Expressive Arts and Culture – Megan Baines UWS ITE ePDP

Learning with narrative and visual methods to construct meaning in and through the Expressive Arts

For this week’s session, we took the learning outdoors and went to Kelvingrove Art Gallery in Glasgow. I often visited this museum when I was a young child but I have not been in a very long time. This was a fantastic learning experience as we got the opportunity to take part in various work shops and activities, ones that are available to primary schools across the country. It allowed me to witness the amazing opportunities and learning experiences that a trip to a museum would give to a class of pupils. I found that not being in the university classroom made the learning experience more engaging and stimulating right from the start and I was very intrigued to find out what the rest of the afternoon had to offer.

DCSM (2003-2004) suggest that “Museums inspire powerful and identity-building learning in children, young people and community members”. I think this is an important fact to consider, especially with the educational opportunities that museums offer to schools and nurseries. I was interested to discover that Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum offer many educational sessions for nursery, primary and secondary school classes. They ensure that these sessions cover areas of the curriculum to provide an effective and efficient learning experience for the children. We were given a handbook that outlined some of the experiences they offer to pupil’s and the curricular areas and levels that they would be suitable for. I took this resource home as I feel that it will be very beneficial to have whilst on placement.

This is a section of the handbook that outlines the experiences the museum offer to schools.

Our afternoon began, by having the chance to observe a group of primary children taking part in a learning session about the ancient Egyptians. The children appeared to be very engaged and stimulated throughout the session. They were given the opportunity to hold real-life artifacts from the Egyptian time period, and discuss what they think the object might be, what it was used for and so on. Opportunities like this one, allow for pupils to develop their cognitive skills by being asked higher-order thinking questions as well as develop their knowledge and understanding in an engaging, exciting and fun way, one that they would not get in the classroom. As a group, we were able to take part in a similar activity where we got to touch and smell various Victorian artifacts and try and guess what they were. I found this very difficult and I will admit that I did not guess any of them correctly.

This was one of the artifacts that we had to guess the purpose of.

My most enjoyable part of the day was getting the chance to create my own version of the floating heads that are displayed within the gallery. I always loved looking at the floating heads when I was younger, as I was often fascinated and intrigued by the different expression that each face held. The woman gave us step by step instructions and a demonstration on how to create our floating heads. We were actively encouraged to use our imagination and creative abilities so that everyone had a different floating head. I tried to make my floating head look like myself but I don’t think I achieved that aim very well. I will let you make your own judgement on that.

Another part of the afternoon that I was really happy to experience was seeing the painting “Windows in the West” by Avril Paton. We have previously looked and studied this painting and even took inspiration from it for our print making so it was an incredible opportunity to see this painting in real-life. It was a lot larger than I had initially expected and it was an excellent opportunity to see and appreciate the detail and work that went into this painting.

Overall, I found this input a very informative, enjoyable, interesting and engaging learning experience. I can appreciate the benefits of taking pupils to an art gallery and museum, like this one, as it provides them with opportunities that they wouldn’t get to experience within the classroom. A trip like this can make a topic, being taught in school, more exciting, fun, engaging and enjoyable for the pupils. Additionally, DCSM (2003-2004) further suggest that museums “Target and motivate disadvantaged individuals and groups effectively”. This is something that I strongly agree with and is something that I have actually witnessed throughout my placement. There is a boy in my class who often struggles to maintain focus and listen throughout lessons such as mathematics or literacy and english. However, when he was taking part in an arts lesson which involved designing their Titanic boats he excelled, engaged and participated fully in the lesson. Therefore, I believe than an opportunity to visit an art gallery and museum would be a huge benefit not only for this particular child but for many children as they are given the chance to explore, use their imagination and be creative in a real-life manner.

As mentioned in my previous blog post, I said that I would attach a picture of my finished concrete poetry. I am very pleased with my finished outcome as I feel like I managed to demonstrate my evocative object and the feelings and emotions attached with it in a creative, engaging, stimulating way which is pleasing to the eye. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of creating this piece of art, it allowed me to reflect, increase my confidence, build on existing knowledge and develop new skills. This is an experience that I would love to do with pupils as I think creating a piece of art work that you are emotionally attached to keeps you engaged, concentrated and it makes the experience more enjoyable.

References:

DCSM, (2003-2004) Inspiration, Identity, Learning: The Value of Museums. [Online] Available: https://lra.le.ac.uk/bitstream/2381/21/1/Inspiration%2C%20Identity%2C%20Learning_The%20value%20of%20museums.pdf [Accessed: 23rd February 2018]

Learning in and through the Outdoor Environment in the Expressive Arts

This session aimed to highlight the benefits of allowing children the opportunity to experience art through the outdoor environment. I was not present for this lesson so I do not know what activities took place, however I have carried out some personal research to increase my knowledge and understanding of learning in and through the outdoor environment in the expressive arts.

I believe that is vital that children are provided with numerous opportunities to take their learning outside the classroom, especially with the arts, as children are still able to develop their knowledge, understanding and skills whether they are in a classroom or in the playground. Adams (2008) says that allowing children to engage in art projects using the outdoors will “nurture different ways of thinking and feeling, provide opportunities for active learning and problem solving, develop skills of perception, communication and invention and encourage the exploration of different social roles and relationships.” Therefore as a future educator, it is my role to ensure that I provide the pupils with opportunities to develop these skills and learn from their peers in a fun, engaging and safe learning environment.

I believe that teachers should use the outdoors for lessons as it provides the children with a vast amount of space, opportunities to develop their physical and mental health, provides them with constant states of curiosity as well as the opportunities to explore as well as the options to use and create things from natural resources. Whilst researching the benefits of teaching outdoors I found a manifesto from The Learning Outside the Classroom (2006) which states: “Every young person should experience the world beyond the classroom as an essential part of learning and personal development, whatever their age, ability or circumstances.” This outlined to me the importance of providing all children, regardless of their age, ability or circumstance, with the chance to experience their learning of the arts in an outdoor environment. I believe it is vital for me to take their age, ability, circumstance and stage of development into account when planning the lesson but they should all have the same opportunity to experience the outdoor environment for their learning.

On reflection, I feel that learning in and through the outdoor environment is often overlooked and undervalued throughout education. Teachers often appear to have concerns about taking children outside, in regards to time management, safety, lack of control and adhering to important guidelines and documents. It is important to note that you do not need vast amounts of green space to produce a fun and engaging lesson, a simply playground with various trees and bushes will capture a child’s curiosity and imagination and therefore lead to a more creative result. In a different module called ‘Sustainable Development’ we were given the opportunity to take markings from leaves and trees outdoors using different coloured pencils to allow us to explore the different textures felt on the leaves and trees. This was an excellent opportunity to combine science and art, it was a very engaging, knowledgeable and fun lesson, one that I think many pupil’s would enjoy to participate in.

As a student teacher, I often feel anxious and worried about taking the children outside as I feel that I might have a lack of control and pupils could get lost, hurt or messy. However, it is important for me to get over this fear and realise that I should be confident in my own abilities and my fears and worries should not impact on the pupil’s learning.

Throughout this week, I had been working on my concrete poetry at home to hopefully have completed next week to hand in to our lecturer. I have been paying particular focus to the piece of writing incorporating 62 words on our feelings and emotions surrounding our evocative object. I have added more words, drawn the symbol and included a range of materials such as cardboard love hearts to provide texture, depth and creativity to my piece of work. Next week, I will have my poster completed and will post some pictures of the final piece.

My poster with the symbol and some more words focusing on my feelings and emotions around my evocative object.

This is my poster, including colours and different material to provide texture and depth.

References:

Adams, E. (2008) Art and Design Education and the Built Environment. In Coutts, G. and Jokela, T. (Eds) Art, Community and Environment: Education Perspectives. Bristol: Intellect.

British Government, (2006) Learning Outside the Classroom Manifesto. [Online] Available: http:// www.lotc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/G1.-LOtC-Manifesto.pdf [Accessed: 11th February 2018]

Learning through the concept of STEM to STEAM

This week’s input focused on the concept STEM to STEAM. Prior to this lesson, I lacked a lot of knowledge and understanding regarding this concept. I had not heard of STEM to STEAM before and was very intrigued to develop my understanding of this concept, as I believe that as a student teacher it is vital that I fully understand this concept to create more effective, efficient, fun and enjoyable lessons for the pupils.

The terms STEM and STEAM both stand and mean different things. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics whereas STEAM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics (STEAM, 2018). When looking at this concept, I considered the question that many people might ask and one I asked myself: How does a teacher combine science and art?. Science and the arts are both experimental subjects and therefore carry an element of risk. This could be a risk of an experiment going wrong or entering the ‘unknown’ with an art piece. It is important to realise that the arts can be used as a positive resource to help carry the more difficult subjects like mathematics, science or technology. This was demonstrated throughout the input today. As part of this session, we looked through leaflets of festivals and exhibitions held at Dynamic Earth. From this, it was apparent how easily art can be integrated with subjects like science and technology.

It is crucial to realise that introducing STEAM does not mean less time is spent on STEM subjects and more time is spent on the arts, but it is about applying creative thinking to STEM projects, and enhancing children’s creativity and imagination through the arts. As an aspiring teacher, I need to ensure I find the most suitable and natural ways for art to fit into the STEM subjects. Using STEAM, allows pupil’s the opportunity “to utilize their artistic talents to generate innovative thinking” (Teach Hub, n.d.). Therefore, as a student teacher, I need to bring ambition, creativity and confidence to the future jobs that I acquire.

It is important for teachers to give the pupils a range of experiences and opportunities in school that they wouldn’t be able to do at home. Educators should think outside the box with their lessons, to spark imagination and innovation within the pupils. It is vital to remember and acknowledge that children relish the opportunity to go to places in their minds and work from their imagination, and they have an innate ability to do this easily. However, this is something that perhaps gets lost or is diminished the older they get. There is a quote by Ken Robinson (2001) that I feel sums this up perfectly “We don’t grow into creativity; we grow out of it. Often we are educated out of it.” I want to ensure to provide opportunities for pupils to experience the concept of STEAM and foster this ability in all of the pupils at a level suitable to them, with consideration to their age and stage of development.

After having discussed STEM to STEAM as a class, we then moved on to continuing our artwork based on our evocative object. We were encouraged to create a piece of writing, no longer than 62 words, and use it as a stimulus to create a piece of art. I was unsure at first how I wanted mine to look, therefore I tried a few different ideas before creating the final product. I knew the different words and emotions that I wanted to include throughout my image but I was not confident in the position, font and style of the words throughout my art piece. I began writing different feelings and emotions on a piece of paper to include into my piece of art. This week I considered my reflections from last week and took them on board. Therefore, I began to change my piece of art by taking a new piece of paper and using gold paint and light brushstrokes for my background. Once the paint was dry, I began to lightly wright some of the feelings and emotions connected with my evocative object. Next week, I will begin to incorporate the symbol and colour throughout my piece of art.

This was the beginning of my new piece of art work. I used light brush strokes to add depth to my painting.

I began incorporating different feelings and emotions connected to my evocative object. I tried to use various styles and fonts throughout my words.

Throughout the past few weeks, I have found that having the opportunity to work on this artwork over a period of time has enabled me to create something more effective and meaningful and I have had a lot of fun and enjoyment whilst creating it. From having more time to work on the artwork, allowed more creative ideas to flow that otherwise would not have occurred or had the chance to come to life. What is making this piece of art so enjoyable is that it is all of my own ideas, imagination and memories that are being incorporated to my creation.

On reflection, I have found this input very helpful, knowledgeable and enjoyable. I believe that STEAM is the correct way to move forward in education and I want to ensure that throughout my placement I engage with STEAM and and provide the pupils with opportunities to become confident individuals, successful learners, responsible citizens, and effective contributors as detailed in the Curriculum for Excellence. Robinson (2001) stated that “If creativity is to become central to our futures, it first has to move to the heart of education”. I fully agree with this statement and believe that creativity needs to become more apparent and central within the Curriculum for Excellence.

References:

STEAM, (2018) Stem to Steam. [Online] Available: http://stemtosteam.org/ [Accessed 4th February 2018]

Teach Hub, (n.d.) STEM vs STEAM: What is Better?. [Online] Available: http://www.teachhub.com/stem-vs-steam-what-is-better [Accessed 4th February 2018]

Robinson, K. (2001) Out of our Minds: Learning to be Creative, Oxford, Capstone.

Education Scotland. (2017) What is Curriculum for Excellence? [Online] Available: https://education.gov.scot/scottish-education-system/policy-for-scottish-education/policy-drivers/cfe-(building-from-the-statement-appendix-incl-btc1-5)/What%20is%20Curriculum%20for%20Excellence [Accessed: 4th February 2018].

Learning through Animation

This week’s input focused on learning through animation. I was able to develop my knowledge, understanding and skills in relation to animation and the various ways it can be used within the arts and within education. Animation can be described in numerous different ways, the main one being “the process of making films in which drawings or puppets appear to move” (Collins Dictionary, 2018).

I was very amazed and interested to find that some of the first discoveries of animation were traced back to the Egyptian times, where there were sequences of images used to decorate the walls of Egyptian tombs. Since then, capturing motion has been a main search and theme for artistic endeavor and with the advancement in technology it has allowed for animation to become diverse. Animation can range from motion pictures and games to medicine and scientific stimulation. As a child, some of my earliest and favorite movies were created through the form of animation, Walt Disney and Dreamworks are some of the twentieth-first century animators that created animated film cartoons such as Mickey Mouse, Shrek, Donald Duck and the Jungle Book. From my own experiences with animation, I enjoyed the fact that it gave life to the characters, it allows you to explore your own imagination and experience a different form of art.

Through my own research and discussion in class, I was interested to discover the ways in which animation can have a positive effect in education. I was able to find that animation gives pupils the opportunity to develop their literacy and visual literacy skills, build problem-solving skills, discriminate and interpret action and images, encourage critical thinking (e.g. which looks better, why does that one look better) and encourage collaboration and co-operation with their peers. As a student teacher, it is vital to appreciate how relevant and important it is to teach children about animation. I believe it should be used across the curriculum as a creative resource for pupils to explore and stimulate a wide range of themes and ideas and create their own animations.

I was fascinated to find the many ways to explore animation in art without the use of technology. During this input we discussed a form of moving image called flick books. It was interesting to discover that from the invention of flick books and other early animated toys, inspiration was found and gave the idea of moving pictures based on real life which in turn created the cinema. I found that flick books are an easy, enjoyable and exciting way to create a series of animations. When creating my own flick book, I decided to start with a simple idea of a stick man waving. For this all I needed was post-it notes and a pen. On reflection, I found that the post-it notes were difficult to flick and therefore in the future I would try to use index cards as they are thicker and therefore would be easier to flick.

This is my first step in my creation of a flick book.

This is my second stage in my creation of a flick book.

This is the third step in my creation of a flick book.

This is the fourth step in the creation of my flick book.

This is the final stage in my creation of a flick book.

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From having the opportunity to develop and create my own flick book, it gave me the knowledge and inspiration in creating an activity, similar to this one, throughout my placement. As an aspiring teacher, I can appreciate the difficulty in finding the resources and time to accommodate more advanced, creative activities. However, I do believe that the expressive arts is a vital subject within the curriculum and therefore should be treated with the same respect as literacy and mathematics. For this activity, I only needed some post-it notes and a pen and it took me roughly 10 minutes to create. Therefore, lessons can be created to discuss the progression that technology has had on animation and children can sketch and make their own flick book to see where animation first began, be imaginative, have fun, be creative and work alongside their peers. Through my own research, I discovered that creating an activity with animation not only correlates with the ‘Expressive Arts’ subject within the curriculum but also ‘Technologies’. I found that there are numerous experiences and outcomes that would provide the desired learning for the pupils through an activity like this one.

This input allowed me to further develop my knowledge, understanding and skills of animation through the arts. It highlighted to me the importance of providing children with creative opportunities as they find excitement, enjoyment and wonder through their own creations. I have discovered various ways to demonstrate and teach children about the progression of animation throughout the years and provide learning experiences for them to develop their own knowledge and skills of animation in the arts. I was able to reflect on my areas of strength and areas for development in creating my own flickbook, which in turn showed me that in the future if I was creating a flickbook, with children, index cards would be the most suitable resource to use.

References:

Collins Dictionary. (2018) Definition of animation. [Online] Available: https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/animation [Accessed 21st January 2018]

Fractus Learning. (2017) 5 Real Benefits of Using Animation in the Classroom. [Online] Available: https://www.fractuslearning.com/2013/12/06/animation-in-the-classroom/ [Accessed 21st January 2018]

Moving Image Education. (2018) Moving Image Education. [Online] Available: https://movingimageeducation.org/ [Accessed 21st January 2018]

Learning through evocative objects for teaching and learning

This was our first introduction to the module ‘Expressive Arts and Culture’ and it was one filled with knowledge, understanding, emotion, reflection and provided us all with an insight into what this module will entail.

This particular session focused on ‘Learning through evocative objects for teaching and learning’. Prior to this input, I had never heard or explored the term ‘evocative object’ so I was intrigued to research what this type of object was and the importance of it within the arts community. I found that the term evocative means “bringing strong images, memories, or feelings to mind.” (Oxford University Press, 2018). There is a book called “Evocative Objects”(2011) edited by Sherry Turkle, where 34 authors (scientists, scholars, artists, architects) describe their relations to evocative objects. Turkle, (2011, pg. 5) suggests that “We think with the objects we love; we love the objects we think with”. This message correlates with my own thoughts, feelings and reflections about my evocative object.

For this input, we were required to bring in our own evocative object and discuss it with our peers. I decided to bring in my ‘You Matter Always’ card which was made and given to me by my mum. This little card, of memories and messages, is a reminder of how important I am, how much I am loved and that whatever happens in my life, my thoughts, feelings, voice, story and life matters…ALWAYS.

This card holds so much meaning, purpose, hope and strength for me. It is a visual aid that I can carry with me wherever I go and access it if or when I need to. The photographs are snapshots of happy times and memorable moments in my life with the people that love me the most. The message that my mum personally wrote for me reminds me of how proud she is of me and how much she loves me. I laughed when I first seen my mum’s message as she thought she was being cool by calling me “Megan B.” It was one of those moments when your mum thinks that she is cooler than what she actually is, but I love her for it. What I appreciate most about this card is that my mum is here to give it to me personally because there were times when she was very unwell and we worried for her own safety and well-being. It means more than people could possibly understand because it brought so much light to a very dark period of time in our lives. It is a permanent reminder that we all have strengths, abilities and potential and our lives are of value. It is a creative way of letting people know how you feel about them before it is to late.

This is the front of my own ‘You Matter Always’ card.

This is the back of my ‘You Matter Always’ card. I choose the ‘LOVE’ saying as it was the one that spoke the most to me. My mum also has cards with “TALK, HOPE, CARE, MIND, CALM and HERO”.

Whilst my evocative object is unique to me, each card can be created with a specific person and message in mind for people of all ages, genders, cultures etc. My mum designed this tool of self-management and empowerment from a place of respect, love and hope and a recognition that to often people feel that they don’t matter. To me, this is inconceivable and unacceptable because everyone has inherent strengths that can be built upon to reach their full potential in life. We as educators, can play a fundamental role in helping to build a child’s self-worth, self-esteem and confidence in their own abilities. Who they are matters!. Their thoughts, feelings, voice, story and lives matter…ALWAYS. I have attached an example of a card that was made by an 8 year old girl who attended an event that my mum was volunteering at. She desperately wants to make a difference to others and asked what she could do, so my mum said just be you. They went on to create cards and talk together, this is one of the cards that she made for her auntie who was unwell.

The ‘You Matter Always’ card created by the 8 year old girl.

I think this highlights how the smallest gesture can make the biggest difference and that encouraging children to talk more openly about their thoughts and feelings can be a positive experience. Expression can be demonstrated in a number of ways and by different means. You Matter Always is a tool that aims to complement the interventions already out there. It appreciates that you don’t have to be an artist to be creative, it is about acknowledging and celebrating your ability to be innovative and artistic. As a student teacher, I respect and value the significance of expressive arts within the curriculum and believe that it’s value could be more recognised on an individual, cultural and societal level. An author who appears to appreciate and understand the value of creativity within an educational setting is Sir Ken Robinson (2006) who states that “We are educating people out of their creative capacities…I believe this passionately, that we don’t grow into creativity, we grow out of it. Or rather, we get educated out of it.”

Exploring emotions and feelings through the arts was very intriguing and interesting to me. I thoroughly enjoyed the group discussion that centered on everyone’s evocative objects. However, I did find aspects of the discussion difficult, as I often do not like to discuss the hard times in my life and tend to put a brave face on instead of talking through my thoughts, feelings and emotions. The group discussion allowed me to fully understand what an evocative object is as I was able to see first hand an object that to me, would look like an everyday thing such as a necklace, bus pass, card or a coin. However, to that person held a deeper meaning and memory. In the next few weeks, we will have the opportunity to create our own piece of art based on the feelings and emotions from our evocative object. Expressive arts and evocative objects can allow a degree of reflection to take place as it can remind you of where you have been, what you have learned and where you are going. Additionally, it encourages us to consider the influence or impact that the person or object has had on our life choices, chances and changes. Undertaking this module, is inspiring me to research the area of ‘Expressive Arts’ further and implement it into future practice.

Furthermore, throughout this input we were able to consider exploring ‘the unknown’. The unknown, for me, is something that as an adult I often find difficult as I often want to know the end product or outcome before I begin. However, as an aspiring teacher it is crucial that I recognise the power in the unknown and encourage my pupils to be expressive through a variety of means: dance, drama, art, write and draw without knowing what the end result will be. We were all given a selection of pipe cleaners and told to create anything that came to mind. By the end of this session, everyone ended up with a different model. For me, this allowed each and every individual to be creative in their own ideas without comparing there finished work with each other in a negative way.

References:

Oxford University Press. (2008) Definition of ‘Evocative’. [Online] Available: https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/evocative [Accessed: 14th January 2018]

Turkle, S. (2011) Evocative Objects. USA: MIT Press Books

Ted Talks, (2006). Do schools kill creativity? [Online] Available: https://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity [Accessed: 14th January 2018]