XLIS P4 Provocation – Light and sound help us experience the world – Chinese Shadow Play
Video by:
CHINESE SHADOW PUPPET ANIMATION (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JRVu9AOhng&t=4s)
Key Concept:Function
Lines of Inquiry: How light and sound works.
Provocation Questions:
“What is light and sound?”
“Where does light and sound come from?”
“What are the uses of light and sound in our daily lives?”
In general, the home field of education is always the classroom. But knowledge is boundless, and the world is a book. So, aside from the classrooms, we advocate that children should go to theaters, botanical gardens, museums, and every corner of the world to perceive and grow in the exploration of everything.
In the PYP, we use a lot of terminologies that others would call “best practice”. However, there is a word that pops up quite a lot: Provocation. Provocation plays an important role in the inquiry process. In the PYP, we highly value students’ prior knowledge and experiences, and it is only when students connect their prior knowledge to what they are learning that they are able to develop conceptual understanding and make meaning of the world around them. Students should be examining their opinions and ideas as a result of the provocation.
The transdisciplinary theme of Primary 4 Unit 6 is Where We Are in Place and Time. Our central idea is, Light and sound help us experience the world. Primary 4 homeroom teachers will collaborate with the PYP Mandarin teachers in this unit. We will explore the mysteries of sound and light together and explore the role and influence of sound and light on everything in the world and our lives.
Children are naturally full of curiosity about everything, and have a strong thirst for knowledge. With teacher’s guidance, P4 students can display their enthusiasm and initiative in learning through practical activities and can fully exercise and cultivate their ability to comprehensively apply the knowledge they have learned. In the Provocation activities of this light and sound unit, our PYP Mandarin teachers specially invited Mr. Wang Ke, a shadow puppet sculptor from the Ming and Qing Shadow Puppet Art Museum in Xi’an, and Mr. Wang Xiaoling, a shadow puppet artist, to walk into the Blackbox theater of Xi’an Liangjiatan International School. They brought wonderful shadow play demonstrations and explanations to P4 students.
After watching the fairy tale and Chinese idioms stories of “Little Sheep Crossing the Bridge” and “Look for a noble steed according to its picture”, P4 students raised their own questions about the shadow puppet show:
Shaanxi shadow puppetry is made of high-quality cowhide, which is processed into a translucent shape by soaking, scraping, grinding, and pushing, and then carefully crafted through multiple processes such as carving, dyeing, and ironing. Black, red, green, yellow, and yellow are used for coloring. Five kinds of purple mineral pigments, multi-layer rendering on both sides of the front and back, and various coloring techniques. Shaanxi shadow puppets have high transparency, and the colors are gorgeous after the light is projected; The leather is thin and easy to handle, and it is flat and not easy to deform.
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Author:
Winnie Huang (Primary Chinese Language teacher)