From Field
to Classroom:
Poetry, Illustration
& Deep Observation
Project Design Lab / June 23-27
Burlington, Vermont
Lichen Landscapes, by Rachel Sargent Mirus
How Can Studying the Natural World Spark Poetry That Cultivates Care, Wonder, and Action?
Let’s investigate how poetry might help save the world in the face of climate change. What happens when we speak for plants, animals, and the land itself?
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How do the poets do it?
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Considering some literary field guides, we will dive into contemporary poetry of the natural world and explore how deep observation can lead our students to write meaningful, impactful poetry.
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Through practicing and strengthening our powers of observation, through drawing, research, and experimentation with language, we will write our own poems—and build a customized project plan for your students to write poetry that amplifies their voice and climate activism.
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Who Should Attend?
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6-12 classroom teachers
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Of particular interest to English, Social Studies, Science, and Art teachers
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Individuals or teams
Guiding Questions
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What does it mean to look deeply at something–explore it, write about it, advocate for it?
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How do we see the ordinary with fresh eyes?
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How can we lead our students to use deep observation to inspire their writing?
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How can drawing help us observe the natural world more deeply and write differently?
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How can poetry help us to know the natural world more intimately, so we treasure it more deeply?
What To Expect
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Experiment with new ways of writing poetry.
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Explore how deep observation can inspire more impactful writing.
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Understand how anyone can use drawing to see the natural world more deeply and use this practice to inspire poetry.
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Strengthen your poetry writing and teaching skills with guidance from a classroom English teacher who is also an acclaimed poet.
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Build a project plan that integrates into your curriculum and uses deep observations of the natural world to inspire your students.
Workshop Themes
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How to see differently.
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Field trips to build observation skills and collect material to inspire your writing.
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Drawing For Everyone: how the act of drawing – which everyone can do – can deepen observation and writing skills.
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Moving beyond the five paragraph creative writing model.
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How can poetry and creative writing help us to understand and treasure what's around us so that our activism on behalf of the planet is more impactful.
The Literary Field Guide to the Natural World
Science, English, and Art class students each create different parts of an illustrated field guide. Students research the climate change impact on local ecosystems in their science class, which are used to inspire descriptive poetry by students in English class, and then students in Art class create accompanying illustrations to complete the field guide.
Sample Projects
Fantastic Fractals
Math, English, and Art teachers lead students in an exploration of fractals and how they are useful in modeling structures (such as eroded coastlines) in Math class, creating observational drawings of "nature's geometry" in Art class, and writing fractal-inspired poetry in English class.
Political Cartoons
Social Studies, English, and Art teachers align to create a political cartoon curriculum where Social Studies students learn about the history and future of climate change, English class students study and practice satire and humor as a tool for climate activism, and Art class students make their own climate activism cartoons, which integrate the poetry from the English class.
At the PDL you will design a project to integrate into your curriculum. Here are some examples.
Faculty
Kerrin McCadden (she/her)
Course Leader​​​​
Kerrin is a national award winning author of two books of poetry. She taught English at Montpelier High School for twenty-eight years and now teaches English at The Center for Technology, in Essex, Vermont.
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Rachel Sargent Mirus (she/her)
Workshop Leader
Rachel is a STEAM teaching artist and science writer. Drawing and writing encourage you to slow down and think about small details, like a beetle on a leaf, giving you the time and space to really see and understand. This practice of thoughtful observation is the skill at the heart of Rachel's teaching and artistry.
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Tuition
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$2,000 - Three graduate credits
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$1,790 - Certificate of Participation for 40 hours relicensing credits
$100 later registration fee after May 1.
Tuition includes a private air-conditioned dorm room with a centrally located private bath at the University of Vermont, plus breakfast and lunch. Everyone is on their own for dinner in Burlington. Lodging is optional.
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Attend Solo or as a Team
You can attend solo or with a team from your school or district.
Teams can be composed of any educator – classroom teachers, councilors, paras, special educators, staff, administrators – and can be from the same grades and content areas, or mixed.
Teams may include educators from different schools in the district if you want to design a multi-school project.
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Teaching Artist Residency - OPTIONAL
If you would like information on how to schedule a teaching artist residency to support implementing your project, complete the PDL Questions Form and we'll get right back to you.
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FAQ
Visit the PDL FAQ page for answers to questions about team participation, tuition & fees, lodging & meals, daily schedule, teaching artist selection (optional), and more.
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Project Snapshots
See examples of previous projects created at the Project Design Lab here.
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Questions?
Complete the PDL Questions Form and we'll be back in touch soon.
We invite you to let us know about specific accommodations you may need to participate in the Project Design Lab when completing your Registration Form, and we will make every effort to honor your request.
Accrediting Institution
