In today’s art lesson, we began by making our own paintbrushes using the materials provided – such as wool, feathers, buttons and cotton wool. This was an activity I had never done before today because in school we were provided only with ordinary paintbrushes. I thoroughly enjoyed this activity and it was interesting to see the variety of creations made from the same set of materials. We discussed that when using a uniform tool such as a paintbrush children are likely to compare their artwork. However, when using a tool created ourselves the product is a result of our own creation and so are less likely to compare the art with others’ as they are all different.

After this we were then read a description of a picture and we each painted our interpretation of it. Today’s activities could relate to at least two of Eisner’s (2002) “10 lessons the arts teach”. One of which being that the arts can be interpreted from many angles and the second being that the arts are about accepting the unknowing.

I thoroughly enjoyed the visual art workshop, the class reassured me that one does not have to be ‘naturally gifted’ to create art. These activities could be easily replicated with a primary class and I think the pupils would enjoy it very much.

Below shows the process of creating my paintbrush and paining and my mixing tray at the end of the class.

In the music workshop, we were looking at finger notes. After a brief introduction of what finger notes are we were given glockenspiels and music and practised in small groups. I found the exercise enjoyable and easier than I had imagined it would be. I have very little experience in music so cannot read music, however, this experience enabled me to play an instrument correctly without having to read sheet music. Drake Music Scotland (2017) emphasise that you do not have to be able to read sheet music to play an instrument as with finger notes “if you can match, you can play!”.

This weeks inputs allowed me to value imagination in the teaching of the arts. Allowing pupils to use their imagination means their work will vary and they will be less likely to copy the work of others.

Reference List

Drakemusicscotland.org. (2017). Fingernotes – Drake Music Scotland. [online] Available at: https://drakemusicscotland.org/figurenotes/ [Accessed 29 September 2017].

Eisner, E. W. (2002) The Arts and the Creation of Mind. London: Yale University Press.

In the workshop, we analysed visual art created by children in the early, first and second levels of school. It was interesting to see how the children’s art changed as they moved through primary school. It was clear that as children move through the years, their tasks are more direct but they also become increasingly uncertain of their own abilities.

During the early years of primary school, children’s art may be identified as belonging to the ‘scribbling stage’. At this stage, they use whole-arm actions as well as stabbing motions to create their art (McAuliffe, 2007). One piece of art that caught my eye was this painting of flowers. It is clearly very colourful and eye-catching. It is very creative as it seems to me that the child has experimented with a variety of brush strokes.

Moving to the first level, it was clear that the artwork was created as a result of a task set by the teacher as it became more detailed but less creative. It was evident that most of the work I viewed was topic-related however there was room for creativity in the set tasks. For example, the piece of work shown below resembles a sunset over the sea. However, the child has used their imagination by experimenting with different colours.

Lastly, in the second level, children are increasingly aware of their culture and surroundings so draw on what’s around them rather than their imagination when it comes to their artwork. This is known as the ‘gang stage’ throughout which children become increasingly aware of others’ art and consequently more self-conscious about their own ability. In my opinion, the child should be incredibly proud of the work they produced in the picture below. The pupil has created an impressive piece of art from either looking at a picture or copying their surroundings.

In conclusion, this week’s class has given me a real insight into how art is taught through the years in primary education. I have considered how I hope to teach art in the future, giving my pupils the opportunity to use their imagination not only in the early years but throughout their time at primary school.

Reference List

McAuliffe, D (2007) Foundation and Primary Settings. In Teaching Art and Design 3-11 (ed). London: Continuum.

Prior to this module, I was apprehensive as I was unaware of exactly what it would involve and did not have a particularly positive experience with the arts in school. Following our morning lecture discussing what the module would encompass and what was expected of us I felt at ease, ready to open my mind to the arts and get fully involved in the workshops.

In the music workshop, we listened to a ten-minute clip and worked, in groups, to create a story board we felt best represented the music. Our group had many ideas but focused on the idea of two fish, one of which is eaten by a shark only to later be released. The two fish are then reunited and live happily ever after with one another. Bloomfield & Childs (2000) explain that the arts provide opportunities for individual interpretation, this was apparent in the workshop as each story was created based on the same piece of music but varied between groups.
However, almost every story shared the commonalities of suspense and happy endings. This task gave me my first insight into how the performing arts can interlink as this was not only a music task but also involved art and could branch out further across to the curriculum to the likes of literacy.

To begin the art workshop, we were asked to write down the positive and negative experiences we had with art as a learner. I was one of many who had a largely negative experience with art in school, I found it was very direct with little chance for self-expression and was restricted by time. We discussed that young children’s ‘scribbling’ is art to them – a representation of how they see the world – and so it is important to show interest and listen to what they say about their drawing (McAuliffe, 2007). As a result of discussing our personal experiences with visual arts I felt ready to focus on having a positive experience and ensuring my pupils have an enjoyable experience in the future.

As a result of today’s inputs I am now more informed of the lessons the arts teach. I am also aware that the art’s can tell a story without the use of the written word and this results in everyone interpreting it and, thus, learning different lessons from it.

Reference List

Bloomfield, A and Childs, J (2000) Teaching Integrated Arts in the Primary School. Oxon: David Fulton Publishers.

McAuliffe, D (2007) Foundation and Primary Settings. In Teaching Art and Design 3-11 (ed). London: Continuum.