Teaching Art, Music and Movement Portfolio

Angelica Kohlmann CHD 145

Our Center
Our center is designed for about 20 children on a daily basis, ages two to five. We have strict limitations on picture taking, so typically Im not permitted to take any pictures. I will be describing a lot of the activities we did in greater detail than my pictures may show.

Center Layout
Our childcare room is set up to have three separate areas/stations for the children: Art area Easels, crayons, markers, paint, chalk board easel, white boards with dry erase markers, stickers, stamps and stamp pads, play-dough and other items. All are on child-height shelves with clear labeled bins the students can get the materials on their own and set up their own art. The only teacher-controlled items are liquid glues and scissors. There is a bathroom (large child-height sink and child sized toilet) attached to the classroom next to our art center to allow children to wash their hands and paint brushes when theyve finished with their activities. Play area large wooden blocks, legos, dramatic play clothes and house-area, floor puzzles, etc. All in clear bins with large labels. Reading area large books, picture books, books for beginning readers, theme of the month books, season books (current season and holidays), I-spy books, number books, and texture books.

Bathroom

Bookcase/storage unit with art supplies, pencils, markers, paper, coloring sheets, etc.

Hooks and cubbies

Windows

Toy storage

Easels
Art/Activity tables (20 seats available) Carpet for play time or circle time Desk with plant and fishtank Sitting area w/ beanbags for books

Divider/big books bookcase

Bookcase

Exit

Process Art
Process art emphasizes the process and resources utilized to reach an end product, rather than the judgment of the end product its self. (pg 8)

Process Art
There were three separate stations set up on the art tables, all included coloring/designing pre-cut pumpkins. One station had paints, one scrap papers and glue, and the last (a method I had never seen) used tissue paper and water to lay color onto the pumpkins. There were five separate baskets of papers organized by colors. (i.e., red tones, yellow/orange tones, greens, blues and purples). The above pictures show a four year old painting the tissue strips onto his pumpkin in whatever pattern he wanted. He chose to utilize typical pumpkin colors (orange, red, yellow).

Process Art
The above pictures show a three year old at the same station, given all the paper options, she chose to model her pumpkin after the four year old boys. The main difference between the two processes was that the three year old chose to get her paper wet with the brush and then lay all of the tissue papers down, while the four year old painted the tissue paper on strip by strip. In the middle is a picture of both finished pumpkins drying before stripping the tissue papers off.

Process Art
This example of process art shows a three year old boy and two year old girl, both of which typically choose painting activities, learning how to use watercolor paints. As you can see in one picture, there are three separate stations of water color and then more materials set out for the other two art choices (crayons, markers, colored pencils in a container). The two year old hasnt quite grasped the concept of brush strokes, so her painting is in raindrop-like jabs of the brush. The three year old typically paints with no clear objective, he just enjoys filling the paper with color.

Tactile Art
Tactile art utilizes different textures, materials and colors to create new works of art or processes of creating art. Tactile art is hands-on and allows children to explore items that they wouldnt necessarily think of as art tools in order to express their creativity.

Tactile Art
For this activity children made play-dough in class. This exposes children to measuring, weight, and chemical reactions. The children each had their own mixing bowl and measured out the appropriate amount of flour, water and food coloring to add to their bowls. (Teachers handled the salt and cream of tartar).

Tactile Art
These pictures show each child mixing their own play-dough materials before allowing the play-dough to sit. We allowed the children to feel the mixtures at each point (the flour/salt/tartar mix, the water added, the food coloring added, and the mixture after they stirred it)

Tactile Art
This spin-art activity was the beginning of our tactile art activity, making a fall collage to take home. We used spin-art machines with paint, real leaves, acorns, tissue paper, cotton balls, and sponges to decorate our papers (whatever color construction paper), with paint or gluing items down. This art project is ongoing over a period of three weeks (and still counting) a few times each week we will add on to our collages with a new concept discussed in class. The new materials range from corn kernels to beads or confetti Halloween items. This project is our main project for the month of October, and in its own way is both a process art example and a tactile art example.

Sensory Table Activities

Our sensory table was set up for a fall activity over a period of three days. (This is where we got the corn kernels for the tactile art, as well as some of the leaves.) Our sensory table had rice, corn, wheat, gourds, pumpkins, and a plastic container of water. The children were exploring fall harvest foods, their size, shape, weight, density, if they expanded in water, if they floated, etc. After each child had a chance to explore we created a list of things we noticed about each object. The children pointed out that the rice got soft if you left it in the water long enough, and that the different gourds of varying sizes all weighed different amounts. They also noted that the gourds and pumpkins both repelled water from their surfaces

Music and Movement

Our favorite music and movement activity as a class is acting out animal motions and sounds. We use this activity when the kids are especially rowdy to get some of their pent-up energy out. We start by gathering on the carpet and having the kids stand at least an arms length away from each other in a straight line along the wall. There is an instrumental song playing and the teacher will call out an action (slither like a snake) and the children will preform the action. After 10-20 seconds the teacher will pause the music and say Freeze! , the children are supposed to stop what theyre doing in whatever pose they are in when the music stops. Most of the threes and twos will change position after the music stops and laugh. The four year old children are a lot better at holding their positions for a period of time (maybe 10 seconds) while the teacher gives them the next motion. The three and four year old children really shine in this activity, most being able to skip and gallop. The two year old children look to the older children for guidance and try to model their movements. As a whole, the class stays active throughout the entire song (about a five minute time period) and all of the children try their best to come up with a new movement for each animal. At the end of the activity we have the children suggest some other animal movements and see what they can come up with on their own. This activity is great for gross motor skill development and can help to gauge what children need more gross motor activities daily to help refine their skills, and what children can accomplish what motions.

Creativity and Young Children

Creativity is the mainspring of our civilization Our inherent creativity contributed to the very quality of our lives. (pg 8) Creativity develops childrens potential to think, their sense of individuality, and helps to develop their self esteem. (pg 9) Including art and creativity in the curriculum for children of all ages will be beneficial to them in many ways, and it is important to vary the creative outlets given to children making sure that they are developmentally appropriate at all times.