Project Based Healing
Project-based learning has been a movement in education for years, most notably used in the Industrial Arts. As a high school woodworking teacher, Kris often saw that kids who struggle to retain information through typical lessons thrived in his classroom due to the nature of using the mind and hands together. The premise of project-based learning is that the lessons become more meaningful because the process of making something gives the mind a context for what has been learned. Here at The Birdhouse Project, it is our belief that by using more regions of the brain, the learning experience becomes more deeply ingrained in the learner.
The idea for project-based healing came to Kris one afternoon while looking at leftover birdhouse parts from a presentation on project-based learning. After thinking about his own story and the healing process he went through after the death of his teenage son, Kris started to tie the two ideas together. If project-based learning works because it is tied to real life and uses both sides of the brain, why not explore what happens when you apply this same process to circumstances where emotional growth could be beneficial? What happens if the heart gets involved?
Kris decided that if the parts of this birdhouse could be given symbolic meaning for people who need to reclaim or redefine their lives, maybe there is a case to be made for project-based healing through a collaboration of the heart, mind and hands. He approached Jeff to brainstorm about these ideas and his desire to get his story out to others in these circumstances, and this first book eventually found its way to you.
As the series unfolds and feedback about the process and results come in, Kris and Jeff will be rethinking, revisiting and refining their ideas of what project-based healing can be while also recording its benefits and acknowledging its limitations.
The Birdhouse Project's first book is Kris's attempt to share the lessons of his experience in a way that will leave a lasting impression on people trying to overcome their own tragedies. Subsequent books in the series will explore other stories and similar ways to use the same steps - steps of introspection, reflection, honesty and action - to move past other trying circumstances or perceived limits in life.
The idea for project-based healing came to Kris one afternoon while looking at leftover birdhouse parts from a presentation on project-based learning. After thinking about his own story and the healing process he went through after the death of his teenage son, Kris started to tie the two ideas together. If project-based learning works because it is tied to real life and uses both sides of the brain, why not explore what happens when you apply this same process to circumstances where emotional growth could be beneficial? What happens if the heart gets involved?
Kris decided that if the parts of this birdhouse could be given symbolic meaning for people who need to reclaim or redefine their lives, maybe there is a case to be made for project-based healing through a collaboration of the heart, mind and hands. He approached Jeff to brainstorm about these ideas and his desire to get his story out to others in these circumstances, and this first book eventually found its way to you.
As the series unfolds and feedback about the process and results come in, Kris and Jeff will be rethinking, revisiting and refining their ideas of what project-based healing can be while also recording its benefits and acknowledging its limitations.
The Birdhouse Project's first book is Kris's attempt to share the lessons of his experience in a way that will leave a lasting impression on people trying to overcome their own tragedies. Subsequent books in the series will explore other stories and similar ways to use the same steps - steps of introspection, reflection, honesty and action - to move past other trying circumstances or perceived limits in life.
