MYP4 Interdisciplinary Unit

A Picture Paints a Thousand Words:

Understanding the Stories Shown in Photographs under the theme of Peace and Conflict
A. Reading Pictures
Walk through the photo exhibit. Try, at first, to avoid reading any of the information beside the
photographs.
Just wander around and look at the pictures.
Now choose three pictures which make an impression on you from different parts of the exhibit.
Reflect on why they have created an impression on you and explain.
Picture:
Picture 1:

Section:
Daily Life

Reason:

Picture 2:

Sports

Bright colours
Speed
Energetic mood
Techno

Picture3:

Spot News

Lots of blood
Agressive
Negative mood
Suffering/ Pain / Torment
Action
Loss of hope

Different culture
Changes your mood

Choose one of these three pictures which causes you to feel something, to react. Stand in front of
the photograph, and without reading the accompanying information or the title, answer the
following questions:
1. Report your reaction: Can you find one or two words to describe what you feel or think
when you look at this picture?
Sadness/ loss of hope
Suffering/pain/ tourcher
2. Make a prediction: What do you think is happening in this photograph?
Suffering of the people during a war
3. Make a connection: What does this photograph remind you of? Where have you seen
something like this before?
Books, news, Movies, Museums, Newspaper
4. Ask a question: What would like to know? What confuses you? What intrigues you? Come
up with three questions you have about this photograph.
i.

Which war is the photograph based on?

ii.

What is causing the smoke and how was it caused?

iii.

Why is the war happening?

B. Looking at the bigger picture

1.

Find a photo which you think is showing a problem that could become more relevant in the
years to come. Describe why you think so.

Long Term Projects

This photo shows the danger of pollution and contribution to global warming in this world
since there is smoke coming from factories and sheep made of something that could
cause pollution.
2. Choose a different photo which can be used to raise awareness about a particular issue.
Why would this photo provoke action?
Reportage General News

Its raising awareness about how were slowly killing our planet by pollution. This photo
mainly shows how we humans litter and damage the environment and intoxicate the air we
breathe .
3. Find a photo which you think is trivial. Reflect on it for a couple of minutes without looking at
its description. Why do you think it is part of the exhibition?
Nature- i think this photo is trivial be cause i dont understand what it has to do with conflict.
I think this is part of the exhibition to remind us that we mistreat animals too and they
should be acknowledged.
4. Do you feel that photography is a good medium to expose conflict? Discuss why using
examples from the exhibit.
Photography is an excellent way to expose conflict, because being an artistic way of
expression it clearly shows facial expression which contain pain, loss of hope and suffering
as shown in spot news.
5. In writing, we talk about tone and mood and style, which is used to evoke certain feelings
when you read it. How do the photographers evoke feeling? Is it just about content, or are
there other elements? Choose three example to illustrate your point.
- facial expression: show the persons emotions and thoughts at that moment
- colours: tones of colours used in art help express the mood of the situation
- symbols/ objects that have a special meaning: Show the worth and meaning of the situation and
lead you to guess origin/place

C. Wander around the rest of the exhibition.

i)
ii)
iii)
i.
ii.
iii.

Choose a photo that you really like

Choose a photo which you dont like.
What is one thing that you learned about the world that you didnt know before?

General news
Nature
Today I learnt how certain pictures can impact your feelings/mood. I also realised how lucky
we are as others are in worse situations

Be prepared to share your thoughts in class on Monday.

D. Now choose any of the photos. Write a back-story to the scene that is captured in the
photograph. Here is an example of what someone wrote last year:

An explosion
I hear a big explosion and then nothing, the black-out. I wake up in pain; I can feel
the cold floor against my aching back. It takes me a few minutes to be able to feel
my body and move but I cannot stand up because something is blocking me. I
start to panic; I am scared, what is happening? I cant see anything! With all the
force I can get I push away the object and get up, but as soon as I am on my feet I
want to fall down. All I can see are people on the floor, dead. The object that was
on me is a dead woman. There is still the fresh smell of the bomb and the salty
taste of blood. I can smell death all around me. People are waking up, yelling,
screaming out names but then I realize I am screaming. I run to my brothers and
parents, who are still unconscious .I shake, slap and yell at them, I try everything
but none of them are opening their eyes. I do not know what to do, I am lost
without my family, I feel like someone is just braking me down into millions of
pieces. I am dead from the inside. I go up to my mum; I put my hand into hers. I
can feel her soft palm against mine; I can smell the perfume she sprayed on
today. A day of festivity which turns into a day of horror and which will change my
life forever. I lie down next to my mum and close my eyes. I am going to wait- wait
until I have to face the truth but for now I wait.