This experience has been wonderful. I have learned a great deal about teaching and how to interact with students in meaningful ways. Working with the Arts Bridge Program has given me the opportunity to gain insight into how a classroom can be run in order to maintain order and foster learning.
When I first set out on this expedition, I had no experience with teaching in a classroom. I was anxious, to say the least, and wanted to do a good job. The lesson that day went alright, but Mrs. Black was able to help me improve by pointing out areas were I was lacking. Her advice and counsel helped me avoid making the same mistakes over and over again. It also gave me opportunities to see how I could alter my teaching strategies to best fit the classroom's environment.
One technique that really helped was getting the students more involved during the instruction portion of my lessons. In my first lesson, I seemed to bore the children because I was just talking at them and their attention spans are not the same as college students. Mrs. Black mentioned that I need to get the students involved, so I tried that with all of my subsequent lessons. With that new approach, the students were much more enthusiastic about my lessons and were excited by the art principles being taught as well as the general knowledge associated with our lesson.
Because I was getting the students more involved, there was a new issue created. How do I maintain order and stay on course with the lesson. This I was able to solve due to my classes I was taking at BYU. I learned that you sometimes have to cut off the comments by stating that you will only be taking one or two more comments before moving on. That way the students know that the time to transition is coming up and not everyone can comment. For those students that really want to share, I also thought up the solution to give them the option to share their comment with you later during work time. This really worked well with the last lesson on Fables.
Mrs. Black also helped by sharing with me her hand clapping rhythm that she uses to get the students' attention. With that aid in place, I was able to quiet the students and explain portions of the assignment that I had forgotten to mention earlier. I was also able to use the technique so that I could mention something that I noticed that would benefit the whole class, such as a frequently asked question or an action that I noticed multiple students performing.
Some other aspects of my teaching that improved were my lesson plans. I became much better at laying out the procedures and remembering all of the steps. I was able to think ahead about the types of problems I thought my arise and come up with solutions beforehand. As I became familiar with the students and their level of experience, I was also able to adapt my lesson material so that I could effectively communicate what I wanted them to know.
I will carry these experiences with me into my student teaching and continue to improve my teaching practices as I gain more experience and enter new realms of teaching. Each classroom is different, so I will constantly be adapting and learning. With the lessons learned in Arts Bridge, I know that I can rise to the challenge and be the best teacher I can be.
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
The Last Steps
Today was the last time I would visit for my Arts Bridge Experience. I have really enjoyed my experiences and learned a lot of useful skills. Those skills were used today with my final lesson to wrap up the Fables lesson from last week.
I had asked Mrs. Black to have the students write a fable of their own and come up with a moral to their fable. Just in case they were not able to do that, I had prepared a list of fables from Aesop's book of fables that the students could use as a basis for their cover illustration. The students had written fables with Mrs. Black though, so I was able to move forward with the lesson as planned.
I began the lesson by talking to the students about their fables. I asked for a few volunteers who would like to read their fables for the class and tell us the moral of the story. There were quite a number of hands that were raised, so I called on one student and, before calling on the second student, informed the class that I would only be taking one more volunteer. There were still some students who wanted to share their fables, so I told them that as we worked on their illustrations I would go around and listen to their fables if they wanted to share them with me.
Both of the students had imaginative fables with some good morals. They had done a good job with their writing. I was able to then use their fables as examples as I started prepping the students for what they would be doing for art that day.
I asked the students to tell me some of the characteristics of a fable to review and clear up any misunderstandings. They remembered the characteristics perfectly, so I moved on quickly to talking about the illustrations they would be making for their fables.
This reminded me that we needed to finish the crocodile drawing I had been walking them through last week. I took some time doing that with them. I asked them to get their papers out from last week and waited for them to all be ready. When there were just a few students left who were still looking for their paper, I told them I would wait for a few moments more and then begin. After waiting for a little longer, everyone was ready and I began to help them finish up the crocodile we started on the 3rd.
Once I was done with the crocodile, I finished explaining the illustrations assignment. I wanted them to use perspective in their drawings and illustrate a scene from their fable. Do help review, I asked the students for some examples of how we show perspective. They provided great answers. One, you make things in the background smaller. Two, you have things in the background higher up on the horizon than things that are closer. I then added that you can use overlapping to help transition into their drawings.
Using the fables that were shared earlier, I explained some ideas of what they could draw and some compositions they could think of. I also reminded the students that they needed to have a setting for their characters. They shouldn't just draw their characters on a blank page.
I then let the students get to work and began walking around the room to help them as needed. I noticed a two girls that got up to look at some picture books on animals. I realized that that would be a great resource for the whole class if they needed help knowing what their animals look like. Using the hand clapping rhythm I got the classes attention, making sure that everyone was paying attention before speaking, and told them that they could spend one minute at the picture book corner to get a book to help them draw their animal if they wanted to get a reference photo. Those that didn't want a book, or didn't need one, I told to continue working.
Once the students began looking for books, I helped them find ones that had pictures of the animals they were looking for. When everyone was back at their seats, I began making the rounds again to help students and ask them questions about their fables. I also made sure to talk to those that had wanted to share their fables but didn't get a chance. I asked to hear their fable and had them tell me what the moral was.
The students had great illustrations and very creative fables. It was fun to work with them and help them come up with ideas for their compositions.
At the end of my allotted time for teaching, I said goodbye to the class. I then told them that today was my last day and they all thanked me for coming. They were disappointed that I wouldn't be coming back, they wanted to know where I was going. This helped me realize how important these relationships with my students can be. As a teacher, I have a great opportunity to make a difference in the lives of my students. It is a great responsibility was well, but it is one that I am glad to accept.
One student asked me where I would be teaching when I become an Art teacher. They wanted to know if they would see me again. I told them that I am hoping to be a high school teacher, they didn't like that it would be so long before they saw me again. I was really touched and it helped reaffirm my resolve the be the best teacher I can be. I will miss them too, but maybe I'll see them in high school.
I had asked Mrs. Black to have the students write a fable of their own and come up with a moral to their fable. Just in case they were not able to do that, I had prepared a list of fables from Aesop's book of fables that the students could use as a basis for their cover illustration. The students had written fables with Mrs. Black though, so I was able to move forward with the lesson as planned.
I began the lesson by talking to the students about their fables. I asked for a few volunteers who would like to read their fables for the class and tell us the moral of the story. There were quite a number of hands that were raised, so I called on one student and, before calling on the second student, informed the class that I would only be taking one more volunteer. There were still some students who wanted to share their fables, so I told them that as we worked on their illustrations I would go around and listen to their fables if they wanted to share them with me.
Both of the students had imaginative fables with some good morals. They had done a good job with their writing. I was able to then use their fables as examples as I started prepping the students for what they would be doing for art that day.
I asked the students to tell me some of the characteristics of a fable to review and clear up any misunderstandings. They remembered the characteristics perfectly, so I moved on quickly to talking about the illustrations they would be making for their fables.
This reminded me that we needed to finish the crocodile drawing I had been walking them through last week. I took some time doing that with them. I asked them to get their papers out from last week and waited for them to all be ready. When there were just a few students left who were still looking for their paper, I told them I would wait for a few moments more and then begin. After waiting for a little longer, everyone was ready and I began to help them finish up the crocodile we started on the 3rd.
Once I was done with the crocodile, I finished explaining the illustrations assignment. I wanted them to use perspective in their drawings and illustrate a scene from their fable. Do help review, I asked the students for some examples of how we show perspective. They provided great answers. One, you make things in the background smaller. Two, you have things in the background higher up on the horizon than things that are closer. I then added that you can use overlapping to help transition into their drawings.
Using the fables that were shared earlier, I explained some ideas of what they could draw and some compositions they could think of. I also reminded the students that they needed to have a setting for their characters. They shouldn't just draw their characters on a blank page.
I then let the students get to work and began walking around the room to help them as needed. I noticed a two girls that got up to look at some picture books on animals. I realized that that would be a great resource for the whole class if they needed help knowing what their animals look like. Using the hand clapping rhythm I got the classes attention, making sure that everyone was paying attention before speaking, and told them that they could spend one minute at the picture book corner to get a book to help them draw their animal if they wanted to get a reference photo. Those that didn't want a book, or didn't need one, I told to continue working.
Once the students began looking for books, I helped them find ones that had pictures of the animals they were looking for. When everyone was back at their seats, I began making the rounds again to help students and ask them questions about their fables. I also made sure to talk to those that had wanted to share their fables but didn't get a chance. I asked to hear their fable and had them tell me what the moral was.
The students had great illustrations and very creative fables. It was fun to work with them and help them come up with ideas for their compositions.
At the end of my allotted time for teaching, I said goodbye to the class. I then told them that today was my last day and they all thanked me for coming. They were disappointed that I wouldn't be coming back, they wanted to know where I was going. This helped me realize how important these relationships with my students can be. As a teacher, I have a great opportunity to make a difference in the lives of my students. It is a great responsibility was well, but it is one that I am glad to accept.
One student asked me where I would be teaching when I become an Art teacher. They wanted to know if they would see me again. I told them that I am hoping to be a high school teacher, they didn't like that it would be so long before they saw me again. I was really touched and it helped reaffirm my resolve the be the best teacher I can be. I will miss them too, but maybe I'll see them in high school.
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Fables and Morals
As I mentioned at the end of my last post, Mrs. Black and I decided to focus on fables for my last two visits. Today I went in to the class prepared to help them get started on creating their own fable with a moral and have them design the cover or illustration that would go with that fable.
I started the class by introducing the idea of genres and had the class participate in telling me what a genre was. Once we had established that, I transitioned to our focus of fables. I asked if any students were familiar with some fables. One student responded with the Ugly Duckling.
I had brought a book of fables with me, Fables by Arnold Lobel. I used this to help illustrate some of the characteristics of a fable to lay the ground work for when they would need to make up their own. Using the fable The Baboon's Umbrella as an example from the book, we discussed how fables use animals as the main characters, they teach a moral, and the animals often have human qualities.
I had made copies of the fable along with it's illustration for each of the students. We read the fable together and then discussed how it exemplified the characteristics of a fable.
During discussion times, I would ask the students to raise their hands and then call on them when they had done so. The whole class participated very well and we interested in the fable and the topic at hand. Once the discussion was over, I moved on to what they were going to be doing for next week.
The assignment is to draw an illustration of their own fable which should include a moral and have a list of the character(s) in their fable. Part of what Mrs. Black had wanted for me to do with this lesson was show them how to draw some animals and have them follow along as I did so. This is why we chose to have this lesson be on fables, so that the students could draw animals.
After introducing their task of drawing an illustration and the written portion of their work, I had them get out some paper and a pencil so that I could walk them through how to draw some cartoon animals they could then expound on to create their own illustrations. I used by animation book Cartoon Animation by Preston Blair as a reference to help me in this process.
In the book, there are some "how to" sections on drawing heads, animals, and other such things for cartoon characters. I started by picking the portion on a rabbit's head and a bear cub's head and walked them through how to draw those. The class was very excited because they love to draw and some of them were very good at following along and were quite pleased with their results. There were others that had some difficulty, but they still had fun. It became a little rowdy during this process, especially between animals, but Mrs. Black and I were able to get them to settle back down using her hand clapping rhythm that she uses with them.
After finishing those two drawings, we had time to start one last drawing, so I chose to show them how to draw the entire body of an animal with human characteristics. Earlier, we had learned the word for this, which is anthropomorphism. There were several animals from the book that I could choose from, but since we could only do one, I wrote down five options and had the students vote on which one they wanted to learn how to draw. They chose a crocodile.
We began the crocodile drawing, but only got half-way done when the bell for recess sounded. We dismissed the class and told them we would finish next week.
I plan to finish that crocodile drawing next week and then have the students work on their fable, moral, and illustration. Depending on how much time we have, I may be able to walk them through a few more cartoon animal drawings.
This lesson was a lot less intense than the last few weeks. It ran smoothly and I believe that the students all learned from it as well as enjoyed themselves.
I started the class by introducing the idea of genres and had the class participate in telling me what a genre was. Once we had established that, I transitioned to our focus of fables. I asked if any students were familiar with some fables. One student responded with the Ugly Duckling.
I had brought a book of fables with me, Fables by Arnold Lobel. I used this to help illustrate some of the characteristics of a fable to lay the ground work for when they would need to make up their own. Using the fable The Baboon's Umbrella as an example from the book, we discussed how fables use animals as the main characters, they teach a moral, and the animals often have human qualities.
I had made copies of the fable along with it's illustration for each of the students. We read the fable together and then discussed how it exemplified the characteristics of a fable.
During discussion times, I would ask the students to raise their hands and then call on them when they had done so. The whole class participated very well and we interested in the fable and the topic at hand. Once the discussion was over, I moved on to what they were going to be doing for next week.
The assignment is to draw an illustration of their own fable which should include a moral and have a list of the character(s) in their fable. Part of what Mrs. Black had wanted for me to do with this lesson was show them how to draw some animals and have them follow along as I did so. This is why we chose to have this lesson be on fables, so that the students could draw animals.
After introducing their task of drawing an illustration and the written portion of their work, I had them get out some paper and a pencil so that I could walk them through how to draw some cartoon animals they could then expound on to create their own illustrations. I used by animation book Cartoon Animation by Preston Blair as a reference to help me in this process.
In the book, there are some "how to" sections on drawing heads, animals, and other such things for cartoon characters. I started by picking the portion on a rabbit's head and a bear cub's head and walked them through how to draw those. The class was very excited because they love to draw and some of them were very good at following along and were quite pleased with their results. There were others that had some difficulty, but they still had fun. It became a little rowdy during this process, especially between animals, but Mrs. Black and I were able to get them to settle back down using her hand clapping rhythm that she uses with them.
After finishing those two drawings, we had time to start one last drawing, so I chose to show them how to draw the entire body of an animal with human characteristics. Earlier, we had learned the word for this, which is anthropomorphism. There were several animals from the book that I could choose from, but since we could only do one, I wrote down five options and had the students vote on which one they wanted to learn how to draw. They chose a crocodile.
We began the crocodile drawing, but only got half-way done when the bell for recess sounded. We dismissed the class and told them we would finish next week.
I plan to finish that crocodile drawing next week and then have the students work on their fable, moral, and illustration. Depending on how much time we have, I may be able to walk them through a few more cartoon animal drawings.
This lesson was a lot less intense than the last few weeks. It ran smoothly and I believe that the students all learned from it as well as enjoyed themselves.
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