Excercise 1 - Direct Experience

Exercise 1:

Grade: Junior Year of High School
Course: Mythology
Lesson Duration: 2 days (1 lecture and 1 activity)
Disciplines Integrated: Reading, Problem Solving, Writing

In the Mythology Class at Buchanan High School, there are many hands on activities. One such activity is entitled Hobo Language. Day 1 consisted of a lecture and classroom discussion regarding homeless people in Chicago, particularly in the 1960s and 1970 (even through today), and the way they communicated with each other. Known to some as graffiti, the homeless of Chicago would draw pictures on walls, lamp posts, etc. letting other homeless people know that this location was a place where food could be found, shelter could be obtained, or a place that was needed to be avoided. Particularly interesting was the discussion in what pictures were drawn to say the different things. Some of the symbols the students could easily figure out, while others were extremely challenging. At the end of the first day we were given additionally information regarding the language and then were required to write out directions for a partner to find something.

The second day was essentially a scavenger hunt created by the teacher. We were required to go through the school following the hobo language in order to find different things. Additionally, we could either “help” or “harm” our classmates, by leaving additional symbols at the different locations in order to give clues or lead the following groups astray.

1. Why do you remember this particular direct experience?

I remember this particular experience because it was first a very interesting discussion about culture and symbols that could be interpreted into a whole new language. Then, after learning this language, we were given the opportunity to go out and actually use it – to try to “speak” the language in a semi-real-world environment. If the topic had just been a lecture and then the class moved on to a new subject, would have made the entire learning experience far less memorable/enjoyable.

2. How could the experience have been better?

The experience could have been better if the class had gone out into the real world and found the symbols in the city. However, Chicago is a distance away and these symbols are not generally found in the safest locations for young people, so I understand why this did not occur.

3. Which learning modalities were embedded in the direct experience? Explain how the various sensory preferences were addressed.

Both the Delivery Mode and Access Mode were utilized in this Mythology Lesson. In particular, the Delivery Mode consisted of the teacher using a formal teacher talk (lecture) to quickly get the necessary history, facts, and basics regarding the hobo language. The lesson was then handed over to students where we were able to use different books to further our knowledge about the hobo language (Access Mode) and through this additional knowledge we were then asked to write out directions for our neighbor to find various things in the school: for example, the bathroom, the cafeteria, the auditorium and the gym. This allowed us to further understand and be able to interpret the language.

Both modes together gave the students the necessary resources to be able to follow a scavenger hunt the following day.

Verbal Experience: The Teacher Lecture
Visual Experience: Still Pictures and diagrams showing the different symbols in the hobo language.
Direct Experience: The students actually went out and used what was learned through a scavenger hunt.

It is my opinion that nearly all of the senses were used within this lesson. Audibly, the students listened to the lecture and visually, the students looked at the symbols. Additionally, the students advanced further visually by looking at more and more symbols in order to further grasp the language. Then, after all this background knowledge had been acquired, the students, through direct experience, had to go out into the world and speak the language. Thus using problem solving skills, interpretation skills, and stepping outside of the comfort of their primary language (English), the students were able to grow academically.