The #2PencilChat is a weekly conversation about educational technology. As we enter a more student-centered age, let's talk about using all the tools in our toolboxes to be innovative and dynamic teachers.
Hi, @MagicPantsJones and #2pencilchat! I'm Rebecca from Nevada ~ Due to tech issues, my Tues night class Google Meets class is now an independent study class. Happy to be here for this chat about the arts!
#2pencilchat Hello from Pennsylvania. Sleeting outside. Wondering if we will get 8 in of snow as forecast. I am a teacher of the most awesome high school math students! #HertzogGeometry#HertzogStatistics
Hey #2PencilChat Jo from Wednesday have been tied up with uni commitments and writing 1 of my findings chapter for #PhD - will be in and out - I love the arts!
Hey #2PencilChat Jo from Wednesday have been tied up with uni commitments and writing 1 of my findings chapter for #PhD - will be in and out - I love the arts!
I’m ok, trying to stay positive, my kids have not had school since last week, due to power outage from last storm & now another storm tonight ... going a bit cray cray 🤪 #2Pencilchat
A1: At our school our music and art teacher are only there two days a week, that keeps them from being in the thick of everything. Also, time is an issue, everyone is so busy with their own schedules! #2PencilChat
A1: I have to say the teachers. The arts are important and incorporating them is essential esp to offer different ways of demonstrating knowledge #2pencilchat
A1: specialised people and specialised equipment needs.
But really we can all Art - it's only when you get to the study of Art that you need specialists #2PencilChat
A1 Too many people see them as electives and not part of the core. The best activities that I have seen in my department is when teachers collaborate. For example @artrendering and @TioDana had some amazing projects together (art and Spanish). #2pencilchat
A1: When I taught kindergarten and first grade students, I found a way to get the arts (drama, music, art) into the classroom- for me it was a matter of intentionally planning those activities into my lessons. #2pencilchat
A1: Time and Testing! I used to work somewhere that had us testing so frequently it made it easy for me to stress and not make the extra effort to have more arts enrichment in my classroom. #2PencilChat
On of my best teaching experiences was co-teaching an after school art/writing program with 3rd graders. The art teacher and I had a blast! #2PencilChat
A1: I think it is in part due to the pressures that come along with the instruction of the tested subject areas. However, when the arts are not regularly integrated into the classroom, there is a disconnect between the arts and the rest of the subject. #2PencilChat
A1.1 Sadly, where I work, we don't have an art teacher or music teacher or even a p.e. teacher. For us, it's a different kind of funding. Those positions are not seen as important. #2PencilChat
Q2
Let's talk appreciation. What benefits do our students get when we introduce them to great art, music, theatre, and dance? How do we justify such sojourns to the curriculum patrol?
#2PencilChat
A1: Many barriers keep arts out of classrooms -
Teachers (excuses of "don't have time"; don't see value)
Buildings (lack of the oh-so-important SPACE)
Funds ("cut this, not that")
Public misunderstanding (of how VITAL arts are)
Result: lack of proper education.
#2pencilchat
Q2
Let's talk appreciation. What benefits do our students get when we introduce them to great art, music, theatre, and dance? How do we justify such sojourns to the curriculum patrol?
#2PencilChat
A2: Well, I teach ELA, so we can read music and discuss the tone and figurative language. I can also have students make inferences about art. In addition, we write scripts, read scripts, and watch different versions of stories #2pencilchat
A2: Kids who have the arts integrated into their classroom regularly are able to make great connections. They also forget they’re learning when they are creating or experiencing something. #2PencilChat
A2: Ss better internalize how to reflect and use design-thinking when @juliegelsinger (an amazing hs art teacher) and I (hs math teacher) are collaborating to support the same ideas and concepts #2pencilchat
A2 When we integrate and collaborate we provide Ss with opportunities to experience the wonders of culture, give them a global view, and an appreciation for beauty and talent. #2PencilChat
A2: My students loved the dance-dance-transversal warm-up. We literally danced to DDR music and moved our feet to form special types of angles. (Yes, I participated too.) #2pencilchat#HertzogGeometry
When I was in college, my teacher taught us how to compose music using the Beatles. I would call that good heart. And I would say he found away withIn the contstrainys. #2PencilChat
A2~ all three areas allow, support, foster & empower our Ss to tell their story in whatever way speaks to them ~ the arts allow for the dev of #progressnotperfection 👍#2PencilChat
I've started saying, digital art is an area of growth for me. Maybe I used to think "I am not a ____ person" but that is not teacherly thinking imo #2PencilChat
#2pencilchat A2 We were able to introduce our students to Philo Barnhart & Charles Moisant. Mr Barnhart is the creator of Ariel from The Little Mermaid and has worked other Disney animations. Shared how they got involved with art and to follow your dreams no matter what!
Q3
Alright, so what about creation? How do our students grow when we build artistic creation into our core subjects? What happens for our kids when we put the A in STEAM?
#2PencilChat
My daughter did career testing and it pointed to Science and Art #2PencilChat
As a science geek it helped me understand why she wanted to study design, is such a creative dressmaker
A2. The benefits are endless. For my Ss it's sheer exposure to a world that is larger than their block or street or hood. It's an opportunity for them to say,"I want to do that. " Or, "I can do that." It's a means of expression. #2PencilChat
#2PencilChat A2 With no research whatsoever to back. This up, purely anecdotal you understand, art appreciation involves a different kind of thinking. Dunno, primal maybe.
A3: When we incorporate the arts into our classes it allows the students to make connections between the two and it allows for students to remember the information that you are trying to teach them better. #2pencilchat
A3: I think of their LAUNCH projects.....they sometimes run into problems or it falls apart. Have to rethink, revise and try again! #2PencilChat#tlap@burgessdave
A3 incorporating A helps Ss see things from a different perspective - there may not always be a correct answer the learning is in the process #2PencilChat
A3: Those kids who struggle in one area always shine in another. I see a whole new side of some students when they are given time to create. And it’s not always who you’d expect. #2PencilChat
A3: My students ❤️ to create art! We incorporate it into all subject areas. In math, I allow the students to create an abstract piece use quadrilaterals and they have to come up with a title and description of their polygon art! #2PencilChat
A2: The Arts invite our students into a world that allows their spirits, minds and hearts to soar...so much creativity comes alive through engagement in The Arts! ESSENTIAL!!! #2PencilChat
A2 There are emotional benefits. If I show a work of art to connect to a history lesson, I feel a collective, happy sigh and they relax and engage with it. #2pencilchat
A3. There is so much science & math in art; and so much art and beauty in science. I think Ss can get a better appreciation and understanding of how the world works. And, just maybe, they can learn to work together in the same way. #2PencilChat
And I was in the ceramics studio creating gesticulating multi-armed figurative pieces and trying to work out how I could balance the arms using maths textbooks 😊😝#2PencilChat
A3: Students who struggle with participating verbally or through writing have an opportunity to share their thoughts and ideas when art enters into the classroom. #2PencilChat
Creation brings a lot of meaning to different subjects. Think about port in the science classroom. I once did an action research project using drawing and found that it improved my students observation skills. #2PencilChat
There should be maths learning on taxes, loans, and mortgages in middle school #2PencilChat
After all we teach percents and multi step word problems in elementary
A3: Artistic creation helps to make core subjects ‘come alive’...it’s ‘the way in’ for many students who often find core subject matter challenging, boring and/or uninviting. #2PencilChat
A4: I definitely see them "hold onto it" better because they are working with it in a way that makes sense to them that they will remember. #2PencilChat
A4: think what our world would be like if the great only studied and never created... When you create you learn things your teacher never even thought of teaching #2pencilchat
A1: Perhaps it is the fact that we work in a system where subjects are viewed as separate from each other. We used terms like interdisciplinary when we want to combine things. #2PencilChat
A3 Putting the A in STEAM gives our Ss another tool in their tool box. They learn different ways of problem solving, learn to appreciate beautiful things, and many for the first time learn what it is like to struggle with something. #2PencilChat
A4: Research shows comprehension is INCREASED when students not only express themselves creatively in an outlet of enjoyment, but also when they are use a multitude of intelligences... thanks Howard Gardner! 👍🏼❤️👏🏼😁 #KidsDeserveIt#2PencilChat#waledchat#122edchat
A2: They began to see the connections with what they are learning to the world around. Let’s just take math. There is so much math in art and music. Ss are always surprise when I say that. #2PencilChat
Q2
Let's talk appreciation. What benefits do our students get when we introduce them to great art, music, theatre, and dance? How do we justify such sojourns to the curriculum patrol?
#2PencilChat
I feel bad when I can't get my answers in, but then you all say -and surpass - what I was thinking about the questions. So much awesome here. #2PencilChat
A4: “Creating” supports a depth of comprehension and retention that cannot be achieved by some students who desperately need more of a ‘hands on’ experience of learning. #2PencilChat
A3: They get a renewed appreciation for the arts. We are left impressed. For some Ss, there is also this discomfort as they are used to not creating. Those Ss need help from us. #2PencilChat
Q3
Alright, so what about creation? How do our students grow when we build artistic creation into our core subjects? What happens for our kids when we put the A in STEAM?
#2PencilChat
A4.1 the information learned goes deeper into the brain and stays there longer. That's science, right there...lol. But, really, the passion has an opportunity to shine through.#2PencilChat
LOL! Years after the course the students and I will discuss what they created in #GeniusHour#HertzogGeometry. No one ever says what an unforgettable worksheet. #2pencilchat
I do not support lionizing "creation" there are creative projects that are just as constricting as worksheets. If your focus is the product, you miss the process and the learning. #2PencilChat
LOL - It's ok. We're all adults capable of making our own decision and mine is #2PencilChat at this point - I'm telling myself that I deserve a break #phdlife#survivephd
A3 There is something about art that just validates "existing" instead of "achieving". It's authentic, personal and relatable. It's all the things that core subjects never tend to be. #2PencilChat
A4: Students have ownership of their learning when they get to create. They have a purpose and a real life experience to enjoy while learning. When those things happen, there is true understanding of content. #2PencilChat
A4 when students create, the experience helps students recall the content they have learned. It is about creating a memory point to help with retention #2PencilChat
A4 Ss are feeling emotion when creating art. Brain-based learning theory suggests that all learning begins with the learner and emotion is one of the things that "opens" our brains to connect to new ideas. #2PencilChat
A4: When concerns me are the Ss that have been almost conditioned out creating. How do we help them? I’ve had Ss tell me, “I hate creative projects. Can you just tell me what to do?” I feel their pain. #2PencilChat
A5: I love to hear my students speaking in Spanish, being silly, showing a variety of products. I remind them they are individuals and their work should not look the same #2pencilchat
A5: As a student, I hating creating; I wanted the teacher to just tell me what she wanted. My students always surprise me with what they can do. It's always better than what I could make #2pencilchat
A4: What concerns me are the Ss that have been almost conditioned out of creating. How do we help them? I’ve had Ss tell me, “I hate creative projects. Can you just tell me what to do?” I feel their pain. #2PencilChat
A5. I had a S who wouldn't work, but liked to draw tattoos. So, I asked him to draw a tat for me that reepresented me. OMG, what he gave me shocked me because I discovered he really was paying attention to me and various things I said. He knew me. #2PencilChat
A5: On Fridays, my Ss would work in teams to create a presentation or play that somehow represented a book we had read that week. One year we read Johnny Appleseed - my Ss, on their own, used paper towels to make his cooking pot hat that they wore during their play! #2pencilchat
A5: I love when we are at the end of a project and I ask Ss to clean up... only to find out that the one kid who won’t put things away isn’t ignoring me to ignore me, but is creating something amazing and I have no business interrupting their genius. #2PencilChat
A5~ their attention to detail is amazing and sharing new learning w/peers and Ts is on point ~ spot on!!! I learn so much from the littles 👍#2pencilchat
A5: I remember four years ago a student created this entire world on Minecraft, which was amazing. Never seen him so engage before. I’ve seen beautiful drawings that blew my mind. #2PencilChat
A5: In Kindergarten, my kids surprise me every day as they create through play and inquiry...The Arts are a big part of how we roll each day! 😍 #2PencilChat
A5.1 Again, it's about being able to see the good in my students. They have talent. It just might not be traditional. Even kids who have made mistakes have good somewhere in them. They just need a chance for it to emerge. #2PencilChat
A5 A student who created sticky note pixel art in my window during @StudentEdcamp recently surprised me with a package of multicolored sticky notes. When I thanked him he said, "No, thank you for giving me an opportunity to do what I love!" ❤️ #2PencilChat
I love you SO MUCH, #2PencilChat friends! Thank you for joining in and talking about bringing the arts to the classroom. We'll see you next week when we talk ridin' the bus!
