Recently my classes we have been watching The Agony and the ecstasy. Three days of watching a movie about Michelangelo can be exhausting, but my students were interested, and after the final day of the movie we had a great discussion about what we learned from the movie and the Michelangelo unit as a whole. I was surprised about how detailed the responses were and how insightful, but I guess I had learned not to underestimate my students.
The other day in my first hour class, while I was up teaching, a student was continuously making farting noises with his hand and arm pit. Quite a distraction. I asked him to stop, trying not to laugh at the distraught look he gave me. I went on teaching and a few seconds later heard it again. This time I told him that this is a no flatulence classroom. Completely flatulent free. Huh? When I told him the meaning of the word, the entire class laughed and now the one student thinks that I am about the greatest art teacher alive!
At least, that is what I am assuming sinse I didn't see most of it in the hot box this afternoon. Keep your fingers crossed. I think a saucer of ours may have been broken, though I could not find a name on it. If I remember it correctly, it was the same mauvey color, and I doubt that the new guys are even throwing yet.
I am doubling up the blogging and journaling about teaching experiences in efforts to kill two birds with one stone...except that I don't really like to kill things...
This is just a short note on how I continue to surprise myself. Going into teaching, I had always thought that I could never have enough in me to truely love every student. I continue to surprise myself and find myself loving the ones whom I never thought I could love, not becasue they were unlovable, but because I was not good enough of a person. I didn't think I had it in me. There is a boy in one of my classes who is slow, and to my recent discovery, is deaf in one ear and partially deaf in the other. (I am told that he may have surgury in the future). It broke my heart when I found out, but I find myslef loving him more every day, and as I see him getting made fun of, I wish I could take him home with me. I've told Bill about his boy, and other students, and how I feel for them. He smiled and said he had always known we may "bring home" a few special ones.
As do all teachers, I am trying to get into the habit of journaling my teaching experiences as a means of reflection. I suppose sometimes it may be a zen like experience you so often hear about, but mostly if you are reading my "About Teaching..." blogs they are going to be about how my teaching is going, good and bad, and how I am growing and the efforts I am making to become a better teacher.
So it would only be appropriate that my first "About Teaching..." blog would be about reflection itself. What am I doing that would suggest that I am reflecting on every teaching opportunity and what plans I have to effect change within my teaching.
My first thought is that teaching middle school is reflective in itself. After eight periods of teaching the same thing (ok, its only four of Art I), by the time the last period comes around, I have the lesson down so well, and have made appropriate changes as each problem arises, that on a good day I can breeze through a "perfect" lesson. I am constantly asking my mentoring teaching how I am doing, what her expectations of me are, and how I might improve. I do my best to tune into student feedback. While working one day I read them a story about Van Gogh's life, and got such a positive response that I came the next day prepared to read the story of Georgia O'Keefe's life. However, I learned very quickly that leaving a pile of various colored paper on the table and expecting the paper to get passed without fighting for specific colors was impossible. Needless to say, several pieces of paper got torn, and the following hour I handed out the colored paper individually. On a positive note, "What I learned..." statements always remind me that I am getting through to my students, even if it is the very smallest piece of knowledge.
Mostly, what I find is crucial to reflection is the willingness to always ask for help, regardless of what you are doing. You must always be proactive in changing the course if something is not working out, and always tune into student feedback. They will always be honest.
In class today we were all Cezannes as we drew still lifes of skulls, antlers, drapery and ghords. I had the class use charcoal and white chalk on midtone paper, which was a whole new idea to them, meaning that they produced a whole new kind of art they weren't used to. And with that they were all very very messy by the end of the hour. I encouraged them to draw with expression, to draw how they wanted, and some of them made some amazing drawings of fine renderings, and other lively abstractions. It was a good experience for all of us. As I take over the rest of the lesson unit from here, I have been learning a lot about teaching. It is great watching how the students respond to the various assignments, (especially the inclusion of art history), and to me, and always a challenge to motivate the one student who just doesn't care about either.
Today I taught the kiddos a little bit about art history. We discussed how you can take an ordinary idea and change into something that is innovative completely unlike anything else created. We compared and contrasted the "classic" still lifes versus some of the more modern artists who painted strictly what saw, such as Van Gogh and his sunflowers. (If you ever look closely at his work you will notice that he included dead and wilting flowers in his still lifes, not just the pristine and fresh ones). So, we looked at Van Gogh, Cezanne, Andy Warhol, and Georgia O'Keefe. It was a lot of fun, and if I am allowed to admit it, it was a successful lesson. This week we will continue looking at those same artists and make some drawings that are similar.
This weekend was our last with Mike and Cassie. I am sad they are leaving, but I won't say much more because I have been known to get a little emotional at times.
I am embarrassed that it has taken me so long to update my blog…and although I will not explain here, I’ll have you know that I do have good reasoning…if only I could remember it.
RA training is finally over. Some days I felt as though the ending would never come. It was really, really hard coming back for a fourth year because in trainging they still treat me as though I am brand new and have no experience. Sometimes I still feel like that. Freshman and returning students have all checked in by now, and the class of 2008 is really going to be something else, but who knows what kind of surprises the year has in store for us.
Teaching is coming along. I walk down the halls and when I am not being nearly trampled by the students they are yelling out, “Hello, Miss Goodsell!” which makes me feel special. This next week I dive into some real hard core teaching, and in Art I, (which is four classes throughout the day), I take over the rest of the unit.
I changed my thesis as well. I am going to study the importance of art history in the process of art making, and this is another reason why teaching is becoming so excited. I get to use some of the strategies of teaching art history that I have been studying and thinking up some of my own. My final goal is to figure out a way to teach art history in a hands-on way. I hope this will get students excited about art history, since I believe it is so critical to art making. I’ll post more on that later.
