We mainly focused on the art pieces that Room 13 have produced today. Room 13 began as an empty space in Fort William which was then used as an art space for children and young people. Looking at the pieces produced from that room where there is absolutely no dictated direction or expected outcome it is incredibly interesting and thought provoking to see what the children create. It really highlights Robinson’s (2007) statement that we are all born artists and we all have the capacity to create and express. A lot of the pieces featured serious themes and real life issues. It’s clear the children are asking questions and are critical thinkers of the world around them. It made me realise that children observe a lot more than what we think they do and we should not brush off a lot of their questions telling them that they are too young to understand.
Music
I really enjoyed today’s input. I feel like I understand and learn concepts better visually so learning about Figure Notes was pretty exciting for me. I found using Figure Notes is a much easier way to digest and translate standard music notation to play, it will set the perfect foundations for young people and musical beginners to begin to read music. Not only this, it will make playing music more accessible to those who require additional learning support such as dyslexia and autism which makes reading complex marks even more difficult. An example of this can be seen in the video here.
FigureNotes are definitely something which I will use in the classroom as it made playing the xylophone a lot easier for me and can make it easier for children who work better with visuals.
Following on from using GarageBand last week we were introduced to Charanga building up a bank of methods to make music multi-modal. Charanga is an incredible bank of learning aids which helps teachers form lesson plans for topics and provide a vast range of activities and exercises for the pupils. It is a great resource for teachers who feel like they do not have enough experience to teach music off their own knowledge which makes music accessible for all pupils. As a student teacher who has very minimal musical knowledge it is comforting to know there are resources available to assist teaching so that the children do not miss out.
Art
Today brought in aspects of teaching pupils about artists and incorporating their work into lessons. Avril Paton’s “Window in the West” was the inspiration to the workshop which shows the intimate lives of those living in the tenement housing across from her flat in Glasgow. I thought this was a great piece to work on because it can easily be adapted to the children’s personal surrounding such as the houses across from their own and their own neighbours.
Using the artwork as inspiration as opposed to a model for the lesson removes the barriers of creativity that recreation establishes. Ink printing allowed the children to learn a new method of creating as well as exploring other artists’ inspiration. I really enjoyed this workshop because it allowed us to observe how to teach pupils about famous artists alongside nurturing their own personal creative abilities as well as showing how to show pupils the different kinds of materials that can be used in art and creating.
Today was really insightful into the delivery of an arts lesson. Although we had become aware of the importance of adapting lessons to allow creativity to flow and not to put up barriers to nurturing their skills we had not really touched on the execution of this. Having a guest speaker from the council gave an insight into how to put it into practice in the classroom. Being shown methods of how to introduce learners to new materials and techniques at different ages and stages allowed me to see how the arts can be integrated into the curriculum in a number of different ways.
The workshop was a wonderful way to demonstrate how a number of different techniques and skills can be incorporated to make a diverse final piece. Putting all the smaller pieces together perfectly showed how to introduce a number of techniques (line drawing, motor skills, water colour, material manipulation, collage) shows how the learners can practice without the inputs dragging on too long and the children getting bored. Providing the children with inspiration from a variety of colours, home life ensures that every piece is unique and cannot be directly compared to each others’. It is an activity that would definitely keep children engaged as they are not being told how their work should be done, how it should look or where it should be done which makes it far more enjoyable for the child (Mason, 2004).
Drama
Today’s session focused on the methods that can be used to teach and incorporate drama into lessons.
A lot of these methods were really new to me as I have not had much drama experience before. I really liked thought tracking with still image as it allows the whole class to get involved and provides opportunity to put themselves in the character’s position which can enhance and energize descriptive writing (Education not Limited, 2013). Through acting out and exploring scenes I think that children will be able to express a range of emotions and feelings that they may not have the chance to in every day life which will help them understand themselves and the world around them.
This week’s session was a continuation from last week and new aspects were added to our dance. Since we are in the month of October we were given a Halloween theme, each group were given a picture related to the holiday such as a skeleton, cauldron etc, and had to come up with a dance move to represent that. After showing the moves to the other groups they were all put together to form a sequence which was then followed by the groups performing their individual routines one by one. I really enjoyed the feeling of moving participating as a whole class, it eliminates the isolated feeling of being watched as an individual. Even performing the group performances there was not a heavy sense of pressure and anxiety as we had practiced them so much the apprehensions had decreased due to the repetition and knowing the routine confidently. Adding a topic into the dance provides prompts for the children to demonstrate what knowledge they have gained and how much they have understood to be able to communicate the knowledge to movement (Cone, 2011). Furthermore, Eisner (2002) acknowledges that there are circumstances where understanding cannot be expressed solely through words – the elements of movement and creativity aid demonstrating the cognitive capacity of children especially if they have limited linguistic skills (e.g. children with communicative difficulties) and give a better indication of the individual’s knowledge.
Art
Today’s art session was especially informative and inspiring. Developing on the discussion points highlighted in the first session we agreed that every single child’s work should be regarded as and celebrated as an original. Although insightful to study and be aware of famous artists’ styles and techniques it is important not to reproduce these, but rather take inspiration from to compliment and express their own ideas.
The practical aspect of this workshop was using and creating a piece of work using the unorthodox paint ‘brushes’ made from a variety of materials (string, wool, sponges, etc) attached to a stick.
I absolutely loved using these brushes to paint as you were able to get strokes that I would not be able to produce from the typical paint brush. Using a different kind of apparatus opens up the mind to what else can be used to put the paint on paper, breaking down the familiar expectations of painting allows the child to explore further. Sourcing materials for a paintbrush can also become a lesson in itself be it going out on to the school grounds searching or looking within the classroom.
On a side note, I liked the idea or drawing a border on the pieces of paper as it essentially reduces the paper size so that newspaper does not have to be put on the table reducing waste and reducing the chances of getting paint on the table. Simple, but effective. Although washing the paint off the table is not a particularly difficult task I am aware that some teachers are apprehensive to take out paints because of the massive clean up operation after every session.
Our lecturer described a scene to us which we listened to and then painted on our pieces of paper. I thought this was a brilliant way to get an individual’s creative side working as there was nothing to reproduce, nothing to copy, nothing to compare your own work to, the only image to recreate was the one in your mind’s eye that formed when listening to the description. The difference of interpretation was demonstrated in the class as the lecturer had mentioned a ‘buoy’ in the scene, but since we did not see the word written down where some people had painted a sea buoy others had painted a boy on the boat. This gives insight into how different minds work and how again there is not right or wrong way to expressive oneself in the arts. Csikszentmihayi (n,d) states that creativity is encouraged by curiosity and interest, introducing and encouraging learners to using unorthodox materials will open them up to using anything and everything that takes their interest.
This input from a teacher’s point of view is effective as well, in all aspects (providing a range of resources, a brief description of a scene) the teacher is not giving the learners restrictive instructions. The learners are provided with a platform and foundations and are effectively handed the reigns from there. They are very much in control of their direction and can fully explore their creativity and satisfy curiosities.
As a teacher it is of the utmost importance to have a tolerance for ambiguity – there is no right way or wrong way to draw and create. This session allowed me to realise and focus on breaking down the perception that you do not need to be an artist to be able to draw. Writing and mark making can be seen as drawing, as soon as a material hits a piece of paper or other resource it can be argued that a piece of art has been created. The following clip of The Dot is a wonderful video in illustrating this in a way both adults and children can understand.
I really appreciated this realisation as when I was younger I loved drawing random squiggles and adapting it into a drawing. I would have considered this as mindless doodling as opposed to art however thinking about it in a different light has shown me to appreciate that this doodling is a form of art and should be acknowledged. The workshop perfectly solidified this as manipulating the ink prints showed how something may not look like much initially but when looked at again closely and at a different angle it can take form as an animal or an object.
Dance
The idea of teaching and performing dance did not excite me in the slightest, I am not very able in the execution of dance never mind teaching it. Dancing was never something I have enjoyed doing more than just swinging a hairbrush around my room thinking I was the Spice Girl missing from the group and as I got older the idea of dancing turned into half-hearted swaying of the body with a drink in hand. Nothing really more, nothing really less – it’d be far too embarrassing. The in-between stages only consisting of the yearly winter social dancing lessons which consisted of running away from the boys who you didn’t want to hold hands with.
However, this session was great for providing teaching methods and ways to eliminate the class fear of touching one another. The games during the workshop today were really effective for getting kids more comfortable with each other. Playing games such as People-to-People and number games involving sitting back to back, being lifted up etc made me forget the awareness of the others’ bodies as I was only focusing on completing the task of elbow to elbow, knee to elbow etc. Games like these eradicate the discomfort of bodily contact by replacing it with fun. We also discussed that dance lessons realistically do not require a lot of work from the teacher’s point of view, I really liked how easy it was developing on the 10 basic moves to getting the kids to put moves to numbers so then they can easily take the reigns in making up their own dance moves. Randomly generating the order of the numbers allows each group to have a different routine and for the children to come up with ways of how they will connect the moves.
It’s been well known for some time now that the arts is positively linked to academic achievement, social and emotional development among other things (Smith, 2009). It is acknowledged in the education system as it stimulates the brain in ways textbooks cannot and was a massive step forward to integrate it into formal education. However, after being in practice for a number of years the delivery is being revised so that children get the most out of the arts through varying mediums such as dance, drama, music and can bring out a child’s artistic potential.
Art can be taken in so many different ways. What one person might see another person will see something completely different with neither being right or wrong. This is the main point I gained from today’s input when we were going round looking at artwork ranging across the whole of the primary school. I wouldn’t describe myself as being incredibly art-inclined, I’ve always leaned closer to the facts and figures so when I saw this image the first thought that came to my head was that the child was practicing drawing the number 4 and had made it into a circular pattern. However, when brought to the wider class discussion someone else said it looked more like a child drawing chairs around a table – the possible classroom layout where the child was. It could have been either of the ideas or none at all and that is the great thing about art; there is no right or wrong answer.
Another concept brought to attention was the involvement of the class teacher in the production of the art piece. Was the child told to use a specific technique to produce the piece of art? Was the child given an image to reproduce or was it an original idea? Was the child incorporating a number of techniques they have seen from famous artists or were they just copying a painting? Did the child have a choice of resources? How long would the piece taken to create? Was it done in one sitting or multiple?
Children’s reproductions of Van Gogh’s ‘Sunflowers’
All these questions were considered and it highlighted the importance of the teacher’s role in cultivating a child’s creativity. Although learning about the different styles and techniques of famous artists is important and practicing them to see the effect they have in producing an image, getting a whole class to reproduce a version of a famous painting can be counterproductive. Instead of an exercise which allows the child to explore a style of art it becomes an exercise of who can reproduce the painting closest to the original or who can follow instructions correctly; this puts up barriers to creativity if the child’s work can be compared to the rest of the class’s in a way where one can be ‘the best’ and one ‘the worst’. Dictating what the child produces does not allow them to exercise their potential and develop their own style. A teacher’s role in the creative process should be focused on providing the resources and platforms for the child to take what they will and create as opposed to the teacher leading the process and putting up boundaries – supporting the creativity, not imposing (Bruce, 2004:12 as cited in Craft, 2007). There needs to be a balance between providing too much structure which can demotivate a child and providing too much freedom where the child can get confused and lost (Craft, 2007) to allow for the child’s creativity to develop and flourish.
This has made me think of my impact as a student teacher and how I need to be mindful of teaching methods so not to restrict children and their learning. This different way of thinking and seeing things from multiple perspectives has made me reflect on my personal experience of expressive art in primary school and how it has influenced my views of my own ability of creativity. It has opened my eyes to how important it is that children are not put off acknowledging they are creative and how creativity should not be measured and compared to those around them. It has made me really excited to get into this module and practicing not seeing everything as clear cut as black and white.
Music
I have always thought I was never musically gifted but it is as I have gotten older it has occurred to me that my inability to play an instrument does not make me ‘bad’ at music; it does not mean that my creative capacity cannot gain from music. I have always enjoyed listening to music from a young age and it makes me feel a range of emotions, it is the perfect partner to every aspect of life, the best days and the worst days. It can take you back to certain periods or time and help release stress, anger, joy and elation.
The activity we did in the music workshop today was stimulating, it showed how even just listening to music can exercise one’s imagination, creativity and portray emotions in ways that words cannot. Discussing how short audio clips made us feel showed how music affects us in all different ways – where a clip may make one person feel incredibly happy it can strongly anger someone else with many others in between. Creating a comic strip of what scenario came to mind whilst listening to the music was a brilliant way to provide a structure to showcase one’s imagination, it gave us the foundations to work off of with the only restrictions being our own thoughts, not capability. Presenting the scenario to the rest of the class what your group came up with perfectly illustrated how different people’s responses can be without being ‘wrong’ responses. It shows how little boundaries there are within the arts and how music can work the mind.
