Follow the Learners

Entering week two of Acton from Home, learners were faced with a big question: how can we hold an exhibition while at home? Without a studio, we have no space to decorate and welcome parents to. Without being physically together, how can we celebrate another successful session as a group? And without having physical pieces of work, how can we exhibit what we’ve done?

So, the guides posed the question directly to the learners. What would be the best way to hold our Session 5 exhibition?

Follow the Learners

Entering week two of Acton from Home, learners were faced with a big question: how can we hold an exhibition while at home? Without a studio, we have no space to decorate and welcome parents to. Without being physically together, how can we celebrate another successful session as a group? And without having physical pieces of work, how can we exhibit what we’ve done?

So, the guides posed the question directly to the learners. What would be the best way to hold our Session 5 exhibition? Would it be to:

1. Publish session work virtually?
2. Record a video call with the whole group for learners and families to watch at home?
3. Invite families and learners to a video call to participate in a discussion?
4. Do something else or do some combination of these options?

As they discussed the options, it became clear that learners wanted to publish their work in a professional way online. But they also wanted it to still feel like an exhibition. One learner suggested that a video call might offer a way for everyone to connect and share work but noted it might be tough to juggle a video call with the virtual publishing of work.

“Why don’t we just set it up ourselves?” one learner offered. Across the video call, hands began to make our signal of agreement. “We could set up a table and have everything ready to show our parents! And we could get our own snacks!” another added. It was unanimous; learners would create their own private exhibitions to personalize and present as they wished for their parents at home.

Over the next two days leading up to the exhibition, learners prepared their Writer’s Workshop stories for virtual publication by writing author’s notes and brief bios for their readers, and they created brief presentations about their superbugs. Learners also compiled a list of Socratic discussion questions to ask family members at the end of the exhibition, just as we do at in-studio exhibitions.

The Day Arrives

At Thursday afternoon close, the excitement about the exhibition was palpable. One learner would only talk in a whisper to ensure his family wouldn’t hear his surprise exhibition plans! The close ended with a question for the learners: what is the goal of your exhibition from home, to inspire your family, to connect with them, or to equip them as we move forward with Acton from Home? “Inspire” and “connect” were the resounding responses.

One learner shared that although her whole family was together at home, she felt a disconnect because everyone was working so hard on such different things. As a result, she hoped the exhibition would be a time for everyone to come together to connect about work she is proud of. Other learners added that they hoped the fun and energy they would bring to the exhibition could help inspire their families and bring some excitement into their homes.

After seeing photos and hearing learners discuss their exhibitions on Friday morning, it seems as though they delivered on these goals. We heard about a learner who used his whole house as a stage for riddles and clues leading to various pieces of the exhibition. Another curated an entire spread of snacks for family members (including for her dog) based on their preferences. Without a studio space and the usual guardrails for exhibitions, learners saw an opportunity to create exhibitions that reflected their unique personalities.

Something we talk about in the studio fairly frequently is the power of constraints. Can obstacles or limitations actually boost our creativity? Our first virtual exhibition and, on a larger scale, this experience with Acton from Home speak to this concept. Faced with the unknown and given novel, difficult constraints, we’ve all had to get creative. And through this process of coming up with a new way to exhibit work, learners were able to reflect on aspects of our traditional exhibition they could improve, personalize their exhibitions, and even suggest new ideas for future exhibitions.

The Next Journey into the Unknown

As we close out Session 5 and head into a new session with a new different quest, Writer’s Workshop, and another set of unknowns, we’re also entering a world of opportunity: the opportunity to find out more about ourselves and our journeys, the opportunity to create solutions, and the opportunity to strengthen the tribe.