Month: February 2019

I enjoyed the museum field trip and the different ways we can expose our students to art and history. I really love the connection between the two, and the many ways we can approach lessons because of it.  When I saw the Rhythm of Art section of the museum, something inside me stirred!  I was so excited to see music acknowledged as art, and how it is linked to history since the beginning of time.

I also love the activity “What’s in Your Pocket” from our textbook.  I think this is a really fun way to not only pick up on historical facts, but learn about the individual whose pockets the items are in (like Abraham Lincoln), the example they use in the book.  It teaches students how to analyze, make educational guesses, and finally discover the facts.

I see so many ways you can connect art to different subjects.  I wonder if you could take one piece and span it over multiple subjects like Language Arts, History, and Science.  I think one day someone will create a teaching strategy that does just this.

The thought of performance based assessments sounded delightful to me until I saw the suggested rubric.  I am definitely more of a hands-on, visual person, so I feel like my students would retain the information better that way as well.  For instance, the theater boxes from the video we watched; the students were forced to be mentally and physically involved in the process.  They learned everything about the segment they were performing from occupations to the furniture people had in their house during the era they were studying.  I also think a great way for students to retain the information would be to have them act out the historical scene, compiling their own costumes and scenery.

In regards to rubrics, I understand there needs to be a guide that helps the students understand how they are going to be graded.  But why does there need to be so MANY components/guidelines?  It tends to take the fun out of performance based assessments.

I wonder how many performance based assessments are too many in a year?  When is it best to assign them?

One thing that made an impression on me last night and this past week with our readings was the importance of NOT reteaching students material they should have already learned in previous grades.  Instead, the book suggests activating prior knowledge in other ways. For example,  broadening beyond the classroom by using geographical or economic context.  I feel like every teacher will be put in this position at some point, and what does one do?  Are there resources and websites that help teachers expand beyond the classroom in this way?  From an outsiders’ perspective this seems like a very difficult thing to do if resources are limited.

I thought the skills progression chart was very interesting.  I know it is not relevant across the board, but I wonder if I will see verification of it when I am in the classroom.  I also wonder how the study was done, was it in different states, grades, and socioeconomic status?

I loved the lesson with making connections and using Dr. Stohr’s own personal family artifacts.  It made the lesson more interesting because I knew it was real, and it meant alot that she would share things that are special to her.  I wonder if my students would feel the same way if I brought in my own family artifacts?