Project Overview

The entire student crew at Arbor Vitae Woodruff Elementary School in northern Wisconsin participated in the creation of Design Principle posters for the school’s commons.

In an effort to kick-off high-quality work practices schoolwide, each grade level selected a photograph of an adventure or fieldwork they had participated in that connected to one of the EL Design Principles. Students went through the process of using models (the photograph selected), critique, descriptive feedback, and multiple drafts as they tackled the creation of a joint piece of art.

The photographs were cut into equal size squares, each square being assigned to a student.  As students worked through multiple drafts on their piece, they collaborated with their crewmates to work toward a cohesive representation of the original photograph.

In the end, over 500 students had collaborated in creating 10 posters to represent the EL Design Principles.  The posters were unveiled during a
school-wide community celebration. The end result was a contribution to the beautiful spaces in the school, a deep understanding of the process to create high-quality work, and personal connections to the EL Design Principles.