Beautiful Jamaican Wildlife Poster

Check out this beautiful Jamaican Wildlife Poster- a wonderful educational resource by Liz:
https://sawwhetstudio.tumblr.com/

Obama's Turn Around Arts Initiative

It's not local news, but the Obama administration has developed a strategy to use arts education to address some of the most challenging schools in the States. Celebrities are helping out by "adopting" one of these schools each. Some of the celebrities involved are: Chuck Close, Forest Whitaker, Yo Yo Ma and Sarah Jessica Parker.

This article covers the story. One of the principals involved believes that: "his school can prove that arts are an "accelerator" for improvements in reading, math and other subjects. He states: "we have to give kids' brains an opportunity to synthesize these things we're teaching them at a deep level. That happens best when arts are present in the school. " 


It will be interesting to see the results of these programs, putting the arts to the test in the most challenging situations. Here is the site for the program: http://turnaroundarts.pcah.gov/.

Canadian history curriculum: first nations.

In this article in the Globe today, Paul Martin address the current problem with first nations education and revisits the accomplishments of the Kelowna accord that was "scrapped when the Conservatives came to power." These accomplishments would have focused on making first nations education a priority. This includes increased funding for reserve schools and a change in the way we teach Canadian history: to include the Metis, the first nations and the Inuit. The visual arts curriculum includes first nations work, both historical and contemporary; there is no way to talk about Canadian art without it, however, there is room to improve that curriculum as well with more specific first nations content and classroom resources for teachers.

The Elements & Principles of Design Icons

These are handouts that I created for my practicum in visual arts this fall. I had the chance to teach the elements & principles unit for grade 9 and 10 and faced the challenge of trying to make these terms easily accessible for a range of students.

I found that by going though each element and principle with examples from art history, and then applying this in a studio session, the students got the concepts. The problem was then being able to remember them all.

I tried these handouts and they worked surprisingly well. I gave out blank versions, and had the students fill out each term and definition as we covered them in class. The important part is the final step, the icon, where I asked students to come up with an icon that mattered to them, and that they felt comfortable drawing. This way, the terms were reinforced with an immediate visual reference that is more memerorable than a definition- the handouts also work well as a study sheet for the final exam.

A full Elements and Principles of Design Unit plan (complete with lesson plans) is also available on my Teachers Pay Teachers site, here.

The letter-size worksheets by themselves (without the lesson plans) are available on my Teachers Pay Teachers site, here.

- Patrick

The Major Parties on Education

As the provincial election fast approaches, here's a look at where the major parties stand on education, written up in the Torontoist.

Art Students: thinkers as well as makers

The Globe featured this article about how art education is giving students the skills to succeed in careers that don't even exist yet.

Ken Robinson: Changing education paradigms | Video on TED.com

Ken Robinson: Changing education paradigms | Video on TED.com

One of the most relevant and interesting talks in a while...

The Third Teacher

I have to link to the site for a fantastic book that I just got: The Third Teacher.
This book is the result of a collaboration of three design firms, one in engineering (OWP/P | Cannon Design), one in educational furnishings (VS America) and one in culture (Bruce Mau Design).


The focus of the book is the role that the design of the physical environment plays in supporting or inhibiting learning. This is a question that every teacher should consider: how does your classroom help or hinder your efforts as an educator?


Class Activity: ask the students, what elements of the design of the classroom and of the school help your learning, and why; and what elements are obstacles, why? How can we address these issues?

Emily Pilloton: Teaching design for change

"Emily Pilloton: Teaching design for change."

"Design is education. 'In order to do something good you first have to do something'"
An inspiring story for design and for public education.

Class Activity: In groups find some issues or problems in your community and suggest some ideas of how art or design could be used to better them.

Sugata Mitra: The child-driven education

"Sugata Mitra: The child-driven education."

Two great quotes that he mentions, from Arthur C. Clarke: "a teacher that can be replaced by a machine should be," and "when you have interest, then you have education."

Sir Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity

"Sir Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity"

It is so refreshing to hear him speak of creativity as being just as important as literacy and numeracy. I love that Picasso quote that he mentions, "Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up."