A special focus on P4C and creative delivery #ChatP4C

64 Million Artists January Challenge is simply the best creative challenge I've ever signed up to.  Every day during January 2021, you get a creative challenge into your Inbox chosen by one of three amazing artists.  My chooser is Lemn Sissay.  Full of ideas to adapt for the classroom for making P4C more creative but I've loved creating the challenges too.  I am uploading my own personal creative challenges onto Twitter, but there is Facebook and Instagram too. #64MillionArtists  #JanuaryChallenge

Closely followed is a new creative challenge I've recently found on Twitter called the @GrimArtGroup This really appeals to me because although I love the beauty of natural landscapes, I love finding beauty in industrial or urban landscapes.  It's my graffiti art interest I guess.  I am loving their weekend challenges at the moment.

This is a website I have been totally inspired by during Lockdown.  Darrell Wakelam is a 3D artist and his work with schools is simply amazing.  Do check out his website for the most amazing creations.  Or check out his Twitter feed.  This is definitely an area I am going to explore as a creative response to P4C.

Lastly, but not least is a long time friend Sue Flowers who runs Green Close Studios in Lancashire with her husband Pete. Sue and I met in Chile when we were in our early 20s - but that's another story. I joined Sue's amazingly creartive Phoenix Art and Health Project last term for mental health and well-being, working with the Lancashire Recovery College. Although this project has finished for the moment, there's some great drawing activities on the last link.

For even more creative approaches to P4C - do scroll down for my Visual P4C section below.

Interested in online training in P4C?  Do check out my training courses page

*** My own articles and papers are available in the What is P4C? section 

My FACEBOOK page - often I see a really engaging news article and write this up as a stimlus often with suggested activities.   

Philosofun activities that are engaging, active, non-competitive and above all fun!

SDG3 Mental Health and Well-being - a new resource published by the British Council which I was involved in developing. Includes ground rules for creating a safe and open space, mood map, medicine wheel for mental health and well-being, activities for connecting. 

SAFE P4C - Ideas for organising P4C in the Time of Corona - a collaboration between P4C practitioners, including myself.  You can download from the documents section of my What is P4C page.

Sankofa Storytelling in times of Covid-19 films with P4C discussion starters for home and school.  New stories uploaded each week

Wonder Ponder  Visual philosophy from Madrid!  I am their UK distributor of sorts and sell their philosophy boxes on my courses in the UK - please ask me!  Sign up for I Wonder, Self Interviews under Lockdown

Thinking Blobtree review tool (£5) https://www.blobtree.com/products/thinking-blob-tree

Visual images can be an effective and accessible way to prompt dialogue and enquiry for all learners.  Visual stimulus can be effective for exploring big and complex ideas to develop the important skill of visual literacy. On a personal level of integrity, I am commited to locating the source, background and motivations of the visual artists I share here.

Conceptual art

Studio Carreras is a design studio in Girona which produces big ideas as simple shapes. I use these as part of my advanced training as a P4C review tool, and as part of aesthetic enquiry.

I follow a multitude of graphic conceptual artists on my Instagram page

Street art

When I visit a new or any city for that matter I always look for the street art as I have a personal interest in the history and culture of the powerful messages from street art around the world. I follow a multitude of street artists on my Instagram page 

Rural street artists on Instagram Y&B are rural street artists and activists for things that matter.

Photographs

Chris Buck  New York based photographer. Provative conceptual images with themes of racism, privilege, identity, power, realism, naturalism...and more

Greg Semu Visual artist born in New Zealand and from Samoan heritage working in the field of community arts and social justice.

Julia Fullerton-Batten German photographer covering social issues, often controversial.

Instagram account of photo collage artist Uğur Gallen from Turkey who contrasts photos to show injustices in the world.

Where Children Sleep is series of 56 diptychs of children and their bedrooms by James Mollinson by https://www.jamesmollison.com/where-children-sleep  Hugely powerful and thought-provoking images to share as a stimulus for thinking. James has many collections, including play and apes.  (Thanks Rebecca Katsaris from Cyprus for the recommendation)

Pobble 365  image One picture. One teaching resource. Every day.

Once upon a picture  Images to inspire

Picture News weekly poster related to the news with a thought-provoking question. Free for 4 weeks during Covid-19

Comic art

Blob Tree  effective communication tools for review and 1000s of free images on Facebook page for stimulus 

Wonder Ponder  Visual philosophy from Madrid!  I am their UK distributor of sorts and sell their philosophy boxes on my courses in the UK - please ask me!  Sign up for I Wonder, Self Interviews under Lockdown   Dying to Ask - vital ideas for thinking about mortal questions. Another thought-provoking resource from Wonder Ponder

Grant Snider Words and pictures.  Excellent comic art stimulus on Grant's website and his website Incidental Comics

Other artistic projects

Daily Art and P4C activities on Instagram from Jake Garfield of Line of Thought Where art meets big ideas.... (Jake is Royal Drawing School and Royal College of Art trained)

The Extended Mind Activity Pack from a contemporary exhibition at The Talbot Gallery, Edinburgh by Dr Miranda Anderson who attended my SAPERE P4C course at the University of Edinburgh a few years ago. The Extended Mind exhibition explored an array of ways in which aspects of the world beyond our brain, such as our bodies, objects, language, ideas, other people and environments can, and often do, expand our cognitive capacities.  The activity pack is a real journey of the mind to follow...

Films and animation

Literacy Shed  collection of films for excellent p4c stimulus  (also see Images Shed)

My You Tube channel for P4C stimulus is a growing collection of P4C films and animations

Ugur Gallen

SAPERE Society for Advancing Philosophical Enquiry and Reflection in Education  online search for resources 

Dialogue Works are producing a weekly resources called Hometalk for parents/children incorparating Thinking Moves

Delphi the Philosopher uses interactive storytelling to teach philosophy to children. An excellent free and child friendly section on Delphi's Guide to Athens for history and philosophy. Plus a detailed scheme of work and resource packs for philosophy to purchase online. 

Open Scotland - P4C network in Scotland with resources section

Over the last few years, I've had the great pleasure of meeting and running SAPERE P4C training at the University of Edinburgh through Dr Lani Watson and the Open Scotland P4C network.  Lani is fascinated by questions - what they are, how we use them, and why we ask them.  She has a number of interesting tools such as this teaching resource for students and a Questioning Styles Assessment Tool  (do take part if you have 20 minutes free!)

Global Education Derby With many young people using social media and digital technology more through being at home during Covid-19, GED offers an fantastic range of resources for thinking critically and creatively about social media.  Special mention to the Thinking Again, Thinking Critically Toolkit for KS3

Votes for Schools provides weekly lessons for schools on topical issues. After each lesson pupils can make a vote, making their voice heard on the voting platform Some excellent free downloadable contect e.g. Should you stand up for other people? Can anyone become homeless? Should you break a rule if you knew you wouldn't get caught?

Beyond the Secret Garden Regular series of articles examining BAME representations in children’s literature by Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O'Connor in Books for Keeps online magazine for children's books. Suggestions for books and excellent background reading. 

SAPERE Gold School North Lakes School resources

Wonder Ponder  Visual philosophy from Madrid!  I sell their philosophy boxes on my courses in the UK - please ask me!

Little Chatters Outdoor P4C

International Council of Philosophical Inquiry with Children connect with P4C around the world

P4C.com   Online resources for P4C   (subscription with some free resources)

Sara Stanley  P4C trainer and Early Years P4C guru

Sara Stanley  Three excellent articles on EYFS in Teach Early Years magazine by Sara

Philosophy Man Subscribe to a free monthy bulletin for resources 

Thinking Space free lesson plans by Grace Lockrobin 

Philosophy for Children is a well proven approach to learning that encourages children to develop a love of wisdom - through thinking for themselves with others.  

My FACEBOOK page - often I see a really engaging news article and write this up as a stimlus with suggested activities for home or school

Cumbria Development Education Centre has home learning activities to help them Choose the World they want. *NEW

Sankofa Storytelling in times of Covid-19 films with P4C discussion starters for home and school.    

Children's Big Questions during the Covid-19 crisis: Resources for parents by Jana Mohr Lone from University of Washington

Dialogue Works are producing a weekly resources called Hometalk for parents/children incorparating Thinking Moves

Challenging Learning at Home. Activities designed to stimulate thoughtful conversations and problem-solving approaches to learning from the Challenging Learning Team.  

KidCoachApp is an exciting new app for parents to support conversations with their own children. You can sign up for a FREE two week trial. KidCoachApp has been developed by Kavin Wadhar, who is a dad to two young children himself. 

BBC Ideas Short thought-provoking animations based around questions on relevant issues e.g Is Coronavirus a chance to reset the world? What is the whole world went vegan? Do we need to re-think our ideas of time?

1000s of free thought-provoking images on the Blob Tree Facebook page for Covid-19 or check out their website Blob Tree

The Economist Education Foundation sign up for newsletter and some good resources for talking about Covid-19 for families

What makes me, me? and other interesting ideas on fairness, ownership and good  BBC site

What's the Big Idea? CBBC programme on different concepts 

Empathy Lab  Empathy Lab has such a wealth of resources for schools and background information.  Do check them out. Includes 15 activities for home.

www.blobtree.com