by Linda on August 28, 2009
I am trying to create a space that inspires open-ended inquiry. Obviously, being an art space, the light must be good. My area has large north-facing windows and doors that can be opened. The walls are white, and the ceiling is high. On the shelves are terrariums, orchids and cacti, bones, fossils, and petrified wood. There is also a small ecosystem involving a fish, a snail, and some bamboo that has been getting much attention from the students. I have no cupboards or closets, so I have everything sorted and stored on shelves in white bins. I have collected a lot of things to make art with, but am working to put it away in as streamlined a manner as possible. Sort and organize. Arrange objects so they create new relationships with each other. The Montessori in me.
Of course there are bins of glue and watercolor and pastels. But mostly there are collections of packaging materials, nuts and bolts, wires of various gauges, rolls of window screen, plastic bottles in shades of greens and blues, old lightbulbs, cut and flattened aluminum cans, sea glass, devil’s claw and petals collected and dried from a variety of flowers. Great chunks of styrofoam and leftover rolls of sign-makers vinyl. Flat soccer balls. Broken wall clocks. The packaging materials are my favorite. There must be a new science to the design and manufacturing of packaging materials made of recycled materials. They are visually so very interesting, and have great tactile quality as well.
Really, I am not a collector. Really. I don’t like stuff. I am a minimalist. But when it comes to a studio brimming with “things”, I see the potential for transformation. The realm of unexplored possibilities. A place where risk-taking is a safe thing to do and where new fluencies are developed. Open-ended inquiry.
There are great design lessons to be learned through work with non-traditional materials. The mind is always forced to view things differently and make new connections. New ideas about aesthetics are explored and the big questions like “What is ART?” are constantly asked. All this in a middle school art room full of junk.
Bigger idea: Sustainability education in action.
by Linda on August 27, 2009
My nature as a teacher/artist causes me to constantly re-think the way visual arts curriculum has been constructed. No sense in pounding square pegs into round holes, I realize, after years of trying to impose a structure onto myself that feels cumbersome and anti-intuitive. In reading over the standards adopted by my state , I am struck by the linear and compartmentalized approach to the teaching of visual arts, compacted and systemized, another set of skills to acquire, untethered to meaningful learning experience.
Understandably, given that the education system is suffering from a sort of chronic, systemic ailment, a highly systemized and standardized curriculum is easier to administer, manage, and assess. Everyday schools are mourning the loss of their arts classes due to monetary considerations. In an environment such as this, we are made to feel “grateful” that schools are offering arts at all. As if it is somehow less necessary than any other part of educational experience. As if somehow we should be complacent and accepting of the current state of affairs. As if we can hope to raise a generation of advocates and activists if we deny them the development of any aspect of their voice.
So, in the midst of all this, I am really blessed to have the support of a school that not only believes in the intrinsic importance of art education, but that supports me in my vision of what that should be. Now, THIS is something to be grateful for. Even better, I have 4 hours a week of Open Studio. Wow. That is on top of 4 hours of “regular” art class each week with the lower grades, and plenty of opportunity to work with my co-teachers here to develop projects for the content areas, as well as to design or seek out community based visual arts projects. Sweet.
So, I’m thinking a lot about the Open Studio. Process-based learning. Experimentation. Open Studio is like the science lab. Together with the class we can come up with guidelines for inquiry, research, and implementation. What is it you want to explore? What might be the best way to do that? What steps will you take? When to guide and when to observe? How to strike the balance……….
We are working on the mural design during Open Studio. Today we took a break from that and I offered a chance to work on a personal art project. This is the third year I am with these students so they are well versed in studio procedures. They got themselves set up pretty well and were all working quietly in no time at all. Collage, watercolor, mixed-media work. Two students are designing an oversized game board. Calm and focused. I needed to do very little redirecting or prompting. They are very ready for some time to direct their own learning.
During the Open Studio, I walk around the room and talk to each student about their work. I can really engage with them and hear from them what it is they are wanting to work on, what they feel is going well, and areas they are wanting help with. The students are reflective and eager to ask for direction. Each one asks different questions and comes up with different solutions. There is room for them all. For me, this mode of teaching is a leap of faith and I have to trust in this process. I believe strongly in the necessity of students taking charge of their own learning process and Open Studio offers the perfect venue for practicing this. At the end of class, each student puts away his/her materials and cleans and cares for the studio space. There is ownership in this, and a great sense of developing self-directedness.
by Linda on August 25, 2009
So, the first week is over and I can honestly say that it was great. Great to have a room full of collected materials waiting to be used, great to have such talented and visionary co-workers, great to see my students well and ready to work. Most of them have returned safe and sound, well, most of them……..
Last year we were awarded a grant to design and execute a mural for a new youth center being organized by the Gang Intervention and Outreach Program. So, having had plenty of practice in collaborative design strategies while working on our School of the Future designs the past two years, we set out to come up with a concept for our mural. The building is on a main street and is highly visible to the public walking or driving by. Our wall is 62′ long by 12′ high, with the wall actually divided into 5 sections.
We began working on the design before we broke for summer vacation, so I pulled out all that we had done in the early summer and spread it out on the tables. Initially the students decided on a theme having to do with life’s paths and choices. Strong idea, full of potential. I had asked everyone to start sketching on this theme. We came up with some great ideas that were re-worked into more finished components. The idea was to take a component from each student and work it into the final design. Great idea, cumbersome process. The more we worked in this vein the more we felt as if we were forcing square pegs into round holes. It just wasn’t feeling right. We made a scale model of the actual wall, and moved the various design components around on the model to see what kind of composition we could create. We moved things and moved them again. And again.
Somewhere in here I realized that it wasn’t working because we had progressed beyond our original concept and we were holding on to an idea that had clearly evolved. I turned to the group and asked for their help. What can we do to shift this? What needs to happen here in order to move forward?
One student looked up and said ” Pull everything off. Just take these two pieces, get rid of the rest, and start again. There is too much stuff here.”
That was exactly the thing we needed to do to move forward. The items he suggested keeping were two words that had been brilliantly drawn and had strong design impact, STRENGTH and INTEGRITY. A lively discussion followed. Why not choose a few words that are really important to us and make a beautiful composition with them? Paint them REALLY BIG on the wall, an exclamation of what we believe and stand for. Something really clear to think about as you dirve or walk by or enter the building. A clear, strong vision and voice.
Now we are really excited. Here is the list of words we have chosen: Determination, Integrity, Courage,Unity, Respect, Strength, Excellence. We are looking at and learning about text in design. Scale and proportion. Voice. Belief.
Back to the drawing board, important lessons learned. We are honoring our process. We have a unified vision. We let go and made room for new directions. I don’t know what the end result will be, but I can see that the process has been very important. I’ll post some pictures soon.
Tagged as:
art of teaching,
project-based learning
by Linda on August 5, 2009
Two weeks until the school year begins. My fellow teachers and I gather around the table to reflect on our past year and lessons learned. We ask each other: What is your goal for this year? Each answer is different, but adds up to a whole. Add more fun. Maintain balance. Raise the bar. Be a better teacher.
I dont know if students realize that teachers are on a learning path parallel to their own. I wonder if most teachers realize that. It is an exciting place to be, really. A teacher learns everyday in every interaction with students. We come away changed at the end of each year. We grow that into our classroom and curriculum each year, an infinite development resource.
I am overwhelmed with the idea of excellence in teaching. All the details, the variables, the barriers, the dynamics. Being a visual arts instructor, I add into that mix all the thinking relative to excellence in arts and art education. I am constantly assessing and re-assessing my position and thinking relative to each student and each class. While navigating all this I am working on focus, defining the mission of the work I am doing and how I can stay true to what I believe about education and the arts.
Also in question today: How do I envision my classroom environment this year? Central to any work I do as a teacher is the learning environment. I believe in creating environments that are beautiful, that document the active learning that takes place in the space. I believe in space that honors the natural world and invites inquiry and investigation. I believe that the classroom space defines much of how the class will develop as a culture. So, today I will begin the process of creating a space that invites creative and meaningful work, a space that will hopefully inspire my students to explore and innovate, one that will remind me daily of my stated goal for this year: to refine my craft as a teacher, and to work on bringing into alignment what I believe about children and learning and environment towards that end.
Tagged as:
art of teaching,
learning environment
