ARTE 544

Gretchen Schreiber

Middle Level Reflection

Surprises

When I introduced the lesson on the first day of class, the 8th graders were eager to

participate, but they were not familiar with the main subject of the lesson: adornment. During

our first discussion, I asked the class to brain storm different types of adornment. Once we

navigated past necklaces, rings and tiaras, the students were able to, with prompting, suggest

less common adornments like capes and sashes. However, the growth that my students

exhibited over the next six weeks was incredible. I would never have guessed on day 1 that my

students would have come up with adornments that were so bold and spoke to their character.

I was surprised at how unrestricted most of the students felt by the word “adornment” and

how freely they leapt into the realm of the abstract. Emma’s head adornment, for example,

exhibited a sophisticated composition, as she chose to not alter the material itself to a 3-

dimensional form, but instead use her body as the armature that the mesh hung from. I am

amazed at how unabashed some of the students were, and the fearless experimentation with

material, process, form and color.

Best

Through personal experience I know it can be daunting to be the first person to raise

your hand in a discussion about a subject that I am not familiar with. That being said, I made an

effort to start each discussion out with a question that most students would know the answer

to or that they might find interesting. In addition to reviewing the content learned in the
previous class, I also intentionally asked questions that connected back to visual culture that

most middle level students are familiar with. For example, on the second day of teaching I

planned an activity where the class used a concept map to dissect the character traits inherent

in a popular actress, Emma Watson.

Connecting visual culture back to the content of the lesson served a dual purpose: it

created an opportunity for students to analyze the new information they were being taught

and apply it to a scenario that they were familiar with, and it also generated enthusiasm for the

topic of the lesson. That being said, students not only enthusiastically participated, but they

also absorbed the new content on a deeper level than they would have if they were told new

information and didn’t have a chance to apply it.

In addition to connecting the lesson to visual culture it was important to me to

incorporate contemporary art into my lesson. I wanted to expose my class to living artists who

are making meaningful work that addresses important issues, and the level of student interest

was apparent in the quality of their responses. For example, when I asked the class to describe

what they saw in Zoe Buckman’s let her rave series, the class was able to progress from surface

level adjectives to identifying the specific materials from which the forms were made.

Jumping in to a lesson plan about sculptural adornments was a leap of faith considering

I did not know whether the 8th graders had worked on a 3-dimensional form prior to this lesson,

nor did I know what material manipulation techniques they were familiar with. With that said,

each student encountered challenges that we worked through both individually and as a class

The first tool that I implemented was a running list of techniques on the dry erase board.

Students were encouraged to add to the list and if there were specific processes that they
wanted to learn, then I would demonstrate how to achieve that technique during the following

class. In order to get ahead of the problem of manipulating 2-dimensional materials into 3-

dimensional forms, I chose four simple techniques (forming, layering, upholstering and

constructing) to introduce to the class to give the students a foundation to work off of. This was

an effective solution because the students were able to use materials that they were familiar

with, such as hot glue, in order to attain a sophisticated aesthetic.

Since the class was encouraged to choose materials based on what would best convey

their chosen character traits, the class required a multitude of different materials. In order to

make sure that each student had the materials they needed, I kept the class roster written on

the board and students were instructed to write next to their name any additional materials

that they would need for the following class. Additionally, each student was held accountable

for her own materials, worksheets and in-progress work. I provided the class with large paper

bags that were labeled with each students’ name as storage containers for all of their materials.

Ideas for Improvement

Although the students were animated in class discussions, the concept of critique

beyond the formal elements of an artwork was new to them. I started off the final critique by

asking the class open ended questions like, “What do you see?” The responses were superficial

at first, describing the type of adornment and material and color choices. As the conversation

progressed, some students were able to identify elements and principles of design present in

the adornment, however they needed prompting to connect the artistic choices to the meaning

the student was trying to convey.

 The lesson was comprehensive and I was able to scaffold new vocabulary into every

lesson. However, since I introduced so many new concepts, my timetable was tight and left

little time for reflection at the end of class. Since prompting the students through questioning

was effective in eliciting more meaningful responses, further questioning would have led to

more successful critiques. If I had managed time at the end of class more carefully, the students

would have had more of an opportunity to apply what they had learned into more in-depth

critiques.

One problem that I noticed throughout a few of the students’ initial designs was that

their adornments were simple and common. Although this would have been acceptable if the

design justified the concept, I wanted to challenge the students to work on a scale or with a

form of adornment that they were not comfortable with. I responded to the design deficit by

creating a PowerPoint that introduced two new vocabulary words: static and dynamic. The

presentation defined both words and showed examples of each quality represented in jewelry.

This acted as a visual to demonstrate how a dynamic composition can improve the look of an

artwork, and it also introduced the students to contemporary artists and alternative forms of

adornment.

All of my students were extremely respectful and conscientious, so much so that they

did not talk out of turn during work time. In my own practice, I find that some of the best ideas

are generated through conversation with my peers and I wanted to encourage the class to talk

amongst themselves. I expressed this concern to my professor and she suggested that I forego

desks for a drop cloths on the floor in the center of the room. This small change instantly

improved the dynamic of the room, creating a more constructive, playful atmosphere. It was
after the drop cloths were implemented that some of the students started going off into more

unusual, dynamic designs.

Towards the beginning of the lesson, I noticed that the girls especially were more

comfortable making smaller scale, petite jewelry. I implemented a number of impromptu

activities and think sheets to counteract this impulse, but I didn’t notice substantial changes in a

few of the girls. I was disappointed that my lesson had not reached them, but I was pleasantly

surprised when I called them up to get their photographs taken. Although a few of the designs

looked quite simple off the body, the way in which they attached to the body was unique. For

example, I was disappointed that Addyson created what looked like a simple beaded necklace.

However, when she came up to be photographed, she put the necklace on top of her head so

that there was a black heart in the middle of her forehead, strung beads along the side of her

head, and a flag draping off of her temple.

Conclusion:

As I prepared to teach an 8th grade lesson, I pictured myself as an 8th grader. I expected

to have many challenges to overcome and teenage attitudes to quiet. But, the challenges that I

encountered were not the ones that I expected to meet. My class was courteous and hard-

working, and I am not naïve enough to think that is typical. What I learned through this well-

behaved class, however, is that each class comes with its own set of challenges. Some classes

will demand more attention given to noise control and rule following, some will struggle with

technical skills, and some will need help fleshing out ideas. The biggest lesson I learned from

teaching middle methods is that as an educator, we can’t come in to a classroom with a bound

lesson and expect for it to work every time. Instead, we must rely on our own flexibility and
responsive teaching. Every student can be taught, and it takes an exceptional teacher to find

the right method for each student.