Kids' Opinions

So on the last week of camp I decided to have an overall share time encompassing all their thoughts for the summer.

First my reflections:

• Choice with middle school was much tougher than choice with 4th and 5th grade. 
• Possibly a modified choice for these students to start them off with an inspiration as opposed to complete free choice. 
• Possibly an overall theme for the week. 
• Maybe even several choices to create art about so that it doesn't go back to the way it was of me telling them exactly what to do. 
• The portfolio project lasted WAY too long for some of the members and that is where they put most of their effort. I think that this one should have a time limit. Or maybe even just their name on it and not all of their interests.
• Removing the stencils and stamps because it became too easy to just make random tracings. It became a cop out for making their own art, so those will disappear. 

Kids' Reflections:

• They liked the independence and freedom but liked that they were able to get help when they needed it. 
• Liked not being told when something needed to be finished.
• Felt like they had more ownership of the classroom and their personal work.
• They were able to make their idea comes true.
• Now that they know the function of the classroom they feel like they can make higher quality work. 
• The pictures at the centers helped them clean up the right way. 
• They miss the cleanup chart that I had done in previous semesters and like that they were held responsible and could compare themselves to other classes.
• Wanted to have some HAVE TO projects. Some that were lead by the teacher and wanted to do some large group projects. 
• I never told them they couldn't, they just didn't. So I will have to make that clear in the coming semester. 
• They loved having a large variety of materials to work with.
• They felt that there was less pressure on them by having no previous examples. 
• They wanted more video examples.
• This is due to THE ONE TIME I showed them the bob ross remix video on youtube. They loved that so much I must have played it 100x. 
• They want to learn specific techniques like stippling and hatching.
• Totally caught me off guard there but so willing to teach that. 

We ended with a girl who told me a poem she saw at an art supply store.

A dot isn't just a dot

It is more than a dot.

You can make stuff out of the dot.

So think about that dot. 

LOVE IT.

Overall  a successful summer with some rough spots. That is to be expected tho and I wanted to deal with any snags now as opposed to when I am doing my capstone. It was a lot of fun (minus missing two weeks and coming back to a lot of broken things.) Plus I learned how much I love blogging about my teaching experiences! 

The best thing  I heard today was "Ms. Alexa, with art, alot of times its the teacher that makes it awesome and you make it awesome. Those two weeks without you were really boring." Oh how they make my little art teacher heart melt.  

Week 6: better late than never..

So week 6 I decided to recap everything that I went through in a short 7 minute demo. What a mouthful. I never made it to ink and values but that was ok because I think that a lot of my students were overwhelmed with the amount of materials available.

It is currently week 7 and I am at UF for my summer studio courses that I need to take to graduate. So before I forget everything that happened, I wanted to reflect on the 6 weeks that I was present.

What worked:

• Choice Based Learning as a whole worked with the occasional student who didn't understand the allotted freedom to create.
• The classroom function and space was marvelous, once we got through two centers it was easier to spread them out. I kept basic drawing materials at each center to make up for some space issues at the beginning.
• The students became really patient during the demos and they knew that  it wouldn't take me long and they could work soon.
• After I added pictures to the stations, the room started to stay cleaner.
• Hiring classroom keepers a week before I left gave them the initiative to clean and show me they deserved to be hired. That was the cleanest I've ever seen the room and the keepers took responsibility. 

What needed to be changed:

• The post it note was too much during clean up and it was wasting paper. I changed it to a chart that gets glued on to their portfolios. This worked better and I could track all 8 weeks in on place. Less work for me. 
• Talk time needed to be more structured and that is a change I will make for the Fall Capstone Project.
• Keeping some students on task was difficult, they would make one thing in 15 minutes and say they were done. I need to find something for them after besides making something else which they wont even care about because they are no longer inspired. Maybe classroom jobs?
• Order more paper for portfolios. Unfortunately some of my paper didn't come in until the 3rd week and by then I had run out of the ones I was using for large portfolios. It was worse than newsprint but the biggest thing we had in the building. Make sure to get more. 
• Get more copy paper!

Overall there was so much I learned from this trial and error experience that I now feel more prepared for the Fall Capstone Projects. I really liked the classroom function as a whole so now I can do more observations on the problem solving aspect which is what I wanted to focus on. Summer is a hectic time at work and the school year brings a different set of kids and skills.

I am really looking forward to it. For now I'm having nightmares about what my classroom will look like when I return. Thankfully I hid most of the really good stuff. We shall see. 

Terrible Tuesday & a Recap

Remember that comment I made about being terrified of having a sub for two whole weeks? Yeah, I got a taste of that on Tuesday when I went on a field trip with the High School Members and was gone for two blocks. A total of three hours. Not even a whole day.

I left explicit instructions for the sub which he read over in front of me. I asked if he had any questions, he did not and I left for the field trip. When I returned I found things out that should not have been used, materials that they did use in other places and STAMPS ON MY DRY ERASE BOARD. I am now officially terrified of the mess that I will come back to. Due to this inconvenience and nightmare, I have decided to hide most of the materials that they usually use. I will be leaving them with the basic drawing materials and the collage station. While the collage station will probably be a huge mess I need them to learn that even though I'm not there they must care for the materials as if they purchased them. Also, I have hired 2-3 "Classroom Keepers" for their scheduled block to help with the mess and to assure that the routine goes as planned. I will be "paying" the classroom keepers in Character Counts Coupons (a reward system we have for good behavior) and Free Taco Bell Coupons. I will have the sub make sure that they do their jobs and will hopefully leave me notes as to the classes overall behavior. I'm nothing short of terrified, but I must go to UF for the studio classes. I graduate in December, it has been a wonderful experience and I am thankful for all that I have learned.

Printing and stamping for the other class has gone really well and they have made some really interesting monoprints. I hope to get them passed back next week to be sorted into their portfolios.

Week 4: Printing & Stamping

With two classes so far this week I thought it was important to record how my first day went with printing
and stamping. I showed them the basic stamp that went over well... until it came to cleaning them before using them in another color. So I developed a quick wash process for the sink that didn't involve constantly running the water. This worked out better than the other way and limited wasted water and people hanging out at the sink.

The prints we did were simple mono prints from one side of the paper to another. I showed the example, did the demo, showed them how to clean it and we were on our way. I limited it to one mono print for the day so that everyone could have a chance if they wanted. It worked out well and it was obvious who listened

to the demo and who was daydreaming. They really enjoyed this method, so much so that a few of them tried to sneak a second one. We fixed that problem early and it ended up working well. I had them blow dry them and then put them on the drying rack. During one of my planning periods I'm going to sort them and put them in their cubbies to be distributed next week.

We were having a problem cleaning up and returning things to their spots so I took pictures of everything (labels are NOT enough). These pictures show the proper placement for everything. Now no one can say they dont know where it goes. They've only been up for about two hours but they seem to work a little better.




I'm a bit terrified to go away to school this summer and leave a sub in my class. I will try to leave as clear instructions as possible but I know I'm a little ridiculous about the schedule and routine of the classroom. We. Shall. See.

Week 3: Collage and Trial & Error

I'll start with the trial and error portion. Originally I was having the members do exit slips on the way out the door on a large board. Many of the members were forgetting to do them/or just not doing them. I would have to count them out and record them on my own personal sheet to track them. This simply became overwhelming for both parties. So what I devised was a simple table I created in word that had space for all the same weekly information such as the center they used and what they did that day. I had them glue this rectangle on to their portfolios because everyone has one and when I walk by I can glance at the portfolio and see what they've been up to. This was the first week and I devised it in the middle of the week so 4 classes have missed this but I will make up for it next week. I know my Monday classes need it and my Wednesday afternoon needs it since I left sick yesterday. [stupid migraines]

So on to collage. Many of the members took to this and created some interesting pieces. Some even voluntarily shared their work [gasp]. As a middle schooler this can be terrifying but they did it and did it well. I was proud and they received a character counts coupon for their bravery and sharing. I also hung their work in the gallery for a little extra recognition.

Many of the members who took their time on portfolios reverted to the pastels that they didn't have a chance to try. It was nice to see them go back and practice something new and have other options as well. Some took my example and created their own [what a relief, they didn't copy] But they used a mixed media approach by creating a pastel background and then using the collage center to add their pieces. Many of them are just in the scribble phase and dont know what their artwork means so when we talk I try and point out the elements and principles. One girl's was so symmetrical and so we talked about what that means.

Overall mostly everyone has been hard at work. The ones who attempt to finish early I push to do something else or deepen their current work. Some are stuck and thats ok, thats when I lead them to the library and find lots of different artwork for inspiration.

Many of the kids say they enjoy art better this way and I can see that they are getting better at sitting through the 5 minutes demos. Next week is printing and stamping. I'm going to show them to make monoprints for which I have made amazing tempra paint glue bottles to cut down on waste and mess. I'm going to show them the process and then limit it to 5 people at a table. The stamping table will be open to 7. That takes care of almost an entire class and hopefully that starts to spread them out more. I have drawing supplies at all the tables so that I can send them to different tables when it gets too crowded or they need some time apart from their friends to get their work done.

I mentioned I went home sick and someone took my classes. When I returned this morning my room was a mess. This only makes me cringe because I'll be gone for two weeks later in the summer. I hope I dont come back to a hot mess, but I've already been told to expect it.

Really looking forward to next week. When I'll also be doing random portfolio checks.

Oh and P.S- I'm FINALLY getting a kiln. I have been waiting three years for this. [insert excited art teacher squeals]

-Alexa

Week Two- Recap

I started out the week with an attempt at collage and pastels. I should have known better but it was an experiment. I only managed to get through that with one class and the rest were all intro'd to pastels in the drawing center. This worked better and many of the members took to the pastels and created some really wonderful pieces. I loved seeing so many different works in the making. No two looked alike! I will call this a success. In the last post I mentioned how I was allowing some name drawing since this was their comfort zone. After speaking to my committee chair he let me in on a little secret line he used to use with his middle schoolers. "What is the most boring way we could do this? We don't want to be boring, so lets think of something else to do!" What that turned into was me telling them that if they couldn't think of anything to do but their name to take the letters of their name and start thinking of things that began with those letters. For example, my name, Alexa. It starts with an A so I could draw an apple, or the letter L and draw a leaf, or the letter E and draw an elephant. The kids laughed and took to the idea and after that I didn't see any more name drawings. Amen for that.

Many of the members were determined to spend more time on their portfolios and thats ok. I keep reminding them that there isn't really a time frame because artists work at their own pace. They REALLY liked that idea. One girl said, "Thank goodness, my school art teacher makes us all do the same thing in the same color and finish at the same time. Thats boring!" Yes, little artist, it absolutely is.

It has been a good second week and they members are asking what's next. I've got them hooked, lets see what next week brings. I have included some of the pastel works that are coming along nicely. They have already learned about fixative and always ask to have their's sprayed so next week it wont be ruined. They are just as on top of it as I am. It makes me proud and excited.

On another note, I have received full IRB approval! So onward with my research project that I am looking forward to soooo much.

Week Two- Introducing Pastel & attempting Collage

So my first thought is that I'm trying to fit too much into one day. Many of these members have been attending for years and I thought that they could handle the multiple materials and that this would be a good way to spread them out in the room.

For the first Block of the day I tried both. The second block was a MUCH rowdier group so I only introduced them to pastel. The members seems to take to it well. I demonstrated the way to blend and

create layers. I also showed them how to use a kneaded eraser to remove some of the smudges. At the end they learned about fixative so that their images wouldn't smudge in their portfolios. This went well and many of the members tried it out.

Some of the members went directly to their comfort zone of drawing their name. I let it slide because of what I read in the TAB group. This was their comfort and I wanted to praise them and show them it was ok until they found inspiration otherwise.

Some continued to work on their portfolios using the markers and colored pencils from the past week. This was ok with me because it told me they wanted to put some honest effort into their portfolio.

One member went ahead starting a comic book because he said when he grew up he wanted to write comics. I encouraged him to start now. By the end he had come up with the main characters. This pleased me. He built on an interest.

The first block was mainly old members so I felt comfortable showing them collage, complete with fancy scissors and shape cutters. They did a good job until it came to clean up. They rushed a little but I caught them and we went through the paper again to salvage the good pieces. I let them know that the more conservative they were the longer they would be able to use it. It went well overall.

The "learned it" post it was difficult for many of them but this was the first week. I reminded them and gave
them examples. They didn't do too bad. It is just getting used to the new routine. Overall, after some talks with the second group, order was restored.

I'm finding this way of teaching a lot more fun but a lot of work- which isn't a bad thing. During the school year I dont see nearly as many members and I know it will ease up a bit. Also many of them are in lazy mode because it is the summer. I keep encouraging and after a few pushes they seem to do well. I ALWAYS tell them "you are smart, you are capable, there is nothing here that you cant do, if you think it is bad then work to make it better" I remind them that we are here to make them "productive, caring, responsible citizens." I love my challenging kids, they remind me why I do what I do.

Art with a Heart
-Ms. Alexa

Week One Recap

This week was interesting because I introduced choice to more than 200 kids. They all seemed to take to it well and enjoyed the routine and semi-freedom. This week they made their portfolios for their future work.

 The only issue we encountered was that many of them had problems telling me about themselves. They couldn't express themselves freely. I became internally frustrated and sought the help of the wonderful people on the Yahoo TAB group. Their words were encouraging and helpful and provided me with an insight into the mind of an "at-risk" child. It was interesting to see the connections between their words and the work and thoughts of my own students. I always sit down and talk to my students while the work, just to pick their brain but this time I took a slightly different approach. I started to ask them about previous art teachers and their experiences in art, in school and at home. The horror stories that ensued after we discussed previous art classes brought me to tears. Hearing that their work had been torn up and they were told that they weren't any good broke my heart. One girl told me that her last teacher would just yell at her. Obviously this is only one side of the story but at the same time it came from students that were doing quality work on their current project. It was sad to hear how they had been told they would not succeed. I made one girl a pinky promise to never yell. Yelling is not the way to reach many of my students. Having a heart and being compassionate has proved more useful in the past week than yelling ever has. I hope compassion becomes contagious in the room and they feel the safety needed to create wonderful art work. 

I wonder what next next week will bring when they get to really work on their ideas, although many have asked to complete their portfolio. They were pleasantly surprised that there was no time limit on their projects. They could create three in the time of summer camp or one a day. Artists work at their own pace. To solidify that idea I showed them the work of Seurat, and explained how long it took him to work on his most famous piece. Also the work of Andy Warhol who could whip them out in no time in his Factory setting. So there I go, integrating art history without even thinking about it. Oh how I love choice. 

Extra Pictures

 The drawing station has had a few more menus added and everything has been labeled.

 This is just a close up of some of the menus near the drawing station with some drawings for inspiration.

This will be the ink station when the time comes. I will get a better picture of the menu.











I just wanted to add these to show the progression of the changes in the room. As you can also see, the stools are (for me at least) a game changer in the room size and functionality.

Summer Camp: Day one- shock, awe and attitude!

Shortly after I posted last week my stools arrived and my room began to come together. I decided that some of the resources and menus could wait until we got to that center. That way it would be something new and fresh in the room.

The first day of summer camp always brings some new faces and many familiar ones that I dont get to see during the school year. The kids that come during the summer have a completely different attitude than the ones who attend all year round. It makes for an interesting balance of attitude and lesson on respect for all. As my kids say "Ohhhhhh, they tried me." But that is every year until they figure out that it is in their best interest to give their best effort and have some fun.

For the members who are familiar with the Art Lab and attend all year seeing the room changed was a shock to them. They were like "Missssssss, you changed the room! It looks huge!" They seemed to like the new arrangement and waited patiently for me to get through my first day expectations, routine and general classroom housekeeping.

I promised them that they would never hear me talk for that long of a time again and many of them seemed relieved. Trust me that I was too because there was a lot to talk about regarding routine, materials, supplies and such. I tried to stress the clean up as much as possible and the first group did well. When the second group left there were markers in the colored pencils and it was generally messier than I would have liked. I will have to make a comment about that next week as I keep track of who cleans what.

The first project was the only one they were required to do because it was a portfolio to store future work and I needed one from everyone.  There was my first HAVE TO and it went well for most of the members. I found it amazing how hard of a time they had telling me things they liked. The most popular answers were food and sleep. This is probably due having to get up early to catch the bus, for that I can not blame them, it is their summer. I agreed to let them continue their portfolios next week because many of the blocks were shortened due to first day issues and getting everyone where they were supposed to be.

I also have a Pull Out Painting class where I invite (read as: hand pick) members who have a genuine interest in art and desire to learn to paint. It proved to be an interesting class with some really good kids and one surprised me. As she was about to finish her painting she called me over and she said "Would you like to hear what it is about?" She told me the elaborate story, each pieces significance and how she went about it. It completely made my day that someone had an idea, a plan, a method and a story and wanted to share it.

Yesterday I also received an email from the IRB office letting me know that my study was conditionally approved and that I only had to make small changes to the protocol and consent forms. I look forward to seeing the members in the Fall and who participates in the study. For now I'm gaining amazing experience transitioning to choice in my everyday classroom.

I'm having fun and I think the kids are having fun.

Moving update & classroom resources

What a crazy week it has been. It has felt like the longest and fastest week, all at the same time. In the last week I have reorganized the classroom, cleaned and purged it of countless old projects and randoms just laying around. I have started to create the resources and menus for the centers but have not finished those yet. As my supplies for the summer start to come in I start to organize them and figure out a way to make everything accessible.

I will start with the drawing center, disregard the chairs as they will be removed soon. I have made cubbies for all the supplies and will be labeling everything hopefully today. There are a variety of tools and resources including a "What do artists draw?" menu to help inspire their drawings. This is conveniently located next to the classroom library with an abundance of books. I ordered two books for this center, one about manga and the other about drawing what you see.

This was the first center I organized. The second was collage because that is what I will be opening second. 

I tried to keep this one simple because there is only one table and room for 5. I wanted to give them enough space to work and store all their materials. Under the table there are also bins for magazines and extra glue. I still have to make the glue sponge. Waiting to make a trip to Walmart to get a cheap sponge (and the other supplies I'm missing.) I included a "stash or trash" menu because I dont want teeny scraps hanging out in the bins that are unusable. Hopefully this will help with organization. 

This is my exit slip board. I found this calendar rolled up and no one was using it. The dates serve as spots for each class to put their post it note. (Which will be located on the collage table) I surrounded it with a variety of art works, all different, I hope that this board will also serve as inspiration and a discussion topic. After each Block I intend to photograph the board. This will help me keep track of my 500 kids, I hope. 

Today I am going to work on my ink station, printing and stamping, and imagination station resources. So far I am happy with the way my room is looking and how things are being organized. I ordered a bucket of ping pong balls for this cool critique approach. Each child picks a ball from the bucket and answers the question. I hope that it will also help facilitate the discussion process. Everyone who walks into my room comments on how large it looks now and that makes me happy because it has always felt stuffy to me. Also not having any built in storage has made it difficult but I'm a scrounger. I have found cabinets and shelving all around the building. 

Summer camp starts on Monday. I hope to post again tomorrow when most of my classroom is completely put together and (keeping my fingers crossed) my stools arrive. That will make me one happy art teacher. 

*SN: I'm having issues with wrapping my text around pictures. Any advice or comments are welcome. 

Happy Thursday everyone. 

Moving Day!

 Friday was the last day of after school programming so I decided that this would be the day that whatever classes came in (because the schedule is usually different on early release and last days), they would help move and clean. I consider it everyone's job to clean the studio, we all use it so we all need to pitch in to keep it clean. When I say we moved everything, I mean it. if it wasn't stuck to the floor it moved. The only thing I could not find a place for is leaving soon so I wont have to worry about it (the large mural currently leaning against the 'gallery space')

Starting with the picture above, it is immediately to the left if you have just walked through the door. This one table sticking out will be the Ink Studio(interchangeable with paint when we're ready). This is nice and close to the sink and only has 5 spaces to help keep that under control. A little farther back there is the printing and stamping studio. This seats 7 and is also close to the sink so stamps can be washer regularly other messes can be attended to quickly. All the walls are plain because next week I will be making all the resources. In the far corner is my desk and my prep table where we will have Talk time. In the next picture you will see the carpet where everyone will sit. 

 

The picture above shows the desk area as well as the drawing studio along the back wall. The drawing area also seats 7. I thought this would be a good place for this in case some members wanted to draw what was outside the window or they could find inspiration out there. Next door there is an animal shelter and they have had some interesting ones like a peacock, emu, and donkey. The shelving next to the table will hold all of the paper for the various studios. There will also be 'special paper' that must be asked for.

As we continue to look around the room there are two cabinets in front of the large cubby shelf. The cubby shelf will house the resources for drawing and collage as well as some materials that members may need to ask for or have a special plan for. The one table by the white board will be the collage studio.  This should seat 5. There are some bins under it for collage materials and I'm going to make these cool glue sponges I've seen on pinterest.

I haven't decided what I'll make my bulletin board about yet. I was thinking a variety of completely different art works to show that there are many different types of art. Maybe even to introduce the Studio Habits. The cubbies near the door will be where the portfolios are stored. That way they can be returned to their place on the way out the door.

 If you stand in the middle of the room, the door is where I was standing when I took the first picture. That is the table for the Ink Studio again and now my sink is visible. I hope that by organizing the room this way, it will flow well. There is still a lot of cleaning to do and a lot of organizing but thankfully with the kids being gone this whole week I can get everything clean, organized, labeled, made, and wait for new supplies to come in. Speaking of supplies, see those annoying chairs? They are enormous, do you know what happens when you try to shove 32 very large middle schoolers in? And then they all want to stand to work!?!? AHHHHHHH, I trip over chairs and bags and its just horrendous. I have been begging for stools for a year now and GUESS WHAT! They have been ordered!!! I. Am. Beyond. Excited.

The last picture is a much better view of printing and stamping. I hope to move that table all the way in the back to somewhere and have a scribble center on the chalk board or use it to keep notes for the

teen leadership club I advise. I'm really looking forward to completing the room. The way it is now makes it look so much bigger! I cant wait to have the stools and shove them all under the table. My little art teacher heart is so happy.

Also, I felt that it was important to say thanks for the comments I've been getting. Lots of great suggestions and it's pretty cool to think someone else is reading this.

Hopefully I'll have at least one studio completely by Wednesday of next week and will post pictures.

**After thought, currently it sits 24, this isn't enough. I have found a way to move the storage closets and the collage studio. I will move it tomorrow very early and post pictures. Since tomorrow we clean most of the building and dont get to focus on our own rooms.

Let's talk motivation..

No matter how many resources, demos, centers, tracking sheets and supplies that I put out, my students still need to find the motivation. This part truly scares me because my kids can be a little rough around the edges, but I believe in their abilities, even when they don't. Many have very different life experiences, some first generation American born some recently from their own country. Personally, I find that a motivating factor of making, but they might not. Many times when I ask them to tell me their interests they shrug and tell me nothing. I worry that my older students won't push themselves to explore. While I was reading Lessons without Limit by Falk & Dierkling I came upon a sub-section on motivation. They state that people are highly motivated when:

1. They are in supporting environments.
1. Every term I make it clear that the art lab is a place for supporting others ideas and helping out our fellow artist. This can be seen in peer teaching, which occurs almost naturally. 
2. They are engaged in meaningful activities
1. I think this is my opportunity to provide them with the space and materials to explore their meaningful ideas. 
3. They are freed from anxiety, fear and other negative mental states.
1. This goes with the supporting environments comment but this is difficult because generally middle schoolers really care what others think because this is their time to 'fit in'
4. They have choices and are in control of their learning
1. The more I mention having control and designing their own projects, the more excited they get. They remember too! They bring it up and ask for it, but this is still Elementary school and middle school is a whole other ball of wax. 
5. The challenges of the task meet their skills.
1. Many of my students worry that their skills aren't up to par and then make a comment because mine is 'better' than theirs. I simply tell them that if they keep practicing than they can be even better than me! 

I worry that my middle schoolers will be timid or will not enjoy the way the studio runs. While we can always make improvements to the routine or demos, how do we reach those students who simply believe they aren't artistic and their time to learn has passed? I constantly encourage and try to motivate them but am I missing something? How do I reach those who seem unmoved by anything that is presented? You'd think that by having a choice it opens up a myriad of possibilities for each student. I want them to be intrinsically motivated by their personal desires.

I'm excited, nervous and motivated to seek the answers and observe the way this classroom structure works. Can't wait to make my signs, menus and resources next week.

Resources for centers

One of the things that I have always felt was lacking in my classroom was the book resources in my measly little library. I had inherited an abundance of books that were anywhere from one to 30 years old from years of donations. Every year or so I go through them and hope to find them useful or find a way to incorporate them into my classes.

This year I have a new purpose and approach and wanted to try and make the most of the good books and weed out the useless magazines and auction booklets. What I found was an abundance of books that would go right over my students heads but kept them anyway in the hopes they might find some use.

The auction booklets proved to be more interesting and I started to cut out different works of art that caught my eye. I plan to use them to make my bulletin board for the summer with a theme something along the lines of art coming in all shapes, sizes and styles. I also thought that it was pretty cool that someone owned those auction booklets and many of them had pricing for the pieces. I think that could turn out to be a good conversation about what art costs.

At the same time I have been reading the TAB yahoo group forums and found a thread about resources for centers. I was excited to find books that my students could use and might even be a little more user friendly for them. On my list of books to order from amazon are:

• Journal Junkies Workshop
• Beautiful Stuff
• Soap Carving: For Children of all ages
• Painting & Children
• Color by Betty Edwards
• In the Paint by Patrick Ewing

I think that these books will be helpful and that my students might even find them more interesting than what is already on the bookshelves.

As I learn to use the forum I am reading threads on the many aspects of TAB and even being able to communicate with wonderful educators all around the country. This is the last week of school for my kids and next week the building is closed so I will have time to CLEAN and MAKE many of my posters and informational resources for each of the centers. Pictures to come!

What I feel like I've learned.. so far..

Choice-Based Learning is an approach to teaching that allows students to choose their subject, material, and pace. Students develop their own ideas based on their interests or passions. Through a tight classroom routine, students are encourages to work on their ideas and explore new materials if they choose as they are introduced through 5 minute demos at the beginning of the class.

The Choice-Based classroom is designed to be child and user friendly where the supplies are accessible. It is set up in centers of stations where students can focus on a material or making method. Students are allowed to move freely between centers to work on their project as long as they clean up after themselves.

Along with demos in materials and other artists, important skills like writing are incorporated through the development of artists statements. These statements helps to put some child artwork into perspective and allows you to learn about the students train of thought about the piece. Many times show pieces include an artist statement.

At the end of each class students are encouraged to talk about their work and even participate in critiques. I used to find it completely amazing that so much could be completed in one class but with a routine and schedule that students expect, the way the time is spent becomes more efficient.

I think that this will work really well in my environment as long as my kids can pick up after themselves. That is always my struggle. To help myself I have made charts to track clean up by center and by group for each week. This will help me keep them accountable. I think that given the ability to make their own decisions about their work will motivate them to either explore their topic more or even create series. I think that this will be successful because it gives students a voice at various times of the making process (artistically through their choice of materials and subject, artist statement and talk time). I feel that all children are learning when they are involved with something in which they are personally invested.

This whole time through Methods, I wanted to focus on how to develop problem solving skills and how play can be incorporated. I'm learning that play and problem are naturally occurring a choice based learning environment. Play happens when students try a new material and are unsure, they begin to naturally explore it and this is called the 'scribble stage'. The real art making occurs when they have learned  how to use the material enough to use it with an idea or in a project. Students who are motivated in their work are more likely to work through their problems if they get stuck. I think this part will be interesting to observe and will be one of the questions during talk time.

1. Did you get stuck at any point?
2. How did you move on?
3. How did you fix it? What was your solution?How did you come up with the solution?

I look forward to really trying this out on my class and seeing the results. The weeks that I give them a choice they are excited and the following weeks they ask for more or to finish their work from previous weeks. Their enthusiasm motivates me. 

Scavenger Mode

Lately I have been rummaging through my cabinets and generally being more aware of containers and how they could be used in my classroom. I have been taking all the giant paint bottles that are empty and cutting them in half. Then that turned into containers from my house and then the jug that my windshield wiper fluid came in and now people are bringing me more containers! Things I can actually use are starting to pile up and I am thankful because it will give me a way to organize materials when I create my centers.

Due to the HUGE bucket of unwrapped broken crayons and this amazing wax melting palette I bought from dickblick I think I can have an encaustic station when the time is right. That makes me really happy because we are using left over supplies in a new way. I might even throw in a candle making week for the much older kids. Already experimenting, which I have to say is my favorite part of my job. Having continuous piles of supplies and trying to make sense of them which usually turns out into some really cool pieces.

Some of my kids have taken to doing side projects and one of my teens is having a book fascination. She tears apart old books the librarian gives her and has turned it into this fantastic tree sculpture and a pretty sweet purse. Another teen is busy creating a sketchbook and rewrapping the cover in some new fancy fabrics that were just donated. It only reinforces my hopes that when they are intrinsically motivated, they are more willing to work for longer periods of time and are concentrated on their work.

All for now, going back to reading. The Unfolding of Artistic Activity arrived yesterday and my interest has been piqued.

The Learner Directed Classroom- Jaquith & Hathaway

I recently decided to take a break from Engaging Learning through Artmaking and have started to read The Learner Directed Classroom by D. Jaquith and N. E. Hathaway. I just wanted to switch over so I could wrap my head around some of the studio aspects like routine, demos and the first few centers to open. I scanned the book before reading it and realized that each chapter was a different educator/researcher writing on different classroom/studio environments. I am reading this book differently that I would normally [from front to back], instead I pick and choose which sections I think apply most to what I'm aiming for.

The chapters that have interested me the most or been most similar to my own future project were Chapter 3: Engaging Middle School Students Through Choice-Based Art: A Personal Reflection by L. Papanicolaou and Chapter 7: Testing the World Through Play and Art by G. Szekely.

Chapter 3 was most useful because it is the same age group I am planning to target when I conduct the research project. Also because much of what I read is set in an Elementary school, it was inspiring to read that this same format functions in middle school. I think that I am excited and scared to do this all with middle schoolers because middle schoolers have the ability to reflect on more complex ideas BUT they also are more concerned with others perception of their ideas. This often suppresses good ideas for fear of it not being accepted. At this point in their lives they just want to fit in. The positives outweigh the negatives and I think that if an accepting environment is created ideas can be freely shared without fear.

Chapter 7 struck a chord with me because I feel play is a component to learning that shouldnt be forgotten through the progression of grades. Playing encourages exploration and idea development. It encourages creation and involves decision making and problem solving. This chapter is mostly targeted to younger students but I think that I can apply it across the board. Also to show that play is allowable and encouraged in class is important. Many times students are worried that they will get in trouble for playing but as long as it is done in a nonharmful/non destructive that shows respect for materials being played with, I dont see a problem. I also know that Szekely writes on play often and I hope to read more of his work soon.

The last few days I have been discovering an abundance of blogs from other educators on choice. I have been having a lot of fun reading about their own instructional choice-methods and how they make it all work. I find it interesting that there are so many fiber arts centers. That is one thing that I can never remember doing but I still want to try. Since we are in the cleaning and planning for summer stages I have been finding awesome odds and ends to make my classroom work. I found over 50 of the plastic eyelet stitching 'sheets'. I got a little excited because now I had a start to a future center.

On one of those blogs I came upon the mention of 8 Studio Habits of mind. I didn't know what they were so I dug a little deeper and discovered they are by Lois Hetland. They are:

• Developing craft
• engage and persist
• envision and express
• observe
• reflect
• stretch and explore
• understand art world

I want to learn more about these and how these habits can encourage my members to have artistic tendencies.

Still waiting on my Unfolding Artistic Activity book. I'm looking forward to reading it because it was published so long ago and want to see how it applies to choice today. I'm excited about my growing collection of books, websites, and blogs. 

End of the School Year

As we begin to wrap up the 2012-2013 school year I keep thinking about my upcoming switch to choice-based learning. I'm getting a little nervous that some members wont take to it and I'm trying to plan ahead to cover all my bases. I try to talk more about it to prepare my members, many of which will be attending during the summer and the following school year. The first week of summer will be interesting because so many of the members attend a school based site during the school year and it is totally different than being in the main campus building. The number of children I see on a weekly basis basically triples during the summer, the days and block times are much longer as well. It is a completely different environment.

I cant physically move anything in my classroom because on June 1st they will be removing EVERYTHING in my classroom to strip the floors and re-do them.(the custodians HATE my room because I have SO much stuff- but that's the art room) I have been trying to label and organize things as a go in order to make the transition a bit smoother. I have made a few floor plans in hopes to help me organize the space itself as well as a tracking sheet for my future students. This will help me keep everyone in order and track their center, learning and attendance. My hopes are that at the end of the term there are enough really amazing works to have a small show. I think this will be a good experience to recognize all the artists.

Today I am including a picture of my most interesting and complete floor plan. I hope that this will work out and will really find out when I get to move all my furniture and tables back in June 3rd.

At the same time I continue to read on Choice-Based learning. This time I've been on Knowledge Loom- TAB. I recently ordered a book "Unfolding Artistic Activity" by Henry Schaffer-Simmern and am looking forward to getting that in the mail.

If you tilt your head to the right the picture might be easier to see. (I haven't learned to rotate things in blogger yet..oops) The entrance is on the left. It isn't to scale which worries me but it is just an idea of where I think things will work best. I also have to compensate for the fact that I will also be teaching a three hour painting class once a week and that I should have an area big enough with tables close enough that can be pushed together or moved easily for use.

I'm still feeling inspired but a bit overwhelmed with the amount of information. I keep trying to remind myself, one step at a time.

Classroom as it is..

As promised, here are some pictures of my classroom before the ultimate transformation. I have been cleaning so things are in semi-order. There are a lot of projects to be completed before the end of the school year.

 Standing at the front door and looking at the 'back wall' this is the view. All the tables are organized against the wall to maximize space and teach whole group lessons. This is going to change dramatically. I have started to inventory all of the furniture and dream up where I'm going to store things like the screen printing machine. This small table at the front with the stool is my 'second desk' mostly like the prep table where I keep supplies and things are mostly necessary for me. (think: attendance, supplies and randoms.)

 This is the back wall and my only window to the outside. I'm hoping that I can place my drawing station here so there is some inspiration either on or outside the window. The cubbies on the back wall will serve as space for drawing and collage resources. Exactly how has yet to be decided. The table in the front holds large projects that are currently in progress or need to be away from younger members.

 This is technically the 'front wall' but really isn't any more since  I changed the orientation of the classroom. My main desk is in the far corner. Next to the bulletin board is the large 4' x 8' public mural we are working on through a partnership with a restaurant. This is number 2 of 4 and they are all sports themed.

The picture below is the entrance to the class and along the back wall is the one VERY tiny sink. I try to do projects that minimize hand washing because this itself is a 25 minute process. (I never knew kids were so determined to have nice nails, even the boys.) So that is my classroom as it is right now. I'm already making sketches about where I plan to put new centers and resources. I'm trying to keep the back wall sort of free so we can have share time in front of the hanging gallery. It will also be a good place for a 5 minute museum talk.All those empty cubbies along the entrance wall will be the storage for portfolios (or so I think it will be at this time).

 

Lesson Learned: Keep Reading

All the questions I had in the last post were answered in the next chapter on the drawing center. If I had just kept reading for 10 more pages.. well, lesson learned, keep reading.

So the drawing station:

Keep the basics on hand and accessible to students for normal use.

Materials:

1. Pencils
2. Crayons
3. Colored Pencils
4. Markers
5. Erasers
6. Rulers
7. Stencils

Resources:

1. Drawings books
2. "What artists draw" board
3. Tips and tricks for materials
4. Idea Boards
1. I have this nifty idea in my head by starting each semester with the making of a new portfolio that keeps their work and serves as a brainstorm board to keep their ideas. Any time they are stuck they can refer to their portfolio [or the resource library] for inspiration.

The 'special' drawing supplies (pastel, charcoal, pen and ink) are kept separately and introduced through their own 5 minute demos as additions to the drawing center. In my own version students must fill out a plan sheet including their required materials and then they will be given the special supplies. This will also help cut down on waste.

I'm also wondering if I can keep the plan sheet and add self evaluation to it. At the bottom I've already added a corner that tracks whether they completed the project or if it was abandoned. Projects may not be abandoned without discussing it with me.

In Engaging Learning through Artmaking, the second center/station to be opened is simple painting. I dont know if that is manageable for me at this time. Currently our studio uses acrylic paint and tempra paint pucks. I guess the paint pucks are an option to start with but collage seems more logical and manageable.

On a side note: I had a horrible experience yesterday that made me cringe when thinking about implementing choice. I passed out pastels [brand new in the box, mostly unbroken, brilliant pastels] and when I came around to collect them one of the girls had drawn all over them with her pencil and then used pastels to color other pastels. I about lost my mind. So in looking back I am trying to think of reasons for her inappropriate behavior and lack of respect for the materials. She wasn't engaged with the materials and she didn't like her project, so that was what she did to take up her time. So now I know next time to approach it differently. I'm still stuck on whether to trust her with the new materials, so is it wrong if as a consequence she must work in something else? like crayons? In some of the readings so far it has mentioned closing of a station when the materials are mistreated. I will have to see how this goes.

And I am hoping to load pictures of my classroom in its current state before the transformation so that should be coming soon... as soon as I find the charger to my digital camera.

So many options for centers.. where to start

After completing one book (Choices without Chaos by Anne Bedrick) and being about a 1/3 of the way through the second (Engaging Learners through Artmaking: Choice Based Art Education in the Classroom by K. Douglas and D. Jaquith). I'm learning and thinking about the logical order in which to open and introduce centers.

It seems almost obvious that some kind of drawing {materials?,subject matter? style?} should come first but even within that there are so many different options. Do you show students pencils, colored pencils, markers,  pastels, charcoals and pen and ink all in one 5 minute demo?! It dont know that its possible, so do we assume that they can handle the basics on their own and only need intro to charcoal, pastel, and pen and ink? Is pen and ink too much at first? Should that be a demo all on its own?

I really think that the only way to figure it out is to try it out. It might depend on the students themselves and their prior knowledge of materials. Being so new to this, I think it is important to start slow and really watch how the students react to the materials and the structure of the class. I think that will allow me to reflect on the ways the students interact with the materials and how they go about developing their ideas using a material they have just been introduced to. This way I can take notes and make changes along the way.

Bedrick opens the collage center second and that seems a little more manageable, until I start thinking about confetti sized pieces of magazine left over and hidden in between all the good paper. I think that this center will require good organization and maybe even a chart with "If the scrap is smaller than this shape, please throw it out" and it would have a shape that they could hold up the scrap to and measure. That would also cut down on the times I would hear "Miss Alexa, is this too small to keep?" Now, to use glue stick or to use elmer's glue? Elmers glue lasts longer, but takes longer to dry. Glue sticks dry almost instantly but dry out if they aren't covered properly and dont last as long? Convenience or expense? Being a non-profit we have a lot of donated school supplies so as long as those keep providing the Elmer's glue more than glue sticks I will have to ration glue sticks.

Painting is normally third but I would like to do printmaking and working with stamps. I have not thought much about this center yet though. Must read more.

I dont know that it is common to demo a material again or provide more information for those interested. But maybe go back to drawing a little and introduce other relevant materials to drawing in another 5 minute demo? Or is that a way I could differentiate between age groups? Maybe seeing it again from a different perspective would intrigue other students that weren't so motivated the first time? Like giving them a second opportunity to be inspired?

I seem to have a lot of questions again. So back to reading I go.

"No one is invisible in art class" ( Douglas & Jaquith, 2009, pg. 34)

I was in the middle of reading and this sentence closed a paragraph. It automatically struck me that this is something I have already noticed while attempting to ease my students into the idea of creating art from ther own ideas. In the short time that I have been allowing more freedom I have learned so much about my students that I would have never known if I had chosen the theme for them. I saw genuine effort and attempts at new ideas and furthing old ones. It was incredibly fascinating that a young student could recall every small detail from a Pokemon character and describe his powers and spend his time working on something that really engaged him. The only requirement for this project of their own ideas was to practice blending colors with color pencils. He did not only that but was so proud of his work that he wanted me to hang it.

Another plus, I haven't seen anything thrown away since I let them choose. It is such a wonderful feeling as an art teacher to see students learning, completely engaged, getting to know them, and being PROUD of their own work. Made my little art teacher heart melt.

This is not the only student Ive been blessed to learn more about either. It is amazing how much they want to talk about their ideas when given the time.

-Alexa

Art Room Organization

Yesterday, I left off thinking about the room organization so I wanted to go back to Choices without Chaos and go to the chapter on classroom and center set up. Centers usually accommodate materials that are often used together. This is really important to me as making the centers and observing students in them is [at this point] part of what I'm doing for my Capstone project. Some of the best tips and tricks for organization I found were:

1. Clean out and sort EVERYTHING. I remember when I first walked into my classroom three years ago, what a mess. It was a dumping ground for everything every one thought could be used for an art project. I spent hourssss cleaning it up and it seems like it is time to do that again. I need to purge and I hope that I can start doing that soon.

2. LABEL everything. Also, dont just label the thing, label the spot where it lives so that students can return it to exactly where it belongs. This behavior of returning things to where they found it is essential in a choice-based learning environment.

3. To store common materials like pencils, erasers, scissors and glue at every center or make a central location for it all? I'm not sure on this one. I think that some centers will require it and some will not. I recently read on another blog deepspacesparkle.com to ban pencils and erasers because they cause second guessing. I will agree and disagree with that because in some areas I think they need it. In centers like painting I dont think I will allow them because then they spend too much time marking up the canvas with pencil and not thinking about paint application and techniques.

In the drawing center [Chapter 4] explanation Bedrick discusses how she opens with the drawing center. I plan to do the same and simulate a full choice approach by placing different drawing materials on each table: Crayons & Colored Pencils, Markers, Pastels, Charcoal and I'll see if I can round up anything else in my classroom (would it be too soon for pen and ink?). I am planning on uploading some before and after pictures and I think the changes will be obvious. I think this will help students see how the choice classroom functions and get them used to having options. I was thinking that in order to encourage movement between stations I could create an activity with songs, where a song is played the members work in that material and when the song ends they clean up and move to another, then another song begins. Of course with songs that are current and appealing to middle school aged members. This will also get the members in the habit of cleaning up before they move to something new.

I have started to collect odd and ends and containers to be able to sort everything and display it in a user friendly way. After thinking about the design of the room, I've got to start thinking about how I'm going to display information about the materials.

That is all for now.

Pondering on Choice-Based

While I begin to read a new book (Engaging Learners Through Artmaking by K. Douglas & D. Jaquith) I keep thinking back to all the information I read in Choice without Chaos by Anne Bedrick. Some of the most important pieces that keep coming to mind when I'm teaching are:

Accountability, Responsibility, & Expectations

1. I believe it is important to hold students accountable for their behavior and mistakes. I think that it builds better people if we show children that there are consequences to all their actions. I felt it was an appropriate consequence that when members working in a center do not clean up their center according to the expectations that the center is then closed the following week. I think it teaches children to think about their actions and teaches them to be responsible for their working environment. This is a skill that is not only important to touch on but to develop to form responsible and accountable adults. This life skill being taught through the arts shows the capability of arts to be much more than 'busy, cute work.'

2. When the expectations are clear and the students are held responsible for those expectations the classroom should function much smoother. When students know what is expected of them it begins to break down the stress that comes with developing new ideas as an artist. The same goes for the room organization, when students know where everything is and where it goes from memory, they spend less time fidling with other unimportant things and move straight to their target materials/center.In Choice without Chaos Bedrick also discusses the importance of routine so that students already know how the classroom functions. This is the same as knowing where all the materials can be found, it comforts the student and makes the room a safe place for making.

Room Organization

I have begun to think about the way my tables should be moved and how I can make each space as user-friendly, organized and what supplies need to go in that area. One of the things that is very important is the limited sink and counter space. I always say that I wish my room was designed by another art teacher, then I might actually have more than  4 cabinets and a mini sink. Since it wasn't I'm going to be the MacGuyver of classroom space and make it work for me. I already know that painting and printmaking are going over by the sink. I have made a classroom diagram to begin drawing in centers and seeing what walkways should look like as well as what creates a 'flow' to the classroom.

Along with thinking about the layout of my classroom I am also thinking about 'share-time' space and writing space for artists statements. I think this will be important to my admin because they are shifting to a project-based learning style where all of the subjects are intermixed and if I can show them that writing is utilized in the arts then they will better understand and advocate with me for Choice-Based Learning.

That is all for now. Clearly my head is spinning with ideas and reflections. I haven't totally used this on my students but am gradually easing them into developing their own ideas and using materials of their choice [for now with restrictions to 2-3 material choices]. There are enjoying it and I finally feel as if I've found a way to learn about my students, help them develop personally relevant ideas and explore new materials along the way. I. AM. EXCITED.

Finished the Book.. Now for some notes

I finished Choice without Chaos by Anne Bedrick a week or so ago but never had a chance to post again, so I'm going to go chapter by chapter and comment on some highlights I made while reading. I really enjoyed reading in the iBook format, it was really simple and clean and had nice tools for annotations. It also had video clips built into some chapters to make it interactive. I'm going to make my notes italicized

So..
Chapter One:

"Each class begins with a demo or discussion to inspire students to explore new concepts or try media that they might not have otherwise considered. (pg. 10)"

"Students without an idea work on whatever was demo'd. (pg. 10)"

I liked this immediately but wondered how it was different then what I did already. Later in the book it is discussed that the demos and discussions are rarely longer than five minutes. This keeps class moving and maximizes making time. the second quotes makes sense and helps to reign in students who come without an idea or maybe even those having a bad day and not feeling inspired.

"The more that they become used to the structure of a choice program, the more often they will come to class with ideas that they want to try. (pg. 11)"

"Allowing students to choose what to work on, guarantees that they are working on projects that motivate them.(pg. 14)"

So true. I have been easing my kids into the idea of having their own ideas and coming to class with them. After one week of giving them an option they are all excited to come back and finish what they started. I have tried to do something else more than once and they always remind me about that piece they started the last week. It makes me excited to think that this is the type of enthusiasm I'm getting without centers and short demos.

"The sad reality is the by the time students get to college, much of the ability to think for themselves has been trained out of them. (pg 12)"

"People are built to be learners, they want to explore the ideas that intrigue them, but school rarely allows them to time to do so. (pg. 14)

This is what I'm getting at. We need to teach our kids how to think, not what to think. I know I'm much more inclined to learn and retain something if I'm motivated and interested. For example [and totally off topic] this evening I saw a picture of a woman's foot that had been bound and it intrigued and made me wonder. So I looked it up and learned about the painful tradition practice. The point is that I found it interesting and wanted to know more so I dug a little deeper. So, I really think that when you let kids follow their interests they are going to learn much more than if I dictate something to them. That brings me to the next quote..

"They do it because it is the assignment, but "doing is not the same as understanding, and following a teacher's directions is not the same as learning.(pg. 15)

"Anyone with time to practice finding and solving problems can learn to be creative. (pg. 18)"

Amen. My kids tell me all the time. "Ms. Alexa, you're so creative!" I always tell them that they can be too, they just have to practice and since I'm older than them I've had more practice.

I'm going to end this [much longer than I expected] post with this last quote that pretty much sums up why I think choice-based learning is important to our future generations..

"But, if they grow up being the one in a room to see the possibilities in the world around them and evaluating whether or not the things they see are ideas worth investigating, is that the kind of adult I want to help create. (pg. 19)"

Next few chapters soon, going to find a way to summarize and organize for the next one.

Purpose & What you'll find here...

Originally this blog was meant for reading reflections during my Summer A Indie Study with the chair of my Capstone Committee. Now I'd really like this to also entail my classroom transformation and any other thoughts I have about Choice-Based Art Education.

I decided to get a head start on some of the reading for my Indie Study. The focus is on Choice-Based learning and filling myself with as much knowledge as possible about the approach and method. So far the best definition I can give is a classroom studio and delivery method approach that encourages students to be the artists and create art based on their own fascinations while giving them choices about how they make their ideas come to life. That definition comes from what I've gathered throughout my readings thus far.

The more I read the more excited I get. The more excited I get the more daydreaming of what I'll do, how my classroom will look and how my students will feel when they enter the room for the first time.

I have currently read the first 89 pages of Choice without Chaos by Anne Bedrick and that has done nothing but make me so excited for the unique and meaningful work that students can create while working in a choice-based learning environment. There are so many other valuable life skills that students can learn through this approach like time management and problem solving. I also find that I learn more about my students when they create based on their own interest.

The first 89 pages have talked about different room set up and strategies that are used in the classroom. So much of it is common sense and it has truly made me smack my forehead in 'oh duh' moments. I found it helpful that there was a new center every chapter and that there were adjustments made for different grade levels.

So far I am fascinated and I cant wait to get to work on my research.

Bedrick, A. (2012). Choice without Chaos. [iBook].