Reflective

Journal- Ashley Hoisington

Practicum 7
May 31st 2017

The art activity was based on creating a self-portrait. I had taken some photos of the

students last week to use for the project- so they were ready and excited beforehand! I had

made an example of the project so that they could perhaps get some inspiration and help them

to further understand the idea of a self-portrait, without actually drawing anything. I began the

art lesson by sitting the students at the carpet space (so I was able to work with flexible

seating,) in order to explain the purpose, process, and product of the activity. I made sure to

explain that my example is just an example, and that each project would end up looking very

different than mine and very different than each others, because we are all unique and special

in our own ways. Reflecting back on this, I see how it sort of tied into some discussions we had

about Charlottes Web and the uniqueness of each individual.

I explained the basic steps to creating this sort of self-portrait, and explained the

processes that I used as an inspiration if they were unsure of an idea for the background, or

magazine collages, etc. After this explanation, I sent the students to their desks, where a couple

students were passing out the photos and the papers to work on. As they got started on the

background I was able to circulate and give guidance were it was necessary and praise for good

work. The project did have a time limit for the day, which worked out to an hour, right after

lunch, so I was also responsible for keeping track of timing (students have an opportunity to

finish next week). As I circulated the room, I noticed lots of support between table groups and

individuals. I felt like the students were pretty well focused for the most part throughout. My

TA did point out that, yes the students completed the activity successfully or at least got a good
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chunk done, but a couple of them zoned out during instructional time so they had to ask

questions about the process throughout the activity.

On that note, I believe that the activity went really well overall. Some students finished

today, and these finished products turned out so well, and gave such a good indication of so

many personal things for each child. I also think that the whole process of making the art

pieces went good too, and then when our time limit was up the kids did a great job of

transitioning into tidy mode! The students all started the activity with different ideas about

what made them unique, which translated into 24 very different self-portraits. The students all

really enjoyed the activity, even those who claimed to not like art, had a great time and

embraced the activity. I loved seeing their faces light up with pride and joy when I came around

to see their projects- they couldnt wait to share!

I feel like one of the most challenging parts of the activity was making sure that each

child was organized and had the right tools, knowledge, and resources to complete the activity.

Getting everybody settled in and working was tough because they were so excited. Another

challenge was in getting the instructions passed along to each student so they understood

exactly what they were doing and when. I had a chat with my TA during her prep afterwards

and had a chat, I expressed my concern and asked for feedback on how I could improve the

delivery. She suggested to me that when you give instructions that have more than 2 steps

involved, to write them down on the board for reference. She pointed out to me that by doing

this, it puts responsibility onto the students fi they werent listening to begin with. However, we

were in agreeance that the activity was a success in the end. The students will have the
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opportunity to finish up their project next week during art, after which I will assess their

projects.

I think my biggest goal would be to improve the delivery of my instruction for the

better. I want to work on being more concise when I am speaking or teaching- even if I dont

have a lesson plan in front of me. This will come with practice, so I hope to continue practicing

even after practicum finishes. I also think that another goal would be to improve my abilities to

recognize when a student is disengaging, while I am teaching. I think that this is a struggle,

especially as a new teacher, because I am so focused on delivering the content and not straying

away from what I need to say. I find that the things that I feel I need most work on, are things

that can only be mastered by practicing and teaching more, I am very self-aware and able to

reflect on my performance (good or bad) so I can continue to keep these goals in mind while I

begin my education to become a teacher. No one is ever perfect the first time they do or

experience something, so I wasnt expecting myself to do everything perfect with this activity.

To be honest, I did a lot better than I expected, because it was the first time I had the students

doing something that I planned and executed almost on my own. I was preparing for a few

extra bumps in the road, but it was really a success and the students did exactly what I wanted

them to. My TA was a great support for me through planning this activity and executing it- by

making sure I had all necessary materials and resources.

There is a strategy that I could have used today that I want to practice as well. I really

want to practice writing on the white board while carrying on a class discussion. I feel that this

skill is really invaluable as a teacher, and it is something I will actively try to improve upon. I

found that when I did my journaling activity, I stopped talking when I turned to write the
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students sentence starters- which shouldnt happen. By practicing my writing and talking skills,

I will be able to keep my students actively engaged in their learning. Having this skill developed

would have also improved my success even more today, because I wouldnt have been

apprehensive to write the steps on the white board.