Bringing in a Visiting Artist

Last week, I was able to bring in a visiting artist, also a friend of mine, who does abstract painting and also graphic character design, and some video game design. He shared his portfolio with the AP Studio students, discussing his process and the importance of continuing to create art no matter what. He shared how he was able to network with other artists via blog forums online that could be helpful to the students. Networking and networking early on is important!

Here is the thank you card that the AP students signed for him!

Visual Journals

Here are some past weeks of visual journals I have finally gotten around to scanning in.

My Finished Batik

I finally had the opportunity to finish my own batik design. Here are the results!

After I created my design, I transferred it to brown craft paper.

Then I waxed out my design on the craft paper, dyed it, ironed out the wax, and this is the final product!

This is my piece in front of the lights.

Messy, but I love it! They are stylized ribcages so the splattering of red gives it a gorey, bloody feel.

Parent/Teacher Conferences

Yesterday was my first experience with parents in the school setting. I was able to join my CT for the conference blocks that went from 2-5pm and 6-8pm. All the teachers were set up in the cafeteria or community room where parents were able to sit and chat with their children's teachers.

The conferences were steady and started off on a good note. It was nice to see the parents that care and support the program. They tell us how much their children love art and our classes. However, a few parents in, we had a conference that just escalated in a horrible direction. This parent was accusing my CT and myself of not teaching their son and expecting him to have natural talent in order to pass the class. She was putting words in my CT's mouth and twisting everything that we tried to explain to her about our expectations, objectives, the classroom routines, etc. What it came down to was that her son did not turn in a journal assignment which resulted in a zero in the grade book bring his grade from a B to a C+. She kept going on about how ridiculous the arts are and how she wouldn't care if they got cut. She said she wasn't going to let ART lower her son's GPA and therefore lose his scholarship to the school. My teacher stuck to her guns and told her that we would look into the grade, but if he did not turn it in, it was going to stay a zero because that is her policy. This did not make this parent happy and she demanded a meeting with administration.

I believe that my teacher handled it well. She apologized for any misunderstandings about what the class is about, etc. even though the parent chose not to listen. It frustrated me immensely, but I did not interject much because I did not want to upset her more. But, it was truly an experience worth being a part of. My CT told me that in her 6 years, that was the worst conference she has ever had. She immediately gave a heads up to the vice principal and principal and they fully supported my CT and how she handled it.

The rest of the evening was nothing but supportive parents and positive experiences. It was a pleasure meeting the parents that attended and hearing about how much they love art class and art club. Hearing how positive of an experience the students are having is wonderful and we know that we are doing it right.

Taking Over Even More Classes

This week I officially took over 4 out of the 5 classes I'll be responsible for before the conclusion of my 9 weeks at the high school. The classes I have are two sections of Art Fundamentals, Ceramics, and Photo. I imagined it would be much more stressful, but since I know the students well, it was a fairly easy transition for myself and the students.

My biggest transition was taking over both Art Fundamentals classes because they are the largest classes and also the classes that require the most guidance. I introduced watercolor to their classes and they were very responsive. Most were very enthralled with my demonstration and very eager to get started. I still have some chatty students that do not pay complete attention during my demos that I need to address when I first notice it. I find myself ignoring them, especially if I notice the rest of the class is ignoring them as well. I'm working on my waiting time for them to give me their complete attention, but feel the need to keep going and not waste any time. I have also noticed that the more used to me they get, the more they are beginning to push the envelope. But I noticed that I am putting a stop to the behavior sooner than later by calling them out on it and holding them accountable for their actions. When I put rules in place, the students are beginning to police each other more and classroom management becomes much easier and orderly.

Photo is also a bit difficult because I think the students know that I am not 100% confident in f-stop times and time intervals for prints. I take to heart "If you don't have it, fake it" in regards to having confidence about things and that is exactly what I've been trying to do in this class. The practice is definitely helping me, and I feel I have a handle on how to run a basic photography class.

Ceramics took off with their clay portraits project that I introduced on Monday. Many were excited to get started, but many were also leery about getting their self portrait to look like themselves. I just told them to try their best and many are jumping right in.

With all the new lessons being presented this week, I took the opportunity to have the journal quote for the week be "It is better to plunge into the unknown than to try to make sure of everything" by Gerald Lescanbeault. I found the quote online and felt it was perfect to have the students reflect on that, knowing that they are starting new things and that it's okay to take risks and try even if they're unsure. I feel it's something everyone can live by. Overall, it was a great week and I only have 3 weeks left! Next week, I will be attending a WAEA board meeting as well as the WAEA conference. It should be a fun filled weekend!

Video Inspiration

Art Fundamentals Colored Pencil Animals

This week, the Art Fundamentals finished up their first project with me. Here are some of the results.

Bullying

The week was crazy with homecoming spirit days and celebrations. When it seems everyone is having a good time and is in good spirits, something happens that brings to your attention a big issue.

Friday afternoon, after Field Day where the students partake in fun and games, the powder puff game, and a pep assembly, a student came to the art room looking ready to burst into tears. She had forgotten her artwork before she left school and had to turn back to get it so she could work on it over the weekend. This seemed to be the breaking point of her day. When my CT asked what was wrong, the student burst into tears explaining why she has hated this high school since freshman year and that the past four years she's just been dealing with the torture on a day to day basis, hating having to wake up and do it again each day. Other students verbally harass her and pick on her for no reason. They blame her for the loss of sports games and pick on her for what she wears. This girl is by no means "unpopular", either. She is on sports teams and is very involved with the school. My entire time at this high school for my student teaching, I never pinned her as hating every minute of school. She is hardworking and mature in every situation. She puts on a front that everything is okay. Me and my CT knew something was up when she seemed to get more and more flustered in her days and stressed out. We ended up talking with this student for 2 hours. She needed to get out her feelings and emotions. She said no one else in the school knew and whenever she tried to tell the guidance counselor things that go on, her comments gets looked over.

I felt for this girl. I knew that this happens in every high school on a daily basis. She isn't the only victim and unfortunately many never come forward to tell anyone about their issues. We expressed how glad we were that this girl was coming forward. My CT told the student about the anti-bullying program she is trying to kickstart and that this event makes her want to push to head it even more. Students are not being held accountable for their actions, even when it is in front of teachers and faculty. This student's biggest complaint was that there were teachers present that day to see another girl harass her by yelling at her and saying that SHE lost the powder puff game for the Seniors in front of the team and in front of the stands. Not one teacher took the other girl aside to reprimand her for her rude behavior. There definitely needs to be more done in the schools and students and teachers need to be held accountable for what is going on. To teachers, it may seem like a small argument that students can solve on their own, but it may be a bigger problem that eats away at the victim until it becomes too big for the student to carry anymore.

Eco Batik

This week, the Fibers class had the opportunity to visit Eco Batik for a workshop on how to batik. We were able to see the owner, Jennifer's, shop and studio for her batik and illustration work. The girls had 2 hours to talk with Jennifer about their design and begin waxing it out. A couple students even had time to begin the dying process. The students gained a better understanding of batik and felt confident in bringing their designs back to the classroom to finish the waxing and dying process.

My First Bisque Firing: SUCCESS!

This is what the kiln looked like after I loaded it up with their coil pieces...

And this is after the firing was complete!