Art Education Ideas & Resources

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            Knowing a great deal about your content area and being informed of what is happening in your professional community is essential to creating relevant and engaging lesson plans. Keeping a detailed record of ideas you glean from others, discover from online resources, and learn from classes, both teaching and as a student, will provide a rich pool of information to tailor into unique lesson plans. Maintaining flexibility and experimenting with your lessons, also tends to improve the final outcome.

Visiting art museums and attending art events also provides opportunities for ideas. Looking for unique styles and creative use of materials can provide inspiration for a unique lesson plan and introduce you to work that you might not otherwise see. This would also be a great opportunity to organize a group tour for students and other art educators in your area.

Meeting with other art educators and working to create a sense of community will also create opportunities for collaborative work and the exchange of information and experiences. Observing other art educators in their classrooms to will also provide you with additional ideas for classroom organization, seating arrangements, as well as how they present, and proceed though art lessons.  

           

Mission Statement

Every student is innately creative and capable of creative problem solving. My role as an art advocate and educator is to further develop this creativity and share my knowledge and passion for the arts with my students and school community.

Creating A Positve Environment in the Art Room

Creating a positive environment in the art room begins with clearly presented expectations and behavior guidelines. Respect for educators, other students and art materials must be emphasized. Students should embrace attitudes of cooperation, caring and being considerate of one another. The majority of districts have school-wide policies that incorporate many of these ideas and the art room should work to build on them. The goal is to work together and create a positive environment where students feel creative, safe and welcome.

Using portions of the first few art lessons to set up clear expectations will inform students about the appropriate use of their art time. Utilizing technology will assist you in creating an interesting presentation. Including games and other engaging aspects will also increase student interest.

Effective organization of the art room will also help to create as positive learning environment. Adding artistic details where possible will set a positive example for students and increase their interest level. Hanging examples of art projects and various artists’ work and information on the classroom walls is another method of increasing student interest in art and creating a positive art experience.

Diverse Learners in the Art Room

Teaching in a classroom of diverse learners is a challenge educators will experience throughout their career. It is necessary to evaluate lesson plans and determine effective accommodations for students that are experiencing difficulties. Asking students questions about what aspects of the lesson they are frustrated with and working with them through difficulties, will allow you to gain a better perspective on the issues.

Incorporating a variety of visual aids, verbal instructions, and tactile aspects into both your classroom organization and your lesson plans will provide students with several options for instruction and information. Simple accommodations such as larger or smaller work materials and classroom design can also make a big difference. Being aware of and reflective about what is working well for your students and maintaining flexibility will create an environment where students will experience success in the art room.

Student Success in the Art Room

Art classes have always been an experience I look forward to. There is usually a way to create something unique and meaningful within the structure of an art lesson. Allowing students the freedom to approach an art lesson with a certain amount of personal choice will ideally motivate them to see the project through to completion. The satisfaction involved with creating a product that evokes a sense of pride and enjoyment also plays a role in student success in the art room.

The art room is a place where students can talk quietly after the demonstrations and directions for their project. I think students really enjoy visiting with their classmates and are free to continue doing so as long as they are working. As a student teacher, I tend to spend my time assisting students with their art and reminding them to follow the art room expectations. These expectations range from respecting art materials, to appropriate noise levels and creating quality work that meets the requirements of the lesson. There are times when students need to be reminded that there are requirements for a reason, to develop new skills.

There is also a sense of community in the art classroom. Students tend to ask each other for help and work well together, offering suggestions and ideas for creative problem solving. There are a couple of students who want other people to do their work for them, so you have to be aware and encourage them to practice to learn new skills.  I tend to remind them that we are all here to learn together and unless you continue to practice a skill, you will struggle with it. The more you practice these skills the more successful you will become in the art room.