Zen-influenced garden design project

[Amy Stamm]

Teacher’s Name and Email: Amy Stamm		Program Name: HEC Academy	Program Type: CHC
Unit Title Building a Garden with Zen Influences		Theme or Content Area: SEL	Duration: 7 1.25-hour-long classes
Desired Results	Emphasized Standards (Content and College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards): CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.1 Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1.A Come to discussions prepared, having read and researched material under study; explicitly draw on that preparation by referring to evidence from texts and other research on the topic or issue to stimulate a thoughtful, well-reasoned exchange of ideas. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1.D Respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives, summarize points of agreement and disagreement, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views and understanding and make new connections in light of the evidence and reasoning presented.
	Essential Question(s) (Open-ended questions/concepts that lead to deeper thinking & understandings): How have our ideas about creating a peaceful garden setting been influenced by Zen Buddhist practices and beliefs? How have garden designers applied Zen principles in new ways to address U.S. cultural histories?
	Transfer Goal(s) (How will students apply their learning to other content and contexts?) Students will… Transfer Goal: Students will understand the interconnectedness, global flow, and cross-cultural applications of specific principles to new ideas about space.
	Learning and Language Objectives (Mastery Objectives): Students will be able to…
	Know: factual knowledge, key vocabulary→	Understand:  connections to essential concepts and contexts→	Do: application, demonstration of knowledge, understandings
	Basic beliefs of Zen Buddhism Organizing principles of Zen gardens Vocabulary: austerity, simplicity, naturalness, asymmetry, subtlety, mystery, unconventionality, stillness, tranquility.	The basic beliefs of Zen Buddhism have incorporated new aspects as they have been practiced in different contexts. People subtlely change and reshape traditional design principles when they are applied in new contexts.	Using ink brushes, students will try their hands at creating the classic Zen ink circle in order to understand the spontaneous, uni-directional act of creating. Students will complete a vocabulary assessment of Zen design principle terms. Students will work together to apply Zen principles in designing a peaceful garden setting.
Assessment Evidence	Performance Task(s) – Summative Assessment(s): (Align with CCR & Content Standards): Drawing on what they’ve studied about the organizing principles of Zen gardens, students will work together to create a Zen-influenced garden space in the small plot of land adjacent to HEC Academy.
	Pre-Assessment(s): Writing prompt: what do you know about Zen Buddhism and/or Zen garden design?
	Formative assessment(s): Vocabulary match exercise Class discussion about what Zen design principles aim to achieve Zen circle ink painting Comparison between Zen circle ink painting and Zen garden design Hands-on space/garden walk-through and interpretation of how the current HEC Academy L-shaped lot achieves or doesn’t achieve Zen principles.
Learning Plan	Universal Design for Learning/Access for All (i.e., PYD/CRP, differentiation, accommodations and modifications, technology integration, and arts integration): PYD: high-interest topic: meditation, mental health, Zen principles, architecture, garden design CRP: unit is focused on cultural production originating in Asia and traveling across the globe UDL: visual support through videos and images of Zen gardens; class discussions for auditory support; graphic organizers for vocabulary work; hands-on, cooperative final project to meet students’ kinesthetic, visual, etc. styles and IEP accommodations and goals; one-on-one support as needed.
	Literacy and/or Numeracy across Content Areas: Reading, Writing, Speaking vocabulary pre-assessment; vocabulary assessment; listening to and reading featured chapter excerpts; class discussion; written responses.
	Resources: texts, materials, websites, etc.   https://www.piatraonline.com/the-7-principles-of-zen-applied-to-japanese-garden https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oc0zdboDv0E https://www.gardendesign.com/landscape-design/zen-gardens.html Yoonjung Seo, “Ryoanji (Peaceful Dragon Temple)”: https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/south-east-se-asia/japan-art/a/ryoanji Vinayak Bharne, “A View from the Zen Shoin” Vinayak Bharne video 6/2/2022 lecture, “The Buddhist Thread: The Pagoda, the Monastery, and the Zen Garden”:  https://china.usc.edu/k12/forums/east-asian-design-architecture-and-urbanism-summer-2022/session-2-june-14 “How to Design a Zen Japanese Garden”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_UIVVM_E2E Joe Robinson, “Backyard Zen” (June 14, 2007). Los Angeles Times: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-jun-14-hm-japanese14-story.html   Other curricular materials to support the lesson:
	Outline of Lessons (tasks and activities to support achievement of learning objectives): This series of lessons fits into a service-learning SEL (social emotional learning) class in which HEC Academy students are currently engaged. Students have identified a shortage of calm and peaceful spaces in the school that serve their sensory needs, so they’ve decided to create such a space in a small plot of land adjacent to our school building. Students have said that they want a “Zen garden,” but they have only a vague idea of what a Zen garden is, so this series of lessons is meant to educate them about some of the history of Zen Buddhism, and the role of Zen gardens and their underlying principles.
	Introductory (stimulate interest, assess prior knowledge, connect to new information): Lesson One Do Now: Students will write about a peaceful or pleasant memory they have of a garden. They will be asked to think about what caused them to feel peaceful or happy.   Hook: The teacher will show students photographs of Michelangelo’s Pieta vs. the Ryoanji Temple. Using the Library of Congress’s Primary Source Analysis Tool, students will make observations of the two photographs, ask questions that they have about the two images, and share their reflections of the two artworks.   The teacher will facilitate a discussion about what the artists who created each artwork are trying to say through their work.   Presentation: The teacher will provide background information about the artistic movements, priorities, and purposes of each of these pieces and place them into a historical context. Students will be asked to think about what changes when you make people vs. the natural world the central subject of your composition.   Practice and Application: After this introduction, the teacher will introduce a brief history of Zen Buddhism and Zen gardens. Students will listen to excerpts of Vinayak Bharne’s video lecture, “The Buddhist Thread: The Pagoda, the Monastery, and the Zen Garden” (starting at 16:30) and read excerpts of  Vinayak Bharne’s “A View from the Zen Shoin” and Yoonjung Seo’s “Ryoanji (Peaceful Dragon Temple).”   After a class discussion focused on the key points covered in these three excerpts, the teacher will pass out paper and ink brushes so that students can create the Zen circle.   Review and Assessment: Students will share their experiences of painting the Zen circle, including talking about what it was like not to correct their brush stroke and what it was like to focus just on one transitory moment.   Extension:
	Instructional (build upon background knowledge, make meaning of content, incorporate ongoing formative assessments): Do Now: Please think about a garden that you’ve visited and name one thing about it that you like or appreciate and explain why.   Hook: Zen garden photo analysis. The class will view a photo (or more than one photo) of a Zen garden and make observations, ask questions, and make reflections on the photo, using the Library of Congress Primary Source Analysis Tool.   Presentation: The teacher will introduce the principles governing Zen gardens. Students will watch the video, “Zen Principles of Design.” The teacher will facilitate a discussion about students’ reactions to these principles.   Practice and Application: Students will read, “The 7 Principles of Zen Applied to Japanese Gardens.” Students will bring the article into the school garden and identify places that might be organized by these Zen principles or design changes students could make to the garden by applying Zen principles.   Review and Assessment: Students will complete a vocabulary review of the terms featured in the class. Students will choose their favorite principle and make a case for why it’s their favorite.   Extension:
	Culminating (includes the performance task, i.e., summative assessment – measuring the achievement of learning objectives); note: this lesson will take several classes, as students are tasked with applying the principles they’ve learned in the previous two class to their own garden design incorporating Zen principles.   Do Now: Students will write down one thing they’ve learned about Zen gardens or their history.   Hook: Students will watch the video “How to Design a Zen Japanese Garden”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_UIVVM_E2E to review the elements of Zen garden design.   Presentation: Students will read Joe Robinson’s “Backyard Zen” to learn how Japanese Americans influenced garden and yard design in the U.S.: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-jun-14-hm-japanese14-story.html   Practice and Application: Students will take photographs of and assess the space of a small lot adjacent to their school. Building on what they’ve learned about Zen Buddhism and Zen gardens, students will work together to design a garden space incorporating Zen principles in a small lot adjacent to their school. The students will create a budget for materials (which falls within pre-set limits), create a blueprint of their proposed garden, raise questions about specific plants or aspects of the garden, purchase plants and materials for the garden, and build their garden. Students will work together to figure out how they want people to move through the garden space and what they want people to feel, see, and experience while they are in the garden. Based on the answers to these questions, students will set about designing the space toward these ideas. This process will take place over the course of several classes, and students will be checking in with their teacher each step of the way.   Students will take photographs of the garden they create and compare these photographs to the before photographs. Based on the photographs, students will assess their accomplishments.   Review and Assessment: Students will spend time in their new garden and write a reflection about how they feel when they’re in the garden. Students will invite other students to spend time in the garden they designed and ask these other students what they feel and experience when they’re in the garden. Student designers will use students’ responses to build on their initial design.   Extension: Students may have the opportunity to work with a landscaper/garden designer to learn about how to plan a garden and account for plant growth, maintenance, etc.
Post-Unit Reflection (on meeting the Learning and Language objectives):

     

 

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