Resources

      I chose 2 sites because teacherhub provides a great teacher service for connecting with other educators, not to mention a great list of why we need to integrate the arts. Teacherhub is a great tool for teachers to collaborate and share their ideas! I also listed educationcloset because they had some awesome premade lesson plans. I think a lot of us forget that integrating the arts does not always mean we have to "reinvent the wheel" there are resources out there for when our creative juices aren't flowing or when we just don't have the time. The lesson plans on this site are very well laid out and clearly integrate the arts in a meaningful context.

Teachertube - Why to integrate the arts
EducationCloset - Lesson Plans :)

Arts Standards: Music across Schooling

               Music standards incorporate EARL 1, understanding concepts and vocabulary, development of skills and techniques, understands genres and styles of various artists/cultures/times, and implements audience conventions in a variety of settings and performances. The music integration is a very gradual process that begins with simple responses, copying the sounds, and learning the fundamentals of music. During the elementary years the focus is on music “play” where students listen to and sing familiar songs and explore through games. By 4^th grade the focus shifts to learning about diverse cultural genres and music from various historical time periods. By middle school students begin to perform, compose, examine, and interpret music and begin making musical choices based on their abilities and experience. During middle school and high school the focus shifts to applying music to student experiences and finding ways to incorporate it in life.

               I was pleased to see that most of the standards were what I believed was important for integrating music in the classroom. I was glad to see that integration began with fun exploration of familiar materials to get kids really interested and engaged. I also agree that it’s essential to build the fundamental vocabulary and concepts of music early on, which I believe is a great gateway for learning how to read (pitch, rhythm, tempo, beats). I was also pleased to see that the integration of music gradually lead to individual exploration and finding ways to make it relatable.

               I was surprised to see, yet excited that this included a focus on exploring a variety of artists, cultures, and historical time periods! With music there are so many genres, especially once voices are included, which need to be explored! I was also very surprised to see that performing, composing, examining and interpreting music was not included until middle school. I think students naturally begin writing their own songs and are able to start thinking about what music means at a much younger age. I was also happily surprised to see the “high school advanced” category that indicated students will use their skills and knowledge in a career setting.

               EALR 1.2 and 1.1 incorporate concepts that are solely learned for music. Students must understand and apply the specific concepts and vocabulary of music in order to perform it. The development of skills and techniques in music is also something that can only occur with the practice and performance of music. On the other hand, EALR 1.3 and 1.4 would be great compliments to other content areas. The inclusion of various artists, cultures and historical time periods makes a fluid connection with social studies. Being able to understand audience conventions in a variety of setting and performances will nicely compliment writing and reading in language arts.

               I think that music integration is a fantastic way to get kids engaged, creatively thinking, and helps develop reading, writing, and social studies skills. Music can also be used for memorization (such as my “order of operations” song) and for assessing students’ learning. I want my students to begin composing their own music early on because it involves critical thinking, writing, reading, appealing to an audience, and finding ways to creatively express yourself. I also want to make sure my students have plenty of opportunities to listen to a variety of music genres/styles and will ask for their feedback on whether they liked it or not and why.

Resources for the Future!

Khan Academy
The ARTS OSPI

Blog #5: Teacher Interview

The Question: "What does an effective lesson look like in your classroom?"

Response: An effective lesson looks like all kids are actively engaged and excited to be learning. Each lesson will be carefully planned to be relevant and purposeful. The students will always be aware of the learning target which will be clearly displayed for every lesson. I will provide clear directions in student-appropriate terms in written and oral forms to address the needs of ELL and SPED learners. Lessons must incorporate the core standards, however they must also meet the needs and interests of our students. My lessons will be integrating music, arts, and movement as a means to increase students' engagement, critical thinking, motivation, and enduring understanding of the learning targets. Students in my classroom will be very hands-on, collaborative, and creatively thinking. Students who struggle with traditional teaching strategies will have more freedom to express their understanding while those who excel in traditional classrooms will be challenged to stretch their creativity and critical thinking. I will be able to directly monitor the lessons' success through progress monitoring during the activities, creative assessments, and exit slips. 

My Learning Stations

Hey guys! Here are my learning stations, hope you enjoy.

Art and Social Studies

Movement and Math

Music and Social Studies

Grants: How to get Funding for your Classroom

  In our classrooms, grants could play a huge role in funding our arts, movement and music education for our students. Especially in Title 1 schools, where music and arts are often the first things to be cut, grants provide students with opportunities to learn in an active and engaging atmosphere. Grants help fund our schools/classrooms with much needed (but not affordable) supplies! It is important to know about and apply for grants because it could be a huge game changer for the activities we can implement in our classrooms. Overall, these grants help increase our students' cognitive, creative, critical thinking, and engagement levels. 

Community Consortium Grant

Title: ArtsWA

What it is for:  
-On a 2 year cycle where annual funding is between $5,000-$20,000
-Arts learning for K-12 students and educators where students are "engaged in deep and long-term experiences, participate in authentic creative processes, and develop creative habits of mind and 21st century skills in addition to arts skills and techniques aligned with Washington State standards in the arts."

-Authentic partnership with community artists where shared goals, support and responsibilities for k-12 art education is implemented throughout the community. 

Who can Apply:

"The partnerships include schools and arts organizations, with buy-in from other community partners, such as local arts agencies, teaching artists, district leaders, parent/family groups, consultants, and local businesses."

*Washington state PUBLIC schools grades k-12

Requirements: 

Needs a significant amount of partnership commitments, well-developed approaches for improving arts teaching and learning, must effectively plan and be evaluated.

-Schools must follow Washington state arts standards and push for systematic changes in local school districts

- Must have a local focus that emphasizes responding to needs and opportunities and developing resources

- Educators who are up to date on arts research, training, and trends

Deadlines: 

Arts in Education Grants require a Final Report at the end of every fiscal year. Final Reports for Fiscal Year 2015 must be submitted via the Grants Online system, and must be received by July 31, 2015.

Blog Post #3 - Integrating Lessons

   In my classroom I want to make sure to provide meaningful and memorable experiences. I think that an area that is often overlooked is Social Studies where I have experienced and witnessed several teachers simply teaching out of a textbook and expecting the students to memorize places and dates. I think history is something that we need to experience whether it be through museum  visits, guest speakers, recreating art, or even role playing events from that time. Due to these reasons I have chosen to incorporate social studies, writing (as a means to reflect upon their experiences), music, and movement in this lesson plan.
   Fourth grade students are expected to understand the geographic features of the Pacific Northwest and I think since several of our students are from this area it would be a great opportunity to emphasize their knowledge. I would have students create a song, either rap, blues, pop, country, etc., that emphasizes the geographic features as well as the characteristics of the Pacific Northwest (for example if they want to include the Seattle Seahawks they are encouraged!). This song could be created in groups of 1-3 students and would be performed for the class. The rubric would include 5+ geographic features mentioned, group collaboration, and so forth.
   After creating and singing these songs, we would have a grand discussion about why people would want to live in Washington. This would lead into our next activity which includes writing and movement. Each student would be given a number which would lead to the formation of 2 groups. Each group will receive an envelope that describes what they have, where they live, and what they need for survival. The groups would begin creating their shelters/resources and soon one of the groups would start trying to steal/barter/and remove the other group from their land. This "game" is actually a reenactment of colonization in the Pacific Northwest. Warning - this type of game does lead to anger and hostility for some students!! After completing the "game" the students would be asked to create an opinion piece about who they thought should get to keep the land and would support their information with reasons and information.
*Following lessons would include guest speakers from the Nisqually tribe; a research project about colonization, an  artistic representation of the resources available in the northwest, and hopefully a local field trip to a museum!
   

SS EALR 4th Geography 3.2.3
Understands that the geographic features of the Pacific Northwest have influenced the movement of people.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.4.1
Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons and information.

http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/4/

http://www.k12.wa.us/CurriculumInstruct/learningstandards.aspx

 Blog Week 2
(In response to my partner teacher)

Although I agree that preparing for the SBAC is important, I do not agree that the arts is a waste of time. In fact, I believe that by incorporating the arts, movement and drama I am providing my students with opportunities to learn and prepare at a deeper level. Studies have shown that the arts enhance children's learning because they are able to create memorable experiences through hearing, seeing and feeling. The arts combine verbal and nonverbal information processing which provides a higher level integration and overall better remembering of the material.

In addition, research has indicated that the arts provide us with a variety of thinking forms. The arts require making judgment in the absence of rule, encourages flexible purposefulness, recognize the unity in form and content, and requires students to think within the constraints of their selected medium. Also, the arts allow children to establish for themselves a personal inner involvement with an artistic experience. All in all, the arts provide an engaging experience that is more memorable and ignites creative thinking.

Although the SBAC is a high stakes test, what it measures traces back to what we can learn through the arts. The performance tasks challenge students to respond to complex real problems using their skills and knowledge. In conjunction with the ELA SBAC, the arts share common elements of sound, time and space, and require skills of aural, kinesthetic and visual perception. These skills and experiences can be used for answering the performance task questions with a deep level of understanding.

In today's education there is a large emphasis on highs stakes testing, however these tests do not adequately prepare our students for the outside world. Steve Jobs even said that "The benefits of creative initiative may not be as clear and measurable as core subject test scores, but we should not underestimate the value of arts education for our youth." The use of art in education guides students to think for themselves, to be productive and innovative, and to enjoy the pursuit of knowledge. The arts will not only prepare them for these upcoming tests, it will enhance their ability to succeed in our society.

References:
Eisner, E. W. (2004). What can education learn from the arts about the practice of education. International Journal of Education & the Arts, 5(4), 1-12.

Heilig, J. V., Cole, H., & Aguilar, A. (2010). From Dewey to No Child Left Behind: The evolution and devolution of public arts education. Arts Education Policy Review, 111(4), 136-145.

Nadon-Gabrion, C. (1984). Language, a Bridge to Learning in Movement and Music. Theory Into Practice, 23(4), 335.

Teaching Channel Assignment

          While watching these videos I noticed a common theme, arts and movement provides students with a unique opportunity to express themselves and to explore creatively. I was impressed by the observations and analyses the students were able to make through their artistic creations. I was also extremely excited by the positive attitudes, cooperation, and passion the students demonstrated while creating art, dances and musicals. In each video it was apparent that all students were learning in a way that met their unique needs and gave them the opportunity to make independent choices about what they wanted to create.

            I was especially impressed by the reflections and analyses that the students generated through their arts and movements. While dancing a diverse set of cultural dances the students expressed their deepened understanding of why dancing is important to culture and the importance of taking the time to understand a culture's values and customs. In the video about creating artwork for democratic vocabulary the students' displayed raw emotions of what it means to be a democratic citizen and it was clearly laid out in their drawings. Also, in the video about musicals, the students gained deep understanding of collaboration, teamwork, and that all artists' contributions should be valued. Each of these teaching techniques were extremely beneficial for the students and would be great strategies for implementing in the classroom.

           Although all the videos were fantastic, the one I will take the most from is "Museum Exhibition as a Culminating Event" (2015). I loved this video because it was a school wide project that incorporated art as the core of learning. Each lesson was Common Core aligned and each student was equally presented at the culminating project. For several months, each student created their own unique artistic creation that was later presented at the Getty, a local museum that is well known. The kids described having a great sense of pride and it was clear that they had a sense of ownership and authority as well. The students were extremely excited to present their art and one even described it as a "once in a lifetime" opportunity. Providing our students with opportunities to be proud of their art and to see their peers' creations is an extremely important element to incorporate in our teaching!

References:

Yarnes, L. (2015). Museum Exhibition as a Culminating Event. Los Angeles, CA: Teaching Channel.