i give unannounced reading quizzes at least one day a week. the first time i gave a quiz in a seventh grade class, a lot of the kids asked permission to draw on the back when they were done, before i came around to collect them. i was surprised, but why not? over the first couple weeks, i have morphed the initial request into a weekly-ish speed drawing contest (i purposely give them about 3 extra minutes). i write comments on some and pick the top three. it's not a perfect system yet, but they really care about it. my favorites are usually selected because of originality, humor (usually because of randomness), or skill. this was the winner in 7D today:
"Family Kidnapped by Ninjas. Need $4 for Karate Lessons."
it is beyond impossible to trace thought processes backwards in these drawings. you have no idea what influenced them to draw what they did (although i get a lot of copycats), and i love it. interestingly enough, my eighth grade class has never asked to draw, and i doubt more than a few would be interested if i proposed it. i'm entranced by the differences from one grade to another, even though it's more than partially enabled by the setting — lecture/desk format in seventh compared to seminar/roundtable format in eighth.
hahaha!
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