Post Practicum Advice Review

Looking back at my first blog ever and as the end of the semester looms near, I have reviewed a lot about the advice I gave myself at the beginning of the class. I think that my advice to myself was accurate such as being the adult and preventative actions, but there are some more things that I have learned from the combination of the secondary methods class and the secondary methods practicum that I took. I think one of the most important things that I learned this semester is that you have got to be an advocate for art. Period. No one else is going to advocate for your classes the way that you would so you need to be active about campaigning for the continuation of art classes. I think that your classes have got to produce art that will have people saying that what you are doing is important that you need support because your classes are doing things that students can’t learn under a different curriculum. You need to be able to justify your budget by having your students produce works that are evident of the time, money and effort that goes into the classroom.

The second thing that I learned this semester was also about advocating for your own classroom but also about making sure that you have your own priorities straight. You have to remember who you are there for. There are going to be distractions along the way in your career but the most important thing to cement yourself in is your work. There is nothing more rewarding than working with children, and putting them first is the most important thing that a person can do.

If you don’t remember my first blog that’s okay, it took me a minute too! Check it out below, far below, like January below. I will be continuing this blog as I follow through on the path to my dream of being an art teacher! I would love for all of you to stick around and read the sassiness that comes from within and the fun lessons that I have to share!

And by reading I mean more blog posts!

Practicum

Something that I've noticed throughout my time at my secondary methods practicum is the rapport that my cooperating teacher has with her students. They relate to her, and respect her so much because she makes a point of remembering things about them. She asks them how the play is going, if they are a member, and about how their game the night before went. She remembers about their families and genuinely cares if someone they care about is not feeling well or doing well. She gets on their level and tries to make everyone feel like what they have produced is valued. Another thing that I think enables the relationship she has with her students is the honesty that she has with her students. I don't think that her students ever question or wonder where their grades are coming from or what she is thinking and I know she feels that in return her students are honest with her if they don't understand the assignment. Because of this honesty I think her students trust her a lot. I think that she has a relationship with her students where they know she has expectations for them behaviorally and art wise that create an environment in which the classroom is peacefully going to go about a routine and my cooperating teacher could leave for half an hour and come back (not that she has done this but she could) and her students would not have gotten out of hand and they would have stayed on task to get work done. This is something I found so unique about her class that was inspiring.

Would You Mind Teaching a 3D class Ms. Davis? Umm... SIGN ME UP!

In my ideal teaching situation, I am teaching all the 3 dimensional classes my heart desires! I would be helping my students to find alternative forms of art that they might not otherwise find. If someone had asked me if I was an artist in high school I probably would have said no just because no one had introduced me to the world of 3 dimensional art and while I did paint in high school, I did not consider myself worthy of the word. I feel like a lot of art students feel as though they don't fit into the label of artist because they aren't exposed fully to what being an artist can mean! One of the areas of art that are often overlooked in schools, in my opinion, is the 3 dimensional arts! I think one thing that I think will increase the success of my students in my classes is my passion for finding what everyone is good at. I took a personality test for the camp I work for and one of my top five characteristics is Individualization. I am driven to find out individual qualities about people and encourage them. I hope that everyone in my classes will feel as though they are encouraged in a personal way, not just someone telling them that their art looks nice. But for me to take the time to really help them emphasize the things that they are showing promise in. As I continue my journey into adulthood and becoming a full time teacher I want to take more classes. I plan on continuing my education by pursuing my master's degree and my PhD. I also want to take classes to further my skills in the 2 dimensional world just because I feel as though I will never be done learning and I want to be the best teacher I can for my students. Here is some work I've been well... working on! 

Skill Set

I think that their are several skills that every art teacher should be able to display in an interview with a school. Those skills should include painting, drawing, composition, knowledge of the elements and principles of design, and some knowledge of 3 dimensional skills. I will be posting some pictures of my portfolio and describe several skill which I hope to acquire before making my teaching debut.

Cereal Bowl 2016

Encaustic Painting 2015

Egg Tempera 2015

Coil Pot 2015

Color Theory Self Portrait 2016

Digital Photo 2016

Charcoal Equestrian 2015

So some things I know I need to work on is drawing specifically with graphite, I am all but completely uncomfortable drawing with graphite, charcoal is not my friend but I can figure it out for the most part. The other thing I need to work on gaining before I enter the job market is working with oil paints and water color paints. I have messed around with both materials but never truly used them. Things I am extremely comfortable with is clay, and acrylic paints although I do not show any of my acrylic paintings (one is in progress, I may update y'all later!)

Advice

College classes are like...

It's coming to the time of the year where most seniors who are applying for college are getting their acceptance letters and deciding where to go. This is an extremely big decision for high schoolers to make and it is vital for teachers to be there for their students. So what can we do as art teachers to be there for our students? Well one way that my teacher Ms. Gina Taylor brought up that I think it is awesome, is for you to introduce art related professions that students might be good at and do it in a way that gets the student thinking about it! Very subtly suggest that their skills are what is required for a job in a certain area of art. So let's list the careers that an artist can follow!

Architecture: model builder, city planner, interior designer, landscape architecture, marine architecture, theme park designer, environmental architect (sciency)

Art Education: art therapist, artist in residence, community arts, grant writer, historian, museum educator, researcher, art teacher K-12

Artisan: blacksmith, bookbinder, ceramist, fiber artist, furniture maker, jewelry designer, metalsmith, sign painter, woodworker

Art Services: art director, artist’s agent, gallery director, appraiser, consultant, critic, auctioneer, art supply sales

Design: exhibits, floor coverings, floral, housewares, packaging, textile, toy, displays

Digital Media: advertising, animation/cartoonist, photographer, game designer, graphics, website design

Fashion: color consultant, clothing designer, art director, illustrator, merchandiser, patternmaker

Fine Arts: courtroom/police sketch artist, fine art copyist, mural artist, painter, sculptor, photographer

Graphic Design: advertising, calligrapher, font design, graphic artist (media)

Illustration: scientific/ medical, botanical, children’s books, animation, automobiles, editorial, fashion

Industrial Design: airline, automotive, factory, equipment, sports, tool (sciency)

Museums: art historian, art photographer, conservator, curator, educator, exhibition designer, lecturer, museum director

Photography: aerial, architectural, cinema, commercial, crime scene, fashion, photojournalism, portrait

Publishing: book design, art writer, art researcher, art critic, magazine designer

Theater: art director, costume designer, lighting designer, makeup artist, program designer, puppet maker, set design, special effects (applies to film industry)

(Totally a list from Ms. Gina Taylor's powerpoint as well.)

Students may be feeling like the meme below but they have got to pull it together their senior year and start preparing if they are going to be art majors in college. One really important way for art teachers to help seniors prepare is to help them put together their portfolio! Help your students put together their best work and a variety of works that showcase their skills and their knowledge of important points in art such as composition, elements and principles, etc.

 Another way that art teachers can help their students prepare for college is by telling them all the things that they had wished they had known about going to college. So I put together a list of things I wish I had known before I gone to college and definitely before the first day of classes.

Do not bring a map with you on the first day of classes, you will be teased.
Instead walk to your classes with a friend or roommate the day before classes this will also help you determine if you have enough time to go to the bathroom or if you will be just getting to class barely on time.

Do not wear the lanyard they give you at orientation, this is a way of picking out freshman, I was that freshman and you will be made fun of.
This is an awesome way of keeping your school ID but another way is keeping it in your wallet or purse.

Bring water, even if your teachers don't allow food and drink in the classroom the majority of them will allow water, and during the summer walking to class can get hot and you don't want a headache.

If you have classes back to back to back make sure to take care of yourself and bring something to eat.

When you get advised hold on to EVERYTHING THEY EVER GIVE YOU. Also keep up with your major and core requirements and know what you have to take, advisers are not the end all be all authority on what classes to take and in the end it is your responsibility to make sure you are graduating on time.

Take all of your core classes first. I know you want to take your major classes because you love your major and you're excited but the reality is that the majority of students change their major at least once. I changed my major five times. But the more you change your major the longer it will take for you to graduate. This means, all of my theatre credits do not count for my art education degree. So be careful.

Some of the most important life lessons you will not learn in the classroom so make sure you take time to enjoy your time at college it WILL fly by.

Going along with the last one, one of the most important lessons you will learn, is how to get along with your roommates. I can't give you much advice their as it is still and will always be a learning process, but come to every situation with an open mind, a forgiving heart, and a subdued tongue.

Collage

Today we will be covering collage!More specifically a lesson for collage, this one I am actually very much interested in creating for my classroom, so interested it's one I'm writing now for my Secondary Methods class! Who would have thought it? My lesson is inspired by the works of Frank Stella and his sculptural pieces. He uses color to create movement and rhythm in his artwork.

The lesson would involve creating a PowerPoint for the students to get to know his work and the assignment. The project would be a relief paper sculpture with torn and cut techniques used to create movement and rhythm. Students could vary colors as well but I'm really looking for how the shapes of their paper influence the movement of the piece.

Students would need paper. (Really?) YES. Scissors, glue, cardboard (for structural reasons) and some form of backing such as cardboard. (Collect 'em boxes!) And of course student's may need colored pencils, colored markers, paint and what not.

What are the things you need to teach your students Libby? Well I'll tell you. You are going to have to go over the differences between sculpture in the round and relief sculpture. You should show them various tearing techniques and cutting techniques. Some of you may be like: What? Various??? YOU JUST TEAR IT LIBBY. No...

Please bare with me on this horrible video... AND DO NOT GIVE YOUR STUDENTS KNIVES! (Obviously... but really, don't)

Here are some of Frank Stella's pieces.

Experimentation

Monday we played with marker washes in my Art Education Secondary Methods class and we talked about experimentation. I think that it is important for students to produce work that teaches them the elements and principles so that they have all the tools they need to create wonderfully inspired and creative pieces of art but I also think that it is extremely vital that students have time and space to experiment in a safe environment with the guidance of an instructor. If students do not know how to use a material or they cannot achieve the desired effect with the material they are using, most likely they will not continue to use the material. This is where the teacher steps in and this is why it is important for teachers to provide time in class to experiment with materials. That is exactly what we did on Monday. We took markers and watercolor paper and experimented with them in producing a similar affect as watercolor or India ink. This experimentation could be added into class easily by using it as a warm up before the use of the actual watercolors or ink. To understand how to use the materials students could play with the marker washes first. Take a plastic plate or palette and draw on it with the water based marker then take the paint brush and go to town, you can also experiment by drawing directly on the paper and then adding water on top of that.

(This is a picture from my elementary methods practicum in which a student used India ink to create a form and then drew with pastels to create the monster's features.)

Field Trip Ideas

Field studies are important for teachers to give their students the opportunity to see that art can be applied outside of the classroom and really also allows them to apply their skills to the world beyond the classroom. I would take my students to the High Museum of Art in Atlanta Georgia. Not only would students be able to experience a museum, which is important for their critique skills but it is also important for artists to see art in person. Pictures never do art justice in comparison to real life.

I would ask my students to focus on one of the elements and one of the principles of art for the day and take their sketchbooks around with them. After the tour I would ask my students to take notes about that element and principle that they chose and sketch what they see. Inquire as to how the artist used that element or principle to convey their subject or message, and write how they might use that element or principle in their art. I want my students to do this for at least five pieces of art and to really take their time to fully experience the museum and the art.

Bought Materials 3D

So last time we talked about sculptures with found materials and the last one was a bought material which leads us to today's topic of sculpture with bought materials. I mentioned doing sculpture with wire and paper last time, well there are many forms of sculpture that can be done with bought materials.

1. Soap Stone or Soap or Wax

This is going to probably be a very small sculpture as soap does not come in large amounts unless you make it yourself or combine multiple pieces and soap stone is expensive. So you will want to give your students a small amount. this would be great for creating small tokens or beads for a project. Using heat tools would be useful for soap or wax allowing students to slowly take away soap or wax or build easily. A file can also be used on all three materials to help with the process of creating a small scale sculpture.

(Soap Stone)

(Soap)

(Wax)

2. Plaster 

Plaster can be fairly inexpensive and easy to deal with although it is messy and requires a lot of clean up. Put plaster in a five gallon bucket let it set and release it from the bucket for students to carve from for a project.

3. Metal

There are lots of things that you can do with metal from jewelry making to large scale sculptural installations. But projects such as these can be a simple as using wire to create sculptures to welding pieces together. This will vary depending on your skill and your ability to bring in an artist who might be able to help with student's work. Wire sculptures are the way to go. You'll need plyers and a base for students to work on.

3D

I love the idea of teaching as much three dimensional art as much as possible with students. I personally feel like that is an outlet that is not often offered to students and is not easily accessible. This is probably because most people associate two things with three dimensional art: 1. ceramics or pottery, and 2. expensive. That is simply not true! Three dimensional art can be affordable and more accessible than we make it. Here are a few ideas for making three dimensional art possible for your classroom!

1. Found Objects

Students taken small objects around the house or around the school and combine them. This can be anything from trash to office supplies, so you can take your class on a field trip to the office and pick up some paper clips and some rubber bands. Above is a picture of Zac Freeman. He takes the bottle caps and other pieces and combines them into these portraits they are reminiscent of Chuck Close portraits.

2.

 The next project that students can do is called a multiples piece. This is a project where students can gather multiple pieces of one object. In this particular piece I assembled them in a non-traditional way by sewing Christmas ornaments together. The second part of the project is to add a surface texture to the sculpture with a second multiples object. In this case I added ear plugs. Things that students will want to do is fall in love with the texture or surface qualities of the first object but in this case in particular the sculpture would not have been nearly as cool without the second texture added.

3.

The third project is a wire and paper project. This project takes more a little more funding, as the materials need to be provided by the school as well as several tools such as drills and a few sets of plyers, two per student. The student will design a totem pole that represents themselves and then they will try to make a miniature version out of simple wire that can be bought at any walmart. Once they know all of the issues with the structure of their piece they can reevaluate whether or not their totem pole will need help standing up. The teacher will have to order thick wire online and then teach students how to double it by twisting it with a drill. The second part of the project will be to take rice paper and cover with water and glue to attach the rice paper to the wire sections.

Three dimensional art does not have to be inaccessible or unaffordable it just needs to be smart!

Film History Lesson Ideas

 One of the ways I would like to incorporate film history and film terms into my classroom is by having a new media project of a short film. First the students will learn about all the camera angles and the names of shots that are essential for planning out the short film that they will create. I will have them then get into groups and write a very short, short film script and then go to work determining every angle for the film. Then students will have to draw out the story board for their films, which will show in detail the shots within each scene, and the angles of those shots. Each of these shots must be its own thumbnail within the storyboard. While this is going on students will also think about how to create costumes that will go with their films, what props they will need and where they will shoot the film. This is all based off of the short story that I will have them write at the beginning of this project. While this does not seem like a lot of work I will ask them to incorporate every one of the angles and shots that we have gone over as a requirement for the short film. That way they have an idea of what goes into the making and planning of a movie. I will preview the scripts and set them loose (within reason.) Then they will take the footage and we will go to the computer lab as a class and edited the films together. The students will critique their own work as well as their peers work and they will a thoughtful discussion of what was different in the film making process, than what they thought it would be what they would do differently in pre-production, etc.

Here is an example story board that my students will have to create.

Lessons for All Abilities

Students who are gifted and students who are disabled are going to be a part of the art classroom some students in these situations may be incorporated into the regular art classroom depending on what resources the school has available for you. There may not be a separate gifted and talented program class or a separate class for students with disabilities. Instead art teachers need to be able to set each child up for success in the classroom. So there may need to be a little more explaining or tweaking of the lesson plan for those students with disabilities, and for the gifted students there may need to be an extra challenge involved for them if they finish early. Take for example the gesture drawing that we did early in the blog series...

AND WE’RE BACKING IT UP!

        Yes! This gesture drawing blog entry! Take this gesture drawing lesson for example, some students are going to just gesture away. However! There may be students in your class who have a physical disability that prevents them from being able to control their motor function well; this lesson may actually be great for them! This could mean an exploration of movement and not having to control the movement.

What about for a student with an emotional disturbance? Well we might not want to give them the yard stick immediately if they get frustrated easily. See below. But they can still participate and you can gauge their level of frustration, and ability. You know your students best!

What about this lesson for a gifted or talented student? How can we challenge that student that needs to go beyond? For a gifted student a way to adapt this lesson is to make the student capture a range of movement in the gesture. Obviously you’ll have to break out your modeling skills. (or not) By getting a fellow student to partner up or get your gifted students to challenge each other with the competition of poses. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8PWg8pYST0

Also, here is an awesome video on Art Lessons for Children with Disabilities. There is a lot on younger children and this blog primarily focuses on secondary school age but, a lot of the information is still applicable!

Stop Motion Animation Lesson Plan Idea

One of the lesson ideas that I have been exposed to was the idea of making a stop motion animation. These are relatively accessible to all students even if they were not previously introduced to such media arts. The idea for my introductory art class would be that students would have this a section area of study at that the study would include a stop motion animation a website for their art, a blog for their art and a video that they make with a group.

I have not decided whether or not this would be a class in and of itself. Students would cut out paper and take pictures as they moved the paper and sequence the pictures to look as though there was movement this can also be done with clay for advanced students. They would use either iMovie, or app that are readily available on tablets which are become more and more used by students in schools. Here is a link to a few examples of a paper cut out stop motion animation.
.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ijwy8XFC4wg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NZ11Hh4LP4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOfWjEAImtY

Photojournalism

 This photograph taken at the chapel that is in the camp that I grew up at is important to me because it represents my faith and my childhood. I went to this camp as a child and the chapel there is the center of worship there. Also I worked for a sister ministry of this camp for the past two summers and this is the chapel where we are commissioned into working for God for the summer. This photo is a prime example of framing which is a photojournalism tool used by photographers to draw the eye to what it is important in the photo which in this case is the cross. Also in this photo I used the compositional technique of the golden triangle in this photograph because of all the angles the eye is drawn to following the lines of the photograph.

 This log was found at the camp I used to live in as well it is weathered over time because it has been at this camp for almost ten years as I remember the day I came tumbling over the waterfall below. It is also weathered through nature like my family has in the camping world, my family has worked for camping and retreat ministries for over 20 years and while it has been difficult with all the snakes I would not want it any other way. For this reason I chose to photograph this log using the photojournalism technique of proximity and the compositional technique of rule of thirds.

 This is the aforementioned waterfall. I grew up with this waterfall in my back yard almost literally and it has been a symbol for the camp where I worked and lived and also for the gathering of Christians all over the north Georgia conference. I used the the photojournalism technique of place. People may not know that this is more than an ordinary waterfall, they may think that it is just beautiful but it also has meaning to me. I also used the compositional technique of the golden triangle to make the eye follow the line of the waterfall up to the line of the viewing deck and trail and back down.

Ceramics is one of my favorite mediums as an artist and it is something I find pride and enjoyment in. This is one of the projects I have been working on, lidded jars. The photojournalism technique I used was vantage point, I leaned back and was sitting down to take this photograph and I used the compositional technique of the golden spiral to make the eye focus on the small lidded jar I was working on.

Photography is very important to teach students as it shows them new ways of expressing themselves if the school has the resources to have a large photography class that is great but if not almost all students have phones in this day and age and therefore can usually participate in class. If a student does not have a phone then they can borrow a camera that I personally have or one of the school's camera, if the school has a few cameras. The things that I would teach would definitely be centered on the importance of composition. Then I would have students focus on what it is important to them, more specifically not selfies or pictures of their friends but pictures of more meaningful things such as what has influenced the person that they have become. I would also have them work on a project that would specifically look for a topic that is important or ongoing in the media.

Here is a link to an artist I admire.
http://www.jacksonfineart.com/Walker-Evans-356.html

Syllabi

Dear Parents/Guardians:

My name is Elizabeth Davis and I will be your student's teacher for art! I graduated from the University of South Carolina with my BFA in Art Education in the spring of 2017. My concentration was three dimensional art and I am so glad for the opportunity to become more acquainted with this art form as I have gotten older. I grew up here in South Carolina and in Georgia and I'm glad for the opportunity to give back to the community! Here is a little more information about the classes that your student is enrolled in! 

I am so glad that you are joining us for the school year in art! I think of art as a means of expression and while that should be fun I also take art seriously as it can lead to learning great life skills. Art Education is important to students’ education because it teaches them critical thinking, and problem solving skills. It is a means for exploring the various mediums through which students can express themselves more effectively. Students should take pride in their work and have fun creating in a safe environment.

There are many opportunities for students to get involved here in our art classes such as Art 1, Art 2, Art 3, and Advanced Art. It is never too late to get a start in art. In each of these classes we will take a look into what it is to work in drawing, painting, print-making, ceramics, and many other fields of study!

Students will have opportunities to participate and compete in art competitions for the school, district and state. Through our school art competition, district competition, and State Fair. These are great opportunities as well as an end of the school year school exhibit in which students will have the opportunity to show off their hard work and have parents come see what every student has worked on throughout the year.

Thank you in advance for supporting and participating in his or her art education.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Davis

Can You Paint With All the Colors of the Wind?

One of the things that all teachers have to address at some point is color theory. The primary colors: red, blue, and yellow. The secondary colors: purple, orange, and green. The tertiary colors:  blue green, yellow green, red purple, blue purple, red orange, and yellow orange.

Then you have your complimentary colors which are red-green, purple-yellow, and blue-orange. This goes by whichever colors are directly across from each other on the color wheel. Next there are tints and shades, you can create a tint of any color by adding white to it and you can likewise create a shade of any color by adding black to it. Next we have color schemes which are a theme of colors that is in a composition. Analogous is a scheme of colors on the color wheel that incorporates three colors. Cool colors are the blue, greens and some purples, and warm colors are red, orange, and yellows. Triadic colors are colors on the wheel that make a perfect equilateral triangle on the color wheel such as blue, yellow, and red. Split complimentary colors are a little trickier so take red for example to find the split complimentary colors for red you go across the color wheel to green and the split complimentary colors for red are on either side of green so blue-green, and yellow-green.

 A good way for every study to get some basic practice is to create a color wheel and then paint out a gradation scale for a mono chromatic and so on. This will show them how colors mix and also let them prepare for the project we are about to do!

The project is a self-portrait! Now reverse to the beginning of class yesterday. As your students come in the door you are going to get them to make a funny face or smile and take their head shot! You are going to go onto photo shop and create one of these bad boys.

Then you’ll ask them to make a one inch grid on that picture that you printed for them and a two inch grid on the paper which you have cut to be 22 by 16 because you are prepared!

Next your students will draw out their portrait onto the grid; this might be confusing for some of them so be prepared for questions and help when and where it’s needed! Once they have drawn out their portrait and have labeled the areas 1-5 or 1-7 based on the number of tints and shades that are in the portrait. After this students will come to you and tell you what color scheme they want to use, be prepared to steer students away from yellow, as adding yellow and black creates brown. Along with telling the boys who want to use red for a monochromatic color scheme that there will be pink in their portrait then and making sure they are okay with that. 

Here are some examples of finished products and steps along the way!