Now this really looks like an alligator!

Marie Catrett is back with another glimpse into the world of children’s learning and growth at Tigerlily Preschool in South Austin. Marie is inspired by Reggio Emilia and informed by her deep curiosity and many years of experience working with young children. This guest contribution is adapted from one of her regular letters to Tigerlily families.

5/4/2023

Marie writes:

Today is a fine example of how we can help children think more deeply about their work and loan them the use of our skills in a way that helps them grow their own.              

Marie (as we’re headed into the classroom, to R, a young three-year-old in our group): I have a question I want to ask you, about the alligator you made in clay yesterday.

R’s alligator is a flat face figure, with drawn-in eyes and a cheerful mouth, and this piece stands up because he added a nice big tail at the back in response to my asking, “Can you think of anything else your alligator needs?”

Today we look at Alligator together. It’s so charming as is, and doesn’t necessarily need any further embellishment if R doesn’t want to go further, but maybe . . .

Marie: Here’s a question I have for you. I notice you drew the alligator’s mouth, and I wanted to ask you something. May I look at a picture of an alligator with you?

We look at some pages from a well-known current story in our group, Mrs. Chicken and the Hungry Crocodile.

Illustration by Julie Paschkis, in Mrs. Chicken and the Hungry Crocodile, by Won-Ldy Paye and Margaret H. Lippert.

Marie: I’m wondering (this is me asking children about their work, are you satisfied?), sometimes people make an alligator and it feels important to show about teeth. It’s up to you (me, really working hard to make a yes or a no thanks be acceptable here, the maker truly is in charge, but the opportunity to add a meaningful detail is always exciting to me!), but if you’re interested in adding teeth to your alligator, that’s something we could think about together.

R looks at the pictures and announces that yes, his alligator needs some teeth.

My co-teacher, Lulu, has the excellent idea that it might also help to go look at the toy alligator that’s been such a popular player in the classroom this week.

From earlier in the week: the wild animals birthday party, no wilding allowed.

Re: no wilding allowed at the party, the alligators take a meeting.

Ah ha, looking back at play this week, it makes sense that thinking about alligators has been on R’s mind, enough to want to make one with the clay.

And while looking at images can help kids think more about what they want to do, touching an example of what they’re thinking about is even better.

R explores the mouth of the alligator. His first “face” alligator is also in the frame above.

I am imagining helping him add bits of clay to his drawn mouth line to make the wanted addition of teeth happen, but R now has a richer vision of how to make this alligator more alligator-y.

 R: I think an alligator should have an open mouth. And teeth. And a tongue that sticks out.

Marie: Hmmm. Wow. Okay. Oh! You know what, when my potter friend Jane came to show us about how she uses clay, she said starting with a pinch pot is a great way to make creatures. Would you like to try that?

Yes, says R, and we get a small ball of clay out to begin with a pinch pot. When it’s big enough, and turned on its side, R sees the shape he needs to decide it’s an open mouth. He adds eyes on top by drawing them on, in the way he’d done on the “face” version.

 Marie: I heard you say about teeth. I can think of two ways you could add those . . .

I take an extra bit of clay and show him some options to think about. You could use the tool to draw them in, as he’s done his eyes. Fingers could pinch up some teeth bumps maybe? Or . . .

Marie: These are just to show some ideas, but you’re the maker, so it’s up to you what you’d like to do.

R likes the idea of using his fingers to make “teeth shapes” out of clay. He places them where he thinks they need to go on the mouth, and I help him make them attach securely.

Marie: You know what, I bet you could also make a tongue shape like you’re wanting.

From left to right: R’s first and then second alligator.

As we’re looking at the finished work, an older child says, with admiration, of the second piece: “Wow, now this really looks like an alligator!”

One of my favorite things about striving to be a Reggio-inspired teacher is working with children like this:

I hear your interesting idea.
Let’s think more about this together.
I see a way that I can be a resource for what you’re wanting to do.
Here are some options to think about what feels right to you.
What do you think?
And, are you satisfied?

Marie Catrett | Tigerlily Preschool

Why should I take an art class? I don’t want to be an artist when I grow up!

Alison Pilon Nokes teaches art, among other subjects, at Huntington-Surrey High School in Austin. Her guest contribution here is adapted from her recent post on the school’s own blog.

After about ten years in the visual art education world, I feel pretty strongly that everyone should take an art class—every year, if possible!

Throughout my own educational and professional experiences, I have always felt freed by the opportunity for creative problem solving and exploration of visual media provided through the visual arts. I was, and still am, able to process many different parts of my life through an art outlet. And while I do, personally, as an adult, identify as an artist, I think the benefits of working through an artistic process—much like the experience of working with the scientific method in a science course—are worthwhile for everyone to experience as they venture through their education, no matter what they end up doing and becoming. 

We are living in a rapidly changing world. In many ways, we cannot even imagine what the work force and daily life are going to look like for our kids when they come of age. This year of rapid adjustment to virtual learning and social distancing has certainly given us all a taste of how flexible we need to be and how quickly our world can change. What we do know is that students who can think critically and creatively about a variety of complex problems are going to have the best chance for success in just about any setting. 

Not every student who is taking an art class is planning to apply to art school for college. In fact, most aren’t (just as not every student who is taking a biology course plans to become a biologist). It is with that in mind that I design lessons and projects for my art students. My lessons provide students with opportunities to play with materials they may not have used before, discover for themselves how those materials work, and consider how they can use them to meet their needs. My lessons present students with a problem, a dilemma, or an obstacle and ask them to come up with an out-of-the-box solution.

As much fun as it is for families and friends to walk into a student art show at the end of the year full of beautiful finished work, the reality of art is that most often what students make is messy and strange. For every finished work of art that is “pretty,” there are often several unsuccessful attempts (I’m purposely avoiding the term “failures”). Those unsuccessful attempts—those messy and strange drawings, paintings, and sculptures—are what show the important lessons of art: the processes of working out a solution to a problem. As a teacher of art, the most important thing to me is not what the final product looks like. Rather, I want my art students to put forth their best effort, maintain a good attitude about trying, and work through the hard process of solving problems in innovative ways with materials that may be new to them.

Alison Pilon Nokes

Expressive movement for kids

We welcome alternative educator extraordinaire Colleen Sears to the blog to introduce herself and her new Expressive Movement program at Casa de Luz, Center for Integral Studies.
 

Our bodies were meant to move, and we are meant to enjoy being inside them!
—Colleen Sears

Hello, lovely families of Austin! My name is Colleen, and I’d like to tell you a little about myself and my work. For the past 23 years, I have been extensively involved in childcare as well as movement and musical arts. I’ve always been passionate about connecting with people. A graduate of St. Edward’s University in communication studies and a student in counseling and acupuncture master’s programs, I began dancing 31 years ago and working with children 23 years ago.

My most recent accomplishment was assisting in the opening and success of Integrity Academy at Casa de Luz, Center for Integral Studies. There, I created the curriculum for and held the role of mentor for Level 1 (3- to 5-year-olds). Prior to this, I worked professionally in child care via after-school program directing, preschool teaching, substitute Montessori teaching, and in-home care for children as young as 3 months up to 16 years. In 2013 I took a year off of work to focus on dance at Austin Community College, where I studied ballet, jazz and modern dance, choreography, and dance performance.

Though I enjoyed and had success in my experiences at ACC, ultimately, my greatest passion is what I like to call “Expressive Movement.” My definition of this is: movement that involves authentic, personal expression from the soul. It is basically the opposite of technical dance; there is no “right” or “wrong” to this movement. It is movement inspired by the music and what it brings out in the individual, not from an instructor who teaches specific movements.
 

EXPRESSIVE MOVEMENT: AN AFTER-SCHOOL CLASS FOR AGES 3–15

When: Monday–Thursday, 3:00–5:00pm (later care available if needed)
Where: Casa de Luz, Center for Integral Studies, 1701 Toomey Road, Austin, TX 78704
(Este Room on Mondays & Sur Room on Tuesdays & Thursdays)

Because it is authentic movement, I give each child the space and freedom to move according to what feels good to him or her. The music provided in my classes allows for a spectrum of movements, feelings, and energetic releases.

My theory is this: Children are filled with energy and often don’t have the communication skills that we attain as adults to express how they are feeling; so this class gives them the opportunity to tap into the moment and move in whatever ways their body, mind, and soul wish, without anyone telling them they are doing something wrong. Too often, children are told that they need to “calm down” or what they are doing isn’t “right” in many (but not all) school settings. They need a space that allows them to be their full selves (within physical and emotional safety boundaries, of course).

My intentions and goals for this expressive movement class are the following:

• Help children connect with their bodies on a deep level
• Build confidence
• Help release excess energy and emotions that children don’t have the communication skills to process on their own
• Provide physical exercise
• Learn movement, physical expression, and musicality
• Explore space in relation to ourselves and each other
• Create a calming effect

Providing a safe space where there is no judgment is crucial to attaining these goals. The only rule of the class is to respect others’ space, bodies, and feelings. It is a very free, welcoming, accepting space for all kids.

I have always had a natural gift of helping others, young and old, to feel comfortable in moving. I have been asked for many years to teach others to dance. It doesn’t feel right for me to teach specific dance moves, but rather to create a safe, comfortable, judgment-free, nurturing space for others to explore their own bodies, emotions, and souls.

On occasion, music according to the chakras will be included to help create balance and grounding. Besides this, the class provides diverse genres and styles of music to inspire different experiences with a flowing, flexible agenda for each class. I usually like to let the children decide what music they would like to hear. If they are at a loss or if some inspiration is needed for music options, I am always prepared with an extensive variety of music to offer them. Costumes and instruments are available to assist with expression, and occasionally children like to create dances and songs to perform for each other!

For questions or to sign your child up for classes (registration available up until noon the same day), please email me at ExpressiveMoves@gmail.com or call/text me at 512-785-8839.

Colleen Sears
 

An arts-based approach to literacy

In her second contribution to the Alt Ed Austin blog, art educator Heidi Miller Lowell discusses one of the inspirations for the new arts-based literacy program she is co-teaching this fall. You can read more about Heidi’s work on The Austin Artery website and blog, where an earlier version of her essay appeared.
 

Five years ago, I snuck into a crowded room in a Baltimore hotel, unaware that my ideas about education would be forever changed. Researcher Beth Olshansky became one of my heroes, as she introduced me to a constructivist model of education. I wished someone had taught me writing and reading in such an exciting and low-pressure way.

Beth Olshansky is the author of the book The Power of Pictures: Creating Pathways to Literacy Through Art and numerous published articles based on her years of research at the University of New Hampshire. She observed children who had minds filled with vibrant imaginings and stories but who did not like writing and reading.

This arts-based literacy program integrates children’s visual imagery into every stage of the writing process. Classes study the illustrations of famous authors and are introduced to art materials from the first day of class. Unlike traditional methods, this gives students a chance to tap into visual, kinesthetic, and verbal modes of thinking. Many children who have a hard time writing in other classes find that words come to them as they create art pieces for their books.

Children are motivated to finish the entire writing process so they can then create hand-bound books, complete with their own photographs on an author’s page. Each finished book is presented to the class, and the learner is invited to share his or her work in an author’s circle.

Research has shown that the learners in the arts-based literacy program display fuller expression than students in control groups. Personally, I have used this model to teach camps over the last several years, and I have been amazed with the results. Parents and students are often astonished by the quality of work produced in this program.
 

and The Austin Artery are excited to announce Austin’s very first arts-based literacy program beginning at Four Seasons Community School this fall. The lindergarten and first grade students will spend their Tuesday and Thursday afternoons splitting time between a quiet writing space and the art studio as they produce their own hardbound books and plays. There will even be an option for a limited number of homeschool students (grades K–2) to join me and my co-teacher, Jen Bradley.

For more information on arts-based literacy programs, you might want to check out visit Beth Olshansky’s website. You may also contact me at The Austin Artery for more information.

Heidi Miller Lowell