The alphabet has 26 letters and each one can be uppercase or lowercase, which gives us 52 letters…one for every week of the year! In 2019, I used alphabet colouring pages for an Instagram series on language and discovery. For 2020, I’ve designed my own alphabet (hand lettering is meditative) and using each letter to suggest ways to bring learning into our lives – not for school or Education with a capital E – but just to enrich our experience of the world we inhabit.
I’m a little behind on my weeks, but catching up as fast as I can. In the meanwhile, here are the first few:
So what have we learned so far?
A: If you are very young, go and find words in unexpected places. Do the ingredients for your breakfast have words on them? What about your clothes or toys? If you are young at heart, look up the next unfamiliar word you encounter. If you are grizzled and cynical, you should cuddle a puppy.
a: Are you in Vancouver? Tired of the rain? Go find out which cities get even more rain than us! Did you make New Year’s resolutions? Have any of them fizzled? That’s ok. Here’s something you can achieve all in one go: pick an object in your home, office, or classroom and find out how it works. Do you know how your kettle works? What about the fan in your bathroom? How do jeans work? (Seriously, denim is fascinating and you can listen to Articles of Interest with Avery Trufleman to learn more.) What about popcorn ceilings? Or WiFi routers?
B: This week, learn by teaching! If you learn something new at school, at work, or out in the world, share you knowledge and understanding with a friend or family member. Imagine that you are picking flowers for the people you care about. A fact about hyraxes for your best friend; a new perspective on space travel for your sibling; a hand-drawn infographic about hedgehog migration for your grandmother.
b: Learn the meaning and history of your name! Are you named after someone? What languages and cultures are associated with your name? Does your name refer to a virtue or a place or animal or colour? What did the people who named you have in mind when they chose your name?
Want more?
Well, head over to the Blueberry Fig Instagram, give me a follow and, if you really like this project, follow the hashtag #52waystolearnin2020.