Third Grade Winter Wonders!
2/24/2021
When I first mentioned to my students that we would be cross country skiing during P.E., there was very little enthusiasm as many of the children had never been on skis. A few had alpine skied and those students asked if we could do Alpine, (downhill skiing) instead. Children’s resistance to cross-country skiing may be based on the general misconception that it is tiring and difficult. They see it as a boring alternative to the more fast-paced nature of downhill skiing. Making cross-country skiing fun is a way of capturing a child’s attention and engendering in them a lifelong passion for the sport! The best way to teach students to ski is to get them “to play” on their skis. Our first lesson started with how to put on skis and how to get up from a fall. We started skiing on the flat but quickly added ‘playing’ on a downhill slope. Because children get excited about going down the hill, they don’t notice the drudgery of the hill climb. Without thought, they are herringboning back up the hill and skiing the longer, more gradual loop to get to the top to race back down. They’re practicing important cross-country skills without even realizing they are acquiring the skills! We play many chase games on skis, and Watch Your Back Tag with pool noodles is one of their favorites. We go through obstacle courses, jump off of small jumps, go around pool noodle gates and pool noodle tunnels and we hula hoop and play catch with balls all on skis. We spend time playing balancing games, skiing down a hill on one ski is a favorite. I always intersperse technical help throughout these fun games. All of these activities slyly teach fundamental skills and give both structure and intensity to the lessons. All of the third graders are skiing very well and all enjoy their time on skis. Peals of laughter can be heard from our wonderful huge field and it is always difficult to get them to stop skiing when class is over. Please look at the photos and videos of your children. I am very proud of them! You should be too! What to expect...Third grade is a pivotal time in the development of students’ movement skills. Third-graders who demonstrate and understand the proper form for locomotor and nonlocomotor skills now shift their focus to combining those skills into new movement sequences. Practice opportunities provide students with sufficient time to develop the proper form for manipulative skills, such as rolling, throwing, catching, dribbling, kicking, and striking. Fitness activities become increasingly important at this age. Like the second graders, their attention spans are improving, and they are very interested in why things occur. Many students have developed a self-confidence strong enough to tolerate how others react to them. They have developed a stronger sense of right and wrong, having reached the stage of development for internalization of rules and regulations. They are becoming more self-reliant and work well both independently and as a group. Because these students experience an increased desire for interaction with others, we provide them with more opportunities to practice and work toward common goals in pairs and trios. In the third grade, students begin to transfer fundamental skills to competitive sports games. We learn about good sportsmanship and how to both win and lose gracefully while we instill the importance of working on a team. Competition is limited to team sports and activities. Being on a team that has lost a competition is much easier to handle so we learn as a group about being “a good sport”. Third grade is a fun, exciting pivotal time for your children!
It has been a WONDERFUL time of learning this semester! How would I know i would have the opportunity to virtual teach right after Spring Break. I went into my classroom on March 9 and worked over the week to clean and reorganize for the spring term. At home, soon after, I received the announcements that our brick-and-mortar school would not open just yet to the corona virus pandemic.
I have become a fan of Zoom, devouring the blogs and taking webinar after webinar. Before all this happened, I zoomed with a sister in Missouri, laughing and sharing in our weekly conversations. However, the pacing of teaching is different, and I found out how much I loved teaching online! It was a privilege to continue teaching the children. I did miss waving at everyone in the morning. I was amazed and grateful for the previous knowledge the students had on the computer. The day the 4th Grade demonstrated all their virtual backgrounds was one I'll always remember. I wish to thank the parents for making sure their children were on the computer. for my art classes. I had such good attendance. I know the hard work it took for parents to go from zero to one hundred miles an hour on zoom. The Virtual Auction, thanks to our Peter Kling, Upper One Studios, and the Toast of the Town, Alaska, LLC organizers, and our Board--all made a lasting impression on me. It was so awesome to see almost 100 people at once on the screen. I loved the rehearsals where we went over everything to make it flawless. Katie Strock and Elizabeth Ferry were great in their breakout rooms! Laurie Hoefer and Josienne and Jenevieve Roe were so welcoming on the screen. I enjoyed the graphics of the virtual screen. Well done! On May 31st, there will be a virtual Watercolor Paint Party with Brenda Jaeger! We will be zooming for three hours. Unlike previous years, the artists signed up will work from home. I will be sending a list of supplies that everyone will want to look over and then purchase any they don't have from Blaine's Art Store or Michael's. Acrylics can be used in washes, and can be substituted for watercolor. Kathy Heinlein has been coordinating this event, and I have sent her the link I scheduled for this event. If you have any other questions beyond what Kathy Heinlein can answer, email me at [email protected]. There are still more openings if you'd like to join! See you May 31st from 2-5pm for our very first virtual PNA Annual Auction Paint Party! May there be many more! Art in the 21st Century
2/15/2020
What does “Art in the 21st Century” mean? How has art changed in the real world? The utilization of artist skills and creativity by companies has always been a important to innovation and marketing. While some basic knowledge remains timeless, many of the modern art skills involve integrations with science, technology, engineering, and math. You may recognize those words, since they are the basis for the acronym STEM. Art is a key area to integrate STEM.
What are some of the art aspects that remain timeless? I mentioned above that some aspects of art remain timeless. We focused on developing these skills through much of last semester, including developing a basic understanding of the elements of design and the principles of design. What are some art aspects that are new or receive greater emphasis in the 21st century? We are applying the knowledge we gained in first semester to a couple of graphic design projects. These days, graphic design skills are useful in a variety of professions. How many of us have had to use photoshop at one time or another? At this point, having at least basic graphic design competency can be a helpful skill in a variety of career paths. What are some other examples of STEM inspired art projects? Engineering has a lot of connections to art. We are considering involving the middle school students to plan and build a greenhouse for the school. We will involve science, technology, engineering, and math. This project is still in the works, so stay tuned! Saints and Sinners
2/10/2020
I’m in San Diego, hanging out with friends and family. I asked advice about this blog, and my husband suggested the title. Why? He pointed out that I’m enjoying seeing all the place names and hearing random conversations in Spanish. They happen to have fallen into exactly those two categories! Why is it important to learn languages? There are so many reasons, but the pure pleasure that I get from being where I see and hear a lot of Spanish is one that I hope our students grow into. It has happened a lot in Alaska for me with my main language (Russian), and now that I’m working on acquiring Chinese, it is happening with that language too. I feel powerful when I can suddenly understand a few words that people are speaking near me, or know how to make a comment in a restaurant where folks speak Mandarin. Spanish is so common here in San Diego that it’s not unusual, but it’s lovely to hear the lisp of speakers from Spain, the jjj of the “ll” from Argentinians, and the range of accents from those of other countries. My family always gets a little worried when I approach people to ask where they’re from, but I always feel it’s fair to alert others that I know the language they’re speaking, especially when topics are a bit … salty. And after that introduction, we typically get into an interesting conversation or I find that I can help in some way. The little video that is attached to this blog is from a few seconds in second grade when I offered students the chance to hear and respond to language that they understand in a fun way. They are acting out lines of a story that they wrote about one of the students’ stuffies. (Everyone has a favorite, and each animal is getting a personal story.) This particular story is about a germ (el microbio) who has no mouth and therefore can’t do some fun things: eat, drink, or speak Spanish. He steals one student’s mouth, and another student gives him one, but then he’s still unhappy, because they can’t talk with him! If I do my job well, students will eventually not only understand me, but they’ll be able to understand random bits of conversations they happen to overhear. It’s my hope that they will have the same pleasure that I gain. Instead of ignoring a blur of incomprehensible syllables, they’ll feel a kinship with people of another culture, able to share a moment or offer help as needed. Early Childhood and Lower School Art
2/7/2020
In January, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Annual Show was hung. I would like to thank Rachel Botson for her help mattting, labelling, and hanging the exhibition. An artist herself, in the fields of painting and sculpture, she has been an invaluable assistant for the Art Program. Thank you very much, Rachel!
This semester, we have continued our art discussions, critiques, and the creation of new work. Teachnology is included in the context of the lesson, especially when discussing art history. This year many more images have come onto the public domain and are available for download. Some of the museums that offer lessons and art history resources are the National Gallery of Art, the Met and the MOMA. I enjoy going to NYC every year and visiting the museums. More specifically, the Early Childhoood has been working on drawing and painting Arctic animals. The Kindergarten has been maskmaking, and are studying the Polynesian cultures, with a focus on the Maori of New Zealand, Soon we will carve our Maori designs in soap. After that, paper-mache' sculpture is in line. The First Grade have been working intensively on their paintings interpreting Mil Memorias. We have discussed theatre, movement/dance, and music as part of our understanding the song. I worked with them on my techniques for developing work from literature and music. We are collaborating with Senora Whaley who provided the song. In Art class we have constructed paintings using calligraphy, and 1960's/70's hard edge techniques, with a mention of Minimalism and Color Field movements in art. The Second and Third Grades are working in paper-mache'. The Second are constructing hanging sculptures, and the Third are making masks. The Fourth and Fiifth Grades are taking thwir woodburnings home. Thanks to Steve and Chris Nyman, we have wood for this, cut from cottonwood and birch. The Fifth Garde finished their paintings inspired by Guernica, a wonderful collaboration with Senora Whaley. Beginners through Fifth Grades are working toward the Annual Spring Show, held the first week of May. Art Notes from Brenda Jaeger: Presently the Georgia Blue Gallery has my painting "Forest Wind" in a group show at Jens Restaurant. I also participated in the LEWK silent auction and show at the Georgia Blue Gallery, where the proceeds are used for gynecological cancer research. I have a show at Advanced Physical Therapy in Wasilla; and will have work in the Robert Service-themed show at Humdinger's Artisan Pizza in Palmer. I'm continuing teaching private lessons in my art studio, which is still under construction. Recently I sold and shipped artwork to buyers in Washington state and Missouri. |
Specialist & Enrichment Teachers Archives
February 2021
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