Jess - Media Arts

I loved your filmed picture book, Merian! 

It was especially lovely to hear the children reading it; it gave the film character.

I used PowerPoint to make an animation of hearts growing bigger with a heartbeat track that steadily gets faster. 

I enjoyed making it, but it was very time consuming. It required a lot of fiddling around with tools. The experience definitely highlights the importance of providing children with opportunities to build skills in media arts and become adept at using computer tools for aesthetic purposes. This is especially true as Australian children are exposed to increasingly digitise, multimodal and mediated experiences (Dezuanni & Raphael, 2012, p. 145), and may want to produce their own media arts for enjoyment, communication or professionally, thus enabling them express themselves and their creativity (Australian Curriculum and Assessment Authority, 2014).

Jess. 

Jess - Dance

Hi Merian,

Like you, incorporating dance in teaching is a challenge for me. I have never been educated in dance and am not too confident in my own technical dance abilities!

However, after watching Fiona’s (Reilly, 2012) dance videos, I see how simple it can be to deliver a dance lesson that encourages children to learn about their bodies and dance movement that encourages multimodal feeling, thinking and aesthetic understanding (Deans, Meiners, & Young, 2012, p. 129).

I also realised that I already do much of this kind of dance teaching in my preschool! I frequently encourage the children to portray different living things in dance (using a wide range of music).

After watching the videos, I tried to include a greater awareness of the element of dance: using the body (Running, twisting, pointy, curved etc.); space (levels, directions, pathways and size); time; force; and relationships (Deans, Meiners, & Young, 2012, p. 137).

As result, the lesson was much more dynamic and interesting. There was also much more information available to assist with assessment of the children.

Through the videos and observations of my students, I have found that dance provides opportunities for children to express themselves creatively and in ways that are not available to them otherwise.

In primary school, I would incorporate dance in the classroom in much the same way as I do now. I would set aside time specifically for music/dance/drama and design lessons to link with the content currently being explored in other subjects to provide relevance and help them to develop, express and communicate (Cone & Cone, 2005, p. 5) the ideas in these subjects.

Jess.

Media Arts - getting lost in technology.....

Teaching media arts in the classroom is vital because it recognises the role that the many forms of media have on influencing students' understanding of the world and their personal view of reality (Russell-Bowie, 2006) The key areas to consider in teaching media arts are developing students’ critical appreciation of media, and building the skills to engage in the various forms of media to express their own ideas.

For me, the best way to engage with new forms of media is through hands-on experience. In describing media arts as part of education, the Tasmanian Curriculum (n.d.) states that "practical work enables students to develop production and technical skills, enhance their understanding of how media products produce meaning and illustrate ideas". With this in mind, I tackled the task set in week 6.

"Each Peach Pear Plum" Video - filmed picture book 

It took me about four hours to produce this video. The technology I used was pretty simple. I recorded the girls using my iPhone, took photos of each page and downloaded the audio and pictures onto my laptop. I put them all together using Movie Maker.Whilst I enjoyed the process, it made me realise that teaching Media Arts requires careful planning and an understanding of the technology to be used. 

My musical story plus a happy clappy cup ostinato.....

Our experiences of music as children have a marked influence on our attitudes to music as adults (Jeanneret and Swainston, 2012). For me, music was always a part of family life. Dad was into Paul Robeson, Mum loved the Beatles and my brothers listened to Deep Purple, Pink Floyd and Frank Zappa. Music at school was peripheral to other academic subjects, but I learned the recorder at primary school and started guitar lessons when I was 12. I continued to play the guitar through my secondary years and university for my own and others' entertainment. Inevitably when you pulled out a guitar,  someone wanted to have a go, asked you to play something or wanted to sing along. 

As a teacher, I will incorporate music into the classroom so that it becomes a regular part of our day. My previous experience of playing for and with others may help me to overcome my self-consciousness. Luckily, as Jeanneret & Swainston (2012) suggested, a teacher’s willingness to incorporate music into the classroom is more important than their musical talent!  Dinham (2014) highlighted that teachers who did not integrate music into the classroom denied students the benefits of music making such as “increased language skills, maths ability, improved school grades and social behaviour” (p.265).

My challenge will be to ensure that music activities incorporate group focussed activities, aesthetic understanding and the joy of creating music (Jeanneret & Swainston, 2012).

Here is an example of some joyful ostinato music making by my daughter and her friend.

Reflections on dance

Source: http://scotlandpubliclibrary.org/

I consider dance as the most challenging art form to integrate into the primary classroom because I have had no dance training and it was not included in our school curriculum. However, Fiona’s (Reilly, 2012) dance videos were really useful for ideas about getting children to appreciate, create and perform dance (Deans, Meiners & Young, 2012). The children in the clips seemed to love her activities, using their bodies, quite naturally, as “an instrument of expression” (Deans, Meiners and Young, 2012). They seem to be conveying their deep intrinsic sense that “life is inextricably linked to movement” (Wright, 2009). Fiona asked about the unique contributions that dance provides to childhood development. This is in part, answered by ACARA (2013) stating that “Dance enables students to develop a movement vocabulary with which to explore imaginative ways to move both individually and collaboratively”.

Music plays an important role in dance pedagogy, providing the rhythm, sound and energy to encourage dance. This role of music in dance is illustrated when a popular song is played at a party or dance, and the listening crowd is drawn to the dance floor to move to the beat. I like the idea of drawing after dance to encourage creative responses (Wright, 2009) to the physical experience of moving or observing dance.  

One of the things I find really appealing about the Steiner system of education is that “the arts are fully integrated and part of the methodology of all learning areas”  (Primary School Curriculum Position Paper, 2011). The challenge in the classroom is to identify or create available moments to engage students with their bodies. This could include warm up activities to start the day and mindful walking activities between lessons to encourage students to “become aware of how their bodies move in different situations, and also of how their bodies can convey their feelings” (Hanh, 2011, p. 97).

Here is an amazing interpretation of a swan that illustrates how stories are embodied through dance.

Opportunities for learning in and through the visual arts

Hello Jess

I loved your chair project and how the students were able to create a physical form for their dreams and aspirations, whilst developing mental, spiritual and physical skills as described by Pestalozzi (Nair, n.d.) in his pedagogical theories linking head, heart and hands. And that great sense of being part of a larger collaborative project and the pride to see their final products included in a festival!

I have reflected on your query about how to integrate visual arts activities within other subject areas. Integration of the arts is a key consideration in a generalist primary classroom where time constraints may limit opportunities for purely art-focussed activities. Brown, MacIntyre and Watkins (2013) outlined nine key principles for effective inclusion of visual arts in education (see Resources: Visual Arts Key Principles). These principles highlighted the need to link visual arts experiences to other learning areas whilst developing students’ arts specific language, knowledge and skills.

I believe that students should be given opportunities to express themselves utilising the multiple intelligences described by Gardner (as cited in Wright, 2003). With this in mind, I have discovered some great web-based resources that support effective teaching of the arts within other learning areas (see Resources: Visual Arts Integration)

Jess - Learning in and through the visual arts

Hi Merian,

I Love your pun fish! I did this activity years ago for a graphics design course and I remember drawing a frogmouth owl with a frog’s tongue lashing out to catch a fly! Did you find that doing the activity made you more comfortable exploring the visual arts?

Speck’s observation that the primary school art curriculum is perceived as being non-essential (Speck, 1999, p. 71) brings to mind my primary school days. I think that from what I have observed during my professional experiences, the observation is less true today. I think that art could be better integrated into other subject areas however.

The power of drama has been observed by Bird et al. (2012), who state that it allows young people to imagine and engage with human experiences (p. 70) and that it involves creative problem solving and critical enquiry (p. 69). There is also an important place for the visual arts in the curriculum as contemporary culture is becoming ever more dependent on visual means of communication (Brown, MacIntyre & Watkins, 2012, p.113). The visual arts also allow children to explore, observe, question and record in order to make sense of the world around them (Brown, MacIntyre & Watkins, 2012, p.113).

A recent project I led at my preschool was the creation of a community chair to be displayed in a local arts festival. The theme was ‘points of reflection’. Through the process of creating our chair, we were able to explore many of the children’s ideas, hopes and feelings. The chair also brought together many of the other interests we were exploring at the time and we were able to really integrate a whole lot of subject content. We were learning about living and non-living things, growth, colours, measurement and being a part of a community.

As I guided the children through the process, I learnt much about the children’s interests and abilities as they expressed themselves through drawings and paintings; and discussed colours and what different colours make us feel. The project encouraged collaboration, which promoted development of social skills; and self-reflection, which helped the children to reflect on their learning and what they want to learn.

Here are some pictures of the first stage of putting down ideas and some chairs from the festival.

I think that this was a successful art project that realised the potential of visual arts in education as it adhered to many of the key principles outlined by Brown, MacIntyre & Watkins (2013, p. 113).

Have you seen examples of visual arts experiences being linked to other learning areas, Merian? Or used visual arts experiences in your teaching in accordance with the key principles put forward by Brown, MacIntyre & Watkins (2013, p. 113)?

Jess

Jess- Music and Fox Workshop

Hi Merian!

I agree with your comment about the usefulness of drama as a medium to engage children in the big issues. I also think that it is useful to provoke exploration of personal issues and identity (Bird, Donelan, Freebody, O’Toole,  & Sinclair, 2012, p. 65).

I love watching the children at my preschool explore social behaviours through their dramatic play. I’m always amazed at how they develop their unique personalities as they experiment and observe how others respond to their behaviours!

I were conducting a workshop about Fox or another story with primary age students, I think that I would definitely include less parts in the lesson. I think how much is included in the lesson depends on the year level of the students. In my experiences with children up to grade 3, I’ve discovered that they need a lot of time to get things done and to transition between activities.

I like the role-play strategy used in the Fox workshop, and would use this as I think it would help the children identify with the characters and explore the themes (in the case of Fox, abandonment, loneliness, friendship etc.). This would also enable them to explore the social and emotional consequences of different actions, thus encouraging their intellectual and social development (Bird et al., 2012, p. 66) without having to face the consequences of those actions (Toye & Prendiville, 2000, p. 11).

Music (Week 3)

I enjoyed Campbell’s (2005) article about ‘deep listening’. In the article, Campbell (2005) makes the observation that children are living in ‘surround-sound’ environments often educators are required to bring children’s listening attention to music and encourage a fuller involvement with it (p. 30).

Inspired by the ideas from Campbell’s (2005) article, I encouraged my preschool students to listen to various forms of music and discuss what they thought they could hear and how it made them feel. Later we made a soundscape of a land filled with dinosaurs (a huge current interest of the boys), which was filled with the roars, stomping and swishing necks and tails. After experimenting with the sounds made by their own bodies, I provided percussion instruments and asked the children to think about representing animal sounds using the different instruments. As they became comfortable with their sound, and with my encouragement, a rhythm emerged. I recorded the soundscape so they could listen at other times during the week. The children enjoyed the experience so much; they conducted their own soundscapes during free-play times.

Additionally, the experience has given me confidence to explore the use of music further in learning contexts.

Thanks for sharing your Lorax experience, Merian!

Jess.

P.s - See Jess Arts Experiences for my personal music exploration.

Visual Arts : Funny fish reflections

A funny thing happened when I was creating my visual fish pun (the flagfish). I realised how frustrating it is to be doing this unit online and not getting the hands on experience of learning new arts skills that I would love to use in the classroom. Whilst I have been involved in loads of arts and crafts weekend workshop and activities with my daughter and her friends, it would have been lovely to have been engaged in all sorts of new arts experiences through this unit. 

Whilst the descriptions, videos and readings are very useful and appreciated, the Arts is one area of the curriculum that I believe would benefit from some hands-on learning, highlighting one limitation of on-line courses for teachers.

Speck (1999) highlighted that the key areas of arts learning included material usage, inventive and design skills. It is in these areas that I would like to develop my skills and confidence for teaching applications. Perhaps there are some great professional development workshops available for primary teachers that may support this learning? (see Resources: PD Opportunities in the Arts)

Drama - the backyard Lorax experience

Week two readings, videos and activities inspired me to try out some aspects of drama. When my daughter's friend came to play, I thought of a game for them incorporating role play.

I knew they had been doing activities focussed on "The Lorax" for tree week. I leant up against a big tree in the backyard and asked them to take the role of either the Once-ler or the Lorax and try to convince each other of the merits of cutting me down or letting me keep growing.

We played around with this for about ten to fifteen minutes, swapping characters.  

I was amazed at their instant engagement in the activity and how animated and expressive they were in their conversations. They came up with great arguments and really stepped into their roles with voice and body actions and got to act out roles and behaviours without facing the consequences (Bird et al., 2012). Role drama was described in Innes et al. (2001) as one strategy for students to explore life like situations by taking on the role of a fictional character engaging the students “cognitively and affectively” (p. 5). It was an uplifting and confidence building experience, making me realise that simple drama activities are great for encouraging understanding of concepts and self-expression through spoken words and actions. 

The Teaspoon of Light videos provided a great example of how drama can be used to engage children with big issues and how stories can be used to make sense of changes to their life. I really liked Peter O’Connor’s advice in the video that when using drama in the classroom it is important to “keep your eye on the arrow and not the target”. One of the big challenges for me in using drama in the classroom will be to remain flexible enough to go with the flow, and not to have fixed expectations of how the exercise might look or where it will end up. 

How can you imagine that you might use drama in the classroom Jess?

Jess - School Portrait

When I was in primary school, we had art class and music class separately to other subjects and very rarely were we invited to incorporate art or music into other subject areas (particularly maths and science). There was little room for real creativity in other subjects, as the emphasis was always on following the correct procedure.

I feel that when I was at school in South Africa the purpose of education was based on vocational ideals, seen as means of acquiring qualifications for a job (Marples, 2010, p. 38) and focused on academic subjects that were needed for entry into university. I also think that young people are aware of this, as there is no safety net for people who don’t get a job.

I feel that a curriculum in which education is for wellbeing would include a greater emphasis on the arts and creativity because it would allow people to express their individuality and education for wellbeing documentation stresses the importance of personal autonomy and being a caring citizen, and that these traits are desirable and necessary for person to thrive in society (Marples, 2010, p.44).

Reply to Merian: Challenges in Art and Teachers as Artists

Hello Merian!

I think your question about balance in art is a good one.

I think there is a challenge in balancing correctness with creativity and that the challenge is largely externally imposed. There is also that inner drive where you always want to learn and do a better painting each time.

I think that when children are in preschool or day care, they are encouraged to explore freely in all the arts. There are no expectations on young children to be able to draw ‘well’ or dance a certain way etc.  Parents, teachers, other children are genuinely pleased with whatever the child creates because they can see how pleased the child is with their own work and the process of creating. However, as the child gets older, parents, teachers, peers start having higher expectations which the child also has a greater awareness of and I think they start to feel the challenge of balancing ‘doing things the right way’ and ‘doing things the way that feels right’.

My personal feeling is that when it comes to creativity, people should do what feels right because there will be more emotional value in what they then create.

Powell’s ideas (1997) likewise appealed to me.  I think the article makes a very strong argument for the idea that all teachers should tap into their own creative resources. I especially liked that ‘teachers are people too’ was pointed out. Since teachers are people, they have their own individual quirks that influence the way they teach their relationships with their students. I think that without this variability, school would be very boring.

I think that my confidence in my ability to paint and play piano doesn’t really translate to the primary classroom yet. I’m hoping that as I become more confident in my teaching style, I will be able express my own personality a bit more.

And you, Merian? I read your Haiku lesson plans. They are great! I really like the idea of looking around the school for word inspiration… Did you feel that you were able to express your inner creativity adequately through that lesson sequence? The children’s creations were lovely and definitely showed individuality.

Jess.