Windows to the Future of Learning, or, “I Had S’More Fun at Camp with You!”

Did you ever go to summer camp? Remember those late nights filled with laughter, quiet early mornings to reflect, tight friendships, and learning about yourself?

This past week I was Camp Art Director at Learning[hu]Man, aka “Summer camp for weird adults”, aka the best virtual non-conference I’ve ever attended.

Once again, Arizona State University’s ShapingEDU community brought together Dreamers, Doers, and Drivers – “a global community of education changemakers – to push the creative envelope for how we serve students and advance learner success”.

As the Camp Art Director, I had the delightful job of listening and digitally graphic recording more than 20 live sessions over the course of the week. Then, from key ideas submitted by presenters, participants, and what I’d illustrated, I created a Synthesis Map summarizing themes and important ideas from across Learning[hu]Man.

Some of the most salient themes that emerged were recognizing the technology are tools that allow for us to be creative, playful, and curate learning environments which welcome the whole person. To build a space like that, educators can leverage the power of storytelling in learning, which helps build connections and community, even in virtual spaces. These connections become networks capable of creating change at scale, which is imperative to get at the root of challenges EdTech has been fighting for years: power, access, and equity.

Here are some snapshots of a few of the sessions I illustrated. To see the full gallery, check out the LearningArtist page. I also have been posting them on Twitter and Instagram.

If you missed Learning[hu]Man last week, don’t worry! All the sessions were recorded and are being shared on the ShapingEDU YouTube channel, and there are plenty of ways to connect - join us on Slack!

And if you want to read more reflections on Learning[hu]Man, I highly recommend checking out the series of “letters home” from Paul Signorelli and this blog post from Tom Haymes, two of ShapingEDU’s Storytellers in Residence.

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers,

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

Camp LearningHuman: From morning gatherings Around the Flagpole to evenings by the Campfire, LearningHuman was anything but typical, in the best way possible! Did I mention there was a 3D VIRTUAL CAMPUS with a graphic recording gallery!? Check out the VirBELA platform - it blew my mind!

Children with Medical Complexity: Continuing the series of virtual site visits with universities and health campuses across the country, these graphics capture lessons learned, accomplishments, and where teams can focus in the future to support families and children in their health.

USB Implementers Forum: The annual updates got a visual spin this year – from marketing to compliance to the future of USB connections.

Let’s talk about how to level-up your virtual event with visuals and artistic experiences!

My Favorite Ways to Harvest Ideas

It’s high summer, which means making the most of long days, and heaps of veggies coming from the garden. This weekend we hung garlic to dry, shelled peas, and stemmed gooseberries to freeze for making jam later.

Sometimes I look around and realize I’ve completely missed harvesting something before it’s gotten too old or overripe (How did all the cilantro bolt already?).

The same can happen in meetings or conferences – raise your hand if you’ve ever been on a call which was supposed to be interactive, then with 10 minutes left, the speakers finally relinquish the floor and you only have a few minutes to try to work together?

Without intention, the time can fly by without truly making the most of the opportunity to cross-pollinate ideas together.

Working with my clients as a virtual graphic facilitator, I delight in partnering together to harvest ideas, show systems, and create shared understanding for deeper, more effective, and long-lasting work.

Here are a handful of my favorite ways to harvest ideas in virtual meetings:

• Using the “rename” function to include first name and one-word response to a warm-up question such as “How are you feeling right now?” to “One word we should to carry forward from this meeting”

• Creating a visual template to guide report outs and upload to a shared platform for future use

• A facilitated go-round where each person shares their response to a prompt, giving air time to everyone

• Using a Google Doc template with tables and visuals to work synchronously and include more detailed notes

• Have everyone write down a word or phrase on a sticky note or paper on their desk and hold it up to the camera – then take a screen shot! These images can be incorporated into a report or summary web page

• Working with a graphic recorder or facilitator to synthesize key ideas and energy into a visual summary

What are your favorite ways to harvest ideas in virtual spaces?

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers,

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

Wild places are a blessing I am privileged to experience and enjoy – our trip on the Middle Fork of the Salmon was one for the books – here’s a watercolor I painted one evening while waiting for dinner.

Preparing for ShapingEDU’s Learning(Hu)Man -- a virtual hands-on summer “camp” for dreamers, doers, and drivers in higher education focusing on best practices in learning design, edtech tools and development, and the art of the possible to support students’ success.

Wrapping up a studio project for my local county department of health and environment I can’t quite reveal yet…stay tuned!

What Time Is It? River Time!

I hope this finds you and your loved ones healthy and happy.

I’m out of the office on a seven-day rafting trip on the Middle Fork of the Salmon River in Idaho – here’s a photo from when we got to run this same river three years ago:

This means I’ll be without access to phone or internet June 28 - July 8th – so thank you for your patience if you’ve tried to get in touch lately. I’ll look forward to connecting!

For my ruminations on what I’ve learned about entrepreneurship from whitewater, check out this post.

To read about how I fuel my graphic recorder creativity tank, click here.

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers,

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

On the river 😊

Celebrating a New Chapter with Future Earth Fellows as the Leopold Leadership Program transitioned its’ own leadership and partnership with Future Earth.

Continuing Work with ARS’ Water Research Vision as these scientists from across the country and disciplines continue to work astonishingly well in a remote setting to co-create a shared water research vision and roadmap for the future.

Scribing Leadership Stories with folks working to end the HIV epidemic in Arizona. These health care leaders shared values they wanted to cultivate carrying their work forward.

Interested in collaborating to make YOUR next virtual meeting next level?

Toward Equity in Meetings: Making Space to Include All Voices

These past weeks have been a time to sink in to the discomfort of learning, listening, reflecting on the systems of oppression that many of us are reexamining and questioning.

As graphic facilitators, we are in a position of power to design a process that helps our groups move toward their goals and work more cohesively as a team. We have an opportunity to design ways of understanding one another and to create spaces in which different ideas are valued and disagreements can happen in a safe and healthy way.

This can be especially complex to do authentically in a virtual space, so here are some strategies to create space for all the voices in (and outside of) the room.

Before designing the process, ask questions like who will be there? Is English a second language for anyone? Are there different cultures (workplace or other) that should be considered when designing? For example, how does staying on time resonate with different groups attending? Is it rude to run over time, or rude to cut off a respected speaker before they’re finished?

Create opportunities for different ways to process information -- time for people to write or sketch ideas before speaking, or working in pairs.

Do a Circle Check In – call on each person so they each have an opportunity to speak.

Co-create Group Agreements to share the air: Three Before Me is a new favorite that indicates everyone should wait until at least 3 others have spoken before they speak again – to create space for others to speak.

Ask yourselves “Who isn’t here that should be?” What might they say? Challenge the group to think outside of who’s present to seek inclusive paths forward.

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers,

Let’s design a process together for your team.

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

Heads Up! I’ll be on the river June 28-July 7 and will not have access to phone or internet during that time. Thanks for your patience and I’ll look forward to connecting with you before or after.

Children with Medical Complexity: In the first of a series of virtual reflections with universities and health campuses across the country, the graphics will capture lessons learned, accomplishments, and where these teams can focus in the future to support families and children in their health.

New Hand Painted Video: Castillo de San Marcos in St. Augustine, Florida is in danger from sea level rise. The newest Drawing Connections video for the National Park Service will focus on the colorful history and what millions of tiny shells can teach us about resilience. You can see the other videos we’ve created here.

Education NC: Supporting Teachers in North Carolina in the Time of COVID as they move through a design thinking sprint process this summer to think holistically about how to support their students and families in remote learning situations.