I had a multi-paragraphed comment composed and lost it when I tried to click over and see where your school is located. Looks like I would learn that I can't do that!
So many times I shun so-called arts integrated units, because they have such a contrived feel to them. The focus is often heavily towards one content area with an artsy crafty component is added in - *viola* integration. I love the authenticity of this unit! There are rich, juicy, AND relevant connections that cross over into so many different content areas. Well done, well done!
I have SO enjoyed your contributions to this course. I think I've put in a plug for them before, but just in case, please think about Nick Kremer's Visual Literacy course and Mary Franco's Visual Thinking Strategies courses. I think you would really enjoy them and your classmates would benefit from the wisdom and knowledge that you would bring to the table. :-)
Reflection
A couple of years ago I conducted research which explored the blurring of boundaries between visual and verbal. My ongoing curriculum reform battle has consumed my energies as of late, but responding to Ginia fanned the embers of that passion. To succeed in the conceptual age, it will be essential for people to make connections between disciplines, to possess the ability to relate disparate concepts; and to create from them something new. (Pink, 2005) Experts in the field of knowledge propose the creation of a new culture of learning where students are viewed as humans - and understanding is personalized and meaningful (Thomas, and Seely Brown, 2011; Robinson, 2006).
Sometimes the efforts to initiate change seem so overwhelming that I feel like it's my own personal battle, when actually, I'm a crusader in something far bigger than myself.
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Erika,
As I read through your post, it is so easy for me to picture myself from both the perspective of teacher as well as student.
I cringe to think how videos from my first year of teaching would look. There's so much that you have to learn through experience. No amount of teacher training can ever prepare you for the reality of your own class and your own students. You, however, seem to be a natural! You possess a natural calmness that some people never manage to attain.
Do you have a SmartBoard in your room? You might create a video or voice thread of yourself demonstrating the various watercolor techniques and share it via the SmartBoard. I have a voice thread I created which covers the use of cake tempera paint. I show it almost every time I paint with kindergarten and first grade students, mainly because I got tired of saying the same things over and over again. Somehow, just the fact that I am using digital media to convey content seems to impact their attentiveness, no matter how many times they've seen it before. Also, if you posted the videos to your teacher website, students could reference them at any time. Granted, I don't have high school age students, but maybe it could help.
As I read through your post, it is so easy for me to picture myself from both the perspective of teacher as well as student.
I cringe to think how videos from my first year of teaching would look. There's so much that you have to learn through experience. No amount of teacher training can ever prepare you for the reality of your own class and your own students. You, however, seem to be a natural! You possess a natural calmness that some people never manage to attain.
Do you have a SmartBoard in your room? You might create a video or voice thread of yourself demonstrating the various watercolor techniques and share it via the SmartBoard. I have a voice thread I created which covers the use of cake tempera paint. I show it almost every time I paint with kindergarten and first grade students, mainly because I got tired of saying the same things over and over again. Somehow, just the fact that I am using digital media to convey content seems to impact their attentiveness, no matter how many times they've seen it before. Also, if you posted the videos to your teacher website, students could reference them at any time. Granted, I don't have high school age students, but maybe it could help.
Reflection
I have a clear recollection of screaming at a class of third grade students my first year of teaching. I had envisioned doing Eric Carle inspired collages using student created paint spattered papers. The entire process was a failure. Paint was spattered everywhere. Students would not stop to clean up. I had another class (with a most impatient teacher) waiting outside in the hall for a good ten minutes. After I finally got them in line I screamed, "You will NEVER paint in my room again! NEVER!" My face was flushed, and my heart pounded in my chest. Thank God, there's no video documentation of that day, although perhaps the indelible memory is worse than the reality was. The practice of taping and reflecting on ones in action is incredibly insightful. I think I will challenge myself to make it a regular part of personal goal setting for the future.
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