Visual Arts

This week we continued  using the painting by Avril Patons called “Windows of the West.” In week 4 we  made several prints of a section of the painting and this week we were to choose the print with the most detailing and make a copy of this print on to white A4 paper. The print was in the middle of the paper and we  had to extend the drawing with pen in whichever way we wanted. I choose to add to the features that the original painting had and once I had completed that I put some of my own features and details into the drawing too. I think this would be a very beneficial activity to use in the classroom as it gives children a basis to start with. The children could let their imaginations go as far as they wanted by adding on to the picture and being creative. ‘Sustaining high levels or curiosity is the starting point of creativity.’ Csiksgentmihalyi, (1996, p.1). Thus reinforcing the idea that there is not one correct was to complete the drawing . The children could let their inquiring minds and their fantasy ideas complete the drawings. In contrast for the children who are apprehensive about drawing this idea gives them a good starting place and they can copy and continue the ideas already or let their confidence unfold and be creative whichever they feel safe and happier with . Although it is always good to encourage children to take risks as with an ‘open growth mindset.’

As some people finished this work before others we were handed out a whole range of  books, from colouring in shapes and making your own drawing to colouring in more detailed pictures. These books were a stimulus to creativity and imagination and some of the books had very limited guidelines therefore allowing the children to finish the picture using their own ideas as a guide . There was a small drawing to use as a staring point and a short sentence to focus the children’s thinking. Each child could use their own  judgement on what the sentence meant but it doesn’t stop their creativity as it is just a starting point and may give children who struggle with ideas a great place to begin . For example one picture as seen below was of a boy chasing something. It could be anything from chasing  his dog to chasing a skeleton from the graveyard. It would possibly depend on what the children were reading , the IDL or what the class had been previously discussing . As a teacher I need to be aware of having the correct resources and stimuli because as  Csiksgentmihalyi, (1996, p.1) states ‘Resources are crucial for creativity to develop.’ In contrast however he goes onto say that over the top resources can be detrimental to creativity. Therefore as a teacher I will need to spend time getting the right resources that are suitable for the stage and age of the children in my class.

Books such as this one shown in the picture are an excellent  way for the children who aren’t as confident in other subjects such as maths to put their energy and skills  into completing the drawings using their imagination with a little guidance given to assist  as their is no wrong answer whereas in maths there is. This is also a good way for the children to relax and calm down as I personally love to draw and doodle as a way to unwind .

Music

Throughout this week’s music workshop we were using an application called ‘garage band.’ This app allows children to create their own pieces of music and express themselves through it. I think it is an amazing way to engage children with music and if I have the opportunity on placement I will definitely use it.

GarageBand is a digital recording tool with your own studio, and are able to create music using multiple instruments, voices, noises, percussion etc. It is very straight forward to use. The children have to assess which music they will use to create the mood or feeling for the music. There is a lot of trial and error however the children are always proud of the piece they have constructed as I was in the workshop and I found on work experience.  This is an example where digital technology enhances learning in the classroom.

I found this to be a very exciting and interesting way  to create music. Whilst on work experience I had the opportunity of working with a primary six class of children who thoroughly  enjoyed GarageBand.  They  got a real sense of satisfaction from using it and were extremely keen to let me hear their final pieces of music . For children who are less confident or don’t play any instruments  this is a good way for them to be creative and use the sounds of the instruments to create a song or piece of music . Furthermore the class also created adverts and had to use GarageBand to produce a jingle, I was so impressed with the way the children worked together to make the jingle and it had to fit in with the time scale. ‘I can use my voice, musical instruments and music technology to experiment with sounds, pitch, melody, rhythm, timbre and dynamics. EXA 2-17a’ (Scottish Executive, 2004 p67).

From today’s workshop  I now recognise that there are many opportunities for children to develop their musical and artistic creativity. Even for those who struggle to enjoy and participate in music lessons due to their lack of confidence, I think that the GarageBand is an excellent digital way for including all children and it provides them with an opportunity to be imaginative, creative and produce a piece of music that they can be proud of, that would be accepted in today’s generation. With art having a stimulus at the beginning of the lesson is a great way to start the lesson but also allows the children to go off into their own direction with their own ideas and imagination as there is not one right answer. As a trainee teacher I now have many rich ideas that I could use in class.

References

Csiksgentmihalyi, M. (2013) Creativity Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention. Harper Colins

Scottish Executive, (2004). Curriculum for Excellence [Online] Available: https://www.education.gov.scot/Documents/all-experiences-and-outcomes.pdf [Accessed: 2 November 2017]