Week of October 6^th and 8^th: Presenting our Projects and Discussion    

            In class on October 6^th, we turned in our “Unsung Hero” Project. For this assignment we were given a name from a list in our textbook of rarely spoken of or “unsung” figures in our history. As I mentioned in an earlier blog post, I was assigned Dolores Huerta. She worked closely with Cesar Chavez and helped create the United Farmers Workers or UFW. She has worked tirelessly for causes such as immigrant, farm workers’ wages and women and children’s rights. For this project I struggled to think of a creative piece that could capture all the work she has done, and the impact she has had on minorities and women’s lives. I finally decided that the best route for me to take would be to create a piece that could symbolize the work she put into Delano Grape strike of 1965. During this protest she helped organize the workers into a protest that peacefully demonstrated for minimum wage for their labor. Keeping this in mind, I began to work on my piece. Using a green poster board, I shaped it to the shape of a dollar bill. I then put the dollar sign in the middle of the dollar, with drawings of grapes on either side of the sign. Then I lined the boarder of the dollar with the cut out figures of various male and female workers. They all had a protest sign, and were left faceless to symbolize how mistreated they were by the labor system. To me this had the effect of making them seem voiceless, when in actuality they were quite willing to fight for their fair wage.

 This is the final look for my unsung hero Project. I broke Popsicle sticks in half to make the picket signs. This was a fun project to research and make an art piece for. I think this is a great and fun way to introduce students to facts and people about various aspects of history.
 Below is what my memory water color project ended up looking like. For some reason, when I used some of the techniques- such as the alcohol trick- it did not end up working on my paper. Perhaps it was because of the texture of my paper? Either way, this was also a fun project to do in class, and it could be used in other classrooms for a nice icebreaker.

 Week of September 29^th and October 1^st:  Water color project

            During the class period of September 29^th, we were given time to finish up our water color projects. Over the weekend, I had finally decided on the topic that I wanted to paint. I chose the time in 8^th grade (which was really the whole year) when I was sick. I had gotten H1N1- or Swine flu- but instead of getting better I got worse. It turned out that the virus had done some damage to my digestive system and I know struggled with keeping stuff down. Because of this, I spent a lot of time at home and away from my friends, which was one of the many reasons why we stopped talking that year.

            Drawing this painting was hard for me (because my drawing skills are sub-par at best) but it was fun/challenging to draw something so personal to me. 

My sketches of my memory: this one shows my mom and I at one of the numerous doctors appointments I had after getting the flu.

My first idea for my memory was to draw about my first day of  school. However, I struggled to show how this was a significant memory to making me the person I am now, rather than showing how embarrassingly I reacted on my first day.

Week of September 22^nd and 24^th: My first absence and turning in our first project

            I was absent for class on September 22^nd. I became ill with a stomach bug. Since I was going to an elementary school for the first time the next day, I decided to get a doctor’s appointment to make sure I was not contagious. Due to this, I was not in class when we discussed pages 102-126.

            In class on the 24^th, we turned in our photography project. For this project, we were instructed to take pictures of a minimum of 5 things that we encounter or see on our way home. Since I live on campus, I decided to use pictures of landmarks and objects that I see on my way from Round Rock to Texas Tech University. We were told to get creative in how we showed the pictures, taking care to make sure that it still looked like a map. In the end, I decided to base my project design on board games. I used the theme of candy land to make the map outline of my project. I felt that as an elementary school teaching giving out a similar project idea, this would be an easy and nice example to show my students on how to do their maps.

We did not talk about what we did, but instead turned it in and began the other part of our class.

During class that day we also started learning about water color techniques. We learned styles and tips that would enhance or eventual water color projects. Such simple and cheap items as rubbing alcohol and paper towels can alter the texture and layout of your paintings. This was a cool lesson, and is something simple yet fun that I could incorporate into my classroom.

            After learning about the 4 styles of water coloring, we then moved on to learning about our next project: painting a significant memory. I struggled to come up with one that Dr. Johnson approved of but we finally agreed on one.

 

    Week of September 15^th and 17^th: Painting with a “twist” and more discussion

            In class on the 15^th, we finished off our discussion of the assigned reading (pages 77-101). This time in class we talked about what are basic rights of humans as pertaining Bill or Rights around the world. As a class, we agreed that as a Human being it is your right to pursue happiness, be treated fairly and justly. Dr. Johnson asked us what are definition of “fair” was, and we discussed how as a human, you should not be subject to harsh or unfair treatment, and should have the right to express your opinions and live life as you see fit. We talked about how this could have repercussions, since one person living their life as they see fit is bound to infringe on the rights and beliefs of another.

            I believe that as a human being, you should live life the way you want to, but to an extent. Once your beliefs and lifestyle start to harm another person physically, then you are not living a life that is fair and just.

            In class on September 17^th, Dr. Johnson had someone from Painting with a twist in Lubbock come and show us how to do it. Throughout the class period, she walked us through step by step of how to draw, paint and color in our piece (which was a drawing of Texas with a cowboy hat and a Texas Tech mustache), along with talking to us about different painting strokes and techniques. In the end, my drawing came out horrible, but I really enjoyed the experience. It was fun having someone come into our class and teach us another way to do art.

            Week of September 8th and 10th: Discussion and prepping canvases

In class on September 8^th, we discussed how history can be biased. In this discussion we talked about how when history in taught in schools, there can be “selective memory”. For example, we talked about people who are rarely discussed in classrooms. From Dolores Huerta to John Brown, classrooms have the tendency to leave out figures who could be seen as controversial. Dr. Johnson said that this was due to the fact that history books are written by people who do not want this stuff talked about, and I agree to a point. I am aware of how textbooks can be very biased when it comes to remembering how history went down (like how World War II is a huge focal point in classrooms, but the Japanese internment camps in the US are rarely mentioned in class, or the lack of pages on women and people of color). I also believe, that history is such a huge topic to talk about, and there are so many people to cover, that sometimes people are left out.

In my AP US history class in high school, I had a teacher who focused both on what was going to be covered on our test and on what he felt was important for us to know. I think it is up to the teachers (with the approval of their principal) on how much they want to deviate from the textbooks and curriculum, to teach their students about figures in history who are equally as important as the ones we learn about in textbooks.

In this class period we also were assigned a project called Unsung Heroes. For this project we were assigned a person who we had not heard of before (I was given Dolores Huerta) and were supposed to make an art piece symbolic of what they stood for, along with facts on our person. It was to be due on October 6^th.

In class on September 10^th, we started working on the canvasses that we would use for painting with a twist. We built our canvasses by framing two pieces of wood, and pulling a piece of canvas linen around the frames and borders. After making sure they were on tight, we stapled them onto the wood, and then went on to paint the canvases white. Then we let them dry for next week.

         September 1^st and the 3^rd: Discussion and drawing our future selves

            In class on September 1^st, we were assigned an in class group activity to sort through a stack of children’s’ book and analyze the environment seen in the books. We then discussed how these images may affect the way students view themselves and the world around them. Dr. Johnson also argued the point that students may lose interest in a book or lesson if they cannot see themselves in the book, so we should always strive to have diversity and varying themes for in class readings. While I agree with this, I do not believe that we can always make sure that every group and problem is represented at all times, so that we should try the best we can to include diversity in books, but also make sure that you stay on track with the lesson you are trying to teach. In the book pile were some children’s books that I used to read, like a book from the Arthur series and A Magic school bus book.

            In class on the 3^rd, we were given the task to draw what we pictured we would look like in 10 years, and also what we would want our classrooms to look like. I struggled with drawing the features realistically for my self-portrait, but I enjoyed drawing what I would want my classroom to look like. I want to be a special education teacher at the elementary level, and I know that I will want to have a bunch of sensory stations around the room. This helps keep the students engaged, and also can help them with learning motor skills and other techniques for daily life. It can also help to calm down the students, and is a great tool to get lessons such as music and art across to the students.

     First week of Class: August 25-27th

                   August 25th was the first day of class, and on this day everyone made themselves name tags. Using construction paper of the color of our choice, we then decorated them with pictures and symbols that represented who we are and our interests. We then went around the class and introduced ourselves and explained what we put on our name tags and why.

                     On the second day of class we discussed our first assigned readings. Mentioned in the discussion were the debate over Ebonics should be considered a language. Several (including myself) argued that it should not be, but our teach Dr. Johnson proved us wrong and explained why it is in fact a language and why it should be considered one. He explained how agencies, companies, and people  use the dialect in their daily lives, and I am now convinced that this is  a language. Anything that is spoken by groups of people should be classified as a language.