Part Two: Activities

In chapters seven through eleven, the activities are designed to help students take what they’ve learned in this chapter, combine it with the knowledge they acquired across the first five chapters, and apply the lessons to their final project. As always, you can decide which (and how many) activities you’d like students to complete.

Be Constructive: 

Summary: In this activity, students will learn techniques to help them be better, more thoughtful critics.

Objective: The objective of this activity is to help students develop tools that will help them deliver and receive constructive feedback.

Skills:

• Communication
• Critical thinking
• Collaboration
• Critiquing
• Peer review

Instructions:

1. Begin by asking students if they have ever received a critique – or given one – and have them share their experiences.
2. Introduce the definition of a critique and explain its value in providing constructive feedback.
3. Encourage students to explore the linked resources to find examples of useful critiques.
4. Discuss how to deliver constructive feedback using the associated prompts, such as being specific, starting with a positive aspect of the work, and never making a critique personal.
5. Show students examples of good and bad feedback, asking them to identify what makes each example constructive or unhelpful.
6. Explain the importance of being receptive to feedback.
7. Discuss how to receive constructive feedback using the associated prompts, such as being openminded, listening carefully to the reasoning of the reviewer, and never taking it personally.
8. Wrap-up the activity by having students re-cap what techniques they think work the best.

Assessment: Students can be assessed based on the class discussion. Did they clearly articulate their thoughts and opinions? Did they listen actively to others? Did they ask questions to clarify their understanding?

Critique:

Summary: In this activity, students will apply and test their critiquing skills.

Objective: By the end of this activity, students will be able to critically and constructively analyze popular visual stories and identify the factors that led to their success or failure. Students will also learn how to measure the success of an idea.

Skills:

• Critical thinking
• Research
• Problem solving
• Creativity
• Communication
• Collaboration

Instructions:

1. Instruct students to find two visual stories that relate to their final project and ask them to describe, analyze, interpret and evaluate each work, using the guiding questions provided in the activity.
2. As the students are working, encourage them to be aware of their own biases, as they might influence their critique.
3. When students have finished their analysis, have them chart the critiques, highlighting the elements that made each work successful or not.
4. Optionally, you can have students present their critiques to the class and then facilitate a discussion about whether or not the critiques were fair or not, with the goal of reinforcing best practices.

Assessment: Students can be assessed based on their critiques and how well they applied the techniques covered in the Lesson Media and the previous activity. Additionally, if you choose to have a class discussion, students can be evaluated based on the quality of their participation.

Time to Test (Part One): *Recommended*

Summary: In this activity, students will pitch their final project in order to get feedback that can help them improve their concept.

Objective: This is a two-part activity that is recommended in order to help students test and refine their final project. In part one, students will develop and deliver a quick pitch to the class that will highlight what they’re doing and what they hope to achieve with their project. The class – the audience – will take notes and provide constructive feedback during part two of the activity.

Skills:

• Pitching and presenting
• Active listening
• Note-taking
• Critical thinking
• Problem solving
• Empathy

Instructions:

1. Decide whether this activity should be completed in small groups or as a class.
2. Decide and inform students how long their pitches should be. We recommend 2-5 minutes and encourage you to leave time for clarifying questions.
3. Have students prepare their pitches using the guide provided in the activity. Remind them that this activity isn’t intended to be time consuming (this is different from their final presentation) and that the target audience isn’t you, the teacher, but rather their peers.
4. Tell students that when they’re not delivering their pitch, they need to listen carefully to the other presentations, as what they hear will be the basis for the review they deliver in the next activity. Encourage students to take notes or record the pitches, and to ask any clarifying questions they might have. Every student is responsible for helping their peers improve the quality of their final project before they submit it.

Assessment:

• Did the student pitch their idea effectively and stay on topic?
• Did the student succinctly overview their final project and clearly outline their intended goals?
• Did the student listen respectfully and ask thoughtful clarifying questions?
• Did the student take notes or record the session?

Peer Review (Part Two): *Recommended*

Summary: In this activity, students will review the final projects of their peers and be reviewed themselves.

Objective: This is a two-part activity that is recommended in order to help students test and refine their final project. In part two of this activity, students will review the final projects of their peers, and be reviewed themselves. The objective of this activity is to help students apply the peer review skills they’ve acquired in this chapter. Students will also be able to take the feedback they receive in the review sessions and make the necessary changes to improve their final project.

Skills:

• Critical thinking
• Active listening
• Communication
• Collaboration
• Analysis
• Giving and taking constructive feedback
• Peer review
• Peer-to-peer learning

Instructions:

1. Begin by introducing the importance of peer review (if students didn’t complete the first activity in this chapter). Explain how feedback and constructive criticism can help improve the accuracy, quality, and credibility of their work.
2. Decide and inform students whether this activity will be done as a class or in small groups.
3. Decide and inform students how long the peer review sessions will be. Ensure that the session time is equally divided between the pitched projects so that everyone gets to hear feedback on their work.
4. Remind students that the reviewers should be using the notes they took during the pitches, as well as the prompts/guiding questions provided in the activity. Also, remind students that the reviewee is encouraged to record or take notes of the feedback session to help them refine their final project at a later time. The reviewee can use the linked guide in the activity to help.
5. Optionally, if the peer review session is conducted in pairs, you can elect to rotate the participants to ensure that every reviewee receives feedback from multiple reviewers.
6. At the end of the peer review session, encourage students to rework or refine their final projects based on the feedback they received.
7. Wrap-up the activity by facilitating a class discussion on the importance of peer review and constructive criticism. Ask students to reflect on their experience and how they can apply what they learned in the future.

Assessment:

• Did the student analyze and evaluate the work being critiqued?
• Did the student provide constructive feedback based on their observations?
• Did the student use their creativity and imagination to come up with new and innovative suggestions to help improve the work?
• Did the student work with others in the class in a respectful and constructive manner to achieve a common goal?
• Did the student reflect on the feedback they received and use it to improve their work?
• Did the student handle constructive criticism well, remaining respectful and professional?