Guided Imagery

We did the following exercise in class today for Lord of the Flies--looking at the imagery that Golding uses to describe this seeming island paradise. It's amazing how the kids took to it. They actually followed with me. It worked well and the kids seemed to get from it what I needed them to.

. . .
Close your eyes. First just breathe and concentrate on your breathing. Breathe in and out very slowly. In and out. In and out. Begin by picturing a boat in front of you. It is tied to the dock and only waits for you to untie it. You climb about and untie the boat, pushing off from the dock, away towards the harbor and then the outer ocean that follows. You get farther and farther from the dock and the land in general. You look back towards the dock as your boat continues on its way until you can no longer see any land at all. You continue on. With each breath, let the waves take you farther and farther out to see. You look out towards the ocean and go farther and farther towards the true blue of the sea. The weather is mild. The sun is out and the sky is blue. You can smell the salt water and feel the spray from the waves. Each wave continues to take you farther and farther out to sea as you take each breath.

As you come toward the land, you see that it has both sand and jungle growth. You enter the island at a lagoon. Leave your canoe and go towards the land. You can feel your feet sink a bit into the sand as you take each step and notice the terrain around you. . . .


Kids either love this exercise or hate it. All in all it took about ten minutes of isntructional time, but it was so worth it. They were able to get a bit of the author's mood and tone pertaining to the island and to get an overall tour before we get into the lovely parts of the book. You know--"Kill the pig. Cut her throat. Bash her in."