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"his life was not a tragedy. He was not a recluse, he did not hide in a cave. He took what God had given him ."
"The Jewish Giant - A Radio Documentary / Reaction : Like so many texts - I stumbled across "The Jewish Giant" while doing something else - something other than school. It's a radio documentary that first appeared on NPR - put out by Sound Portraits, and it is one of the most moving things that I've ever heard. The documentary tells the story of Eddie Carmel - a man who was born with a condition that rendered him one of the tallest people to ever live. He gain a special level of celebrity when he was photographed by Diane Arbus - and his picture (with his "midget appearing" parents in Life Magazine and across the country. But the documentary focuses on who he was. What made him "human" rather than a "monster". The documentary is personal and familial, created by the daughter of Eddie's close friend and cousin.
As the students listen, they write down words - emotions - that occur to them at any given point. Single words to capture of snapshot of their feelings at a given time. They then take those words, the worksheet as well as their recollection of the documentary and turn it into something creative - a poem, a story, a painting, a memory of their own.
Lesson Overview
Lesson Overview
The students come into class and I hand them the worksheet that they will fill out as they listen to the radio documentary, "The Jewish Giant". Here are the instructions from that handout (which can be found below):
As you listen to this documentary, write down (below) the word that best describes how you are feeling at that moment towards Eddie Carmel (your tone). Try to reassess your word about every 2 minutes or so (or whenever the word that you are feeling changes). Also if you hear a sentence or phrase that really grabs you, write it down. After the documentary is over copy those words down on a separate piece of paper.
Once the documentary is over (it's about 28 minutes), the students are told to "create a new work of art" based on what they heard". Here are the instructions from that part of the handout:
Take what you’ve listened to and write, draw, or otherwise create a new work of art (yes, writing is an art) based on today’s radio documentary. If you want to listen to the it (or parts of it) again you can find it at http://soundportraits.org/on-air/the_jewish_giant/
You may create a poem, story, drawing, or relate a story from you own life – that this documentary brought to mind. Of course you can spend as much time on this as you like – but at least 28.5 minutes (the time of the documentary).
The students are given the rest of the period - when it is over - to get started. They have access (see the handout) to the documentary and the transcript - in case they want to go over something.
Here is the description from the site:
The Jewish Giant began with Jenny’s search to uncover a story that has remained a secret for 25 years. Eddie was normal sized until he became a teenager, when he began to grow uncontrollably (he suffered from acromegaly, a then-incurable condition resulting from a tumor that had developed on his pituitary gland). According to The Guiness Book of World Records, Eddie grew to be 8’9″. As an adult, the only work he could find involved exploiting his freakishness. He starred in B-grade monster movies (The Brain that Wouldn’t Die), made two 45 records (“The Happy Giant” and “The Good Monster”) and was billed in the Ringling Brothers Circus at Madison Square Garden as “The Tallest Man on Earth.” Eddie died in 1972 at the age of 36 in Montefiore Hospital in the Bronx. His coffin was custom made.
The Jewish Giant is a story of suffering, of not fitting in, of the body betraying itself, and of the bizarre life-twists that can subsume a family. It’s a story about what it’s like to be a regular person looking at the world from inside a not-so-regular body.
There is a link on this site that also allows you to read a transcript of "The Jewish Giant"
The Jewish Giant Handout
The Jewish Giant Handout
The handout includes brief instructions, a place to put their "reaction words" (emotions). A place to write whatever they see the conflict as being, and finally a place to write down any quotes they find memorable.
This is the photograph that made Eddie Carmel famous in the form of a Power Point slide. I usually showed this at the moment it is mentioned in the documentary - but only kept it up there for a minute or so (until the mention is over). I wanted the students to listen and stay focused on the words.
The Jewish Giant Artwork
The Jewish Giant Artwork
Students did so many beautiful representations of Eddie Carmel's story. Paintings, poems, songs (original with a guitar accompaniment). We would spend a day in class sharing what everyone came up with. Somewhere I have some pictures of some of these. Until then - this is a Tagxedo (like a Wordle but in a shape) that we made using the students emotion words (we compiled them all using a spreadsheet) - and in the shape of famous Diane Arbus photograph.
Remote Enhancements
Remote Enhancements
I actually did this remotely and I do believe it held the classes attention. We spent an entire class sharing the creative art responses that the students had to "The Jewish Giant"
Bullies & Bullying - A Lesson in Empathy: The lesson starts by having students read aloud - taking turns (see my page on reading aloud in class) the article "A Survivor Looks back and asks 'why'" by Richard Lindberg. The students are instructed - while the reading is happening - to write down any comments or questions they have - being as specific as possible. Their thoughts on the article - their thoughts on bullying. When we finish reading the article - the teacher facilitates a discussion. The students - often shy at first - become more and more forthcoming.
WHAT CAME BEFORE:
WHAT CAME BEFORE:
Thoughts on the Lesson
Thoughts on the Lesson
I do not believe that empathy can be directly taught in the same way that you can teach something, like, let's say - the parts of speech. However, I do believe that if you are subtle, and if you are thoughtful you can definitely help nurture empathy in your students (and yourself). No lesson that I teach (except perhaps the next one on bullies) does that better than "The Jewish Giant".
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