WEEK 3 My *1st* Blog!!!

*My finished product of class-activity: Visual v. Haptic Learners*

WEEK #3 9.17.2011
Well this is exciting!  This is my first blog ever.  I still have to wrap my head around the idea of what a blog is...a "weB-LOG".  Well, here is to my journey on becoming an Art Teacher!!!  It's very exciting and I am very nervous at the same time.  Every Saturday morning, I wake up with the anticipation of going to class to learn.  My head leaves *full* but, afterall, it is a very rewarding feeling knowing that my money is worth the education I am receiving...and I am living out my passion, how amazing is that???  I used to tell my mentees at the High School that I mentored at, that I go to my classes, but it's also like going to "therapy" at the same time...painting, watercolor, collage...all my studio classes that I just get "lost-in."  Howard Gardner once said, "the creative self is like a laser beam, and nothing around it seems to exist." 

My team and I are working on building a *HIGH-SCHOOL* Unit-Plan together.  To be completely honest, I was a bit intimidated to teach at the high school level, but I believe mentoring at the high school level last Fall (2010) has helped ease my worries and I matured and developed through the whole experience. Stepping outside of anyones comfort zone is *vital* for personal growth to occur. 

I am also working on an ice-breaker idea.  So far, I am thinking of cutting up puzzle pieces out of paper.  Each student will receive a puzzle piece on the first day of class and be instructed to write their name somewhere, anywhere, they would like on their puzzle piece.  I was thinking, I would like to do the visual vs. haptic learner activity with the students as well.  We can utilize the Mona Brookes hand-out we recieved, Learning to Draw.  February, 1994.  Also, each student will have the opportunity to experience coloring with cray-pas.  All the students will have to interact with one another to put the pieces of the puzzle together.   Finally, the students will fill out a student survey.  Each student will also have a manila folder that their student surveys will be stored in.  The manila folder will act as the*student*portfolio* during our ten-week journey together...

I would like to end each entry with a prose:

" Learning and teaching should not stand on opposite banks and just watch the river flow by. 

Instead, they should embark together on a journey from the water.  Through an active, reciprocal exchange, teaching can strengthen learning how to learn."  Loris Malaguzzi, 1998.