Week of 2/22 Assignment

This week we created our own original headdresses in response to the two different versions of the “Cinderella”” fairytale.  We first heard the classic version with the glass slipper, two evil stepsisters, stepmother, fairy-god mother, and Prince Charming.  And then we heard the more obscure Native American take on the tale called “The Rough Face Girl”.  Both versions told the same basic story, yet in two completely different ways.

            The project for the week was to create our own headdress with any version of Cinderella in mind.  I brought yellow, green, and purple feathers with me to class for my headdress.  With the feathers teamed with cupcake liners and tissue paper of the same color, I created a New Orleans Mardi Gras-themed Cinderella headdress.  I first wrapped four pieces of thicker white tissue paper to create the basic shape.  Then I attached the yellow, purple, and green large pieces of tissue paper to the back of the headdress, and added the feather arrangement to the middle front and the cupcake liners to the front bottom.  I did everything in groups of three, signifying the two evil stepsisters and Cinderella.  I used staples to keep everything together on the headdress.

            This would be a fabulous project for a second grade class because you could first introduce what a fairy tale is, read examples of fairy tales, and then have children create their own unique headdresses in response to their interpretations of a particular fairytale.  This is basically the process we took.  You could even take it a step further for the kids and have them create a headdress and then write their own fairytales based off of what they created.  This would be an excellent arts integration project with English and creative writing.

            The Content Standards that are addressed or related to this project are, for grade two students:

·      Key Ideas and Details #2

·      Craft and Structure #5, #6

·      Integration of Knowledge and Ideas #7, #9 (especially #9)

Week of 2/15 Assignment

Visual Thinking Strategies, in my opinion, seems to be the absolute best way for teachers to facilitate a conversation amongst students about a visual image.  It creates a comfortable and safe atmosphere that allows even the most timid of students to feel confident to voice their opinion about a piece.  This is so important because it removes fear from the classroom, which I believe is a chief preventer of creative thought and learning.  If done well, like in the video we watched, I believe that it can break down any barriers a student may put up toward the arts or school at large. 

It is so vital that students learn how to examine and discuss works of art because, quite simply, art is all around us.  This ability allows one to foster their imaginations, be creative, and experience the world through a more colorful and cultured lens.  And to be able to feel secure enough to talk about these personal findings is the icing on the cake!

I chose Van Gogh’s “Night Café” to use for my VTS discussion.  I talked with my roommate and my neighbor and the conversation was very colorful and much more exciting than I ever anticipated!  Both girls saw the piece as very colorful, lively, and recognized the Van Gogh style surrounding the lights in the café that is famously seen in his “Starry Night”.  I thought this was impressive and showed both their academic and cultural knowledge and awareness.  And what is more is that neither girl was afraid of being wrong when making this connection.  When I asked how they interpreted the piece their individual personalities and backgrounds came out.

When describing the picture, one girl described it has a hip club scene, posh, the bar and pool table suggest that this is a hang out for middle class, yet the people in the back corner are dressed well so maybe it is a more up-scale bar/restaurant.  The other girl felt similarly about all her observations, but noticed that the colors of the painting were primarily red, green, white, and yellow.  She speculated about Van Gogh’s country of origin and was interested if he was from Spain, because red and yellow are the colors of their flag.  I thought this was an excellent observation.  When researching afterwards I found that Van Gogh was actually born in Holland (the flag is red, white, and blue) so that was probably not the inspiration for the colors.  I also found that Van Gogh was chiefly concerned with colors in his paintings, which leads me to believe that the colors must have significance.  Had I not talked with these girls I probably never would have even pondered this idea.  This is just another prime example of how teachers learn just as much from their students as students do from their teachers.  What an incredible and rewarding process for everyone!!

            

Week of 2/8 Assignment

I fully believe that art is all around us, surrounding and enhancing every aspect of our lives.  My elementary school was no exception to this belief.  Every wall in the classrooms was always decorated with colorful posters of positive pictures and encouraging words, construction paper murals, art projects we had completed, and so much more.  The use of color was definitely an outstanding factor in the rooms.  This made the learning environment more exciting, welcoming, non-threatening, and fun, and thus created a higher level of learning and memory for us. 

            At my elementary school we had a specific art teacher, Mrs. Lamour, who I can still remember to this day.  Each grade (kindergarten through eighth) and class visited her once a week for our hour-long art lesson.  Largely because of the high-energy and electric vibe of our teacher and her passion for the subject, I always looked forward to art and seeing what we were creating that day.  My comfort level was never sacrificed because we were commonly told that there are no wrong answers with art.  This was always a source of comfort for me, a self-described artistically challenged individual.  Having a teacher that was so passionate about art made us, the students, want to find that excitement and show it in the form of our unique creations.

            Morgan Appel made a clear case for the undeniable relationship between art and learning.  Mr. Appel began by giving an overview of the brain and how the various parts of the brain function in relation to our humanely actions.  For instance, how the frontal lobe is the most “human” part of the brain, dealing with impulse control, judgment, language, working memory, motor function, sexual behavior, socialization, and spontaneity.  He plainly explained the copious amounts of benefits of integrated the arts into general education.

 Arts integration allows for a safe environment for English learners, provides unique opportunities to move from concrete to application and abstraction, allows for socially constructed learning that can connect to the real world, challenges students of all levels, and provides unique opportunities to involve willing parents in a very positive way.  All of these benefits can be achieved when integrated the arts into a curriculum. 

            The point that I connected most with was Mr. Appel’s discussion that you do not have to be an artist in order to integrate the arts into the curriculum; you just have to have an artistic spirit.  I loved this idea and felt convicted because, I am sorry to admit, my initial reaction to the idea of arts integration was that I could not do it because I am not quote “artistic”.  I now have hope and the encouragement I needed to let my inner-child’s imagination and creativity run wild!  I must take what Mr. Appel explained to heart and remember that I would be doing a child a much greater disservice by cheating him of all artistic exposure because I was embarrassed myself, than putting my own pride on the line and showing children that anyone, even me, can create beautiful art.