Seventh graders learned about African-American artist Romare Bearden, who used magazines and paint to create multi-media collages which often expressed his views on social justice issues. After serving in World War II, he focused his work on expressing the humanity that he found lacking during his wartime experiences.  In his early work, he also focused on the theme of collaboration and cooperation within the African-American community. Another of his subjects was the rich artistic life in Harlem during the Harlem Renaissance. He was a member of the the artistic group The Spiral, a group that promoted the responsibility of artists in the struggle for civil rights.

The students chose a social justice issue of personal significance and used magazines to create their social justice collages.