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Architectural Scavenger Hunt
Sharon Phelpsand Patricia Rosenkranz
Medical Lake Middle School, Medical Lake, Washington
Subject: Art Education
Grade: 8
"What was unique about this project is that by the end, we
had 42 students who could take and develop pictures while being
able to identify many of the elements of architecture."
Purpose and Description of Project
Sharon Phelps and Patricia Rosenkranz combined the efforts of
their journalism and art classes in a scavenger hunt in downtown
Spokane. The art students were to locate (or scavenge) features
relating to their study of architecture, while the journalism
students were expected to utilize their photography skills in
capturing these features. Rosenkranz intended to turn classroom
instruction in architectural awareness into something tangible
while Phelps wanted to give her students opportunities to photograph
"the visual images created by angle, light, shadow, and texture
reflected from the architectural forms."
Activities
Rosenkranz's art students were given an "awareness"
pre-test; they were asked to draw a picture of Spokane from memory.
Their drawings lacked architectural detail and variations in building
forms. They were given a teacher-designed study packet including
a vocabulary list, brief descriptions of basic building forms
and architectural styles, and photocopies of exemplary architectural
forms. Meanwhile, the journalism students were learning to use
the school's 35 mm camera and to develop negatives and make prints
in the school's darkroom. The two teachers located buildings that
reflected various architectural forms, compiled the scavenger
list, and mapped a variety of routes for walking tours that would
expose all the groups of students to the items to be found.
On the day of the field trip to Spokane, students were divided
into groups of four or five, with at least four cameras and two
journalism students per group. The object was to locate, photograph,
and take notes regarding the name, location, and identifying features
on as many items from the list as possible. At some point on the
tour, all groups had an opportunity to tour an historic Spokane
hotel.
Group members developed and printed their pictures, with the journalism
students helping the art students. Each group then selected their
best photos to mount in a display complete with explanatory captions
and decorative touches provided photography and other art technicians.
Materials, Resources, and Expenses
A student teacher and the six parents who served as group leaders
during the field trip were the only outside resource persons.
The students used cameras brought
from home. Phelps and Rosenkranz supplied film for the cameras.
Developing was done in the school's portable darkroom
with typical processing equipment and chemicals. Pebble board
and art supplies were used for the student displays.
Outcomes and Adaptability
Rosenkranz's art students were evaluated by means of a test requiring
identification of architectural features, their contribution to
their group's final product, and their final composite cityscape
of Spokane. Phelps critiqued each final display on the basis of
print quality, uniqueness of photographs, and use of photographic
techniques.
The transfer of knowledge between the art and journalism classes
was "remarkable." Because each group was able to experiment
and improvise with their negatives, each was able to create a
unique finished product that demonstrated knowledge and understanding
of both photography and journalism. The two teachers found that
students had difficulty tying the pictures together for the final
displays. As a result, Rosenkranz and Phelps suggest the use of
group themes such as types of arches; each final display would
then cover and area of architecture different from all the others.
To carry out an identical project, an area of diversified buildings
and other architectural art forms is necessary. However, both
teachers think the same idea can be applied to studying careers
by touring businesses in an industrial park, studying nature and
the environment at a zoo or arboretum, or discovering local history
or identifying elements of design in natural and man-made structures
in the local community.