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.