p.a.i.n.t. intern blogs
I’ve learned that you can’t always be the good guy, there are times where you can’t just let things go. For example, students screaming in the gym space or talking back. I’ve learned ways to deal with problems like that. For example, having a hand gesture that means be quiet. I also learned more about myself and what works best with me in my classroom course wise.
I believe this whole experience has made me more confident. I know I still have aspects of my teaching I need to work on, but that is something I am grateful to know. Being able to learn and reflect, getting to know students, being creative and bringing art to classrooms made me truly happy during this semester of teaching. I had so much joy over all just being able to have this experience that not that many freshman have. I feel that experience is one of the best ways to learn and I have had so much fun learning and building my skill set.
I have a couple of new understandings about my role in the classroom and children. A new understanding that will help me in the future is discovering how different ages of children have different attention spans. Through this understanding, I learned how to keep younger students from running around and focusing on the project at hand. This was a challenge I encountered throughout the semester, but with practice and observation of other teachers, I learned how to control a classroom in an effective manner.
What I have learned through Canvas Fridays is better time management when teaching a painting. I have improved greatly on creating a painting that takes exactly 2 hours; nothing more or less. Teaching this class helps me understand the importance of time management and it is a great skill to have because it can be used in everyday life. Throughout teaching this class, I have also learned some helpful skills that improve the class such as, playing music when the families are painting so it isn’t so quiet. Also I learned that doing ice breakers helps me as a teacher and other students get to know each other.
When I first started teaching I had no idea what I was doing. No one explained what I could do and couldn't do with the kids. How was i supposed to control them, would they just listen to me as me or would I need to be stern when talking. After a few weeks it definitely get easier, all the questions that I had got answered, in one way or another. Let me tell you, I learned a lot about how I needed to talk to kids, they can be rude, they can trick you or they can get way too close.
So far I have learned that I know more than I originally thought. When I first started I was worried since I hadn’t done lessons or teaching in a while. I have also learned important things such as if you want your students to be interested in the subject matter you have to find out something they are interested in first and relate your lesson to that.
Currently, I feel that I have come a long way since day one in both classroom management and lesson planning. Before teaching this class, I had no Idea where to even begin with a lesson plan. I had never seen a lesson plan before, and now I am writing one every other week. With my classroom management, I feel that I have learned some new techniques to keep the attention of the students while demonstrating. The first day I taught the class, I was so nervous and now I have definitely become more confident in the classroom as a teacher rather than a student.
From this experience I have grown as a teacher. I have done this so far by learning what level each student is at in their art making (also in general). I’m earning more about classroom management and how to set up my classroom before class starts. As for learning how others learn I did notice a difference in younger students. Compared to the rest and it shows in their development and their motor skills. Some students are 8 years old and some are 6 years old.
Mosaic Sundays has really helped me improve my classroom management skills. Working with younger children can be difficult at times because they don’t always do what they are expected to do. Throughout teaching Mosaic Sundays, it has shown me more ways to deal with children who don’t want to do what they are told. I feel that it is important to have a well-managed classroom because it betters self-awareness, mental focus, and makes a better learning environment for all students.
I’m really happy that I am able to create a permanent piece of artwork that can influence a large range of people. Being able to learn a new medium is so exciting. I also enjoy the fact that I am able to actively make art that’s at my skill level while also working with young children. I am also happy to be learning new skills that can help me improve my teaching in the future.
The thing that has made me the happiest throughout this teaching experience was the connection I have made with the inmates. I am so interested in the people I am working with. There may be misconceptions of people who are in jail but in reality these individuals are just like you and me. These people made a bad choice which has influenced how they ended up in jail. The individuals are so excited to come to class which really has made my job rewarding.
I am looking forward to learning a new type of art. I have never done a mosaic and so I think it will be fun to learn as well as teach it to young students. I’m hoping to get more experience working with children as I do not have a lot of it. I’m looking forward to gaining some teaching experience with the help from a real teacher.
So far, I have had a few experiences in the teaching field. Last year, I was required to do small teaching courses to my fellow classmates in groups. I also was involved in the Children’s Art Club on the UW-Stout campus. During the spring semester, I participated in this internship program and worked with the children at Jumpstart. It was a wonderful experience and I gained various skills in regards to working with children of different ages.
I am looking forward to learning how to create lesson plans and how to fully teach a class. I want to be able to keep the attention of the kids and to make sure they still have fun while creating their art projects. I want to be confident in the way that I am teaching. I believe that being a part of the P.A.I.N.T. program will really help me get comfortable in a classroom setting as a teacher and not the student.
I am looking forward to teaching to a wide variety of age groups which can lead to many different styles of painting. Style is not only created and shown because of age, but also how everyone uses the medium, how people may see it differently and show different techniques. I am also looking forward to learning more as an educator because I believe that their is always something new to learn.
I am looking forward to teaching this class because I'll be getting to teach children about art. The children I work with make art because they choose to come to my class. Some children are the same each time, some are not. I also look forward to teaching them that art helps show self-expression. With the projects, I want the class to see my take on the project and make their own. Meaning they should not copy mine. I want to see what they can do with their own minds.
I think it will be interesting to learn and watch children in
action demonstrating those stages. We are working with K-5 so most likely the children will be in
preschematic stage and schematic stage. This is also the first class I’ve ever taught, so I’m
super excited to do something I’m passionate about and getting to dip my toes into the water
that is teaching.
