Week # 7: Moving forward ...

Monday
What a day to be an educator. In the wake of the Virginia Tech shootings, a school that is near and dear to the students I teach, I am left in shock and found in a new position in this type of tragedy. I was looked to today for answers and comfort from many of my students, being asked to seek out information online and to listen and provide wise words. It was difficult to suddenly have to assume that role, as I am still a student myself (wanting those same answers and comfort) and was extremely concern about the friends that I have who are still in attendance at VA Tech. I was very touched that at the end of the day, two girls who have not been terribly warm to me during this placement, came back to the classroom to let me know that they would be thinking of me and hoped that all of my friends were safe. Tragedy is somehow unifying.
I am still in disbelief at the massacre that happened today and it is quite frightening as a teacher to know our schools, no matter what level are not, as our president said "sanctuaries of learning," as they have been thought to be. This week-end I went home to find out that my high school, where my brother is now a junior, had made the news because a student had left and brought back a semi-automatic weapon, luckily caught by a security guard - apparently he felt he needed it for protection? There were also several bomb threats to a local middle school (in my hometown) that same day. I don't think it matters where you live these days, urban or rural, I think it is becoming a sad reality that new levels of security need to be taken to keep all students safe in the development of new threats and dangers.
The day went on as usual though outside of supporting my students through this event. I taught the 3-D students, continuing work on their cup and saucer project - today was gesso-ing their forms and doing thumbnails of designs. I have some really creative students in there who have developed a variety of different ways to approach their part-to-whole concepts, one girl wants to do appleseeds to apples and is going to create slices and well its difficult to describe, but I think it will be great. I had to talk two boys out of trying to include hunting scenes in their sketches, citing that guns were not appropriate subject matter, they are now going to do fish/pond to fishermen. The last part of class my teacher worked with them on finishing up the illuminated repousse and making their books.
The 7th graders, little gems/punks that they are were quite rowdy today, but we continued to work on their representational projects - gesso-ing their newspaper grids and working on a worksheet (vocabulary and 9 questions about themselves). Some of the girls in that class have such intense attitudes and try to order me around - it makes me crazy, but I respond with firm niceness. Again, I ran this class entirely by myself and I am feeling pretty comfortable doing it. I can tell that some of the students don't particulary like me because I am more strict than my cooperating teacher, but thats the way I operate so they'll have to get over themselves.
During the 8th grade classes today I worked with the students while they finished up their mosaics, grouting and polishing. The students that had finished last class worked in their sketchbooks. Next time we see them I'll be starting a brief painting to music lesson (although I think I will talk to my teacher about just starting the other lesson instead). I will be finishing off my color collage lesson tonight. Time to try and concentrate and get to work.

Tuesday
Even day: Today went fairly quickly, with the planning period flying by the fastest. One of the assistant principalsin my school finally confirmed that she would be coming by to observe me tomorrow during my 5th period class, 8th graders. I'll be starting a new lesson with them, the color collages based on the book Colors by Ken Nordine, illustrated (with collage elements) by Henrik Drescher. I'm pretty excited about it. With the 8th graders today I did painting with music during class since some of them were still finishing up their mosaics, that way they wouldn't miss the start of a new lesson, just a interlude activity. My first class is very high energy and many of the students in there are friends (and often get a little too friendly, trying to sit on each other laps) but I really enjoy working with them. I think the Kandinsky painting to music was a good exercise to do with them (its a shortened one day version of the lesson I did with the 7th graders). It helped them loosen up after doing more tedious and craft oriented projects (baskets, paper making/book making, and mosaics) - plus it was a good way to ease them into recieving instruction from me. I actually have not had as much difficulty teaching the 8th graders as I had expected - there was some resistance, but I think they have become used to having me in the classroom. I think any teacher would have problems getting and maintaining the attention of this age group and especially some of these students. I have realize that when I start to instruct and no one is listening one of two approaches usually works: I step back and stand quietly waiting for them to catch on - its usually takes less than a minute or I ask a the students how many people heard what I just said, and that makes them zip it! I must say I do miss the elementary approach of freeze please or ms. adams says.
The 7th grade girls today - who are such an experience - painted their grids black today and I think they are starting to warm up to the idea of this project. It took some of the students longer than others to finish painting theirs so the other students that had finished helped clean up and then picked up brushes and helped their classmates finish. Then we did a worksheet - working through the "boring" definitions, but then I worked them in all into one sentence at the end to describe the project and the students seemed to get the purpose of knowing the words, plus apparently crazy ms. adams is amusing. Then they had the remainder of class to finish the nine self-reflection questions, if they did not finish they were to take it home and work on it before Thursday (they also needed the sheet to know what to bring in for their self-portraits. I'll be very interested to find out how the end product turns out ...
I must confess, I felt fairly scatterbrained today though - I'm still shaken and distracted from the events of yesterday at Virginia Tech. Some of my 8th grade boys, who always try to talk about guns and hunting in my class were exploring that conversation topic again today and I was quicker than ever to squelsh it. The audacity! I cannot believe that they would not be affected by the horror of what these guns that THEY own and use can do ... it really frightens me that students don't see these machines as lethal weapons. Very disturbing ... all of it.
Now to try and concentrate on lesson plans and prep ...

Wednesday
I heard magical words today ... "Ms. Adams, you are a good teacher." As challenging as today was, hearing that from one of my students (especially one who tends to be a challenge herself) really made the difference. I think its little successes like that which make teaching worth it with the day in-day out nitty gritty worth it. I taught every little last bit of each class today - which is intense with four back to back 90 minute blocks and the personality which are in those blocks on the odd days. I felt today I really dedicated myself to establishing my "teacher" credibility - I had to disciplined some (very very talkative and active this week, probably due some to spring and some to this weeks events) and re-explain how I am different from my teacher and I have my own expectations of their behavior. I also have started couting how many seconds it takes them to quiet down and pay attention, today was their grace day - but from now on however long it takes them (past 5 seconds) - the talkers - have to stay after. They take class time - they spend extra time in class to make up for it, seems reasonable to me - we'll see how it goes. I have amazing support in my classroom management from my teacher and she has let me trial and error with most of it on my own, really figuring out what works for me.
I started my color collage lesson with the 8th graders today - I think it went really well. We first did the five symbols warm up - I think its a great way to begin with the concept of representation and abstract art and we had a discussion about what they already knew about those ideas. Then after the symbols activity and analysis - we took a strech break - and then went through a PowerPoint on color theory/connotations and collage. Now that they have been introduced to the concepts and started thinking in terms of abstract art instead of baskets, papermaking and mosaics - next class I will read them excerpts from Ken Nordine's "Colors," discuss illustration, let them draw their color (crayon), emotion and adjective. I'm so excited to see how these turn out.
The representational grid project continued with the "difficult" 7th grade class - it took them all class to paint their grids black! But again, I used the students to help each other when some were slow at finishing - I am realizing that at this age you can help them help themselves! Next class they will have to get movin' on adding their personal items and other objects to their assemblages - really making them their own! It is a self portrait after all...
I can't believe I only have to create one more lesson plan for this placement (by create I mean write up - I already know what I'm doing). I'm going to do a t-shirt design project - they will study t-shirt design and illustration and then come up with symbols for life-deat relationship (ex. salmon - sushi roll). We're going to scan into the computer and then print off the images onto iron on paper and then actually make the shirts! Yay. Speaking of the 3D class, they continued on their books and cup & saucer today. There are some really cool ideas and then some students that are like pulling teeth ... I have one that is doing the hands of a clock to time (the clock), another is doing a UFO to an alien ... then I have a couple students who are coming up with ideas that aren't part - to - whole relationships so I'm having to push and pull with them to develop it into the project requirements. I think the end result of these is going to be really great overall though, especially once they paint and then seal them (with a glossy acrylic medium). The forms won't be functional, unfortunately, but they can dispaly them and use them for other purposes that drinking tea/coffee.
Ok - time to pack and prepare, I'm going home after school tomorrow for a portfolio review with a design firm on Friday morning, wish me luck!