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Only a Piece - Photograph by Emma Larsen I spent a long time brainstorming which type of media I wanted to explore, and once I thought I had decided, I spent even longer trying to think of how I wanted to use that medium to explore specific elements of that medium. I had decided to make a podcast-style audio piece, recording small sounds to explore what I could (or could not) do with just the voice recorder on my phone. However, as you can see, this is not what I ended up with. In fact, I got frustrated and gave up, and somehow in my frustration I wound up scrolling through my Instagram feed.  Well, I guess frustration leads to learning because I found myself thinking about social media and the affordances and limitations of Instagram—the single pictures and simple captions that can show us both so much and so little about someone. I was reminded of how easy it can be to compare ourselves (in all our complexity and depth) with the intentional and manicured social media image of som...

 Here are my goals. The first three are current goals, the last two are goals for my future classroom. 1. Experiment with screencasting software 2. Look deeper into Blogger to figure out how to use it/what it's capable of 3. Use my own social media as a sort of 'blog' for myself to practice sharing my experiences through media 4. Implement flipped classroom or blended learning techniques 5. Make room for diagnostic and formative assessment (and consider ways to use technology for assessment)

Christmas orange (a poem by Emma Larsen, inspired by Larry Woiwode's essay, "Ode to an Orange") two  tiny heads  poke through the wooden rails wrapped tightly in  garland and lights as we, two happy prisoners, round cheeks glowing warmly red and green pajamas waiting finally getting the ‘go ahead’ and  slippered feet padding down the stairs and round hands gripping stockings and  reaching and reaching and tunneling almost  all the way to China until we find it in the toe: orange and round smooth sphere protected from bugs and tiny fingers and before unwrapping the toys placed so carefully under the tree, we hold this first most precious gift close, cradled gently in two hands, with closed eyes and a little nose take a big, deep breath inhaling the smell of summer and  Christmas forgetting, if only for a moment, the snow outside the window, the wind seeping in the cracks in the walls, the ‘lost jobs’ and big people problems we don’t really understand an...

Name: Emma Larsen Content area/discipline: Drama Grade level: 6-8 Typical Educational Purpose: Communication with parents (weekly newsletter; highlight exceptional students and promote upcoming projects) Reason for choosing purpose: Communicating with parents is so important! I think junior high students are especially in that age where it is important that some information is communicated with parents, but the students themselves might not be as enthusiastic to communicate it. So, I tried to create a fun and simple way to get important information to parents! Tool to create the artifact: Canva.com, pictures, text What have you done to try to evaluate sources for bias and avoid biased portrayals of diverse identities? Why is this important?  I included a statement after the spotlight about wanting to include all students. If this were a real newsletter (this 'student' is my sister), I'd be really intentional about spotlighting a variety of students, highlighting things they...

In an increasingly digital world, digital and social media are becoming some of the most accessible and readily shared forms of media. Additionally, they can take on all different forms and purposes, with everything from informational or promotional to documentary or entertaining. The following questions can facilitate intentional and informed reading or creation of digital and social media.  What is the platform used to share this piece of media? Digital and social media can be shared on a variety of platforms, including different social media platforms (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter), websites, apps, or other platforms. The location a specific piece of media was created for might relate to the purpose of its creation, and might also reveal what the creator hopes it will accomplish. It also impacts who the intended audience might be, depending on who would me most likely to consume the piece of media.  What is the intention behind this media? Why was it shared/created? Was the...

This is a photograph of the ghost light and the set for the production of Fiddler on the Roof I'm in rehearsals for right now. In rehearsal today, we did a little field trip to visit our performance space for the first time. I love light and feel like light and hope are intertwined for me, so I wanted to capture both the ghost light (bottom left corner) and the unlit lights above. I love that the ghost light looks bright yet mysterious (it's a little unclear what it is--which is often how hope feels to me), I love that all the lights above are turned off, but are lit by the ghost light. I love that the set has empty window frames hanging. I also love that there are no physical bodies within the picture, but instead the impact and role of bodies in the space can be inferred--who will the lights be lighting? Who will be walking on the set? Who will be watching what happens on the stage? For me, this image exemplifies hope in a lot of ways: the hope I felt watching live theatre ag...

1. WHOA That's Good Podcast (Sadie Robertson Huff) 2. To Kill a Mockingbird (on Broadway) 3. You Signed up for This (album by Maisie Peters) 4. West Side Story (2021, directed by Stephen Spielberg) 5. "The Artist's Voice" (episode on TED Radio Hour podcast) 6. @soelsister (Instagram) 7. Heart of Dating podcast (Kait Warman) 8. Rainbow Dreamland Tour (live concert, 2021, COIN) 9. How to Avoid Falling in Love with a Jerk (book by John Van Epp) 10. evermore (album by Taylor Swift) Other Notable mentions: - The Bad Broadcast podcast (Madi Murphy) - Christ Healing the Sick at the Pool of Bethesda (painting by Carl Heinrich Bloch) - Stranger Things (Netflix TV show) - Wandavision (Disney+ TV show) - Little Fires Everywhere (book by Celeste Ng)