So why Arts Discovery? Because I’ve always been taken with the idea that a cross-curricular view is the way to enhance personal reflection and creativity that can transform how students engage with literature and art. So you will find my art history students using journal and letter writing to explore ideas in art works and their creation, and my English students engaging with art and creative exercises to connect with characters, themes on a more personal level, making learning an immersive experience.
2. Ideas about Bringing Characters and Experiences to Life
This is an important skill that is used in creative writing, but also in GCSE English when students have to transform an exam text into a letter, journal, speech or article – I ask students to reflect on how they would feel in a character’s shoes. Imagine viewing the text as a piece of detective work: we have to look for clues in the original text to work out what kind of ‘shoes’ that person would wear: a zookeeper’s wellies, an irate farmer’s work boots, a campaigning teens trainers all create unique images and thus voices. I guide students to look at textual clues – such as gestures, speech patterns – to step into the character’s mindset, whether it’s Watson falling in love or Walter Mitty negotiating shopping for over-shoes, or to how the zookeeper swings his feeding bucket hanging from his tired, scrawny arms.
Shoes by Vincent van Gogh – Van Gogh Museum, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39846670
On the pathway to GCSE students might write a letter or a journal entry imagining themselves as Wendy in Peter Pan or a stranded Lost Boy in Neverland could sparking empathy and insight into character motivations. This method cultivates empathy, as students learn to walk in someone else’s shoes, while honing analytical skills as they study clues from texts, films, or artworks.
In art history I often ask students to write a letter from an artist to a patron, from Michelangelo to the Vatican for example, explaining why he decided on the figures in certain poses on the Sistine chapel, how he came up with the compositional ideas, and how using fresco in the way he did ensured its longevity. This could prompt questions around perception, historical context, and personal reactions, building both critical and emotional engagement.
Image: By Francis Donkin Bedford – Illustration from “Peter and Wendy” by James Matthew Barrie, Published 1911 by C. Scribner’s Sons, New York, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=147924058
In theatre studies I like to ask the students to write a short scene introducing two characters in comparative texts – such as Ibsen’s Nora with Chekov’s Irina – to explore their similarities and differences.
The overall aim is that this discovery and approach builds empathy, as students walk in another’s shoes, and refines their analytical skills as they examine textual clues in written and 3D works.
3. Creative Writing: Unpacking Artwork Narratives and Character Journeys
Flash Fiction Inspired by Artworks: flash fiction is a lot harder than it looks! Flash fiction inspired by artworks challenges students to weigh every word for impact. For example, we might start with free writing on Turner’s stormy landscapes, then edit down to a 150-200 word piece. This process requires students to carefully consider plot, structure, and character in each line, creating unique stories from the same source of inspiration.
Snow Storm – Steam-Boat off a Harbour’s Mouth making Signals in Shallow Water, and going by the Lead By J. M. W. Turner – Web Gallery of Art: Image Info about artwork, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15886130
For example, they could write for 10 minutes imagining a scene in Turner’s Snow Storm (above), describing emotions and events beyond what is seen on canvas. They then need to edit this down to a piece between 150-200 words. It still needs all the writing elements so students have to think carefully about the value of every word and where they place the emphasis of their writing. Each line needs to hold meaning inspired by the original work, and they all rise to the challenge creating unique pieces from the same source.
Character Development Through Poetry or Descriptive writing: the key to this is to take a character that has a little voice, or no voice at all, and develop insights from that point of view; imagine your child crafting a piece as a Lost Boy exploring Neverland, or the bloodhound tracing a scent for Sherlock Holmes, and how this brings the text to life from a new angle. Each of these helps them explore a character’s internal journey, engage deeply with the original text for points to develop, while practising literary techniques like imagery, metaphor, personification, and sensory language.
4. Using Reflection to Tie Personal Experience with Learning
Journal Prompts for Personal Connection: Imagine your child reflecting on their own moments of adventure, linking these experiences to the themes in literature. This activity not only deepens their connection to the text but creates meaningful, home-based discussions. This is a gentle way to support children and teens without being too ‘schooly’ – that is to use a set of prompts that connect students’ lives with characters’ experiences. For instance, reflecting on a moment of adventure or fear, similar to the journey into Neverland, can help students draw parallels between their lives and the story’s themes. Or to explore a set of family stories, the traditional ones that get trotted out at get togethers, and relate storytelling to values found in texts.
By Caspar David Friedrich – https://www.tiqets.com/ja/hamburg-attractions-c64886/tickets-for-hamburger-kunsthalle-skip-the-line-p976728/, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=127245432
Exploring Growth Over Time: in creative writing, each unit ends with the creation of a portfolio. It gives the students a chance to gather all their writing together. In their introductions students reflect on the feedback they’ve had, how they’ve edited their writing, or not, in response to that and how they’ve changed over the course of the unit. This could also be particularly effective as a reflective reading task, so, for example with Peter Pan they track their own interpretations of childhood and adventure alongside the narrative. This practice nurtures self-awareness, connecting students’ personal lives with literature, helping them see themselves within the narrative.
5. Building Lifelong Skills in Critical and Creative Thinking
Using art, writing, discussion and a variety of texts these exercises don’t just deepen engagement but also cultivate discovery and skills in empathy, analytical thinking, and creativity that last beyond teen learning, and foster an interrelated view of the world. Many of these ideas are adaptable at home, but if you’re seeking ways for your child to explore literature and art with confidence, come discover how Arts Discovery can open doors to a fun and engaging exploration of literature and art.
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