UNIT II Instructional Planning in the Visual Arts A. Instructional Plan Learning Outcomes 1. Explain the importance of instructional planning. 2. Discuss the considerations in preparing an instructional plan. 3. Discuss the realities of implementing a lesson plan in an actual class. “All things are created twice. There's a mental or first creation, and a physical or second creation to all things.” = Stephen R. Covey 25Like creating a work of art, teaching art effectively involves planning before doing. When artists create a work of art, even if it seems spontaneous, they first create a vision in their minds before creating it with their hands. For veteran art teachers who can visualize the planning process mentally, a rough outline may do. But if you are a novice art teacher, it is important to have a well-written flow of your activity otherwise, teaching art especially to younger kids can be more challenging. For professional art teachers in schools, a detailed lesson plan based on the curriculum is required. THINK Importance of Instructional Planning Having an instructional plan helps teachers stay on track with the lesson and achieve learning objectives. It determines the clear objectives for each session, and helps teachers prepare materials, conduct procedures safely, and assess appropriately. It helps you see the whole picture and set the flow of the lesson. Ideally, teachers should follow the curriculum set by the school, however art involves a lot of creativity and spontaneity. Sometimes the art teacher and students may get lost in the process through exploration and discovery. This can be problematic if you are trying to comply to a set of standards in a limited time frame. Following the lesson plan is important. But at the same time, keep your plans flexible, leaving space for serendipity and unanticipated learning (Douglas & Jaquith 2018). Planning helps manage time and resources and foresee different possibilities; what will work and what will not, The teachers can prepare a backup plan just in case things might not work the way they expected. Planning the materials needed is also crucial. For some teachers, it is the other way around. The planning is set based on materials available. Planning the classroom setup and seating arrangement is also very important. Setting up an art room can take a lot of time, and knowing whether you're going to use the tables, desk chairs, or the floor beforehand can save you a lot of stress and time. In teaching art in schools, it is necessary to plan your lessons based on the school's program and curricular plan. As a new art teacher, make sure to inquire about the expectations for exhibitions, interdisciplinary connections, annual budget, school guidelines, and special events in your school. Some schools may not allow working outdoors, using paints that may cause damages to properties, students buying their own materials, etc. Make sure to also align your activities with the curriculum you are using. For public schools, the learning competencies 26 A Course Module for Teaching Visual Arts in the Elementary Gradescan be found in the DepEd K to 12 Curriculum Guide. The following diagram shows the process of creating a lesson plan while considering the reality of situations up to implementation Curriculum (Goals and Content) mp] ceatnoan | gy, [ crominga gy cise Instructional Plan Learning Pian Implementation ‘Actual condition of lschools and students Preparation ofthe teaching plan based on the guidetines for learning (Translated from Takeuchi 2010) Creating a daily lesson plan based solely on the curriculum without considering other factors can be frustrating for teachers if the resources, time, and logistics are limited. Therefore, practical considerations for your curriculum must take into account the realities of your teaching situation (Douglas & Jaquith 2018). Classroom Management and School Situations Unlike other subjects, Art can be challenging because it involves a lot of materials and hands-on activities. Among young children, the most popular are painting and clay but most teachers opt to compromise the activity to make it more manageable, practical, and fast. Lecturing to a class of 50 students is difficult, But it gets more challenging when you are dealing with messy materials and changing logistics. Some teachers are lucky to have their own art room. But some teachers need to move around and conduct their classes in homeroom classroom where they share with another teacher. This can be very time-consuming especially if you are an Art-in-the-cart teacher where you bring your materials around the school. Some teachers also teach Music, PE, and Health and handle up to 600 students per week. That is like four classes of 50 students per day, three times a week. In some schools, art teachers teach ALL grade levels from 1st grade to high school. Sometimes, it gets exhausting and frustrating for the teacher to prepare for all classes. But that is the reality if you are teaching Art as a subject in a school. It is tiring but can also be e the students enjoy and express themselves fun, especially when you se through art. INIT) Instructional Planning inthe Visual Arts 27‘Students’ first time to try painting. Using paints can be messy and -quires a bigger space. Long tables provide ample space for sharing paints, water containers, and mixing palette. Newspapers are taped and layered on top of the table for easy cleanup. Photo faken by Teacher Precious from PAAFI's art program in Region 1 (2018) Things to Consider in Preparing an Instructional Plan Teaching Art can be challenging especially if you do not have your own art room or if you lack resources and materials. Assessing your student's present level of knowledge, skill, interests, and work habits is also important to validate whether your plans can work or not. Many teachers struggle following the lesson in the curriculum due to limited resources especially when they have very limited time. Art, unlike other academic subjects, is a more experiential learning activity with messier and time-consuming hands-on tasks. Setting up the tools and packing away the materials involve a lot of time. Cleaning, proper storage, and filing should also be planned ahead so that you won't stress about spoiled, ruined, or misplaced works. All of these are important considerations to have a more efficient and less stressful execution of your lesson. Here are some guidelines that you should ‘consider in planning your art class. 28 A Course Module for Teaching Visual Arts In the Elementary GradesA typical art room with long tables in Japanese schools Know your students. Know their strengths, weaknesses, threats, and what makes them excited. During the first few days of the school year, start with light but personal activities. Young students can either be too excited or hesitant. Open-ended activities but with templates are a good start to gauge student level and skill. This will serve as your baseline, Remember to also take note of each student's individual strengths and struggles per class. Identify what motivates them by knowing their interests and how they respond to certain themes. As a teacher, know what makes these young kids excited. It is also important to identity triggers for certain behaviors, especially if you are teaching a mixed-level class or children with special needs. It is important that at the beginning, you know who among your students can get too excited to play with paints, scissors, pencils, etc. Doing so can prevent behavioral problems, such as lack of motivation or aggressive behavior. If you know your students well, you can be three steps ahead and prepared for the best- case and worst-case scenarios. Plan for students’ safety- ‘Always keep this in mind when teaching and make sure to always consider students’ safety. Young children can get really excited or frustrated during art class. This is also the stage where they will be UNIT) Instructional Planning in the Visual Arts -29using some of the art materials for the first time. Make sure you know where all the sharp objects are and if you are teaching younger kids, make sure to keep them out of reach. Also, if there is a kid who has a tendency to use scissors as a toy or gets too excited when cutting, make sure to proceed with caution. The continuum of choice from learner-directed art making (left) and teacher-directed assignments (right) > More Choice Less Choice < > Leamer-directed Teacher-directed < > Focus on process Focus on product < > Emergent Curriculum Explicit Curticulum < Leamer-Directed | Theme or Media ‘Skill Builders | Teacher-Directed Focus No teacher assignment, | Teacher assigns | Teacher assigns media, | Teacher assigns Teacher as faciator | open-ended theme | techniques, quentity, | concept, media, OR specific media. | and duration. size, duration, and assessment. Learner chooses: Teacher and learner | Learner decides on how | Learner has eee negotiate: toincorporate these | minimal input, eaacie skills in future work, | such as size and + Content color. + SizefFormat |" Content + Collaboration or |* — Si#e/Format individual work | + Collaboration or ae ee individual work + Duration ‘The Continuum of Choice (Jaquith, 20150). Choice is offered in different amounts with shifts in control from teacher to students, depending upon the goals of instruction (Douglas & Jaquith 2018). Give emphasis on teaching the proper usage and storage of materials in class. + How to use and store scissors properly + Donot over sharpen pencils. Make sure to dull the tip. * Use nontoxic materials only in case of accidental ingestion of paints and adhesives, * Beware of choking hazards (beads, pompoms, small items). 30 Acour lcdule for Teaching Visual Arts in the Elementary Grades+ Beware of allergic reactions (skin contact and inhalations of substances). + Be careful of wet slippery areas due to spillage of water containers, Select your materials carefully. Consider the availability of resource: Choosing the right media is crucial when planning an art activity. sometimes you have to improvise because materials might not be available or not be enough for the class, Plan your lesson according to the materials that are available and appropriate. Don't make the mistake of excitedly preparing for a painting class only to know that there is no water source nearby. You need to know how much materials are needed and how much are available for you to use. You may find a very interesting activity online, however, the materials are not available in your area. Or maybe the curriculum stated to use acrylic painting on canvas but you know that your students may find it difficult to get this due to their location or economic status. You have to consider whether you can provide the materials for your students or if your students can provide their own materials. Consider these questions: + Isit readily available in your area? Do your students have the capacity to buy it? + Can you improvise? Are there alternatives? + Does it have to be individual or can it be shared by the group? Proper care for the materials ‘Art materials do not come by easily so we have to teach how to respect ‘and take care of the materials so these will last longer. Make sure to plan how to teach proper care and storage. For example, when painting make sure to clean art brushes thoroughly right away especially if you are using acrylic. f you do net have access to a sink, put buckets of water inside the classroom as water source. Take note that prolonged soaking on water can permanently damage the brush. Palettes should be cleaned regularly. But if you stil have a lot of leftover paint, you can put a hard plastic cover on top then leave it to dry. Dampen it with drops of water to soften the paint. Then you are ready to use it again. Keep these tips in mind and Prepare to teach it as part of your lesson. Uniti Instructional Planning inthe Visual Arts 31 rl‘A classroom has no sink and water supply nearby so the teachers provided a big water container so that students won't have to walk far to replace water for ruz Elementary Schoo, locos Sur Painting and cleaning their areas, Maximize workspace, venue, and water supply. Alllof these have to be considered when planning your lessons. Make sure that all of these are addressed no matter how fun the activity might seem or you will end Up in chaos. That is why a lot of teachers do not do fun activities because most of them require a lot of preparations and considerations to keep the room clean. When deciding to push through with an activity, you have to consider these questions: + Are you working on the desk tables, long tables, or the floor? + Can the tables get painted or should you cover them with plastic or newspaper? ‘Are you allowed to mess up the floor or should you be very careful for paint drips? + Ifyou are using paints, do you have water supply, like a sink, buckets of water, ‘or dump in your room? + Where are you going to throw your dirty clay water to prevent clogged sink? + Does your room have ample lighting? Big windows with natural light (dra and painting) or lamps? + If you are using acrylic, oil or spray paint, does your room have proper ventilation? Can you work outdoors? 9 + Doyou have proper waste disposal bins for messy paint or big stuff? + Will you be having your own room? Or are you an Artin-the-cart where you will be traveling room to room? 32 ‘ourse Module for Teaching Visual Arts in the Elementary Grades‘Artin-the-cart setup for roaming art teachers Who don't have a classroom. All art materials Including equipment are in the cart. You can use a Plastic box on a trolley, a small shopping cart, or @ Raskog trolley Manage TIME wisely. Be prepared. Set a routine. Create a system. One factor that all teachers are struggling with is time management. In preschool, art classes on average only last for 30 minutes, while elementary classes last up to 45 minutes. This is a problem especially for those who do not have their own room because they have to set up an “atelier” for every session. Some teachers such as |, do that. You should have a system for how to set it up as fast as possible through the help of your students. Another important thing is the time to clean up which takes around 5~10 minutes if not planned properly. Being an Art-in-the-cart teacher is very challenging because you really have to make sure everything is organized. ‘Sometimes we tend to forget something from the storage or from the previous room and it takes a lot of time to get it. It happens a lot. For some teachers, they only have 40 minutes for a whole session. That is like 10 minutes to set up and 10 minutes to clean up and sort the artworks and materials leaving only 20 minutes for the actual work. This is ideal for preschoolers but too short for grade schoolers. This is a challenge because some kids take time to be “in the zone” where one is focused and so engrossed with their work but when the time comes that they are at the peak of their creation, itis time for the next subject. However, for us teachers, time allotment is out of our control so we have to make the most out of it, Routine and delegation are key factors. Instructional Planning in the Visual arts 33{A student works on the floor for more space and flexibility of movement. Children seem to be comfortable working on'the floor. It provides a flat surface without worrying about materials falling off the table. Mats and cardboard are Uused to cover the floor to prevent stains, Begin with the end in'mind. Afterworks: Postproduction. Logistics is a very important consideration in teaching art. In the art world, postproduction is a major Part of the creation process. Artworks, just like materials should be stored properly. This is one of the parts | struggled the most as an art teacher. If you do not have a teacher assistant and proper storage for the artworks, these would pile up and you will have a hard time keeping track of which class do these belong to. If a vertical file is not available in your room, you can talk to the homeroom teacher and ask if the works can be dried on the floor in one corner of the room. Once dried, the teachers can place itin their folders. | also have rainbow file where | store artworks per section. However, you have to empty and distribute it every quarter so it wont pile up. This is important especially when drying glue or watercolor to avoid drip marks. But be careful for wet glue parts as they can get stuck together. In planning your class, you have to consider these questions: + How will the artwork be stored? What about unfinished artworks? + _ Isitgoing to be posted on the wall, inserted in students’ folios, framed, shared to everyone online, or brought home? 's there a safe drying area in your room to dry the students’ works flat? Can you store them vertically? 34 lurse Module for Teaching Visual Arts in the Elementary GradesLeft: Sample storage filing rack for 2D artworks. Center: Drying rack for wet paintings. Right: Sorting out artworks. Sort artworks as soon as possible or as soon as wet works have dried + How will you document works for assessment? Conducting an art class is like preparing for a battle: getting information about your students, assessing available materials, and learning how to maneuver the space to your advantage. These are all important considerations in instructional planning in order to have a more efficient, fun, engaging, and stress-free art class. EXPERIENCE Work by pairs and interview public school and private school art teachers. ‘Complete the table and compare their answers. How often are you able to implement the lesson Always time What factors. accordin curriculum EXACTLY as planned? Jing to the curriculum pl iar ‘About halfthe | dom eee Drawing Coloring (dry media) Painting (wet media) ‘Sculpture and 3D, Printmaking Crafts al Planning in the Visual Arts 35Based on their answers, what can you infer? ASSESS List three reasons or advantages of having a lesson plan. CHALLENGE Discuss the following: Mrs. Santos will be conducting a painting activity for her art class. However, their school is located in an area where paint supplies are scarce. After assessing the student situation, she realizes that not all students will be able to buy their own paint. The school also cannot provide painting materials and only has armchairs available. The learning competency is to sketch and use complementary colors in painting a landscape (ASPL-IId). What are her options? How can she meet the required learning competencies if the required materials are not available? Explain your answer. HARNESS Ifyou were Mrs. Santos, what would you do? How would you plan for this activity? Think of solutions then write a paragraph detailing your plan with considerations to the curriculum and resources available. Discuss your answers in class. 36 Course Module for Teaching Visual Arts in the Elementary Grades