Place Responsive Storywork

Place Responsive Ventures and Options for Storywork

Examples of activities for place-responsive teaching and learning, embodied inquiry, digital storytelling, and in situ storywork.

Soundwalks

If you are not familiar with the soundwalk as a way of encountering local soundscapes, you may appreciate this introduction from the brilliant work by the late R. Murray Schafer on this subject -- see links below and embedded video. In a nutshell, a soundwalk is an intentional listening activity in the field to experience, interpret, and sometimes capture the characteristics of a soundscape.
In a typical outdoor space, participants may wish to focus on finding or capturing wild sounds and deep listening for textural, spatial, generative, or emotional qualities of the soundscape such as rough, sharp, soft, wild, human, industrial, high, low, near, far, calming exciting, familiar, strange, upsetting, and so on.
Participants can be sent out with general instructions for a free-form soundwalk, or with a specific quest (i.e. one of Schafer’s designed soundwalks, or one of your own design with specific objectives). Capturing sounds can be done by simply cleaning the ears and listening carefully, relying on memory to record observed qualities of the soundscape, or can be done more formally buy jotting down notes or recording sounds on a phone or device.
Soundwalks can be one-off activities that can add to some connected learning, or stand alone as way of understanding place. However, over time it is possible to connect individual soundwalks conducted throughout a space to actually build a Sound Inventory, or a representation of a Soundscape, for example the soundscape of the neighbourhood in which a school is located, or an entire community.
Debrief could involve a sensory download – move rapidly around the circle and have each participant call out what they heard, e.g. “harsh sound train grinding to a stop on tracks” or “soft bird song interrupted by sharp sounds of crows cawing.” Participants could also collect their sounds together and look for patterns, followed by general comments on the overall soundscape they have encountered.
Supplies: not essential, but could include cards or a handout with sample soundwalk activities (e.g. from the Schaffer collection). Soundwalk Activity 13 is a great one to start with!

Soundwalk Resources:

Place In Education -- Symposium Resources - includes Schafer's A Sound Education: 100 Exercises in Listening and Sound-making http://www.goldrushed.ca/pie-resources.html
Landlines -- How to conduct a soundwalk (and other good links https://www.natureconservancy.ca/en/blog/archive/how-to-conduct-your-own.html
SFU: Soundwalk -- info and links on active participation in the soundscap https://www.sfu.ca/sonic-studio-webdav/handbook/Soundwalk.html
SFU: The World Soundscape Project https://www.sfu.ca/~truax/wsp.htm
Soundwalking Through the Pandemic by Shazia Hafiz Ramji https://open-book.ca/Columnists/Soundwalking-Through-the-Pandemic
Sample activities to provide focus to a Soundwalk soundwalk_activities.pdf

Astounding video on Soundscapes from Murray Schaeffer himself. Sorry, can't find the original without Spanish subtitles.

Walking Curriculum

Dr. Gillian Judson, a professor at SFU, has adapted and developed a number of outdoor activities to reconnect to place and community. The “Walking Curriculum” is highly accessible and examples of activities are available through various books and websites.
See https://www.educationthatinspires.ca/walking-curriculum-imaginative-ecological-learning-activities/ for an introduction to Walking Curriculum.
See https://www.educationthatinspires.ca/2016/01/25/a-walking-curriculum-supporting-learning-through-focused-walking-k-12/ for 5 sample walks.
It is recommend that participants are offered a set of Walking Curriculum activities and asked to try one or two of them. Facilitators could also change the Walking Curriculum activities as they see fit, or come up with their own place-responsive discovery exercises that would engage students.
Debrief could involve a short wrap-up discussion where participants mention the activities they tried and assess their potential for use with other students
Supplies: Walking Curriculum activity descriptions (e.g. cards, handouts, or books).

Field Journals, Event Mapping, and Nature Journalling

tied to experiential learning and inspired by brilliant field journals of days gone by
students draw a rough map of an area they will travel over the course of an experiential activity
students use this to “map” their thoughts, observations, and connections
use of sketches, annotations, and “nature journalling” techniques, e.g., see https://johnmuirlaws.com/journaling-curriculum/
might be the basis of journalling in Social Studies or Language Arts, or contribute to an Interactive Science Notebook in Science 8-12
source: http://kearnsscience.weebly.com/ideas.html
How to keep a field journal: https://cemarin.ucanr.edu/files/220523.pdf
These techniques for gathering narrative data from the field are more personalized and experiential ("on the fly") versions of social mapping (see below)

Landscape Inventories

There are at least two options for conducting a landscape inventory, in either case, it is useful to use a notes-map to locate features and record observations and thoughts. A notes-map that can make use of a template (e.g. an outline map of the area under study), or can be sketched from the perspective of the observer – like an event map (see above).
Option 1: Physical Landscape Inventory
- What’s there? Why there? Why care? Take note of distinct features within views (including at a distance) such as landforms or topography, vegetation, and organisms. List them. Describe them.
- To what extent do you think they have been modified by humans? Based on what evidence? How might some of these features have been (or continue to be) an important factor in past or present economies, transportation systems, subsistence, or settlement?
Option 2: Cultural Landscape Inventory
- People have lived in most landscapes for centuries, but over time the evidence of their culture is obscured in layers, or has been removed altogether. What you see now is the present layer obviously, but there are expression of past cultures all around, including Indigenous cultures and non-Indigenous settlement and development right up to the present.
- Make an inventory of cultural expressions seen in the landscape, and suggest the time and culture to which they belong.
- As the area under study evolves, what do you think that a future cultural landscape here will look like? What could or should it look like?

Debrief could involve a gallery walk or circle share of the notes-maps, with an open invitation to expand on what was recorded with the participants conclusions about observations, including what they might have wanted to know in order to have had more depth or nuance in their notes-map. Another tack would be to discuss how Indigenous worldviews and perspective could/did/should/might inform their observations, or whether they characterize their experience of place in this setting as that of an insider or an outsider.
Supplies: Some kind of notes-map, ranging from blank paper to an outline map to a structured template. Optionally, but not crucially, you could provide a guidebook of sources, photos, maps, and timelines related to the area under study.

Community Inventories

Inventories can take many forms and can be adapted for different ages and purposes. The design, medium, ways of categorizing, and amount of collaboration is all flexible
A basic inventory makes use of:
- a map with notation/annotation (with the potential to morph into a report),
- relates to a defined space (e.g. a 1km radius from the school, a neighbourhood, a city, a region), and
- builds off of a purpose or responds to an inquiry or question.
Examples of questions that can be answered with a community inventory:
- Where is the closest water to our school? tallest point? lowest point? biggest building? oldest business? newest business?
- Where are the “best” trees to be found near our school (e.g. tallest, shadiest, most interesting bark, oldest-looking, damaged, lovely example of a particular species, etc.)
- What (and where) are some examples of climate resiliency in our community? Where are examples of climate stress? Where are sites with strong potential to shift from stress to resilience?
- How does my school relate to the community and the community relate to the school?
- What (and where) are some “social justice” hotspots in the community (e.g. sites that feature profound needs)? How do these places relate spatially to the services that can or do offer support for the identified needs?
The inventory can be the basis of further inquiry, e.g. community interviews
Debrief and supplies will be similar to Landscape Inventories (see above)
Related topics: community asset mapping (see images below), inquiry into cultural landscapes or historical environments
Community Inventories are similar to Social Mapping (see below)

Source: https://www.eastgrandregion.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Intro_to_Community_Asset_Mapping-1.pdf

Source: https://bmcmedresmethodol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2288-13-96/figures/7

Narrative Fossicking

Fossicking is the search for gold in abandoned diggings. Narrative fossicking is the search for stories midst the established facts, phenomenon, and story threads in a field context. What stories are you picking up? Whose are they? How do your own stories fill gaps and make sense of phenomenon, or existing narratives? How do you tell stories?
Step One is to move through the space and open up one’s senses and perception to the possible stories that exists, arise, or are suggested by a place.
Step Two is to settle on one or more stories and provide evidence to populate the stories with words, images, development, and resolution –
The story should make use of sensory data and could be based on what is known (e.g. through some prior knowledge of the area of subject) – non-fiction, could be purely speculative – fiction, or a blend of the two – historical fiction, pseudohistory, creative non-fiction, and so on.
For an added challenge, create the story in response to as tight or small a place as possible, but not so small that it is disconnected from the broader space in which is it is located.
Step Three is to record the stories that emerge from narrative fossicking; this could be done through collecting field notes, doing a voice recording, sketching or storyboarding, and so on.
Debrief: share the stories!
Supplies: optionally, but not crucially, facilitators could provide a guidebook of sources, photos, maps, and timelines related to the site being explored. Keep in mind that a guidebook will flavour or lead the narratives – that may or may not be desirable.

Memorial to Chinese-Canadian railway workers and others at the Fraser-Fort George Regional Cemetery. Photo: G. Thielmann

Woodstove in miner's cabin, Barkerville, BC. Photo: G. Thielmann

Blessing's Grave, Barkerville, BC. Photo: G. Thielmann

ArtStart

This is a way of encountering and introducing oneself to a new space, or taking a fresh perspective on a place that is already known. It is also an example of aesthetic inquiry, something you can do with students of any age.
Step One is to choose a feature of place to “encounter” – this could be a tree or shrub, a building or structure, a marker or sign, and so on.
Participants can choose their own feature of place, or could draw one from a prepared list of possibilities
Step Two is to draw or represent the feature using some kind of restraint... for example:
- style of drawing (e.g. pointillism, crosshatching, continuous line, etc.),
- perspective (insect POV, bird POV, multiple, e.g. 6 boxes each with a new view),
- physical constraints (backwards, upside down, wrong hand, short time)
- medium (could use mud as ink, could use loose parts and take a pic, etc.)
Participants can choose their own restraint, or could draw one from a prepared list of possibilities. To make this activity accessible to all, the restraint could simply be to attempt a sketch that encourages participants to try their best to represent the feature of place in any way that strikes them as interesting, accurate, or imaginative.

Debrief could involve a short “artist’s talk” where participants show their sketch, identify their feature and restraint, and anything else they would like to add about their experience of the activity.
Supplies: sketch paper (any kind), sketching utensils (any kind). Could also construct a representation of place with found objects such as plant material

PhotoStories

This is a way of exploring the narrative landscape of a new space, or taking a fresh perspective on a place that is already known. A narrative landscape is the collection of place-based stories that exist, or might exist, in a specific area or space that is hosting observers. The narratives benefit from direct observation, sensory immersion, and understanding of the cultural landscape.
One possible goal is to use one or more photos to tell a story and rely on words as little as possible.
Step One is to choose a framed space to explore with one or more photos – this could be a feature of place, a scene or landscape at various scales, or an activity in progress. The subject of the photo/s should suggest a story of some kind to the participant.
Participants can choose their own place to photograph, or could draw one from a prepared list of possibilities.
Step Two is to tell some kind of a story using photography. The story could be based on what is known (e.g. through some prior knowledge of the area of subject) or could be purely speculative.
For an added challenge, add a restraint:
- Tell a broad, expansive story using close-up (tight-framed) photo/s
- Tell a very specific kind of story using broad-scale (wide-framed) photo/s
- Use shadows or reflections in water to frame the story and space
- Use a series of textural compositions (very close-up photos that do not reveal context/subject) to tell a story – this is the photographic equivalent of the literary term synecdoche – using a part to signify the whole
Step Three is to decide how much explanation will be required to help an audience make sense of the story that the participant is attempting to represent.
Debrief could involve a short “photographer’s talk” where participants show their photos (on their phones if done live, or shared in a slideshow if done in a subsequent class) and identify the story they were trying to tell – this identification could simply be to provide a caption, or a question to the audience about what story they think was being told by the photo/s. Alternately, the talk could expand on the story as the photographer sensed it, and convey some of the meaning and narrative they were trying to capture. The participants could also discuss anything else they would like to add about their experience of the activity.
Supplies: digital camera / phones for each participant.

Source: Emma Sayle https://twitter.com/miss_sayle/status/1537276827659427840/photo/2

RePhotography

RePhotography is the juxtaposition of old and new photos. Can also be done with maps, objects, and other source material.
Community or academic archives, local museums, and local historical associations are good sources for historical photographs, maps, and records.
Step One is to assign or provide choices of historic photos (or the like) to students and provide them with tools to locate where they were taken. This could be straightforward identification ("it was taken at 3rd and Main"), use of a map, or more elaborate inquiry (resourceful students might be left to their own devices to solve this puzzle).
Step Two is connect students to the location of their chosen or assigned photo -- this may involve the development of field trip and safety plans.
Step Three is to use creative juxtapositioning to connect a historic photo with either a modern photo of, preferably, one taken by the student. There are many ways in which this process can become a comment on old or new events, and is a way of telling an integrated story that has roots in the past and the present. Some forms of RePhotography involve technology to blend images.
Debrief could involve a short “photographer’s talk” where participants show their photo juxtaposition and identify the story they were trying to tell – this identification could simply be to provide a caption, or a question to the audience about what story they think was being told by the photo/s. Alternately, the talk could expand on the story as the photographer sensed it, and convey some of the meaning and narrative they were trying to capture. The participants could also discuss anything else they would like to add about their experience of the activity.
Supplies/Prep: locate historical photos or sources, locating and transport to historic sites (photo subject locations), digital camera / phones for each participant.

Source: http://www.boostyourphotography.com/2013/05/rephotography-dear-photograph.html

Source: https://www.facebook.com/daybreaknorth/photos/unbc-history-student-aaron-larsen/10153922497771690/

StoryMaps - Google Earth Narrated Tours

Google Earth allows users to pinpoint locations (retaining the angle and vantage as the user intends) and create tour. These tours can be narrated (live or recorded) and exported with a .kmz extension – these files can be opened up again in Google Earth (e.g. for the teacher or class to see) and played as a narrated tour. In the example shown here, the pinpoints relate to glacial and fluvial geographic features that can be seen around Prince George, BC. A tour using this pinpoints could be narrated with geomorphological definitions, descriptions of what a person would see at this location, or other "stories" of place.

Tutorials are easy to find online for navigating Google Earth, creating and exporting a tour out of pinpoints, and narrating a tour. Makes for an interesting way for individuals or groups to tell stories that involve place, and can be used as a method of assessment.

Motivation is highest for this assignment if it helps activate recent learning and provide an outlet for expressing understanding. In other words, this should not be the first strategy for teaching content related to place, unless the student is already quite familiar with either the places involved or the features being explored.

Debrief: share the tours in a series of presentations, as a gallery (with laptops), or virtually (posted to a central site, such as a blog, with invitations to view and respond)

Supplies/Prep: computers with Google Earth installed (can also use web version). Phones are an option, but the small screen is a limiting factor for for creative workflow. The teacher will want to try making a tour first, to see what is involved, and settle on a method of teaching the students how to get into it, even if it is just picking the most useful and relevant tutorial for the intended product.

StoryMaps - Digital Map-Based Storytelling

Storytelling may be done with digital mapping tools. ESRI Education/ArcGIS, using Geographic Information Systems, is one way to go, but other platforms exist. The ESRI StoryMaps site and software used to be free, and might still be with a proper account, but I have not investigated in a while.

Debrief / Supplies / Prep: see Google Earth Narrated Tours above

Sense of Place Maps

A particular interpretation from http://www.faculty.umb.edu/peter_taylor/SenseOfPlaceMap.html:

"A Sense of Place Map is a picture in whatever form occurs to you that addresses three questions:

Where am I?
Where have I come from?
Where am I going?

Although text is allowed in a Sense of Place Map, the shift of emphasis from verbal or textual reporting to pictorial representation allows new insights to arise or be brought to the surface. This is akin to the effect of Freewriting. As in Freewriting, there should be no obligation to share or display your work. However, discussion of the typically diverse aspirations and trajectories of group members that emerged through this exercise can be thought-provoking.

A Sense of Place Map may be drawn at the start of a project to provide an impressionistic picture of your aspirations. Or it may be drawn at the end of the project to place the project into a longer trajectory of your work and life. These uses of a Sense of Place Map evolved from a more ecological version in Thomashow, M. (1995). Ecological Identity: Becoming a Reflective Environmentalist. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press."

Debrief: gallery walk - static (displayed, possibly with an opportunity to leave feedback) or dynamic (creator is there to provide talking points or Q & A), or a round of presentations. These tend to be quick presentations, so I prefer a live round.

Supplies: any media can work for this, from paper to digital to found objects (e.g. plant material, random junk). Students may need to consult existing maps of the area they are representing.

Social Mapping

Social mapping is a way of building a community inventory that highlights a dimension of interest such as climate resiliency, social services, ecological diversity and so on. Social maps are similar to Community Inventories (see above), although they tend to be used in different contexts. One of the best explanations of social mapping, as well as instructions for making social maps, comes from Flora & Fauna International via https://www.fauna-flora.org/app/uploads/2017/11/FFI_2013_Social-Mapping.pdf:

Example of a social map from an interesting article on social mapping: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.3109/0142159X.2012.670321

For Debrief / Supplies / Prep: see Landscape Inventories above