Journalism 024

Last week I helped WBUR reporter Andrea Shay with a story on elementary school art education as taught through VTS, or Visual Teaching Strategies.

The concept is basically one that allows children to make their own connections with artwork before being taught the historical signifigance.

Here is my favorite excerpt:

Teacher:
Okay, what’s going on in this picture? Jeremy.

Jeremy:
Um, it looks like, the person is like, choking the horse.

Teacher:
Which person?

Jeremy:
The first person.

Teacher:
Okay so there’s this person right here on this first horse, and you said it looks like he’s choking the horse?

Jeremy:
Yeah

Teacher:
What do you see that makes you say that?

Jeremy:
Because he has something around his neck

Teacher:
Okay, so we’re noticing that around the horse’s neck, there seems to be, are you talking about that white sort of string part?

Jeremy:
Mmm,hm.

Teacher:
And you think that maybe that person might be hurting the horse in a way?

Jeremy:
Yes