A History of a Charity in Twenty Objects - #12

 

#12. Sketchbook & Pencil (2004 to Present)

What you see here isn’t just a sketchbook and pencil. It’s also a promise that goes to the very heart of what we do.

 

And what do we do, exactly?

Thanks for asking. 

Well. By 2004, we had stopped creating publications for children and had started creating publications with children. Initially, the publications varied, as did the topics. 

We made a magazine and website about Elephant & Castle; a booklet celebrating Big Ben’s 150th birthday; pamphlets commemorating the 60th anniversary of VE Day; a children’s map of Southwark, as well as maps of Westminster and Waterloo. 

 

Eventually, we gravitated to books. Since 2009, we’ve published books on a variety of topics – mostly financial literacy, the Law and history, but also a cookbook and a fox-opedia called World ABCs.

 

How we make those books is the fun part: We choose one class of children, usually in Year 4 or Year 5, and, with the help of volunteers, we all explore the topic at hand. Our workshops are challenging. How, for example, do you explain concepts like risk, diversification and equity, or clarify between criminal and civil legal matters? Plus, we – well, actually the children – have the pressure of figuring out how illustrate those concepts for a book!

 

At the very heart of it all is drawing. We love drawing, not simply as a creative endeavour, but also as a way to see. We teach children how to use a pencil to see the world around them, which develops curiosity, observation and imagination. After all, if you really look at things, you’ll find yourself asking questions about what you see, which leads to deeper engagement, new ideas and active citizenship. Looking closely is itself a creative act.

 

So we do a lot of looking and drawing during our workshops. And we want to encourage the children to look and draw on their own, too. 

 

Enter our hero: the Guy Fox sketchbook. 

It makes its entrance during our first workshop, usually in Scene 3, after we’ve met the children, learned their names and confirmed that they want to take part in the project. While there is room for ad libbing, the sketchbook scene goes something like this:

 

The Sketchbook Scene:

 

Kourtney: “This is a sketchbook. It’s got Guy Fox on the cover along with his motto: ‘You can learn ANYTHING you want to.’  I’ve got a sketchbook for every single one of you. It’s all yours and I am challenging you to draw in it every day. Any questions?”

Hands sprout up: “Can I draw in it? Is it all mine? Can I take it home? Can I write stories in it? Put stickers on it? Colour the front cover? Draw on every page?” 

Kourtney: “Yes, yes, yeppity, yes. And yes, yes, and absolutely yes! It’s YOUR sketchbook, to use however you want. In fact, when it comes to your sketchbook, no matter what you ask me, my answer is going to be ‘yes’." 

Child: “Can I – ?” 

Kourtney & other children in unison: “Yes!”

 

(Here comes the best part.)

 

Kourtney: “Here’s the best part: This sketchbook comes with a promise. If you fill it up, we’ll give you another one. And if you fill up that one, we’ll give you another one! And so on. What you see here, my friends, is a bottomless sketchbook.” 

[End of Scene]

 

We give each child a sketchbook, and sure enough, in those moments when we are packing up after a workshop, they will stop us to share the drawings they’ve done at home. Some children fill a sketchbook between Workshop 1 and Workshop 2; many fill theirs during the course of the project. We store a few sketchbooks in our project bag, to make sure we can keep our word!

 

A promise is a promise after all. The Guy Fox sketchbook is bottomless.

 

And here comes the better than best part: Every so often, we receive a call from a Guy Fox alumnus. “I was in a Guy Fox project a few years ago. You probably don’t remember me (the truth is, we usually do) but can I get another sketchbook?”

 

We’re confident, dear reader, that you already know our response.

[PREVIOUS OBJECT] [NEXT OBJECT]