joy and happiness
Look below to learn about some fun and safe ways that people are encouraging and uplifting their communities. Ask yourself:
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How are people connecting even though they can't meet face-to-face?
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What do these different actions have in common?
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People find ways to see and talk to friends and family even though they can’t meet face-to-face.
In this picture, music students stay connected by doing what they love – playing music and singing together – but this time through a video call. They hope that their beautiful music will uplift others.
People around the world are singing and playing instruments from their windows or balconies.
In this video, neighbors in Germany stay connected and bring joy to each other by singing and playing instruments on their balconies.
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Many people want to share what they love to do with people who are at home.
This picture shows a message from LeVar Burton, star of the TV show Reading Rainbow. He wants to help people by doing what he loves, which is reading stories! He is so happy to bring stories to both children and adults.
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Many schools and community centers are working hard to give lunches to students while they are not at school.
In this picture, adults who work at the school put nice notes inside lunch bags to encourage and uplift students.
In each of the pictures and videos above, people are sharing what they love to encourage and uplift others.
Your challenge this week is to create your own “Uplifting Action” to support, encourage, and bring joy to others. Today, you will brainstorm ideas!
Brainstorm your passions, needs, and limits on a piece of paper (or use the “Brainstorm” handout if you like):
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PASSIONS
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What do you love to do? Do you enjoy music, art, being funny, or poetry? Or do you have a different passion?
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Write down 3 passions that you have.
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NEEDS:
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What do you think others need right now? Do you think people need love, humor, exercise, fun? What else?
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Write down 3 needs that your community has.
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LIMITS:
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You will need to work within your limits. Think about what you can do right now:
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Places: Right now, I can go…
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Materials: Right now, I have…
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