"Developing Critera Rubrics in the Art Classroom"

I often hear art teachers say, you will be graded on how much effort you put into something. What exactly does that mean? How do you know how much effort a student puts into a piece of art work?

I found this article by Sandra McCollister to be extremely informative for teachers. Rubrics are seen as a guide or a scoring device for many classrooms. It is a set of criteria which is linked to the learning objectives in order to assess a student's performance. Rubrics inform students about the expectations that are to be met. It is a way for students to improve their learning and for teachers to improve their teaching.

The part of the article that stood out the most to me, was the importance of putting student's input into the rubric. After a lesson introduction, simply ask "What qualities and characteristics should be present in the finished work? or "What qualities would the work have if it were the best work you have ever done?" (McCollister 3). Teachers can brainstorm ideas with the students using visuals. Teachers can show previous student's work, drawings, or teacher prepared examples in order to give students a better idea of what is to be expected.

The article titled "Words and Phrases for Rubric Design" is very helpful in designing a rubric. It is necessary to distinguish the different between a weaker performance level and a stronger performance level through the use of phrases.

The nutritional label rubric was a very clever way to create a rubric for a class. This is proof that there are so many different ways to write a rubric for your students. I like how the rubric is in the form of a nutrition label. Students are more familiar with this rubric and will be more engaged with it.

"It Was Always the Pictures..."

If there have been many studies done about the importance of incorporating visuals into teachers curriculum, why aren't more visuals used in lectures? even college?

I found this article to be extremely intriguing.  Author, Paula Kluth has opened my eyes to more effective strategies to use in order to meet the needs of a wider range of learners.  It is important to expand the strategies used in the classroom so that every student has the opportunity to succeed.  She talked about how many learners with disabilities learn best when they have an image of what they are learning.  By looking at pictures, the learner is able to think of more ideas in their heard.  Also, the pictures help the learner understand the content. 

There are many different visuals that I could use in my classroom.  These include handouts, movies, illustrated books, powerpoint presentations, charts and more.  Each of these methods can be used for any content whether its science or math.  I agree with Kluth that the best way to understand and remember content is when the students can see it visually.  It is important for teachers to know that all of these strategies talked about in the article enhance the learning of all students in the classroom, not just those with identified needs.  

I really enjoyed reading this article because I felt that I could connect to the visual learners in many ways.  Throughout my education experience, I have always learned best visually.  I always needed to see something on paper.  Pictures, charts, and presentations were extremely helpful. I struggle during lectures because I have a hard time seeing what content is important.  I believe that it is necessary to incorporate visuals into your lessons.  All students deserve the opportunity to succeed in their education.  In order to do this, we must set up students for success.   

Romare Bearden-Let's Walk the Block

Has Romare Bearden made any other significant paintings? Where is his artwork found?

I found the Romare Bearden website to be extremely eye opening.  I enjoyed reading about the meaning behind his artwork.  His art work called, "The Block" tells a story about where he comes from.  His work taught me that every piece of art work you do has a story that goes along with it.  I find it a lot more passionate to create art when you have something to talk about.  

His art work combined part drawing and part collage.  It is made of different types of fabric, colored paper, newspapers, and magazines.  I believe that creating a piece of artwork with different types of material makes the piece a lot more interesting.  It also grabs the audiences attention and makes them question the piece of art.  I also liked how Romare Bearden exaggerated some of the details such as the children's faces in many of the windows.  Even though no two buildings are a like, the piece of artwork still flows.  I also liked how Bearden added pictures from newspapers and magazines.  He added more reality to the piece.  

This is a great piece of artwork to use in a classroom.  You can ask the students what shapes they see in the picture.  You can also have the students make their own pictures by using different shapes, newspapers, magazines, drawings, and fabrics.  This would be a great field trip for the students.  You could take them to where Bearden's art work is located.  

Graphic Novels in the Classroom

Are there particular subjects that are better for using graphic novels?

I found this article to be extremely eye opening.  At first I was not sure what exactly graphic novels were.  I learned that graphic novels are pieces of work in which the story is conveyed through the use of comics.  Growing up, I never read comic books.  I had a hard time understanding the meaning behind them.  Gene Yang talks about the pros to graphic novels in the classroom.  She spoke about how graphic novels are visuals.  They are great for students who are visual learners and need to look at something in order to understand it.  They have also found great success with ELL students.  Graphic novels offer a new approach to learning.  

I thought it was very interesting when she said, "Graphic novels have a visual permanence to them.  Time progresses only as quickly as your eyes move across the page."  You are able to take your time when reading graphic novels and really analyze each particular comic.  They also keep students attention.  

I didn't realize until the end that what I was reading was actually a graphic novel! I really enjoyed reading it and seeing what was going to happen next.  I believe that these are a great way to teach a new topic in a classroom.  It keeps students intrigued and excited about the new topic.  It lets students see a whole different side to a topic.  I think that I will use graphic novels in my own classroom one day.  They are a great way to introduce a new topic.    

"Rube Goldberg- Inspired Drawings of How Art is Made"

What other questions could an art teacher ask their students to illustrate?           

      I found this approach to art as described in the article, to be extremely eye-opening and unique. Many students walk into art class feeling discouraged, unenthusiastic, and uninterested. They often say the three words, "I can't draw." Author Thomas A. Oakley expresses the idea that people are not born with the knowledge on how to draw. It is a learned behavior, just like any other skill. Drawing is something that one must work at in order to improve. Many people believe that they can't draw so they automatically give up.  

              Thomas Oakley gave his students an assignment that I thought was very unique.  He took a whole new different approach to how students think of art. The students all had to illustrate the process of how art is created. I believe that this was a very good idea, because it shows that every person interprets art in a different way. The results showed the diversity of how the students think of art. This is not only a good assignment for students who are discouraged when it comes to art, but for students who enjoy art. It is a way for students to think, look, and learn about art in a different way. It is also interesting for students to learn what their peers think about it.    

Art and Self-Expression for Children with Special Needs

How do we, as future teachers, help students who lack the motivation with art become more involved with art?

"Art lifts us up when life is difficult, and helps us appreciate everything good and beautiful in the world when we have forgotten to look for a while" (Wilson 2).  After reading Wilson's article, thoughts of inspiration, hope, and faith came to mind.  Art is a way of self-expressing oneself in a different form. Art is a way if involving everyone in the classroom, whether you have a disability or not. Many students have a hard time understanding their peers disabilities simply because they have never been told what kind of disability they have or have never gotten the chance to talk to their peers with disabilities.  Art is a way of students interacting with one another and learning about each others differences and similarities.  It is a way for students to use their imagination, creativity, and originality in their work.  Students are building a sense of community in the classroom.  

This article has taught me to see art as a "personal experience" for each child.  It is important for the teacher not to rush and critique the students since art is a form of expression.  Also, the teacher should make sure that the students have enough space when working on their art.  In order for students to self express themselves through art, they must feel secure and comfortable in the environment that they are in.   

 

 

"The Sweet Role of Art in Literacy"

Should the strategy of promoting art into the writing process only be taught in elementary school or in middle school and high school as well?

I believe that the author, Amy Shultz, does an excellent job in emphasizing the important role art plays in the writing process.  Many children have trouble expressing themselves through words.  They may often struggle with writing down the sequences of a story.  Art is a form of expression.  Many children learn better visually.  They often process information through images rather than words.  It is important that teachers allow students to not only express their ideas through writing, but also incorporate art into this process.  Drawing allows students to recognize their ideas.  I agree with Shultz that art is a writing and learning tool that all teachers should stress.  

This article opened my eyes to a whole new way of looking at art.  I never thought that art could be used as a writing tool for children.  It is a way to show children that there are many different ways of telling a story and expressing oneself.  If a child is struggling with writing, drawing pictures gives them another way to express themselves.  It is important to give students options and let them know that there is more than one way of writing.  I know that I will definitely use this tool in the future when children are going through the writing process.   

 

Autism

After reading both articles, feelings of curiosity, confusion, and wonder went through my mind.  Is the information that the writers are writing about true?  Is this their opinion or do they have scientific research to back it up?  I felt like the writers did not give enough information about their view on how people with autism think.  Autism Spectrum Disorder has a "widespread of abnormalities of social interactions and communication."  Temple Grandin talks about the three different types of specialized thinking.  He believes that people who are both on and off the spectrum are either visual thinkers, music and math thinkers, or verbal logic thinkers.

I don't necessary agree with all of Grandin's findings.  In the past, I have worked one on one with Billy, a  nineteen-year old boy who has Asperger's.  He not only thought in pictures, but I would say he was a music and math thinker.  He often made relationships between numbers.  He was able to teach himself how to play the piano.  

Billy is a visual thinker as well as a music and math thinker.  I do not think that each person only thinks in one way.  Although this may be true for some but for others it may not be.  

   

  

THE ROLE ART HAS PLAYED IN MY LIFE

        I can honestly say that art has not always had a positive influence on my life.  I remember like it was yesterday.  I was in third grade when I learned about "The Art Enrichment Club."  To me, this club was for the above and beyond art students, the students who excelled in art.  All I wanted to do was be in this club.  Only twenty-five students were picked to be in this club and unfortunately, I was not one of them.  I remember feeling thoughts of anger, disappointment, and jealousy.  I was jealous of my best friends Michelle and Jillian.  They were "chosen" to be in this club.  As a third grader, I interpreted this club as the kids who were the best.  The kids who were better than all the rest.  That moment has definitely had an impact on my art career.  

        When entering Middle School, I was very nervous for the first day of classes.  In my eyes, I did not see myself as a very good drawer, so that meant to me that I was not good at art.  Little did I know that art is much more than drawing.  In this art class I got to paint, build objects out of paper mache, make collages, and a lot of other fun tasks that did not have to do with drawing.  This class helped me see that there are so many different aspects of art.  

        When I got to High School, art became a lot more competitive than it was in Middle School.  Their were many different kinds of art classes such as drawing, painting, photography, etc.  I never took an art class in High School simply because I was more interested in other things such as, violin, singing, dance, and clubs.  Now that I think about it, who says that art isn't playing the violin, singing a beautiful song, or dancing how you feel?  Art comes in many different forms.  Every person has some form of art inside of them.