Originally a six-week course developed via a grant from ArtStarts, I have broken down this series into deliverable chunks, like a world building buffet! Pick any one exercise or use them all in a long-term project.
In my workshops, each student builds their own world from scratch. I love how this creates an “ownership” of the project for the student. (In the past, students have asked to work in pairs, but the issue that inevitably comes up is who keeps the end product. Usually they’re so excited about their world they want to take it home.)
What goes into a WORLD BOOK? CLICK on each of these links to access information, resources, exercises, and support materials.
- Maps of the World / Continents / Countries / Cities / Streets / Etc.
- Imaginary Beings (descriptions and illustrations)
- Illustrations
- Histories (people, cultures, politics, religions
- Myths and Legends
- Lexicon (Dictionary / Glossary / Wordbook / Primer)
- Songs, Poems, Recipes, Spells, Curses, etc.
If your students build world books, I encourage you to hold an Imaginary Worlds Faire to show off the work to the entire school or even the public. Students can dress in costumes from their world, bring dishes cooked on their world, read poems, myths, or legends about their world, or sing songs from their worlds.
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