And we danced...

I've been giving more thought to dance lately. I've never been much of a dancer. At weddings or other celebrations my dancing is something of a novelty. Something done in a mockery of form and grace; something even I laugh at, for it is all I can do really. I can slow dance I suppose, though I don't know if what I do even has a name. It is more of a hold-her-left-hand-and-put-my-other-on-her-lower-back-and-shuffle-back-and-forth-to-the-rhythm more than anything. I've never really taken the opportunity to study actual dancing. Waltz, swing, square; all of these I know exist, but I've never seen a purpose in learning it.

But maybe it was because I never knew about the multitude of dance that existed. Maybe if I was shown at an early age how dance can be about more than learning structured moves and choreographed steps I might have been more into it. I say today techniques for getting kids into dance that I thought were really cool. Dancing with eyes closed to remove self-consciousness. Starting off small and building to greater fields of motion. These are things that I can see myself using to get kids of any age excited about dancing. And I have plans to do just that.

 (Step Dancing for beginners as done by Victor Sho)

While I haven't finalized the above video as what I'm going to use, this is what I want to teach my class. Step dancing. While I initially thought about leaping right into this fun style of dance, I think that some of the aforementioned techniques might be a better start. It will get the kids moving and energized, and maybe they'll go into this feeling a bit more comfortable. The only question is do I ask them to perform? I cannot insist that they perform, can I? I mean, I could I guess, but I'd never want my teacher to do that to me. Maybe ease them into the idea? Is dance something that has to be performed? Is it just as valid if no one ever sees it?


Again, more questions then answers. Then again, I don't know if I will ever have more answers than questions. Nor would I want to I think.

And just because I can, and because in dancing timing is everything, ladies and gentlemen, once again I give you Chris Goodwin performing Timing is Everything by Garrett Hedlund.
 

(Once again, swiped from Chris Goodwin's YouTube Channel)

Artists, the classroom and me.

I have never been to a 4Cats Arts Studio, but from how the literature I picked up from their Prince George location describes their sessions, their approach to kid's art sounds awesome. Each session is dedicated to the study of specific artist's history and work, with the students participating in age-appropriate art activities in the style and spirit of the artist. From their website: "4Cats kids create imaginative works using professional quality art materials. Kids get to work in a variety of mediums, taking inspiration from the works of famous artists. If we are studying Andy Warhol, we silk screen and make ink blot paintings. If we are studying Picasso, we create acrylic on canvas cubist paintings and ceramics, if we are studying Frida Kahlo, we make paper-mache and paint acrylic on canvas self-portraits.You get the picture!"

Taken without malice from http://www.4cats.com/

 

That whole approach sounds like something that I think would be really useful in the classroom. Making connections between real people and art, as well as between art and real life. My only concern is that I might not have enough art talent or knowledge to do these famous artisans justice. I mean, I can look up their information and styles on the internet or in resource books, but even then I am just parroting what others have said about them. Now, before you say anything, I know that one does not have to be good at art in school. All that matters is that you try. And I am totally on board with that considering my own less-than-impressive art skills.But I feel that I might lack the enthusiasm that is required to really make this click with the students.

One of my cooperating teachers told me how last year her class had a visiting artist who came by once a week to do focused projects with the students and I though that that was a great idea. A specialist who knows the specifics about the artists, their styles and great kid-friendly ways of introducing them to the students. And I wish that there were more specialists like that in all of the schools every year. Many schools have music teachers, why not art teachers?

Maybe I am just putting too much thought into this. I know that it is not necessary to go into great detail about artists with visual arts. I can make connections to other things like culture and society, and I can show them my attempts at a few different art styles. But what if there is that one kid whose whole life would be changed by knowing that other people have seen things the way they do? One students whose world would be that much better if they knew that there is art out there (that I as a teacher don't know about) from the same point of view that they see the world from? I know that no one can know everything, but this thought is nagging upon me.

Bah, too much negativity towards the end. Time to lighten things up. Take it away Chris!

(Shamelessly Stolen from Chris Goodwin's YouTube Page)

A trip to the Theatre!

I went to a play this evening at Theatre North West, and though it was a comedy set on a farm, I could not help but be reminded of teaching. The play is called "Letter from Wingfield Farms", starring Rod Beatie as Walt Wingfield and everyone else.

As a one man show, it fell upon one actor to keep an entire theatre entertained for almost two hours. He used a multitude of voices, postures tones and facial expressions to portray many characters of different ages, genders and backgrounds. Rod Beatie talked, telling stories, relaying experiences, and the crowd hung on his every word. It was rather like watching a teacher holding the attention of a class. I suppose that in a way all good teachers are part actors, using their dramatic skills of entertainment to snare students' attention in order to teach them. It would certainly explain why I have both a penchant for the theatre as well as the drive to become a teacher. Now all I have to do is prevent my natural inclination for overacting from interfering with teaching the students.

Something else of note that I saw while at Theatre North West was the TrueNorth New Works project. 2015 will mark several important events here in good old Prince George, including the city's 100th anniversary, the Canada Winter Games and Theatre North West's 20th anniversary. As such, Theatre North West has arranged TrueNorth New Works, an initiative that will offer play development opportunities to local playwrights, with one lucky finalist presenting their work as an opening act in TNW's February 2015 during the Canada Winter Games. For those with the theatre skills this could be a great opportunity.

For those of us without such skills, do not fret, for there are yet more things that are being offered this month by TNW to foster interest in the dramatic arts. Theatre talks, tours and even a Vlog (that is video blog for you non-digital natives).

 

And just for fun, the first episode of the TNW Vlog. Let's meet the team!

Artfully delighted

I am so stoked about the presentations that our class gave about the different fine arts. While I was in the drama group, the other groups showed such passion and appreciation for the art they chose. I have not been able to get "Cups" out of my head since the music group played it, and I have been given permission from my cooperating teacher to use PE time to teach the students step dancing.

When it comes to visual arts, I am having a bit of a problem. I want to do a mosaic project with the class, similar to the one I mentioned that I did in grade seven. But one thing I have never thought of up till now was where the heck my teacher got his hands on the glass. Where does one call to acquire coloured glass of the right thickness for little to no funding? Thus far I have been able to track down green, blue and metallic from a distribution centre for windows, but the glass is a quarter inch thick and I think that would be too thick. Who knew finding art supplies could be so difficult?

Through art and beyond

So I had to do a presentation in Aboriginal Education this week, and since the chapter my partner and I were presenting on was written by a Hawaiian educator from a Native Hawaiian perspective, some Hawaiian realia was needed. So my partner brought some leis, and I brought some pineapple. But that didn't seem like enough. We needed something more. Something distinctly Hawaiian. And that's when it hit me: a ukulele. Of course, not too many people have a ukulele lying around the house and I was no exception. So, I had to make my own.

My Shoeboxulele

Pictured above is my homemade shoeboxulele, made from stuff I had around the house, aided by a wonderful YouTube video. I modified the idea, but in the end I had my very own shoeboxulele. While it sounded more like a mandolin than a ukulele, and it could have used some decoration to make it fancier, I am proud of what I made. And it got me thinking about art across the curriculum.

It seems to me that art can be paired with so many other subjects. I paired visual art with music (not very good music mind you) and giving a presentation (meeting some Social Studies PLOs). How many other connections are there? How many times have we coloured a map for Social Studies, sang a song for Science (now Pluto's not a planet anymore...) or acted out a skit in French? The opportunities seems endless. I don't believe that we should always try to incorporate fine arts into our other subjects. Sometimes we just need to focus on Math. And sometimes that special dance routine we are working on needs to be focused on just dancing.

So the way I see it: we shouldn't be afraid to mix and match our subjects when it makes sense, but we shouldn't overdo it.

And for those of you interested in making their own shoebox stringed instrument:

Putting my boat in the water and getting my feet a little wet

At the beginning of my journey into the Fine Arts, I find myself mostly thinking about what kind of assignments that I have done or seen in the past that I really enjoyed. The first thought that I had was what my grade seven class did when I was a student. In preparation for the end of the year art project, my classmates and I created glass mosaics. Mine, if I recall correctly, was a hotplate bearing the frightening visage of Frankenstein's monster. Well, as frightening as one can make something using squares of glass manipulated by awkward prepubescent digits. Even if my family never used it (my mom said it was too nice), I remember is the fun that I had in making the hotplate, and I was proud of the lasting, permanent object that I had made. In fact, I think I still have it somewhere at my parent's house.

It makes me think of how many art projects that students make in school that do not survive past the end of the year, or too much longer past that point. I want my students to have a useful object that they've made with their own hands. Something that they can pull out and show to their children (or, dare I say, their own future students) decades from now. I'm not saying that every art project has to have the same level of permanency, but having a few artful artifacts of one's youth that can survive the ravages of time can't be a bad thing.