What is the practical purpose of those “specials” kids have in school- you know, P.E., Art, Music, Library? There is even another special to simply help kids keep up with the gadgets that find their way into schools: a Technology class! Do these specials interfere with the demands for academic proficiency? Do they make it […]
Electives & Special Areas
Black History Month and PBL: Ideas for Educators
As we enter February, 2018, schools across America will engage in activities celebrating Black History Month in the United States. There is a strong current in secondary education today where the goal is to move classroom activities away from teacher-centered activities toward “project-based learning” or PBL. This trend has specific criteria that ensure rigorous learning […]
The Solar Eclipse-A Unique Teaching Opportunity
The Solar Eclipse-A Unique Teaching Opportunity On August 21st, 2017, we will see something amazing. For the first time in over 30 years, there will be a total solar eclipse. This is when the moon comes between the sun and the earth, blocking the sun. This year, the total eclipse will travel across North America. Other […]
Teaching the “I Can’t” Student
People are raised hearing all kinds of information about themselves from those around them. From a young age, we overhear the conversations our parents have about how great we are at sports, how academically gifted we are, or the kinds of things we struggle with. This constant narration of our strengths and downfalls begins to […]
The Importance of Incorporating the Arts Across Subjects Areas
As teachers, we are all familiar with the acronym STEM when it comes to education; however, the “STEAM” is a less well-known acronym, but it is gaining traction in the world of education. STEAM aims to incorporate the arts using an interdisciplinary approach, in addition to incorporating the sciences outlined in STEM. Long before these […]
Learning to See Through Fine Arts
In high school, I was taught how to see. The best art teacher I have ever had stood in front of the class and gave us the simplest explanation as to why our drawings and paintings did not look lifelike. The images being recorded on our pages were symbols of what we thought pictures should […]
Teaching Creativity: Simplicity and Decision-Making
By: Aimee Cribbs There was a Christmas that Santa filled my daughter’s stocking with masking tape because my little girl was not interested in the season’s hottest toys, but making things out of the boxes they came in. As an art educator in retrospect, I realize how this unsophisticated Christmas contributed to my now-teenage daughter’s […]
Whiteboarding Your Way to Relationships
by: DeAna Morgan This was my “first” year in my second high school teaching position. I was super stoked to be building an art department from the ground up again. It’s always a trying and exciting time when you start over because you fear fitting in, finding everything, and getting used to the new groove. […]