Creative Good

Here is a photo of the collection of crutches that my students decorated and donated to an international medical outreach program to be shipped overseas to those in need. We had worked on them over the course of last year, collecting, cleaning, and decorating with colleagues and parents at open houses, the Texas Art Education Association conference, as well as locally. It was a great conversation starter, as students only understand the inconvenience of a sprained ankle or a hurt knee and not the long-term inability to move for those who are permanently physically-challenged. The reality that individuals deal with lost limbs or paralysis due to illness or natural disaster, like hundreds in Haiti for example, was a real eye-opener, and charged my students with a mission to create a gift of hope and at least, partial mobility.

Time for a TASK Party!

School starts tomorrow, and we are throwing a party--a TASK Party inspired by Oliver Herring. It was my introduction to the Art:21 Educators Institute in NYC. My cohort colleagues and I met on the sidewalk as we waited outside the Art:21 offices, and little did we know the adventure upon which we were set to embark! A TASK Party engages participants by prompting them to act on a "task" written on a piece of paper. Each then adds a "task" to the pool, so that the experience is shared and ongoing. I see this as a perfect way to launch the creative flow for the studio--engaging these young artists, actors, and musicians in using the materials they find in the studio and performing their tasks individually or together.
The room, I hope, will be transformed. Right now, the tables are set, the walls are clear of exhibits, chairs are stacked and posters/prints are on display near our discussion space. How will it look after the students experience TASK? How will they display their artifacts? What will they use to express their ideas? I can't wait for their reactions, and reflections. The beauty in all of this is that really, "Anything is Possible!" I hope they see the wonder in discovery, collaboration, sharing ideas, play, art, and exploration.
I wonder and wait.

Knitting together diverse strands of thought

I stumbled upon this video of Rachel John's Extreme Knitting project, (via Leslie Gates' blog) and realized it was a perfect springboard for a post on preparing for a new school year. August is the month when all those ideas culminate into a plan. The different yet connected threads form a unified and textured fabric--an analogy for our process of preparing for and launching our respective art classrooms and studios for the year ahead.
In these long, hot, dog-days of summer, it is pleasant to have time to participate in and reflect on a variety of experiences outside of the art classroom. I just came back from an intensive and immersive (I could add, incredible) week with Art:21, for the Art:21 Educator Institute launching my participation in the Contemporary Art for Contemporary Classrooms program. This year-long experience with a cohort of brilliant educators will be challenging and process-changing. I see how the depth of learning in the Fine Arts Studio will be further explored, how I and my students will be challenged to think in new ways about our individual approaches to art making and thinking about art. Our method thus far has touched on themes, exploring big ideas, essential questions and the like, but I realize we didn't travel far enough down these roads of "meaning-making" to fully grasp these ideas. We dabbled. We explored the elements and principles of design. We created, we reflected, and then we moved on. We have so much more to explore within each art experience, and with each one, contemporary artists via Art:21 and from the community will provide real-life context. I am looking forward to exploring how these experiences will impact our way of looking at and thinking about art. I will share the journey. In the meantime, check out these amazing resources via Art:21.
What are some ways you weave a richer art curriculum for your students?

PLN

Doing. Showing. Remembering. Making. Describing. Designing. Demonstrating. Engaging. Networking. Creating. Meeting. Chatting. Uploading. Downloading. Listing. Posting. Tagging. Explaining. Inspiring. Understanding. Analyzing. Applying. Persevering. Trying. Exploring. Extending. Evaluating. Synthesizing. Commenting. Programming. Experimenting. Editing. Journaling. Retrieving. Inventing. Connecting. Searching. Reviewing. Producing. Constructing. Sharing. Growing. Learning. PLN.

What is Art Ed?

As I gear up for my Art21 Educators Institute, I was asked to reflect on what the current trends are in art education and how I see this impacting how and what I teach. I used Wordle as a prompt for my analysis. What would you add?

QR Codes in the Art Classroom

Several of my art colleagues have explored QR codes and have already implemented them in the art classroom for creating interactive art exhibits. I am inspired to do the same! So today, I set about creating my own QR code that links to this blog. Now I realize how simple it can be:
I envision a "scan"-venger hunt with QR codes linking to information about artists and artwork for the Studio, also inspired by this resource from @cybraryman1 on Twitter. I use the NeoReader app on the iPhone.

Taking a Leap!

Well, I did it. I completed my first effort at National Board Certification. I know it isn't fully complete. I submitted my box amidst plans for school, community and state art exhibits for Youth Art Month, and a substantial list of other to-do's that in my zeal for getting it all done, somehow all culminated in being due at or around the same time. I could have decided to let it go, to not follow through. Instead I realized that sending the box in with two entries was better than not sending it in at all. Then it was year-end, and my daughter's wedding approached, and I had the assessment exercises to complete, as well as presentations for CEDFA. Like I wrote earlier, doesn't it all happen at once? Her wedding was the most important. I moved the other items way down the list. Somehow I felt it would all come together. I am so impressed with my colleagues who achieved NBCT in one year. "Wow!" That is something. But I had to decide what was right for me. That is why I am sharing this. I want to encourage others to take the leap of school (if that is what you interests you...) or national board certification (if that is what you want to try) and realize that taking a leap requires taking a risk. It is okay to leap and see where we land.

Time...

As I logged in this morning to post a "I'm back!" blog-post, I caught a glimpse of others' blogs and saw that I am not the only one who felt that time was elusive this spring. To think that my last post was in February! I really only realized that yesterday as I was sharing my blog with attendees at CEDFA's Summit XII in Austin, TX. Nancy Walkup and I were co-presenting the focus on Assessment and the standards that relate to the Response/Evaluation strand of the TEKS (TX Essential Knowledge and Skills)
Bloom's Taxonomy was a first focus, where attendees created a flip-book with measurable verbs that take the students through the levels of the taxonomy. We then explored 21st Century Skills from the Partnership of 21st Century Skills. Bloom's (revised) Taxonomy and the 21st Century Skills, along with TEKS and National Content Standards for Visual Arts would then be applied to lesson planning/writing and the development of an assessment rubric. Here are some resources that I have collected over the years that connect to what I shared.
We were also creating! As part of our presentation, attendees participated in four different art activities that explored different media and techniques, engaging them as we would our students in thinking in new ways about their approaches to art making.
During the first session, participants created marbled paper for a silhouette project that Nancy shared:

I am a Masterpiece!

Anything is possible with art!



One's mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions. ~Oliver Wendell Holmes

It is remarkable to watch the development of 4th graders as they conquer self-doubt and lack of experience with a medium to create magnificent works of art. My slogan is "Turn your mistake into a Masterpiece!" It is posted all over the studio. Students at the start of the year are so willing to give up. That is simply not allowed in the Fine Arts Studio! Instead, we have to look at what we have accomplished and keep going. Mistakes happen but they can be the springboard for turning our work into a masterpiece. We overcome our frustrations, transform our work and experience a new way of expressing ourselves.

More than a Virtual Trip to Greece?

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Inspired by Athletes, Myths, and Poets

I heard just a few weeks ago that I didn't get the funding from Target Field Trip Grants for our field trip to the Blanton Museum of Art for the lesson I published in School Arts in December. I can't complain as they had generously funded our art field trips for two years in a row. So, I am working hard to rally support so that this group of 5th graders can get there too! We are going to be hosting a Fine Arts and PE event in late February where KidsArt Fairs will be a part--Frames for the artwork are the fundraiser! Such a great idea, I can't wait to see if it helps us get where we want to go! At least I know we can get there... virtually.

What is Art?

As I prepared my classroom yesterday for the start of school and 2011, I set a group of prints around the easel for our Art of the Day discussion. The big question will be "what is Art?" As we explore the different approaches by individual artists, the cultural, spiritual, emotional, and intellectual implications of their works will hopefully shine through in the conversation. The constant evaluation of the students' personal connections to art and art-making, informed by a growing understanding of media and technique, will engage these 4th and 5th graders in what will be, no doubt, an interesting debate. I can't wait for 2011 to start in the Studio!

As I explored over the break, I found this awesome video that begs the question: What is Art? It is great for the laugh, and for the (edited) shortened clip to share with students in a discussion. The video is by Creature Comforts, and I found it on Art Matters. It is also a great example of claymation:

Connecting through Art Ed!

I learn so much from my PLN! I finished compiling the resources for the TAEA Elementary Division wiki and am amazed at what we can glean from fellow art educators from all over the country. I am so impressed by educators at every level, who pool ideas, links, and their own creativity to immerse their students in new endeavors. One of the art educators whose websites and blogs inspire us to do more is Craig Roland (@craigr on Twitter) whose Art Junction site lead me to find this link to an article about sketchbooks. TAEA has created a new sketchbook initiative to engage the artist within each teacher, and this post provides some food for thought. As a way of inspiring elementary art educators to participate, we launched a theme for elementary: Connecting! So let's start connecting our thoughts, media and creativity, and immerse ourselves in creating art!