Teaching requires balance. Balance requires patience. Comprising both of these elements to work simultaneously as one, in the field of art education, can seem intimidating to an educator. A fine equilibrium of the two is essential to create an environment that will facilitate learning of all students. In this environment, students will be introduced to one that is open and safe, where all questions are considered equal and thinking outside of the norm, through risk taking, is highly encouraged. Like a sports team, I run my class in a way that reflects teamwork through the ideas of cooperation and encouragement.  As a team, the class works together to create an environment that is accepting and open to all individuals. No student should feel left behind within a group.  I strive to accommodate all learning styles and abilities and modify lessons when appropriate.  



The passion I desire to see within my students is the same passion that I strive and desire for myself when working with art. We never grow up; we continue to acquire information as the years go by.  With this being said, the encouragement to continuously learn about art and oneself is a key concept that I teach within my lessons and to myself.   Knowing your environment will help you develop throughout your life, not just in art.  Developing strategies throughout life leads to the acceptance that one can accomplish anything, without placing boundaries between obstacles.

As an educator, I encourage and foster my students' imagination, insisting on the idea of creativity.  While encouraging the use of imagination, I also strive to create relevant lessons for my students. Creating relevance through each activity and lesson is essential in connecting with your students.   Developing an understanding for the relevance and importance of a lesson allows students to have a personal connection with the art they create.  This connection is seen through the process of creation to the final piece.   Allowing students to create art through cross-curricular lessons can also assist students in understanding the importance of art outside of the art classroom.  Facilitating this idea that art can be used throughout multiple subject areas, once again, allows the student to make relevant connections to art and their creations.  Seeing the world through the lens of an artist can assist students in understanding other concepts and ideas introduced within other subject areas.

 



Creating relevant lessons that connect with students will allow the students to express themselves using their own style, personality, and creativity.  Once students create these relationships with their work, understanding their likes, dislikes, and overall self, students begin to express themselves through their art making and to the teacher.  Encouraging this teacher-student relationship is important within my classroom to establish an environment of encouragement and connection.  Not only are the students learning about the lessons and information regarding the art world, but also the teacher is learning about the students.  In return, this information can assist the teacher in creating relevant lessons, as well as maintaining a controlled and nurturing learning environment.
 

 

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