Looking back on a learning experience with a visual reflection template
Recently, the 3rd edition of my Pragmatic Sketching Masterclass came to an end. To reflect on the experience and our time together, we did a visual reflection exercise in our last live session.
I wanted the participants to both look back at the course and the they learned and also to look to the future and where their sketching journey might take them. To help structure the reflection, I created a simple visual template that we used.
The template works to reflect on any kind of course, learning experience or even project and I want to share it with you in case you might want to try this method yourself.
I recommend to take about 10-15 minutes for the exercise. If you do this with a group, the filled templates are a great way for the group members to share their experience – showing their drawing and talking about the most important points they noted.
Let’s get started
Take a piece of paper (ideally A4 or letter size) and draw a simple walking stickfigure wearing a backpack in the middle (maybe slightly more to the left).
You can customise the figure to look like you by giving her facial features and a hairstyle.
The first question to reflect on is what you gathered in your backpack during the experience. What were the most important AHA moments? What did you learn? Which new insights did you get?
You can write (and draw) your AHA moments on the left.
Now draw a horizon to the right of your figure and a way leading up to it.
You can choose what you would like to draw at the end of the path. It could be a beautiful sunset, a mountain top you want to conquer, a skyline at the horizon or maybe a nice oasis to rest.
The second question to reflect on is where you would like your experience to lead you in the future? How do you plan to apply what you learned? What is a next goal you would like to reach? You can write (and draw) your future plans above the horizon.
The last question to reflect on is imagining what the way before you looks like. Maybe there are milestones on the way or some rocks to move to the side? Are there things you might want to discover on the way?
You can draw and write whatever is important to describe the way ahead of you (and/or your wishes for what you would hope it to be like).
Here is my reflection drawing from the last live session with my course participants. I reflected on my journey creating and teaching the course.
You can either draw your reflection freehand on an empty piece of paper, or you can download this basic template I created as a starting point and personalise it as you like. Just click on the image below to download.
If you enjoy this little exercise, please do let me know (and maybe even share your own reflection drawing), either here in the comments or posting it on instagram (tag me @evalottchen).
Learn Pragmatic Sketching with me
If you are interested in taking part in the next round of the Pragmatic Sketching Masterclass, you can get on the waitlist for the autumn 2023 edition to get all the info once sign-up starts.
Für alle Deutsch-Sprachigen unter euch: im März 2023 started die deutsche Ausgabe der Masterclass. Hier könnt ihr euch auf die Warteliste eintragen, um alle Infos per Email zu bekommen, wenn es so weit ist.
The class is for anyone who wants to learn (even from scratch) to draw things in a simple, clear and pragmatic way or who wants to improve their current sketching practice by taking a more detailed view at how to approach sketching things, people, actions, emotions, faces and hands and anything else in a structured but also playful way.
More info: www.evalotta.shop/pragmatic-sketching