Red-breasted rollerMale lionElephant near Ila LodgeJackal on the M9 at sunriseKafue River at sunsetKaingu LodgeBaby crocoduleWalking to the rock to watch the sunset (Kaingu Lodge)Puku
Kafue National Park is in south-central Zambia. Established in 1950 and located about 200 miles (322 km) west of Lusaka, the park covers an area of 8,650 square miles (22,400 square km) and consists of a vast and gently undulating plateau, situated along the middle reaches of the Kafue River and its two tributaries, the Lufupa and the Lunga (Britannica). It is the oldest and largest park in Zambia, and one of the largest in Africa. We have visited Kafue a few times, most recently twice this year. We stayed in Ila Lodge and Kaingu Lodge, both excellent lodges.
What do you think were the most memorable moments of the year? If you were to make a “Year in Pictures” of your own life, which moments would you include? The New York Times has selected the best photos from 2019 (LINK). A great activity for students could be having them choose 12 photos that represent their year. They could make a slideshow using Google Slides and write a short caption for each photo. The New York Times Learning Network featured this activity (Picture Prompts). I believe it would be an engaging one for all students. I am going to do this activity with my English language learners.
Yakawlang, Afghanistan, May 19 Students walked home over the mountains from Rustam school, seen behind them. Ninety percent of the school’s graduates get into college. Most are girls. Jim Huylebroek for The New York Times
Image source: GuommyBear@23Image source: GuommyBear@23Image source: Rob MartinImage source: SourPatch9876Image source: Bumble_Bee_1420Image source: m_n_m71Image source: Swedish-IKEA12Image source: @purple_endermanImage source: A_Random_PersonImage source: NoobM@ster69Image source: SunspotLF1Image source: Rob Martin
Year two for the Out of Eden Walk at the American International School of Lusaka (Zambia) produced some nice photos. Here are some that resonated with me, along with two photos I took. For many students, walking around their neighborhood is not something they are accustomed to. These students are grade 6 students in a Middle Years Programme (MYP) in Alta Conte’s classroom. I provided support and gave students tips on how to take a good photo. I also showed them exemplars from my former students at the American International School Chennai (India). The instructions from Out of Eden Learn for this footstep (activity) are below:
As you walk in your neighborhood or local area, take photos of things that catch your attention. What do you see, feel, hear, taste, or smell? Try to look at the place and the people who live or work there with fresh eyes. Here are some ideas for different kinds of photos you can take:
Photos that capture a whole neighborhood scene, and photos that zoom in on a detail you find interesting.
Photos where you’re pointing the camera up and photos where you’re pointing the camera towards the ground.
Photos of things that are common or familiar in your neighborhood, and photos of things that might be unexpected or surprising.
CNN10is a great website that offers 10-minute news updates. It is very student-friendly. According to their website, the “show’s priority is to identify stories of international significance and then clearly describe why they’re making news, who is affected, and how the events fit into a complex, international society. Viewers will learn from every story on CNN 10.” It replaces CNN Student News.
“What’s Going On In This Picture?” is a great site on The New York Times Learning Network. It shares an intriguing or interesting photo with no caption. Viewers are invited to create a caption after doing a See, Think, and Wonder and responding to some questions. The photo is posted on Monday and students have three days to respond to the photos in a reply box, before the newspaper shares the caption on Thursday.
An excerpt from the latest Out of Eden story. Click HEREto read the article and to see the photos. Paul’s story made me think about my own trip to Varanasi last spring, one of my final trips in India. I was a bit nervous about going and thought it might be overwhelming. I am so glad I went. It is such a historic city, full of life and death I would regret it if I had not gone, especially in light of the changes going on there now. Floating on the Ganges River as the sun rose was an image and feeling I will never forget. These are some of my photos that I took on that trip.
“India’s holiest city, the Jerusalem of Hinduism, was clouded in dust—in powdered brick, in powdered mortar. A worker army pummeled the walls of the Lahori Tula neighborhood with sledgehammers and crowbars, leveling its twisted maze of alleys and lopsided buildings. One of the city’s most timeworn districts lay bombed out amid heaps of rubble. At night, spectral trains of mules and horses saddled with baskets carted away ton after ton of debris.”
Off the north coast of Canada’s Baffin Island, a June sun transforms snow and ice into limpid pools of turquoise. The Arctic’s perennial sea ice cover—the ice that survives the summer melt season—has shrunk dramatically. From “Here’s Where the Arctic’s Wildlife Will Make Its Last Stand,” January 2018 PHOTOGRAPH BY BRIAN SKERRY
SARAH LEEN HAS a job most people in the world would envy. She looks at photographs for a living. And not just any photographs — National Geographic photographs. As our Director of Photography, Leen estimates she has looked at as many images “as there are stars in the sky,” so it’s hard to narrow down her favorites. But she does that every year — here are her favorite 100of the over two million submitted to us this year, in no particular order.
Here are a few photos from Lusaka, Zambia taken by sixth-grade students in Ms. Conte’s students. I was very pleased with the final products and enjoyed collaborating with her class and sharing exemplars from student work in Chennai, India.
Directions: Plan to take a walk in your neighborhood or local area. It may include places on your sketch map. You can walk by yourself or with a classmate, friend, or family member. As you walk in your neighborhood or local area, take photos of things that catch your attention. What do you see, feel, hear, taste, or smell? Try to look at the place and the people who live or work there with fresh eyes. Here are some ideas for different kinds of photos you can take:
Photos that capture a whole neighborhood scene, and photos that zoom in on a detail you find interesting.
Photos where you’re pointing the camera up and photos where you’re pointing the camera towards the ground.
Photos of things that are common or familiar in your neighborhood, and photos of things that might be unexpected or surprising.
Karan’s photo for our Out of Eden Learn Planetary Health club was featured today on Out of Eden’s social media sites – Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. With thousands of students in OOEL, it’s quite something to have your work featured. This is the information that Karan wrote about this particular photo:
During my neighborhood walk in Chennai, India, I saw a Coconut seller. Coconut water is really refreshing and is great to drink on hot days. As the Coconut grows, some of the Coconut water stays as Coconut water, but the other half of the Coconut water turns into a white type of pulp that is called Coconut meat. 94% of Coconut water is water which means it provides a lot of water which helps dehydration. However Coconut milk is a whole other thing . Coconut milk is made by adding water to the cut coconut meat. Usually, Coconut milk contains about 50% water. A Coconut takes about 10-12 months to fully grow. Coconut water comes from young Coconuts about 6-7 months old. Coconut water is very healthy and contains many nutrients.
Ask Karan to show you his other photos. They were really nice! Congratulations.
Here are a few photos from Out of Eden Learn, Footstep #3 – Neighborhood Walk Photos. We are enjoying the photos and stories from this footstep project. Please remember to post your photos and story on Out of Eden Learn, reply to any questions your receive, and thank other students from our walking party who comment or praise your work. Continue to comment and share your questions in our walking party.
We look forward to seeing your photos for Footstep #3 this week. I am happy that Mr. Aneesh and Mr. Carl stopped by our classes to share some of their knowledge about taking good photographs. We hope you apply some of their ideas, as you take photos of your neighborhood. The directions for the project have been shared with you and are on Out of Eden Learn. I have also shared both of these presentations and will add them to Moodle under Out of Eden Learn. Remember to write a story to go along with your two photos. Prompts or directions have been shared as well, along with a rubric.
What an exciting week of learning! Your teachers and Utsaahare putting together an album of the best of the best of our photos we took during our week in Panchgani. You can also see all of my Tweets and photos, if you look at my Twitter feed (@DigitalNomadRob) on the right side of my blog. I also posted some photos to my Instagram page, which is also on this blog. Check them out, while we put together your album. We hope you had a great week of learning and were challenged to try new things and to make new friends. This week in advisory, you will do some reflection on your week. Enjoy your long weekend, and see you on Tuesday, November 1st (2H).
This is a photo taken by a former student, Kennedy Porter (8th grade), when she did Out of Eden Learn. It is currently on display at Harvard University’s Monroe C. Gutman Library Gallery. Out of Eden Learn is inviting students to take photos of something interesting in their neighborhood. See the directions below. You can share your photo via Instagram or Twitter or email your photo and a brief description (example: what it is and where it was taken) to: learn@outofedenwalk.com
I have shared a few photos I have taken in my neighborhood, Kottivakkam.
Decorated dump trucks in Kottivakkam, Chennai, India (Photo by Rob Martin)
Decorated dump trucks in Kottivakkam, Chennai, India (Photo by Rob Martin)
Greetings! I hope you all have had a nice summer vacation. I just returned to Chennai last night after spending a month in the Finger Lakesregion of New York State. When people think of New York, they often do not think of the images above. They think of New York City. I am from a small town in central New York between Rochester and Syracuse, two medium-size cities. I enjoyed my summer riding my mountain bike, picking fresh berries, visiting nearby state parks and enjoying the beauty of the region I call home. How was your vacation and where did you go?
Here are a few photos from my past week in Himachal Pradesh, a beautiful state in the north of India, known for the Himalayan mountains and Tibetan Buddhism (among many other things). These are some videos and photos from my Instagram site. If you are on Instagram, you can follow meand I would love to see your photos as well. I hope you are enjoying your summer. I leave for New York tomorrow morning early.
We’re happy to be back in touch to share an update and invite you to celebrate National Walking Day with the Out of Eden Walk.
Tomorrow, April 6, is National Walking Day across the US. Celebrate with Paul in the spirit of the Out of Eden Walk—wherever you are—by taking 30 minutes out of your day to go for a stroll. While on your walk, take a photo of an interesting detail you spot. Then share it on Twitter or Instagram using #EdenWalk, for a chance to be featured in the National Geographic #EdenWalk Walking Day Timeline.
Need some inspiration? Feel free to come up with your own creative message or reference our sample Tweet:
Students, if you choose to do this, send me your photo by Friday and I will Tweet it out under my name and use your Out of Eden Learn Username. I really enjoyed your photos you took of your neighborhoods. I hope to see some more examples. I will also share them on my class blog too.
Why do we move? Why can’t we sit still? What makes human beings seek out new horizons? Out of Eden Walk wants you to share a photo. The deadline for doing this is February 15th. Please see Paul Salopek’smost recent blog post for information. The assignment is called Built to Walk and you can find out more information here. The hashtag is #Yourshot.
You can upload your photos which show human movement. There are so many things you can share just from Chennai alone. Here are three photos from Indiaand Nepalthat I have taken. If you have a photo and want help, save it and come and see me on Monday. I will help you. Have a nice weekend!
Here are a few of the many great neighborhood photos that students have taken for Out of Eden Learn. Many more are displayed around our classroom, and I have tweeted many others out via my Twitter handle @DigitalnomadRob. Two of our students, Ella and Hera, had their photos featured on an interactive map that Out of Eden Walk created. Click HERE to see this really great map. Sophia had a photo she took featured on Out of Eden’s Instagram page.
I am very impressed with the photos taken, and I hope you enjoyed the opportunity to slow down and notice new things about your neighborhood in Chennai. Keep up the good work!
Mr. Knudsen introduces his photos (Photo by Rob Martin)
Aneesh reviewing the key ideas (Photo by Rob Martin)
The importance of color (Photo by Rob Martin)
Takes lots of photos, lots and lots and lots…(Photo by Rob Martin)
A great message from Mr. K (Photo by Rob Martin)
Grade 6 social studies had the wonderful opportunity to learn more about photography and how to capture a great photograph. As you prepare to take photos for Out of Eden Footstep #3, remember the advice you learned and read in the slides that Mr. Aneeshand Mr. Knudsen (Mr. K). The biggest piece of advice I heard in both of their talks – takes lots of photos before you narrow down to your two favorite ones. The directions and rubric are on the Moodle page under Out of Eden Learn. It has also been shared with you. If you click on the hyperlinks for Mr. Aneesh and Mr. K, you will see their slide shows.
Mr. Aneesh also shared some photo from Steve McCurry, a fantastic photographer who has taken many photos in India and the region. His work has been featured in magazines and galleries around the world. I will go see an exhibit of his photos in New York City in December at the Rubin Museum of Art. I look forward to seeing your photos. – Mr. Martin
The photos included in this post were among the best photos for Footstep #3 – Take a Walk in your Neighborhood – Out of Eden Walk/Learn project. These photos come from Mr. Martin/Ms. Jaya’s two Social Studies classes. We enjoyed reading all of the reflections and looking at your photos. Click on the images to make them bigger. The directions for the assignment were:
As you walk in your neighborhood or local area, take photos of things that catch your attention. What do you see, feel, hear, smell, or taste? Try to look at the place and the people who live or work there with fresh eyes. Here are some ideas for different kinds of photos you can take:
Photos that capture a whole neighborhood scene, and photos that zoom in on a detail you find interesting.
Photos where you’re pointing the camera up and photos where you’re pointing the camera towards the ground.
Photos of things that are common or familiar in your neighborhood, and photos of things that might be unexpected or surprising.
Something special that you’d like to share.
Tell the story of why you took these two photos and why you chose to post them. What do you like about the photos you took? What would you like other people in your walking party to notice or understand about them?
How, if at all, did taking a walk and/or taking these photos make you think in new or different ways about your neighborhood or local area?
"My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style."
- Maya Angelou
Image source: Juan Carlos Ulate/Reuters – What’s going on in this picture?
Linking to Thinking 
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