An exploration of literacy and languages in art
"Peace, joy, pancakes" is a German phrase that describes a superficially intact, seemingly peaceful and carefree facade within a society. It is often used to express that one displaces problems rather than solving them
I strive to make my culturally-tied lessons authentic because students learn more about themselves and appreciate the diversity around them. For this exploration we reflected in writing on their own cultural backgrounds. Students were assigned homework to speak with their parents about their family history. If a student was adopted, they could focus on their adoptive family background or make some assumptions about their own. It is quite possible families may have lost their history for many reasons. For example, some may know that they are vaguely Asian or have roots in Africa as apposed to knowing a specific country. In this case, I tell then that this gives them more options to explore.
I then introduced idioms to my students. Idioms are phrases that have meanings different than what the individual words actually say. “Raining cats and dogs,” is an idiom that we use to describe heavy precipitation. If someone says, “it’s a piece of cake,” they are not talking about food but describing how easy something was to do. Idioms are found around the world and in nearly every culture.
The German idiom, “Tomaten auf den Augen haben,” literally translates to, “You have tomatoes on your eyes.” It means “you are not seeing what everyone else can see. It refers to real objects, though — not abstract meanings.”
The Swedish idiom, “Att glida in på en räkmacka,” literally translates to, “To slide in on a shrimp sandwich.” It means, “somebody who didn’t have to work to get where they are.”
The Russian idiom “На воре и шапка горит,” literally translates to “The thief has a burning hat.” It means “he has an uneasy conscience that betrays itself.”
The Polish idiom, “Nie mój cyrk nie moje małpy,” literally translates to “not my circus, not my monkeys.”
It means “not my problem.”
A Thai idiom says, “Riding an elephant to catch a grasshopper.” (ขี่ช้างจับตั๊กแตน)(K̄hī̀cĥāngcạbtạ́ktæn) It means “putting in a lot of work and getting little in return.”
A Spanish idiom says, “Como un cocodrilo en una fábrica de carteras.” The literal translation is, “like a crocodile in a wallet factory.” It means “to be very nervous.”
In our research though we found a few cultures, like Indigenous Americans, had more proverbs rather than idioms. “When a man moves away from nature, his heart becomes hard.” Is one example. Sometimes those were used instead of idioms and worked well.
I required my students to find three unique idioms related to their own cultural backgrounds and choose one they felt could best be illustrated and show space; foreground, middle-ground, background, and overlap. We focused on layering colors, shading with cool colors, and highlighting with a warm or light colors. The could exceed expectations with details like texture or using hatching or stippling techniques. We also included the idiom's text, in its original language within the artwork as an additional element. Artwork was displayed with index cards that translated the idiom illustrated and the cultural connections the artists were making.
For younger students I would suggest printing enough idioms for everyone and have them pick from a hat to select one to illustrate. This could be tied to a little research into the selected culture for depth.
I then introduced idioms to my students. Idioms are phrases that have meanings different than what the individual words actually say. “Raining cats and dogs,” is an idiom that we use to describe heavy precipitation. If someone says, “it’s a piece of cake,” they are not talking about food but describing how easy something was to do. Idioms are found around the world and in nearly every culture.
The German idiom, “Tomaten auf den Augen haben,” literally translates to, “You have tomatoes on your eyes.” It means “you are not seeing what everyone else can see. It refers to real objects, though — not abstract meanings.”
The Swedish idiom, “Att glida in på en räkmacka,” literally translates to, “To slide in on a shrimp sandwich.” It means, “somebody who didn’t have to work to get where they are.”
The Russian idiom “На воре и шапка горит,” literally translates to “The thief has a burning hat.” It means “he has an uneasy conscience that betrays itself.”
The Polish idiom, “Nie mój cyrk nie moje małpy,” literally translates to “not my circus, not my monkeys.”
It means “not my problem.”
A Thai idiom says, “Riding an elephant to catch a grasshopper.” (ขี่ช้างจับตั๊กแตน)(K̄hī̀cĥāngcạbtạ́ktæn) It means “putting in a lot of work and getting little in return.”
A Spanish idiom says, “Como un cocodrilo en una fábrica de carteras.” The literal translation is, “like a crocodile in a wallet factory.” It means “to be very nervous.”
In our research though we found a few cultures, like Indigenous Americans, had more proverbs rather than idioms. “When a man moves away from nature, his heart becomes hard.” Is one example. Sometimes those were used instead of idioms and worked well.
I required my students to find three unique idioms related to their own cultural backgrounds and choose one they felt could best be illustrated and show space; foreground, middle-ground, background, and overlap. We focused on layering colors, shading with cool colors, and highlighting with a warm or light colors. The could exceed expectations with details like texture or using hatching or stippling techniques. We also included the idiom's text, in its original language within the artwork as an additional element. Artwork was displayed with index cards that translated the idiom illustrated and the cultural connections the artists were making.
For younger students I would suggest printing enough idioms for everyone and have them pick from a hat to select one to illustrate. This could be tied to a little research into the selected culture for depth.
For more literacy-based lessons you can get my book on Amazon internationally, visit my publishing page HERE. All of my books come with copy rights so you can make copies for all your students!
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