Lights, Camera, Action! This phrase is quite indicative of the new addition tothe Priory Bridge Program--a photography elective offered three days a week
in the afternoon. Our teacher, Anita Schiller, is a retired employee of the
computer industry. Photography has been her lifetime hobby, and she has
published a few books, including one tiled His Children, a winner of the
Benjamin Franklin Award. She was a former volunteer for Castilleja's site,
and now she graces the Priory with her photo expertise. "These days I spend
my time traveling, enjoying life and doing volunteer work of various sorts. I
love working with teenagers and young adults, and have a fair amount of
experience doing that." We are very lucky to have Anita on our team, and
I'm excited to have the opportunity to be a T.A. for her photography class.
experience doing that." We are very lucky to have Anita on our team, and
I'm excited to have the opportunity to be a T.A. for her photography class.
When students asked about their thoughts on this newly added elective, Soren
Tornoe draws attention to the uniqueness of this opportunity. He remarks,"It seems a little more personal than a photography class would normally
be." Perhaps this has to do with the small class size of only eight kids.
This allows Anita and I to work closely with students, and to provide them
with one-on-one feedback. Soren is spot on in his observation that the class
is structured differently from most photography classes. Anita has decided to
expand the class from simply photography to photo journalism, for the purpose
of expanding their knowledge about the application of this art form.
Her plan is to "assign specific content areas to different individuals based
on their own interests, such as sports, academics, social life, etc. These are
the areas on which they focus [on] for the stories [...] just like they would
on a real newspaper. In addition, "They will be asked to conduct
interviews, just like a real reporter, not only take photos." This takes
the class to a new level, one I think students are really engaged with. Alice
Alvarez says. "I think that photography class is fun. You can learn all of
the details about photography. I hope to become a better photographer." It
is clear that students are enjoying themselves, and acquiring new techniques
that will be useful to them in their own lives. I look forward to seeing
their individual work unfold and develop over the next few weeks.
In addition to photography, I have been collaborating with T.A.s Hadley G. and
Elena L to organize Female Social and Emotional Development sessions that will
occur on the days Photography isn't offered. This will give the girls at
Bridge that chance to discuss some of the issues they are dealing with at this
point in their lives. It is nice to know that the director, Mr. Lavalle,
stands behind us in this new endeavor. He asserts, "I think it's
necessary that girls are open to having conversations with their T.A.s. It
gives them the opportunity to talk about subjects that they would otherwise be
afraid to broach on their own." This is our sentiment, exactly. We hope to
empower the girls in this program to become more confident in their
interpersonal lives, as well as give them the tools they need in order to
defuse the negative messages they are receiving from their peers and the media
at large. Ultimately, we hope that by discussing these issues, they will be
able to make healthy choices during the turbulent years of adolescence.
Student Alejandra A. seems to be getting a lot out of the experience so far.
When asked about her thoughts on the first session, she responds positively.
"I think it's useful because you get to talk to the T.A.'s and get advice."
This is exactly the kind of positive response we were hoping for.