What is the best way to engage students in the museum? Creative writing allows students to use their imaginations and connect with art on their own terms. Instead of educators telling students what to think, it allows students to take ownership of their own interpretation of art.
Creative writing gives access to art for all students. Instead of passively going through an exhibit, creative writing allows students to slow down and make meaning on their own terms.
In my past role as a teaching artist at the Museum of the African Diaspora, I challenged third and fourth grade students to write a narrative to interpret photographs from the Black Vanguard exhibit. The image above inspired many students, one girl in particular of Arabic culture. She said that the picture of the woman in the pink hijab influenced her to share her identity and made her feel beautiful. Read her narrative below:
In order to educate students about the African Diaspora, we must continue to exhibit diverse images of Black people and normalize the Black global experience. Creative writing gives students the power to make human connections and create new meaning from their own perspectives.
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