TEACHING & PEDAGOGY
Curious. Creative. Critical Thinkers. Students love exploring the world, and even more, experimenting with it. Through art, I will guide students in engaging lessons that give them deeper understandings of the community and the world around them. I will support them in taking risks, making mistakes, collaborating, and innovating. I will motivate them to wonder! And, I will support their social and emotional development, which is so important at this age. By nurturing a compassionate classroom, I hope to generate empathy in students that will span their lives. By infusing real world issues into the lessons, such as social justice learning and our environmental impact, I aspire to empowered students to develop their own powerful voice. With a new understanding and connection to the community and to humanity as a whole, through meaningful art and insightful discussion, I hope to spark life-long inspiration in the future movers and shakers of the world!
We are an Art Community that works together. The Classroom is a colorful, safe, inclusive, respectful place, where students feel comfortable to create and express. Through a collaboratively created classroom charter, which we all sign, communal respect is initiated and maintained. I value each student, and with that, I model the importance of self-respect and the respect of others. This includes respecting our bodies, the classroom environment, and each other’s learning. Additionally, I incorporate universal strategies, like a calming corner, breathing exercises, and “mind breaks,” to support students and maintain a calm and productive classroom.
Our destination is to change the the social vision of what schools can be.
-Elliot Eisner
When the stars seem too distant to touch, we should remember that... a man's reach should exceed his grasp, or
what's a heaven for.
- Robert Browning
Continuous Learning Opens the Mind, Providing Deeper Understanding by building on what a student knows. I encourage all parents and guardians to extend their child’s learning at home and in their communities, and will provide resources to support this growth.
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• I will share and update information on the many city-wide public programs, like
Culture Pass, which provide free access for all students to explore great cultural institutions.
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• Throughout the year, I will offer news on local events, walkable installations, and
neighborhood activities that reinforce the arts.
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• Additionally, I will supply students and their families with lesson plan ideas and project
prompts at the beginning of long breaks.
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• For Exceptional Learners and ESL students, enhanced instruction using art can build skills, confidence, and understanding. I will provide families with take home art kits and work with
them on ways to incorporate art into everyday learning.
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• The annual end of year Art Show offers an opportunity to get inspired by student art,
and appreciate the school’s creative collaborative community.
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• Finally, I invite parents and guardians to come into the classroom, to share their cultural traditions as they relate to art, and to share their artistic talents. We are lucky to live in
such a vibrant community, and we continue to grow brighter with the more we know.
My Teaching Approach Follows Four Disciplines of Art:
Art Production. Experimenting with various mediums, tools, and techniques will be essential, as students explore both two-dimensional and three-dimensional art making. Art will be produced with a goal of being informed, content grounded, and meaningful.
Art Criticism. Art answers questions and asks them. Students will become familiar with the elements of art including, color, texture, shape, line, space, and value, and how they are applied successfully. They will also study the principles of design, including balance, contrast, movement, emphasis, pattern, rhythm, and unity, and relate them to their work and those of great artists, introduced into each lesson. Through self-critique, classroom gallery walks and open discussion, students will have an opportunity to analyze each other’s art, offer compliments to their peers and engage in self-critiques and offer compliments to their peers.
Art History. We will look to the past to see art’s influence on the present, by discussing the history of people through art. Students will study notable artists and artifacts, with an emphasis on inclusion. As an art educator, I believe it is important for students to see themselves represented in the classroom. Accordingly, I focus on infusing diversity, inclusions, and cultural appreciation into each unit, directed with respect and honor.
Aesthetics. Art builds observational skills and encourages exploration of the imagination. Objectives and strategies at appropriate developmental levels help students think about and respond to aesthetics question. Students learn to understand, appreciate, and generate their own ideas about art, culture, and the human condition. They also identify the intent of an artwork as representational (realistic), structural (formal) or expressive (emotional). Through aesthetic questioning, students explore the world and find new understanding.
Every child is an artist. In art education, performance assessment is a commonly used method to determine what students have learned. I will use this approach to assess students through their direct demonstration of what they know and are able to do, through their ability in creating each project. As we move through each unit, I will encourage students to focus on experimenting with the process, with attention on the final product, while also considering time management. Artist statements will crafted by each students to provide deeper context to their art. Open discussion will further identify the extent of their understaning of each art project and how much they have grown as an artist.
