This professional learning session provides a dynamic exploration of the sonic spaces and rhythmic worlds in which we inhabit through deep listening, sensory play, and hands-on collaborative learning. Educators will experience guided deep listening exercises and be invited to consider the many ways we make meaning of the sounds around us. Personal experiences will be processed and shared through verbal, written, drawn, and/or embodied responses. This creative listening process will activate our memories, stimulate our imaginations, and cultivate new frameworks for creative expression.

Time will be created to examine and apply listening approaches/strategies to teaching and learning circumstances.

Materials or Tools Required

• Paper & Pencil (and color pencils/crayons, if available)
• Optional: Bring a personal musical instrument

Learning Intentions:

Educators will:

• Articulate distinctions between hearing and listening.
• Develop a deeper appreciation for deep, focused listening.
• Broaden our awareness of the sounds that are present in our environments.
• Explore the connections between our senses and memory.
• Explore how story/narrative can be conveyed non-verbally through various artistic modaliti.

YA Connections:

• NJSLS-VPA: Artistic Process; Creating Anchor Standard 1: Conceptualizing & Generating Ideas
• NJSLS-VPA: Artistic Process; Responding Anchor Standard 7: Perceiving and Analyzing Products Self Care

Professional Standards for Educational Leaders:

• Standard 4: Curriculum, Instruction & Assessment
• Standard 6: Professional Capacity of School Personnel