Field Experience Fall 2009

Overall I had a very good experience in the field. The 4th graders were really cute, smart, and full of energy. I got very attached to them in just a few weeks and hated to come back to class. They were all unique with their own strengths. There were about twice as many boys as girls and they were very active. Some were very smart and others had such great needs. My cooperating teacher was a fun and effective teacher. She didn't use the arts as much as I would hope but the children really enjoyed the activities they did. On Fridays the students would go to a recorder class, a singing class, or a music appreciation class. I only attended the singing class but the students obviously loved it. It was a fun way to end the week. The students would even request songs. The teacher had recordings of songs about Utah and Christmas songs. She had the words on an overhead. All of the students were singing and some even danced.

We also had the opportunity to go on a field trip to the Utah Valley Symphony. The cooperating teacher taught the children about different types of music and had the students list examples in each category. Then she talked about musical instruments and the categories that they fit in. Then she gave each student a picture of an instrument and had them sort them into the right category. The last part of the lesson was having the students watch a video about Peter and the Wolf. Then the class attended the Symphony. The children all dressed up and the teacher instructed (and threatened) the students about how to behave. The Symphony played a group of marches starting with Indiana Jones. The director taught the children about marches from different composers. He even had the children listen for certain things and had them do motions to some of the songs. I was amazed at how good the children were once the concert started. This was definitely a successful unit on music.

We had two arts lessons. The first was integrated into a lesson plan. The lesson was on the Ute Indians. At the end of the lesson I read a legend called The Horse Raid. After I read it we discussed what they learned from it and what they could visualize. We were going to have the students draw what they visualized but we unfortunately ran out of time. I was disappointed because I would have been interested to see their pictures. I wondered if the boys would have illustrated the more different parts of the legend than the girls.

Our second arts lesson was a pow wow dance at the end of the unit on the Ute tribe. At the beginning of the lesson we reviewed what we had learned about the Utes. Then we taught the children a dance to the chorus to give them an idea of what to do. Brittney and I had made them Indian headbands which they enjoyed. We danced together as a class and then had the students go into the center one at a time to create movements to the dance. It was fun to see the children relax and have fun and show their personalities. They got a little wild but I would still do it again. The next time I would give strict instructions and guidance so the children wouldn't get out of hand. I would also allow more time and scaffolding for the dance. (Dr. Escalante) sometimes just started doing an activity of dance and had us follow while giving us instruction. Sometimes that works better than trying to explain first. I think this type of activity would be fun to do every 2-3 weeks. It could even be a reward for good behavior. I think the children would learn how to behave appropriately and would have fun building upon,exploring, and expanding dance movements.

Visual Arts-elements, principles, and illustrators

It has been fun learning about art elements and principles. I think it is important to teach children about proportion, balance, rhythm, variety, emphasis, and unity. Teaching these elements gives them words so they can name and identify what they see in art. These elements also expand their knowledge and vocabulary in other areas besides art. I think analyzing art opens up a new world of expression to them. It expands their view of the world and allows them to better understand other points of view.

I would love to use the SWAPP pictures. If the school that I teach at doesn't have the pictures I will definitely buy the postcards. Using these pictures would introduce the students to different styles of art. These pictures would be a great way to introduce the elements of art in an interactive way like we did in class. The postcards have a great variety of art on them and I like that some information about the artist and the picture are included.

It was so much fun learning about the children's books illustrators. This would be a great way to introduce children to illustrators, authors, and fun books. It would also be a good way to introduce them to different principles of art such as collage, line drawing, painting, etc. It would be fun to have the students pick an illustrator and do reports and have the students do projects like we did. My children have done author reports at school about their favorite author. This project was a great way for them to read, write,and report orally. They also learn about other books that interest them from other children.

I definitely want to teach about art in the classroom to help the students become better artists, to give them an appreciation for art, and inorder for them to just enjoy art.

Visual Arts

This week in class we got to experiment with the elements of art including line, shape, color, value, texture, and space. I am probably biased because I love art. It was enjoyable to paint and draw. I think these exercises would be a great way to help students understand these words. They are simply words until you get to experiment with line, texture, value, etc. Doing things like creating a spectrum of value really helps you understand and internalize what it is. These would be a great way to expand student's knowledge of the depth of what can be done by using the different elements. I think art allows students who may have difficulty expressing themselves otherwise to express themselves. Learning how to do art also gives the student more appreciation for professional artists. I am also excited to do the children's art illustrator's presentations.

Music and Dance

Last week our music/dance class was my favorite out of all my classes all semester. It was so much fun! I enjoyed seeing what the different groups put together for their lessons. These activities would add a lot of fun and creativity to lessons. I think these type of activities engage students and draw them into whatever is being taught. Movement forces them to "walk in their shoes" like we did when dramatizing the slaves with the Henry's Freedom Box book. I loved the book and would like to do that activity. The Utah Counties song was useful also. I liked that the teachers constantly changed the activity so it didn't become monotonous. They used beach balls, clapping, and striking a pose.

The schoolhouse rock dance about the revolutionary war was fun and reinforced the main events of that war. I also enjoyed the "rock" song and think it would capture student's attention for the lesson. The lesson on dancing to different types of music was a lot of fun. As a student it's a little intimidating at first to create a dance but very enjoyable. Creating the Indian dance was fun also. Lastly, the water cycle song was so cute. It was easy to learn but taught the main points of the water cycle and taught some very important vocabulary.

I would love to use dance and music in the classroom. I am amazed that it is pretty simple to introduce the song or dance and the students just take off with the idea and further dramatize and embellish on the idea. I hope that wherever I teach the arts are fully used and appreciated. I think students can retain information that was taught to music for years. Impressive!

Reflection 3 Dance!

I think children's dance specialists might focus more on creative dance for education because most studio or social dance follows specific movements that must be learned over a long period of time. In the classroom we might not have enough time to devote to learning these skills. These types of dance might not appeal to boys or even some girls. Studio or social dance would be harder to integrate into other lessons and might not allow for as much creativity. I don't remember for much dance in my elementary school except for children who had been taught studio dance performing.
I really liked the dances we learned last week-the flocking, machines, the harvest dance, and the nature dance. I would like to use dances like these in the classroom. I think they are (relatively) quickly learned and allow the children to express their creativity and emotions. I would like to use them within the curriculum like you said by teaching them about who performed the harvest dance and why. My son's 5th grade classes did an impressive veteran's day program in which they sang and danced wearing simple costumes from different time periods from various wars. It was a memorable learning experience for the students and parents.
I enjoy when schools perform a yearly dance program but I would like to use dance more often and more fully integrated with what is being learned. I was impressed that I wouldn't have to demonstrate much dance to get students started and let them use their imaginations. I would also love to do dances such as the skeleton dance or demonstrating fractions through dance. I would also like to teach my students how to do a dance and then take them on a field trip to see professionals perform. I think learning to do a dance and then see it performed would give them a richer experience. I'm excited to use dance in the classroom!

Dance!

I have been reading about integrating dance into the classroom. One of my favorite quotes was, "There are shortcuts to happiness, and dancing is one of them." I love dancing. I love listening to the music and watching the band and the other dancers. I also enjoy watching dancers on TV or live. I think it will be neat to incorporate dance into the classroom. It would be neat to learn the dance of a people you are studying such as pioneers, Hispanics, people from Russia, etc. I think dance allows you to feel a people's personality and passion. I would enjoy integrating dance into science by doing things such as the skeleton dance. I also liked the idea that we read about students acting out fractions. Students enjoy sharing a bit of themselves through dance even though it might come easier to some than others. I also am excited to teach children the history of dance and to show them videos or even live performances. I think experiencing dance truly does make a "whole" person.

I'm really excited about this arts integration class. I have always loved art, music, and drama so I'm excited to be able to do these things with students. I enjoyed the reading and was happily surprised to learn that the arts help students to have less discipline problems and that it helped students, even the low-income students. It's amazing that it also helps them have increased concentration, more cooperation, and greater self-discipline. I think it's true that the arts bring energy to the classroom and the students have a natural interest in them.
I have enjoyed the activities that we have done like "who started the motion," mirroring, and process drama. I know that I'm a little intimidated by drama but these were a fun way to break into drama. I liked the fact that some of these activities only involve two people which isn't quite as scary.
I would love to use the arts in the classroom. I could imagine playing soft music while the students work or even having them share music occasionally. I think it would be neat to have them act out novels or history they are reading. There would be lots of fun ways to use art also. One class I saw drew life size portraits of various explorers and hung them in the hallway. My daughter had an assignment where she illustrated the bill of rights. I think she'll remember it forever. I would also like to have the children read plays and dramatize the parts. Even if they just do fun voices it adds a lot of enjoyment to reading. I hope to get many more ideas in this class about integrating the arts into the classroom.