Art 135 Amber Westmoreland

Reflections 1

My details and context of studio investigation

In order to visually portray the life Journey I have taken that lead me to majoring in Art

Education at CSUS I choose to use a favorite childhood book my grandfather read to me and that

I have read a multitude of times as a preschool teacher( a job that helped me realize how much I

love to teach). I feel like a lot of my journey has been harsh life lessons, the constant strong

support of friends, family and job stability created a reliable firm foundation in my life, and is

the reason for my success. I felt using a board book of The Very Hungry Caterpillar would be a

good Semiotic of a happy and strong foundation. I also thought the Narrative of the story is

established well enough for the viewers to instantly recognize the common theme of struggling

before reaching full potential. When covering the Allegory within the assignment I used the

caterpillar as a personification of myself. When manipulating the pages to make it my own

Autobiography it was important to me to use abstract concepts to visually represent difficult

times, because I only wanted to portray a feeling and did not feel comfortable giving my

classmates(viewers) any specific hints to certain details of my life. For example I Deconstructed

the page of the night scene and glue it all around the caterpillar on another page and wrote stuck

to portray a dark period in my life of depression and abuse. There were many other words, visual

representations, and symbols I thought to use to more accurately portray this but chose not to. I

also felt that by leaving it more vague it would allow more people to connect to a difficult period

in their personal life and create more Authenticity for the viewer to disconnect from reality and

create their own story to the image.

Why I want to implement these strategies

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I would like to implement the strategies of Artist, Narrative, Allegory, Autobiography,

Semiotics and Authenticity, though book making because I feel it is by asking a child to tell a

story it forces the concepts of Narrative and Semiotics which makes them think more deeply on

how to tell there story. I believe having it be about there Journey is a good way for them to find

their identity without having to necessarily relate it to the way they look which a healthy mindset

to develop. By introducing concepts such as Allegory, and Authenticity, and Deconstruction it

gives them tools tool to to critical think of how to Illustrate their story and hopefully prevents

them from becoming too stuck on how to represent it.I feel that introducing imagination with this

section also helps them to realize the thoughts and feelings that make it goes into an artist works

and identify with being an artist their-selves. Im not sure if I would introduce Conceptual Art

within this assignment as I believe that is a concept that should be introduced in the very being

and can be easily applied to any assignment.

Adaption

When working with High School age students I would save this assignment for later in

the year after a since of community in the classroom has been established and they have had time

to practice a variety of techniques they could use in this assignment. I would leave the materials

completely open as to what they wanted to use. I may stick to a theme of Journey but would give

them the option to have it be a Journey they plan to take or one they have already taken. I would

also incorporate Identity into the theme.

Details and context of students studio investigation

Have Students create a book that tells a life journey they have taken, or plan to venture

on. Ask them think about: Who were you before the Journey? How did you change? How do you

think you will change after your journey. Have them answer questions: How did you use
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Allegory, Authenticity, Semiotics, and imagination in your autobiography Narrative. Give them

these questions prior to the assignment so they know they have to be answered and are concisely

thinking about it during the art making process. I would supply students with options to use a

previous pound book and add to it, or pages to create there own. I would supply them with free

range to medium as a means to allow exploration of their-selves trough the creation of art. When

reviewing there completed work I would look for there use of Artist, Narrative, Allegory,

Autobiography, Semiotics and Authenticity in addition to how they improved current skill levels

in addition to new techniques that they explored.

National Core Art Standards

Visual Arts

Grade 9-12 Visual Arts:

creating proficient to advanced

Shape an artistic investigation of an aspect of present- day life using a contemporary practice of

art or design.

Choose from a range of materials and methods of traditional and contemporary artistic practices

to plan works of art and design.

Choose from a range of materials and methods of traditional and contemporary artistic practices,

following or breaking established conventions, to plan the making of multiple works of art and

design based on a theme, idea, or concept.

Presenting proficient

Analyze and evaluate the reasons and ways an exhibition is presented.

Responding proficient to advanced

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Hypothesize ways in which art influences perception and understanding of human experiences.

Recognize and describe personal aesthetic and empathetic responses to the natural world and

constructed environments.

Analyze how responses to art develop over time based on knowledge of and experience with art

and life.

connecting proficient to advanced

Document the process of developing ideas from early stages to fully elaborated ideas.

Utilize inquiry methods of observation, research, and experimentation to explore unfamiliar

subjects through art- making.

Synthesize knowledge of social, cultural, historical, and personal life with art-making approaches

to create meaningful works of art or design.

California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, Teaching Performance

TPE 1: Engaging and Supporting All Students in Learning

Promote students' critical and creative thinking and analysis through activities that provide

opportunities for inquiry, problem solving, responding to and framing meaningful

questions, and reflection.

TPE 2: Creating and Maintaining Effective Environments for Student Learning

6. Establish and maintain clear expectations for positive classroom behavior and for student-to-

student and student-to-teacher interactions by communicating classroom routines,

procedures, and norms to students and families.

TPE 3: Understanding and Organizing Subject Matter for Student Learning

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Plan, design, implement, and monitor instruction consistent with current subject-specific

pedagogy in the content area(s) of instruction, and design and implement disciplinary and

cross-disciplinary learning sequences, including integrating the visual and performing

arts as applicable to the discipline.3

TPE 4: Planning Instruction and Designing Learning Experiences for All Students

Understand and apply knowledge of the range and characteristics of typical and atypical child

development from birth through adolescence to help inform instructional planning and

learning experiences for all students.

TPE 5: Assessing Student Learning

Apply knowledge of the purposes, characteristics, and appropriate uses of different types of

assessments (e.g., diagnostic, informal, formal, progress-monitoring, formative,

summative, and performance) to design and administer classroom assessments, including

use of scoring rubrics.

TPE 6: Developing as a Professional Educator

Understand and enact professional roles and responsibilities as mandated reporters and comply

with all laws concerning professional responsibilities, professional conduct, and moral

fitness, including the responsible use of social media and other digital platforms and

tools.