Day of the Dead Clay Masks!

In the late fall I began my 6th grade unit on ‘Day of the Dead’, introducing my students to the #1 Mexican celebration, observed Nov 1st and Nov 2nd coinciding with All Saints Day and All Souls Day.  It is a combination of both a Christian celebration, beginning when the Spaniards came to Mexico over 500 years spreading Christianity and the pagan celebration dating back to the Aztecs.  Of course over time both celebration changed and now ‘Dia de los Muertos’ has become an integral part of the Mexican culture.  My students viewed a film on Mexico and we had some great discussions.  They then began designing their own mask for this celebration, with three basic rules:  one it had to be ‘skull’ like,  two it had to represent something about them and three, it had to contain the marigold, the flower symbol of death.  Connecting the learning back to them is a key concept today for literacy!  The new slab roller was perfect for this lesson, rolling out large flat even pieces of clay.  Using simple modeling tools, small damp sponges, the students blew me away with their approaches and designs.  After a bisque firing the students use underglazes to paint on their colors and draw on some images, eventually covering the entire mask with a clear overglaze.  They used wire to hang their mask, some using yarn to cover the wire. 

Lastly was the writing componenet to this unit.  Since it had been weeks since we began this unit students were given handouts filled with facts on the celebration.  They were to write a poem, their choice, reflecting both some of the history of the celebration and how they connected to the mask.  As always, an amazing learning experience for all!

Since many of my students have traveled to Mexico, on cruise ships or staying at the fancy resorts, they now knew some interesting facts about the Mexican people by exploring one aspect of their rich culture.

Korean ‘Rockscapes’

In the summer of 2008 I attended the Korean Academy for Educators (KAFE) for a one week summer institute in Koreatown LA.  It was an amazing, insightful and packed weeklong session, with the top educators on Korea leading various workshops on the history, culture, geography and the arts.  Mary Connor and Helie Lee are the co-directors and have spent endless hours developing this seminar.  You will leave the seminar with so many resources, links and teaching strategies for bringing Korea to your students.  I highly recommend the institute for all educators.  Global learning is so important for our students of the 21st century.  California teachers are so fortunate to have this institute in their state, offered various workshops on Korea throughout the year. http://www.koreaacademy.org/

This year I developed a new art unit on Korea for my 5th grade classes.  We began the unit by viewing a wonderful film ‘The Glory of Korea’ produced by the KSCPP (Korean Spirit and Culture Promotion Project).  They offer educators an amazing array of free books, resources and films on Korea to promote Korea. http://www.koreanhero.net/

After viewing the film and discussing Korea, my students began sketching a Korean landscape, inspired by both the film and a large pile of Korean photographs I have printed for them, received from the summer institutes.  They drew Buddhist temples and statues, rivers, mountain ranges, cities and animals.  The next step was to make the clay slab rock sculpture upon which their sketches would be drawn.  Using a slab roller, I rolled out 50 pounds of clay!  Students brought in rocks, anywhere from 5-8 inches in size, wrapping them in a piece of cloth and draping the clay over the cloth.  They shaped the clay with their fingers and small sponges.  The bottom of the clay piece needed to be open and loose so that I could remove the rock as the clay just started to harden.  These ‘rockscapes’ were left to dry and fired in a kiln.  Using pencils and underglazes the students drew their Korean landscapes on the clay, using small brushes and sponges.  I love using underglazes on clay with young students.  They allow the students to color mix and paint the clay surface as they would if they were using watercolors.  When finished with the underglazes, the students apply a coat of clear glaze and the sculptures are then fired again, for the 2nd time. 

I love opening the kiln after a glaze firing!  It’s like Christmas!  The students and I were so pleased with the results, quite spectacular! 

I shared with my students at this point a powerpoint on the ‘Top Ten Reasons to Teach about Korea’, received from the KAFE institute. I also distributed gave them a handout listing the top ten reasons.  Their last segment of this lesson was to write a poem, format of their choice, on Korea or their sculpture.  Some chose a haiku, some chose an acrostic poem and others created their own format.  This literacy piece will be displayed with their ‘rockscape’ at our yearly art show in the spring.

Yes, teachers can make a difference!

Several years ago I was at the library in the town that I teach checking out a book when the library clerk, a young man of about 22, said he knew me and that I was his Art teacher in elementary school, over 12 years ago.  No, I didn’t remember him, since I teach over 350 students each week, but I was so pleased to hear his story.  He told me that recently he had been cleaning out a junk drawer in his room when he came across some pen pal letters he had written in 1992 when in the 5th grade.  That was the year I went to Russia, as both a teacher and a parent chaperone, one of 8 adults along with a group of twenty 7th and 8th grade students.  I had traveled to Russia with one of my luggage filled with student art and lots of pen pal letters.  His letter was in that pile.  When I arrived in Russia we spent over one week visiting a school in Moscow where my pen pal letters and children’s art were so well received.  Many of the Russian students were able to write a responding letter in the short time we were there, allowing me to bring piles of letters back to the United States in my luggage.

The library clerk said those pen pal letters changed his life as did my quest to explore the world.  Sharing my travel educational journey and connecting my students to this experience opening his eyes to teaching.  He said he was presently in college studying to be a teacher and that I had guided him to that decision.  He said he too wanted to teach others about the world and that I had inspired him to pursue a career in education.

I was so moved!  I wished him the best of luck and thanked him dearly for sharing that story as I walked out of the library with a smile and a twinkle that could not only be seen in my face but could be felt deep in my heart.

Today another similar experience occurred that made me so happy I had become a teacher.  It was the end of a rather long day and I was waiting in the lobby for the rest of the buses to arrive when two 19-year-old former students walked up to me to say ‘hello’.  I recognized their smiles.  One of the boys said ‘You know I still correspond with my Hungarian pen pal  that you had given me back in 5th grade!’  What a surprise!  It’s been over 9 years and they still write to each other, using regular mail, not even email.  I told him that I too still write to my Hungarian pen pal teacher and even though we’ve never physically met nor even exchanged photos we are friends.  I wonder if there are others that feel as these two do!  How often in life do we meet someone who has deeply moved us?  We need to tell them, to share our thoughts, our emotions.  Is there someone out there that deeply helped to shape you?

Thank you Matthew for stopping in today and saying ‘hello’!  You really made my day!

We do make a difference and moments like this reinforce my deep commitment to educate.  How fortunate for us all!

Fire Prevention Poster Townwide Winner

I got the email last week that one of my students in grade 5 was the district winner for students in grade 5, selected from the posters submitted from 6 elementary schools in our town.  Yes, I do agree that the drawing was amazing, clever, creative and the message connected well with the drawing.  I was disappointed though with the students lettering technique and unfortunately it was too late to change, as he had already worked so hard on the poster and he was content with its outcome.  So fingers crossed that he may win at the next level, the county level.  From there on his poster would go on to the state competition.  Of course my principal is thrilled that our school has a 5th grade town winner.  My feelings remain the same:  too much art instruction, 4 weeks, devoted to poster design and I know my students agree!

Remembering children’s names!

Sometimes I get children’s name mixed up and no matter what I do I can’t seem to get it straight, with the wrong name calling sometimes lasting from the first time we meet in 1st grade until they leave in 6th grade!  Yes, you might think that is terrible but I must remind you of the fact that I teach over 350 students per week, each attending art class for one hour a week, so yes, I do have a good excuse.  But we all know how much we want others to remember us, to recognize us as an individual so I do try very hard to get their names straight.  But every now and then a few children’s names get crossed in my mind and don’t want to separate.  In class yesterday, I had my 2nd graders gathered around for a discussion on a ‘Henri Rousseau’ print, great print for this age level too, when I asked a question.  A hand shot up by one of the sweetest boys in my class and I called his name ‘Yes, Matthew’.  He replied ‘My name is Ryan….’.  I said ‘I’m so sorry Ryan, but I have such a tough time getting you and Matthew R. straight, do know I try though’.  Rebecca, a small rather fiesty student in the class, always bearing a huge smile said, ‘Just remember that Ryan has buck teeth, that should help’.  I was shocked and quickly glanced at Ryan looking for a look of dread on his 2nd grade face, but surprisingly he was still smiling.  I said ‘Rebecca that was not very nice, Ryan has his new permanent teeth and the are beautiful’.  I said why would you say that to Ryan Rebecca, that was not very nice.  Her reply ‘but its true’.  I told her and the class that was not true and she should apologize to Ryan, which of course she did.  Ryan, such a trooper, smiled through the whole ordeal, seemingly untouched by the blatant conversation about his looks.  And we continued on with our discussion…..

Is it a fruit or a vegetable?

Yesterday my 3rd grade class was finally finishing some big, bold cornucopia’s we had started back in November, several weeks of drawing and watercolor painting.  We studied some fresh gourds, pumpkins and dried Indian corn along with the flyers from supermarkets so that we could have an array of fresh fruits and vegetables.  When everything drawn was cut out and glued to a large colored background, students used texture plates and rubbed hard with crayons to define their tables and backgrounds, great textures and colors!

A small boy with thick glasses came up to me with a small cut piece of green paper, no bigger than 2×3 inches, and asked me ‘ Is a pickle a fruit or a vegetable?’   I told him a pickle was once a cucumber and asked him what he thought a cucumber was?  He replied ‘a vegetable’ and walked back to his seat, gluing that small pickle in his giant horn of plenty, along with the traditional apples, pumpkins, oranges and various vegetables.  I think that the pickle must be one of Craig’s favorites, his connection!    Too cute!

China and the U.S.

After school yesterday I attended another amazing, informative and delicious event at PIER (Programs of International Resources) at Yale in New Haven.  PIER provides the educational community with a wealth of resources, workshops, seminar series and networking on various international programs.  I’ve always thought how fortunate we are in CT to have Yale in our backyard and to have now discovered PIER, what a blessing!  I have been attending their programs now for the last three years, sometimes after school workshops, sometimes Saturday lectures and even the week-long summer institutes they offer educators.  Several years ago, I attended the week-long workshop on the Middle East, ‘Metropolis:  Cities of the Middle East’, providing us with content rich lectures given by the top professors in the field.  It was a 6 day series, held in mid-July, and provided me with a multitude of background learning, resources and contacts, also proving to be an invaluable resource for a fellowship to Turkey I had received that summer as well.

Last night we received a lecture byTaisu Zhang, an Historian and Ph.D. candidate from Yale.  He gave us a great overview of the relationship that has existed with both the U.S. and China, starting from the 1800’s and leading into the current state.  After the lecture we all enjoyed a fabulous Chinese buffett.  Since it had been a rather long day and I had an hour and a half drive ahead of me, I choose not to stay for the panel discussion that was starting right after dinner.  Thank you PIER for your efforts in providing educators with continued learning!

PIER Yale University

PROGRAM   4:30 – 6:00 PM          

LECTURE (FOR TEACHERS AND PIER PARTICIPANTS ONLY)

Room 202, Henry R. Luce Hall, 34 Hillhouse Avenue

TERRITORIAL CONCESSIONS, CIVIL WAR MANAGEMENT & TRADE DEFICITS: A BRIEF HISTORY OF SINO-AMERICAN RELATIONS

Taisu Zhang, History Ph.D. candidate, Yale University .Taisu Zhang obtained his J.D. and B.A. degrees at Yale. He works mainly on comparative legal and economic history, focusing on land transaction norms in Qing/Republican China and Early Modern England.

    6:00 – 6:30 PM          

CHINESE BUFFET DINNER

(FOR TEACHERS AND PIER AND PANEL PARTICIPANTS ONLY)

2^nd Floor, Common Room, Henry R. Luce Hall

6:30 – 8:00 PM          

PANEL ON U.S. – CHINA RELATIONS (OPEN TO PUBLIC)
Auditorium (Room 101), Henry R. Luce Hall, 34 Hillhouse Avenue

MANAGING SINO-AMERICAN RELATIONS IN TURBULENT TIMES

Professor Pierre Landry (Political Science, Yale University) will lead a panel discussion on current topics in U.S. – China relations as a prelude to the CHINA TOWN HALL webcast event. The panel will include Jeffrey Prescott (Associate Director, Yale China Law Center) and Yu Zheng (Political Science, University of Connecticut, Stamford).

 8:00 – 9:30 PM          

NATIONAL WEBCAST AND FOLLOW-UP DISCUSSION (OPEN TO PUBLIC)
Auditorium (Room 101), Henry R. Luce Hall, 34 Hillhouse Avenue

CHINA TOWN HALL WEBCAST FROM WASHINGTON, D.C.
ISSUES IN U.S. – CHINA RELATIONS

This national program consists of a live webcast from Washington, D.C., featuring Kurt M. Campbell, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and the Pacific Affairs, discussing U.S. – China relations.  National Committee on U.S -China Relations President Steve Orlins will moderate this 45-minute portion of the program, comprised of a 15-minute talk followed by half an hour during which Mr. Campbell will respond to questions emailed in from audience members throughout the country. After the national portion of the program, Professor Jessica C. Weiss (Political Science, Yale University) will lead a discussion with the audience on issues raised during the webcast.

East Asian Workshop

For the last few weeks I’ve been attending a series of workshops on East Asia.  The first 3 lectures were on Korea, fabulous, learning about the history, culture and society of this region.  We even learned about Sijo, Korean poetry, and its great history.  Looking forward to trying this poetry art form with my 5th graders, if I can pick up a book that will help them to understand and eventually be able to write one.  My 5th grade art class has been studying Korea for the last few weeks, beginning the unit with a DVD, ‘The Glory of Korea’, produced by the Korean Spirit Cultural Promotion Project http://www.koreanhero.net/, an outstanding philanthropic organization greatly dedicated to getting Americans to understand the history and beauty of Korea.  They provide many books, DVD’s and other resources, free, for educators and will even travel from NYC to give professional development to educators.  The DVD gave my students much-needed history on Korea, highlighting its accomplishments and showcasing Korea’s natural beauty.  My art lesson is ‘rockscapes’, a lesson I’ve developed from a similar idea I had while visiting a small museum in Koreatown in LA.  My lesson is an adaption of a fabulous idea.  My students mold slabs of clay over rocks, creating a curving, mountainous landscapes upon which they will eventually paint (week 1).  The rock is covered in saran wrap and soft cloth, so that the clay doesn’t stick. Using small sponges and plastic tools, as well as their fingers, best tool in the whole art room, they finish the edges, smooth the ridges and bumps.  As soon as the clay starts to harden I remove the rock and let the clay dry.  About a week later, the clay goes into the kiln for the bisque firing.  Students have planned their own Korean landscapes after looking through piles of Korean architecture, landscapes and treasures.  Pencil sketches are lightly drawn onto the clay rocks and students use underglazes to paint their visual story.  Small amounts of underglazes are poured into plastic palettes and the students begin the painting process, blending underglazes together to get various shades and tints of colors.  Lots of landscapes grace the tables, inspiring the students with the grand variety of plant and tree life that exists in Korea.   Students are free to paint their story on one side of the rockscape and leave the back simple and plain or they may choose to add another image or sponge on color.  They’re choice!  I’m really anxious to see the final result.  When the underglaze painting is complete the students will lightly sponge on clear glaze and rockscapes will be ready for the 2nd firing.  Photographs will be posted as soon as the work is complete.

Connecting Curriculums!

Last week I co-facilitated at two of my state conferences:  Art Education State Conference and Social Studies State Conference. My best friend Maria, a history teacher, and I have attended so many professional programs over the years, and I strongly believe that it is our professional obligation to give back to the educational community and to share my learning.  We presented a workshop on Islamic Connections at the art conference, sharing a two-year project we had developed through a grant, sharing our lesson plans connecting art, social studies and math as well as a blog we created.  Last summer we shared this project with educators at Yale, at one of their weeklong teacher institutes, very successful and well received.  The art educators left our workshop with a websight, our blog, that was filled with lesson plans, background information and suggested activities.  Our studies for this unit were initiated after the summer of 2007 when we both received a fellowship to Turkey, traveling throughout Turkey with educators from all over the USA for 17 days, truly one of those ‘top ten days of my life’, or rather ‘top ten 17 days of my life’! The 2nd workshop we co-facilitated that same week was at the state social studies conference, a new venue for me and for my partner, Maria.  Our workshop on Korea was a 50 minute session and was jam-packed with a PowerPoint presentation, loads of resources and lesson plans and a visit from two Korean Americans from the Korean Spirit and Culture Promotion Project, an organization in NYC that works extremely hard producing books, DVDs and resources for educators.  They want to spread the beauty of Korea to our country and so they provide educators with lots of free books, CDs and DVD’s for use in the classroom.  We had emailed them to ask them for some books for our conference and they said they would love to come to our conference and share their organizations resources.  I was quite surprised that these two women were going to drive from NYC to our workshop, hours away, but was thrilled.  Their organization had just completed another DVD on Korean history and they wanted to share it with our group.  Since our workshop was only 50 minutes, we explained that we could give them 15 minutes to share their organization with our group of educators.  What a wonderful surprised when they showed up dressed in traditional Korean dress, Hanbok, carrying boxes of books for the educators and trays of rice cakes and a container of barley tea!  As you can imagine they were very well received and we were thrilled with our participants responses.  One of the teachers, a young woman, approached me to tell me she was one of my former students and now studying to be a history teacher.  How wonderful!

After our workshop we strolled the vendor room, filled with various representatives displaying and sharing a myriad of resources that could be used in a classroom.  When I was asked where and what I teach, I was rather shocked by the number of vendors who obviously worked predominately with social studies educators, that asked me ‘Why would an art teacher be at a social studies conference?”  I looked at them, eyebrows definitely perplexed, expressing my disdain for this isolated viewpoint, and responded ‘education is universal, curriculums are all connected!’  These types of remarks still shake me!  The educational field has been encouraging educators to teach across curriculum, connecting education to other disciplines, as we do in life.  Social studies learning coexists with so many other disciplines.  The arts are reflective of history, society, culture, geography, just to name a few.  I would love to see educators being allowed to only attend a conference not in their discipline, wouldn’t that be interesting.  Math educators looking for connections at an art conference!  Music educators developing curriculum after attending a social studies conference!  And yes, social studies teachers at an art conference!  We must cross teach, connecting learning for our students, in the same way we experience life.  Yes, isn’t life a giant connection!  When I look around me, I don’t separate my views into math, into geography, into religion, or culture, or art, instead we look at the big picture and see the connections they all make to create one.

Clay Pumpkins!

If I taught clay lessons everyday I would surely receive the award for the ‘best teacher’ in our school!  Everyone loves clay!  The minute that the children walk into my classroom and spot the clay excitement stirs, chit chatting begins and you can feel their energy.  I only wish I could capture this ‘energy’ and put it into all of my art lessons.  What makes clay so exhilarating?  And why don’t I do it more?

 

  There are a couple of reasons that I can think of.  Storage is always an issue, with small wooden shelves hanging on the wall near my kiln, I only have enough storage space for maybe two classes pottery at a time.  And firing up the kiln, loading and unloading is time consuming.  But are these really valid reasons to not experience more clay lessons with my students. 

 

It’s October and pumpkins are everywhere and who doesn’t love pumpkins, the many shapes, sizes and colors!  My 3rd grade class eagerly scooped up the clay, excited and eager.  I demonstrated the technique of pinch pot construction and how to pinch pots joined together could give them a pumpkin.  They divided their mound of clay into two equal pieces and cupped each piece creating a round shape.  They cupped the round shape back and forth until it became an even shaped ball.  Both mounds of clay were shaped and they were now ready to ‘pinch’ their clay into a small vessel.  Clay ball is held firmly in one hand and a thumb is inserted until it almost reaches the bottom of the ball.  Using their outside fingers along with their thumb the clay is squeezed and rotated until the walls of the vessel are thinned and even.  Both pieces of clay must be shaped this way. Now the process of connecting the two pinch pots to one another.  Using a wooden or plastic modeling tool the edges of the pinch pot are ‘scored’ or simply marked up.  The two pinch pots are placed on top of each other and wiggled together.  Using the modeling tools again, the seam is roughed up and now the fun begins.  Each child uses a wooden ruler to hit the seam, merging the seam right into the clay.  This technique is called ‘paddling’ the clay, and the students love it.  It’s a great way to get rid of any built up tension.  By the time they are done paddling the seam, the clay should be smooth and ready to transform into a pumpkin.  I had placed a small pumpkin on each table for inspiration.  Students joined on stems, some a few leaves and almost all carved out a face using a pin tool.  One of my students, Dereck, wanted his pumpkin to look like the one on the table, ‘Would this be ok ?’.  I said of course that was ok, nature had inspired him.  He was the only one in the class not to add a jack o lantern carving and it was too truly beautiful!  He had the lines in the pumpkin so perfectly executed and it truly resembled the mini pumpkin sitting on the table in front of him, but with a much more magical appeal.  It was truly ‘sweet’.   I’ve always felt Dereck has a very clever mind, always sure on his artistic decisions, a real thinker.  He is very young, a little immature at times, but clever and creative.  Of course, sometimes when I look at the final project, I do have some difficulty deciphering his lessons, but Dereck marches to his own beat and he is a thinker.  I’ve heard he is a challenge in his classroom not willing to ‘conform’ to the demands of the classroom, but in the art room he can explore, discover and create as an individual.  The classroom teacher doesn’t really want more Dereck’s but maybe our world should.