earthThemes Based on Commonalities

Art activities can connect to time and place

by choosing universal commonalities as

themes for projects which

relate to universal experiences all humans share.

They can also connect, through these themes, to various subject areas studied in school.

"A thematic approach . .reflects the most recent research on how the brain comes to know. . .The approach is based on the theory that our minds organize pieces of related information into complex webs, called schemata. New information becomes meaningful when it is integrated into our exhisting schemata. In this way knowledge builds on itself, and the schemata gro exponentially. A thematic approach takes advantage of this process by having all the subjects revolve around a central theme, thus enabling students to develop complex webs of interconnected information." Peters, Tim Kathy Schubeck, and Karen Hopkins, Phi Delta Kappan, April, 1995, p. 633.

Mankind's Universal Commonalities
from:

Core Commonalities Curriculum and Literature
Ernest Boyer, President of The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching

 

The Life Cycle--We all share the universal experience of birth, growth, and death.

 

Work-- All people produce and consume. Work is universal. . .It's not enough to take; you also must earn to give back.

 

 

Use of Symbols-- All people use symbols to express feelings and ideas.

 
Time and Place-- All people have the miraculous capacity to recall the past and anticipate the future.

 

Search for a Larger Purpose-- There is in all of us an attempt to give meaning and spiritual direction to our lives.

 
Aesthetic Response-- All people respond to the aesthetic.

 

Social Bonding-- All people are members of groups and institutions that consequently shape their lives.

 
Nature-- While we're all different, we're all also connected to the ecology of the planet Earth.

"Is it possible that all people have eight common experiences'? While we recognize human diversity, I think we must urgently start teaching students about human community as well."

"And above all, let them remember that the meaning of life is to build a life as if it were a work of art. In the end, the Basic School is committed to building lives as if they were works of art."

Dr. Ernest Boyer

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