DANCE PARTY PLAYLIST CREATION

Originally posted November 12, 2020.

My Artistic Process

For my third Process Journal, I chose to create an Eco-Art inspired dance party playlist. I wanted to create a playlist that had both variety and songs featuring Indigenous artists. The playlist is as follows:

The Playlist

1. “Landback” – A Tribe Called Red, Boogey the Beat, Northern Voice

“Landback” was created to support the Wet’suwe’ten nation in their conflict with the Canadian government. It is a reflection of the Wet’suwe’ten nation’s connection to land and nature. I chose this song because it emphasizes the importance of our connection to land.

2. “Radioactive” – Imagine Dragons

Most people have heard “Radioactive”. In my search for songs to include in the playlist, I found this website that lists sixty-one songs about nature and the environment. “Radioactive” was included in this list. On the web-page, the author wrote, “If we’re not careful, nature as we know it will cease to be. We’ll be left with what’s in this 2012 electro-rock song, a radioactive wasteland. The narrator paints a picture of a post-apocalyptic world where he is surrounded by ash and dust and breathes in toxic chemicals.”

“Home to Me” – N’we Jinan Artists (Grassy Narrows First Nation)

N’we Jinan Artists is a program that goes to schools in Indigenous communities and collaborates with Indigenous youth to create music videos. “Home to Me” discusses respect for land and culture.

 “For Our Culture” – N’we Jinan Artists (Seabird Island Community School, British Columbia)

“For our Culture” discusses how the connection to people and nature keeps them strong and united through their hardships. I chose this song because of the lyrics that talk about the importance of connection to nature.

5. “One World (We Are One)” – Taboo

Similar to the other songs in this playlist, “One World (We Are One)” talks about the importance of unity in the world for healing. I chose this song because I felt its message tied the playlist together.

The Dance Party

I decided to include my sister in the dance party so I did not feel lonely.

The types of movements I created varied depending on the song that was playing. During “Landback” I hopped a lot and varied how fast I was hopping based on the change in tempo. The pace of movements varied depending on the tempo in the song. In songs like “Landback” my movements were more aggressive, but in songs like “Home to Me” my movements were slower and more fluid.

Applications to Teaching

Implementing an activity like this would be beneficial in my classroom because it aligns with my beliefs about education like that each student’s individuality is an important component of their education and should be used to help achieve educational outcomes.

By allowing students to move freely to the music they hear, they are able to express their individuality and own interpretation of dance. My only concern about this activity is ensuring that each student feels comfortable participating. Another way I would adapt this activity is by having students create their own playlists that were guided by personal questions about themselves.

November 23, 2021 by jnw786 Categories: EAE 201, Second Year Leave a comment

Sound Map Creation

Originally posted October 16, 2020.

For my second process journal, I decided to create a sound map based on the sounds I heard outside.

My Process

My sound map is inspired by the sounds I heard in our yard. I chose to use fall colors because when outside it feels and looks exactly like the middle of fall:

Brown: The brown squiggles represent my conversation with Raya. Our conversation was random and occurred in small spurts.

Orange: The orange dashed curves represent the sound of the cars driving on the highway. It was quiet and then there would be a ‘whoosh’ as the cars passed our yard.

Yellow: The yellow represents the wind. The wind was the loudest sound because it was very windy and cold. I made the wind the largest part of the map for this reason.

Red: The red represents the sounds of the geese flying south. I made the shape sharp and pointed because the sound was quick, but had a definitive peak in volume.

When translating the sounds into a visual process I noticed that it required paying more attention to the entirety of the sounds. By doing this I noticed that often I do not pay attention to the detail of the sounds I hear and where they are coming from. This aspect of sound is very important in creating and listening to music.

When I look at my sound map, I see an interpretation of fall. I see this because the shapes and colors remind me of falling leaves.

Classroom Application

I like this activity because it is quick and easy. I remember doing this once in Band and enjoyed it. I can see this being a great activity to encourage students to think more deeply about the dynamics of the sounds they hear.

I also think that this activity is very versatile. The two main ways I would incorporate it into the classroom are the following:

1. Take students outside or somewhere in the school and have them map the sounds they hear.
2. Have students listen to a song and have the map the sounds they hear.

November 23, 2021 by jnw786 Categories: EAE 201, Second Year Leave a comment

JUNK ART CREATION

Originally posted October 15, 2020.

For my first process journal, I chose to practice land-based arts education by creating a piece using junk.

My Junk Art

My Artistic Process

I am currently watching my boyfriend’s eight-year-old sister because she is sick and cannot be at school. So, I decided that we could both make our own land-based art. We began by walking around outside and we talked about what we saw, heard, felt, smelled, and tasted. When we were outside I noticed that there were a lot of leaves in the yard and most of the trees were empty. I also saw that her dad had a pile of junk piled up outside the door of his shop. In the pile were empty WD-40 cans, zip ties, pieces of plywood, pop bottle caps, and many other things. I decided to grab a few things from the pile to repurpose them. When we were outside I also grabbed a twig that had fallen to the ground. After about fifteen minutes I decided I wanted to represent what I saw outside using the junk I found in the pile and some natural materials.

When we came back inside we gathered a few materials that we could use.

For my junk art I used:

Styrofoam Plate: With our lunch that day we had left over pumpkin pie and we used Styrofoam plates, so I decided to use my plate as a canvas.

Green Acrylic Paint: I used the green acrylic paint to resemble the grass outside.

Plywood: I found a small piece of plywood in the pile outside and hot glued it to the plate. It is to resemble the shop.

Cardboard Box: I also found this box in the pile outside. Since the cardboard box was brown and burgundy I decided to use it to represent the leaves on the ground.

Coke Bottle Cap & Zip Ties: I found these in the pile outside. I though it was fitting to use them to represent the junk pile.

Twig: I broke the twig I found on the ground into pieces and glued it to the plate. The twig is to represent the trees I saw outside.

What did I learn from using the materials?

I learned that anything can be used to make art. The biggest takeaway for me from this assignment is that we can make art out of anything and use anything to inspire us. I liked the simplicity of going outside and picking up a few twigs and leaves and creating something different from it.

Classroom Applications

It was helpful to do this assignment with a child that is the age this type of activity is very well suited for because it gave me some ideas of how I could improve the activity and what students would like about it. I appreciated that we could both discuss our knowledge about the environment and apply it to what we made together. When we were each making our junk art we talked about how it was cool that we could use garbage to make art. Raya had a lot of fun doing this activity.

When Raya was making her junk art she was able to express her individual perspective and what we experienced outside. In her piece, she decided to paint the leaves and explained that the colors she painted them reminded her of fall and Halloween. From Raya’s experience, I know that this activity is process based and allows students to experiment.

Raya’s Junk Art

I believe in allowing students to express their own individuality and experiences in classroom activities and this activity allows them to do so.

How I would incorporate this activity into the classroom:

I think that this activity aligns well with the Grade 3 Saskatchewan Science Curriculum. For this reason I would use this activity to supplement both a science and art class. It would be great to start off by having a lesson that discusses the importance of recycling, reducing and reusing. After the lesson we could go outside for a reflection and complete the activity. Instead of having students pick up garbage from outside I would ask them to bring clean trash from home. I would also encourage them to grab natural materials that could be repurposed from outside.

November 23, 2021 by jnw786 Categories: EAE 201, Second Year Leave a comment

ONLINE ARTS PROJECT

Originally posted October 9, 2020.

For my Online Arts Project, I chose to use Scratch to create a short animation.

What is Scratch?

Scratch is a program that teaches kids the basics of coding. The program uses ‘Block Coding’, which is the most simplest form of code and is based off of Java Script. Usually when children are learning the basics of coding they begin with Block Coding and then progress to Java Script.

With Scratch you can be infinitely creative and explore your creativity by creating video games or animations.

How did I find Scratch and Why did I choose to use it?

How: In the Spring I took EDTC 300, where we were introduced to how to incorporate coding into the classroom. My instructor gave us an assignment in which we had to choose between using Scratch or Code.org to experiment with coding. For the assignment, I chose to use code.org and had not gotten the chance to use/experiment with Scratch.

Why: I chose to use Scratch because it has many different creative applications and also has cross-curricular potential. Since Scratch forces the user to use coding in a creative manner it can be used as a way to incorporate Math and Art into a singular lesson/activity.

My Process & Experience

Process

I first began by experimenting with Scratch, watching some tutorials and learning how to use it. I have experience with Block Coding and Java Script so I already had a basic understanding of how Block Coding worked. It did not take me long to figure out the program.

Once I had a better understanding of how to use Scratch, I went to Autodesk Sketchbook on my tablet and began coming up with ideas for a Sprite. I originally wanted to create a short story about a frog, so I began drawing a frog, but I felt like it was taking too long. So I decided to draw Mandalas instead since they are quick, fun, and easy to draw. Once I finished three mandalas I saved them as PNG images and uploaded them on to my google drive for easy access.

I then downloaded the images from my google drive onto my computer and re-uploaded them into Scratch. From there I was able to play around with the functions of Scratch until I got a short animation that I liked.

Experience

In retrospect, I wish that I would have allotted more time, so that I could have made elaborate animation. I think that the idea I had for the frog would have been really interesting, but it was just too time consuming. However, this is something I would like to experiment with in the future and maybe next time I will make my own video game!

Scratch was super easy to use and a lot of fun. I highly recommend it and think it deserves to have a place in the classroom. I loved that Scratch is user friendly and leaves a lot of room for creativity. When using Scratch, I had to utilize my problem-solving skills to make the Sprites move the way I wanted them to. This was not necessarily a challenge, but it was challenging.

Classroom Application

Grade & Subject: Grade 4 Arts Education/Math

Students will create their own one-minute animation using Scratch. They can choose to create their own Sprites and Background or choose one of Scratch’s options. They must include music/sounds in the animation that help improve the cohesiveness of the animation.

My Animation

November 23, 2021 by jnw786 Categories: EAE 201, Second Year Leave a comment

ONE GREAT THING LESSON PLAN

View here.

Lesson Plan Overview

Grade: Four

Length: 4 Days (60 min/day)

Subject: Arts Education (Visual Art and Literature Strand)/English Language Arts

Content: Students will be able to practice their critical thinking skills while fostering creativity by creating a poem about one great thing and an illustration to symbolize the poem. We will be reading two books that have inspired the activity. This lesson focuses on the development and importance of creativity.

January 27, 2021January 27, 2021 by jnw786 Categories: Arts Education, EAE 201, English Language Arts, Second Year, Unit & Lesson Plans Leave a comment