Unit Three Project
Name: ______Date: ______
Unit Three Project
Bill of Rights Mandala
What is a Mandala?
The Mandala is a very powerful concept that originally came from the religious teachings of Hinduism, and Indian, Chinese and Japanese but especially Tibetan Buddhism. The word comes from Sanskrit (an ancient language) and manda means "essence," and the ending la means "container" or "possessor." Therefore, mandala means "A Container of Essence" or "Sphere of the Essence." Another Sanskrit meaning for the word is "circle." It has a centre or axis around which important and meaningful symbols are placed.
In other words, a mandala is a graphic representation of an idea that is typically created in the form of a circle enclosing a square and often bearing symmetrically arranged representations of ideas.
Why a Mandala?
By creating mandalas and displaying them we can all see the images we all together hold in our imaginations of the way we would like the world to be. Once we know this then perhaps we can then find ways of making it happen.
It is also a reflection of not only your understanding of the impact the Bill of Rights has had or will have on our lives individually and/or collectively.
Creating a group mandala is a unifying experience in which people can express themselves individually within a unified structure. It requires individual refection and collective action.
What are we to do?
Your group is responsible for producing a mandala on the Bill of Rights. The following instructions will help you with this assignment:
- Using the Bill of Rights mandala word list (attached), compose a list of 50 words based on the Bill of Rights. These are words that can be found in the actual Bill of Rights or words you feel evoke the spirit of the document.
- Your words must be concrete and specific, not generic and vague.
- Your words MUST fall into these categories:
- 10 words about the legal aspects of the Bill of Rights
- 10 names of court cases important to the expansion or preservation of the Bill of Rights
- 10 words that deal with criminal rights
- 10 words based solely on the first amendment
- 10 words that evoke emotions about the Bill of Rights
- After making your word list, you must incorporate all five categories in the creation of a meaningful mandala. The mandala must have visual images representing the Bill of Rights that means something to you personally and to the group. The mandala must also contain color.
- After your group creates your mandala, be prepared to present it and explain it to the rest of the class.
Anything else I need to know?
The Bill of Rights mandala needs to be completed collectively. It is not a “divide and conquer” project. It requirems participation from all members. The mandala must be created my hand, meaning it may not be computer generated. It should be neat and full of creativity, and emotion.
There are several resources you may use to get ideas of what a mandala is, and generate an ideas for your design. Your design and creation should mirror college level, not elementary level work and effort.
Names: ______
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Bill of Rights Mandala
Graphic Organizer
Legal Words: (10)
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Court Cases: (10)
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Criminal Rights Words: (10)
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First Amendment Words: (10)
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Emotions: (10)
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