"Chinese" Calligraphy

Sorry for the previous post being so long...
I forgot to mention. We experimented with chinese brush painting and making our own name seals in "chinese" using dull pencils and small styrofoam squares. It was pretty fun. Here's what mine looked like. :)

Some of my leaf strokes didn't turn out like I had hoped. But I like it just the same.
Even my grasshopper. Can you find him?
With the use of line and value, I was able to portray a peaceful chinese art painting of bamboo. I wanted to express simplicity and aesthetic appeal with my format and content.

Do you see my name? I think one of the S's is backwards, but that's okay. It was kind of a challenge creating a name square with 7 letters, but I managed.

The assignment as a whole was not only fun but also not as time consuming as some of the other ones that we've done. Which is always a plus.

Assessment

This week we learned about assessment and evaluation. After talking to Maele about my painting history/experience, a few points about assessment came up that I'm going to add to this week's reflection. So hold onto your seats, I'm hoping it all comes out right.

Reflection: Find/create 6 assessment strategies in art education; 3 summative and 3 formative

Before I get to responding to the reflection question, I want to first spark some questions to spark some thinking. How do we assess students if everyone's artistic style is different? Are you assessing based off of following your instructions or copying your style as the teacher? What is the purpose of assessing and evaluating your students' artwork?

During my college experience, I’ve had two completely different painting teachers. The first one that I had was not quick to criticize your artwork unless you personally asked for it or his help. He would walk around the room and watch. He’d would give us instructions and examples of what and how we were going to paint that day. And then until the next assignment, you were free to do the assignment on your own, figuring it out for yourself. When he would aide you, he would explain and show on your artwork and then let you do it. I didn’t realize how grateful I was for his methods of teaching until I experienced my second painting instructor. The second one was very different. He’d explain and instruct how he wanted it done (which were also different methods) and then leave you to it. While walking around the room watching different students paint, he would stop and criticize either your method of painting or the painting itself. He’d give advice on how to do what he wanted. With a few struggling students who were quite new to the medium, he’d take their brush and do it for them. Throughout the semester, he tried to teach us how to paint using his impressionist style (total opposite of my own style). I’m very keen on detail, it’s how I paint and how I am. So naturally, throughout the semester my teacher and I butted heads but still gave each other respect.

I don’t know if his assessment was fair or not, but I managed to get an A (rare) out of his classe—I partially think part of it was due to talent and not progression or learning. So with this story in mind, where do you draw the line in assessment so that you don’t assess their style, but rather the product and progression of your students’ art experiences? Should teachers also assess themselves based off of their instruction and aide to their students? What is a good way to make sure that you’re not capping off their creativity by having them paint how you paint or draw like you draw with your personal style? As discussed in our textbook, ch. 5, how do you make sure that there is balance between completing the structured, sequential curriculum objectives while still keeping it open, creative and indeterminate?

Just something to think about.

So what is the purpose of assessing art? In the Art Education Assessment Framework, it describes the purpose for assessing art. It says that we assess our students artwork to help them understand the human significance of the 4 art forms: visual, music, dance and theatre through the discipline, joy and challenge. It also helps them to understand their lives through different experiences as it does with other frameworks such as science, math, english, etc.

Summative Assessment:

• Portfolios
• Discussions
• Journals
  
• Integrated performances
• Art shows with artist statements
• Self-Critiquing
  

Formative Assessment:

• 2 min. buddy suggestions (students pair up, offer 1 thing they like about their neighbors artwork and 1 suggestion as to how to improve)
• Teacher moves about the room offering encouragement, asking questions and giving help to students as they work on assignments
• Use benchmarks with their assignments. As students reach each goal for their assignments, have them reflect on how well they are doing and if they would change anything in an open classroom discussion with everyone's artwork on the display. I wouldn't have any more than 1 or 2 benchmarks unless it's a big project

Examples came from the textbook, Assessment in Art Education powerpoint and my head

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Self portrait/Critiquing

Reflection: How would you effectively conduct an art critique for an elementary classroom? What considerations would you have to make?

As future teachers (mostly), we need to be able to teach our students how to critique art. There's 4 different things they need to do in order to critique art effectively and properly. They are describe, analyze, interpret, and judgement (http://oak.kcsd.k12.pa.us/~projects/critic/; lecture in class). Through this process, students can learn ways to look at and describe art in ways they never have before. To really get the meaning behind it or to spark interest in a particular artist or artwork. I would hope to use this process in my classroom as I teach them about the arts. I'd also give them art terms so they could use them to appropriately critique art in class.
When having students critique each other's artwork, it can be a bit of a challenge. They might not know what to say to fully express themselves or they might say silly things to get the class to laugh. You can't be too derogatory with them either or they'll get upset by your comments--more the students words than the teacher's. The best way to have them critique their artwork is to keep it simple and positive. Ask unbiased questions. Offer supportive prompts. One teacher had this happen to her and had a few good ideas for helping students critique their artwork and their peers' artwork. She asked one of her students "what is your painting about?". The girl responded and then the teacher asked the class audience what they liked about her artwork. By the raise of a couple hands only a few were willing to respond. The teacher told the girl that she got to pick who got to speak. Gradually the whole class was raising their hands to respond. It helped the girl feel good about what she did as well as helping the students pay more attention to what they liked about their peer's painting. (The elementary critique: talking about children's art, Shirley Ende-Saxe.) I thought that this was a very good way to go about it, especially since it includes all four parts of the process at the same time. Students are saying what they like about it (judgement) and why (describe, analyze, or interpret).
I think as we introduce the principles of art and elements of design to our students, they will be able to get a better sense of what they are looking at. So that they understand them better, you could show them famous pieces or artwork and ask the class to tell you ways that the painting portrays it. Then when it comes their turn to create a work of art, you could ask them what they noticed about the artwork that everyone created. "Students always learn from seeing how someone else completed the same task."----Mrs. Baker, Highland Elementary School website. You could do this for all grades, but as you get into the older grades, expect more of an 'in-depth' answer than that of lower grades. (I'd do this because the lower grades aren't going to understand everything as much as the upper grades, so you'd have to keep it simple.) I'd also eliminate any negative feedback from peers--no kid wants to know they didn't do well or that they aren't liked by someone in the room. One way to do that is to ask the students if they themselves want to change anything or ask what they felt their strongest points of the piece are (lecture in class). Ask them questions in relation to the elements and principles of design about what they notice.

In addition to my reflection... I'm posting what we've recently done in class. We recently learned how important it was to look at something while drawing instead of pulling it out of your head. If you're looking at something, you can have things be more proportionate and fluid on your paper or canvas than if you went off of memory. We were asked to draw ourselves first from memory, second by looking at a photo and third by using a 8x10 graph.

First Attempt

Second Attempt

Third Attempt
With this set, I wanted to express how important it is to draw for sight as well as measurement. Through the first draft, we had to go off of memory. The second we could look at our photo, but I didn't measure it too well. The final attempt, we used a graph and had to shade based on the values we saw in the photo.

Blah and Postings

Bit of a stress alert! Self portrait due tomorrow and ideas for our group project too... on top of all the other homework I have. It's a bit chaotic... Kinda feel like there isn't enough time in the day, but I'll get it! I'm determined.

So... to be short and simple. We have to post our ''Picasso" heads and our designs for it. Have a gander. :)

Meet Mark
I wanted to express the different textures you could use with design and color using blind contour line of my classmate

8 Designs/Textures
Through this I wanted to try out different designs to put toward my final piece of mark

Art is SO important.

This week on our lovely one day of class, we put our texture designs to our Picasso drawings with contour lines. So much coloring. :) It's kind of fun to go home and tell my roommates that I have to color for homework.

As for the reflection: Why is it important to teach art?

I feel it is important to teach art as much as it is important to have sports and music in schools. Art gives students culture and enhances their mind, encouraging them to be there own person. Everyone views the world differently and needs to express themselves in various ways. Children need to know how to express what they see, feel, etc. One of the greatest ways to do that is through art. 'Art has unquestioned merit as a unique avenue to cognitive, social and individual growth.'---Emphasis Art, p 9.

I wrote a paper once on how politicians need to keep the arts in school because it's academically better for children. Those that participated in some form of art whether they did music, dance or visual arts, scored better on standardized tests than those that did not participate in those activities. Take this paragraph written by the Secretary of the U.S. Dept of Education, she says

"The arts make a contribution to education that reaches beyond their intrinsic value as direct forms of thinking. Because each arts discipline appeals to different senses and expresses itself through different media, each adds a special richness to the learning environment. As students imagine, create, and reflect, they are developing both verbal and nonverbal abilities necessary to school progress. At the same time, they are developing problem-solving abilities and higher-order thinking skills. Research points toward a consistent and positive correlation between a substantive education in the arts and student achievement in other subjects and on standardized tests. A comprehensive, articulated arts education program also engages students in a process that helps them develop the self-discipline, cooperation, and self-motivation necessary for self-esteem and success for life." (http://www.garlandisd.net/finearts/)

Art education helps students know how to express visualization and understanding in other areas like science, literature, math, etc. It demonstrates several relationships in various subjects of life and exemplifies the opportunity of choice. (Creation of Mind, ch 4) It allows students to think outside of the box to solve problems. 'Art education promotes higher thought processes, such as a willingness to imagine possibilities.... and an ability to recognize multiple perspectives. ...Students can acquire a feel for what it means to transform their ideas, images and feelings into art form.'---Emphasis Art, p 5.

So... basically... Art is just that awesome that it SHOULD and NEEDS to be taught to youngsters. It's not only my opinion, but it's beneficial in more ways than one.

Elementary Art

Hey I'm back. :) This time instead of my tech class for level II, I'm going to be writing for my elementary art class. Last time in class we turned in our mandalas and talked about the definitions of lines and art. For this class we have to make responses to 'deep' questions. This week the question is: What is your personal definition of art?

This is a good question. When we were throwing the ball of yarn around the room, at first I thought the exercise was about unity and how we all have something to bring to the table. But... it wasn't. :) Then when Maele asked if it was art, it reminded me about a time in high school with my art teacher. He asked us the same question but put up 4 pieces of red construction paper. One was a prepped canvas, one was a finished piece, another was a piece of paper and the last one was...something (I can't remember). Not all of them were art. I think that if it's meant to be art, it is art. For example, some people think that if figure drawing is considered art that pornography can be art too. You have to look at the purpose behind it. If there is intent to create to capture or celebrate something, I would consider it art. If it's created to cause sexual arousal, it's porn! (I'm very passionate about art and have had several long discussions about that to the point where I had to be told to drop it--it's my soap box so-to-speak).

But anyways... the definition of art for me is to create, express, produce, or celebrate with the use of aesthetic materials such as paint, clay, nature, coloring utensils, tactile materials, and audio & physical movement of the human body.

And... this is my mandala:


Our Mandalas are supposed to express who we are and what we like. So incase, you haven't picked it up from the picture above, I'll tell you. I like music, cooking, oil painting, reading, making quilts, being spontaneous, laughing and the season of fall. And green is my favorite color. :)