In the last leg of my certification journey, I have been placed in a public middle school. My cooperating teacher teaches 150 7th grade students. It has been a new experience as we are a year into Covid-related protocols. In the district I am teaching the students currently attend 50%. What that means on Monday and Tuesday one group comes all day. On Thursday and Friday the other group attends. My cooperating teacher does not teach her classes in person at school but is required to teach the students synchronously while at school and then monitors study hall in person throughout the day. We are in the month of April and the school year ends on June 3rd. In 10 days students will begin to attend school four days instead of two, which required schedule changes and reworking the lessons planned. This year has been a practice in flexibility, agility, and practicing positive attitudes in the face of adversity.
The digital art room requires variety in technology, equipment, and knowledge of programs. In this set up, meetings are held in Microsoft teams. Grading and assignments are posted on Canvas and synced to Skyward. The equipment needed for an effective synchronous lesson is a laptop or computer to communicate and capture video of the instructor and show other visual resources on the internet or where and how to navigate Canvas for submissions or information. A camera or tablet to video display for detail demonstration of the project, is necessary for students to understand the technique. These demonstrations are recorded and posted for students to revisit or watch if they missed the lesson. This new adventure in teaching and instruction has shown us that our modern means of communication, information can be dynamic in means of delivery. It requires each student to have access to the internet. It requires students to have the equipment. It has its limitations, as students need to have the discipline to log onto the call and receive the instruction. Access to the materials which requires a great deal of planning and delivery of the physical items to the students which takes a considerable amount of time for approximately 150 students, which is the roll my cooperating teacher currently serves. The adaptability of students, teachers, and parents or guardians has been tested in this new educational challenge. A forever changing system of delivery for instruction is not ideal nor sustainable. I have witnessed a great deal of burnout and the percentage of teachers choosing to retire early or simply not return to teaching is considerable. If we are proactive in addressing the needs of students, teachers, and parents or guardians with resources such as counseling and community support, access to the internet, tools needed for learning and instruction and by providing the much needed supports, we limit the factors that contribute ineffective means of instruction and reduce the possibility of falling short of targeted goals and standards. Much like the planning of art supplies and materials and delivery to the students in a variety of situations, locations, requires a great deal of communication, coordination, and anticipation of challenges this new era of education is possible, but is it sustainable?
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So Levi missed art class this week, so did I.. He made his project at home with the art teacher.. It took him three tries and tears to make his silhouette. First he kept cutting off the arms, then the head. I told him it was ok if he just wanted to glue them on but he kept trying. Finally he got this guy. He beamed. I was able to give hime the lesson I want them all to understand.... Matisse overcame the adversity that was dealt him in life. He was depressed and confined to his bed. Eventually he learned to embrace a new way of creating, making a shift in his perspective changed everything. He also persevered. So i asked Levi, did you like the first guy? How about your second? And what about your third? If you had stopped at the first you never would have made the third. I'm proud of you for sticking with it! It was a light bulb moment. That is what it's all about!
Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4 In all of the art classes students learned about Henri Matisse. Matisse was a great painter but when he was older he became very ill. He was confined to a bed and was unable to create paintings like he did before his illness. When he was able to feel better he overcame his adversity by painting paper and cutting them. Matisse “drew with scissors”. In all of our classes we painted paper just like Henri. In grades 3-5 students learned about gesture drawings and the students practiced some figure drawing in our sketchbooks. Students took turns modeling for a timed drawing, each time the length shortened. We practiced not focusing on the detail, instead trying to capture the action. Students were quiet, focused, and put great effort into seeing the “gesture”. I am proud of them for the willingness to try something new.
Matisse overcame adversity, he found joy in a new way of making. He was willing and open to new ways of seeing. We can learn from his life and we too can be willing and create beautiful things like Henri. James 1:2-4 2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. The journey I began in 2002 is now in its final semester. Hardly any journey is final however this one can be marked by the licensure process. I have been teaching art for over a decade. I have been a practicing artist for much longer than that. I continue to be the non-traditional special case in my professional journey. I guess you can say I take the road less travelled.
I am currently placed where I teach, St Paul's Lutheran School in Menomonie, WI. Foe half of the semester I shadow a fellow teacher in 1st and 2nd grade. I continue to teach my K-8th graders alongside working in a general education setting. I am learning more about procedure and classroom environment through seeing the management in the general education classroom. In the fall of 2019 my cooperating teacher and I went to a seminar on the Responsive Classroom®. We learned a lot in one day and continue to apply new techniques in management. I have seen a few more techniques added to her tool belt since then. It is a great experience to mentor, co-teach, and observe each other. This opportunity to student teach and learn from my fellow teacher brings me one step closer to the certification process I began so long ago. Epiphany Skyline, Ann Mary, 7th grade This past January I decided to return to college at UW-Stout to complete my art education licensure. I enrolled in two classes my spring semester, while teaching art at my current position in a private school, and being the lunch coordinator which many, endearingly, referred to me as THE lunch lady. By mid February I realized that I couldn't juggle my lunch lady gig and do my best in all things academic, teaching and learning, so I cut the apron strings.
In March, the pandemic, an event of biblical proportions took over the world. With lockdowns and closures, shifting to online or remote learning was something that everyone needed to learn very quickly. One of my classes was a drawing studio. I will have to say that in that course especially, the online move was not beneficial. Being part of change and challenge, as a student as well as teacher, was dynamic. I had to rethink my own delivery as well as continue my work as a student. I saw my fellow classmates struggles, I struggled. I felt that my output as a student was not at the level in person lacked the in class experience with one on one instructor guidance and instruction. As a student I push myself harder in person. I knew that what I was experiencing was something to apply to my own students. I have learned so much this year. In the summer I took an art history course that I had taken in my first undergraduate degree, I have a minor in art history. Even though the content did not change, I did. Twenty years later I looked at the ancient civilizations and their approach to design, function, and expression with a whole new lens. I was also able to glean ideas with this research and closer look at things I knew, but really didn't contemplate. Retaking this course forced me to really meditate on the foundations of human nature and the creation of human hands. This fall I entered an intense work load not yet experienced in this form in my life; juggling a family of six, 15 credits, and teaching K-8 art in a private school. As I close this semester, I reflect on how this was an academic marathon, and how I pulled it off with flying colors yet, it is not sustainable. I am so grateful that despite major adversity, online learning, my father needing emergency care, I was able to keep the focus on my goals. My students have also done a great job from transitioning to art on a cart, and most recently back into the art classroom. Flexibility and willingness to go with what may come has been vital skills in this year 2020. As I close this semester, I reflect on how much I have grown and refined myself. I have been humbled, praised, and enlightened. In the future it's not about where I end up. It's about how I continue to deliver the lesson; what did the student learn, how will they apply that to lifelong learning? Selfishly, do they understand my passion for the visual arts, and because of that, do they have a similar passion? I understand that art is not for everyone but like any subject in school, there are takeaways for everyone, they just look different. Embrace the uniqueness, find the similarities, and reflect. ![]() This past spring when everything was locked down and the school I worked at closed, our staff and faculty took the opportunity to re-group, plan, and organize our school. In the process classrooms were moved, walls, painted, and inventory taken. In my preparation for a very busy semester at UW-Stout for the completion of my certification in art education, I started planning the entire year 2020-21 of lessons. In this planning, I was able to organize my lessons into the materials I had and the materials I needed. In the moving of my classroom I was able to take a complete inventory of the supplies I had on hand. I was also able to label and store materials with orderly and logical placement in the art room. I have a well equipped art room, I am in my third or fourth year of teaching in my current position with on average about 40-60 students. This year the majority of my needs involved paper. As mentioned in Cassie Stephen's video on ordering supplies paper is the most important item to have on hand in the art room. I also agree that the type of paper and size is important. During this time where social distancing is required, the work space in which the student have is smaller. Also during this time materials are limited. My go to right now, not cost effective, is 8x12" watercolor paper. Partly because it holds up in painting unlike the basic white construction paper and with art on a cart we are using watercolor for variety in our lessons. I also have on hand white drawing paper for dry media in the two sizes. I have yet to tap into my construction paper. I have projects planned for the year that involve collage and look forward to utilizing all of my scraps. Cassie's advice on brushes was helpful. I have a collection of brushes but struggle to find the ones that work best. I will definitely check into the brand she mentions. As an art educator one of my teaching practices and standards includes reflection. Another standard involves planning. In the preparation for an interview or applying for a teaching position creates an opportunity to reflect on the instruction I have received as an art eduction student. How well do I implement the theories, standards, and philosophies I have been introduced to and applied to my practice as an Art educator? How can I show through my reflection and responses to these interview questions, my ability and desire to promote learning in the art room? What artifacts are important? The collection of a few lessons in a pad folio wold be helpful immediate props to reference. Art Education is based in visual learning and experience which makes it only natural to have a hard copy visual reference point. When I take the time to reflect on my experience and plan by gathering my work to showcase my learning and what and why I teach, I present myself with my best foot forward. Through this process, preparation, and planning, I complete an assessment of who I am as a professional.
![]() In my curriculum and theory class Brittney Malsonka introduced the Six Thinking Hats by Edward De Bono. In this approach to classroom management and as a system of delivery for instruction, each colored hat stands for a way of thinking.
In these categories the approach or perspective relates to how that person may tackle a social interaction, how to complete a project, how to respond to a test, etc. There are no rights or wrongs it just helps to identify the strengths of that individual. It also can be used as a method to teach how to look at the problem, solution, or situation with a different perspective. With the six hats included in a plan for teaching I can see its use very effective, however with this approach it needs to be used throughout the classroom and curriculum to be effective. It was helpful to know that it could be broken down into parts and implemented by teaching red hat thoughts for a unit, moving onto white hat thoughts while reviewing the red hat thoughts with building on prior knowledge and scaffolding. Personally I feel it would be effective in training my thoughts to solutions, problems, or situations to expand my perspectives. ![]()
My digital design course had some awesome timing. Below is a variety of work created in the course which filled with a lot of work and tears, illustrator deemed "it's own animal" by my instructor and photoshop with its many facets, proved to be challenges to overcome. I have enjoyed the results. ![]() A Norman Rockwell Inspired Moment. In the 2D Digital design course I learned the tricks of photoshop to include Rico, our beloved 7th member of our household. "Granny Get Yer Gun They're Selling the Farm" 2020 claimed our farm. The my family and childhood dairy farm was sold in August. the transition was already in the process but finalized this year. This composite also includes my career as a lunch lady, which also ended in 2020 as I returned to school at UW-Stout. I created a set of cards that combined my photography of the Farm and the Weavings I create. It was a great way to introduce myself to Adobe InDesign. We created a Graphic novel page, I chose Arachne as my content. For one of our assignments we created a seed packet, I chose Motherwort. I appreciate it's medicinal properties.
In a year full adversity, I have been able to reflect on a great deal of blessings.
In January, with a great deal of leg work, forms, meetings, and quick thinking I enrolled at UW-Stout to finished the art education certification I began over a decade ago. Life happened in that decade. Four kids later, them all a bit grown up, I felt the need to share my love of the visual arts with more children than my own, officially. In March in person learning was halted. Not only did I as a student have to change my approach to my education, but as a practicing educator had to shift my approach to my art lessons. Remote learning happened in an instant. It continued throughout the school year. Children I taught were able to continue lessons. I change the approach to our annual art show by having a student artist featured throughout the last of the school year. Flexibility became my friend. This summer I enrolled in an art history course I did not need, however I was blessed to got through art history 101 again. I have a minor in art history. What I did learn by studying the ancient world again is that two decades later I have a different perspective and there are lessons to be gleaned from the study of the ancients. I was able to think about mosaics and how to introduce them, I was excited to apply facts about the pyramids, and in Assyrian sculpture mythical creatures could come alive in the minds of my students. In the Special Education course I learned a lot about adaptability and about how I approach my emotional/behavioral students. Late in August I compiled a reading in the content areas ESA. My learning was very consolidated and continued into this fall semester. In June my family farm sold. I am deeply connected to the farm, my father still lives next door, so I have been dealing with the "loss" of something dear. In the grieving process I have been aware of transitions, change, and shifts in thinking. In all the adversity this year has provided a willingness and openness to shifts in mindsets are vital. It was a time of quiet and meaningful reflection. The challenge is great this school year, fall 2020. We continue to deal with the complications of a pandemic. I continued to teach remote, in person, on a cart to K-8 students as well as take on 15 credits, and still managing a household of 6 and a dog. I currently also have a commission on my loom. In October, just days after my 44th birthday, My father fell and broke his shoulder. My mother passed away in 2013, I cared for her in her last days, he still lives alone. My brother was visiting at the time but lives in Arizona. The care of my father does rest upon me. So this year, after many years of "waiting" to return to school, a pandemic of biblical proportions, actually turned out to be a blessing. With the ability to care for my father in a crucial stage of care and recovery remotely enabled me to continue classes fairly uninterrupted. My father also was very thankful to have my help and I felt at ease making sure he had the best care possible from me and others. I was also able to make up the lessons I missed with my in person students with the flexibility with the school I teach at. Teachers I work with are very understanding. I teach once a week so I missed very few lessons in person. I worked hard at staying ahead in all of my courses and was able to keep my head above water. My husband cared for our kids, our eldest is sixteen and our youngest eight, another reason my return to school is possible, they are older an able to care for themselves. Looking back on this year life has been an adventure. It has been a challenge for many. I feel blessed to wear life like a loose garment. I look forward to completing this semester. The five courses I am completing have been valuable. I hope that even as a "non-traditional" student, my "age-ism" has been somewhat overcome, and my contributions unique. It is hard somedays to feel young and old at the same time, however I really value all the wisdom I have earned. I value my practice as a studio artist. My journey may be unconventional but rich with opportunity. Only time could have given me these experiences and purpose in life. I value the human experience and visual arts. |
AuthorI have a passion for the visual arts and love sharing it with others. I have enjoyed teaching all ages and love to incorporate art history and traditional disciplines as well as innovative ideas. Art is vital to who I am as a creator and educator. Archives
April 2021
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