1st Year Teaching

This post is more a reflection on my 1st year teaching. I realized there were many things I wanted to say about it and never did. I guess I got wrapped up in it being the end of the school year. I love how Evansdale Elementary welcomed me with open arms and made me feel at home. The students and staff made my teaching experience so worth all the work of becoming an art education major. Throughout college people would warn me that an art teacher position is the first thing they cut out of schools and it is going to be really hard to find a job. That is all in the past now, and there have been some major reforms in Georgia and the country realizing the importance of the arts in our schools. I actually feel like I have made an impact on a lot of my students and it's an indescribable feeling. I would like to share some of my favorite memories. One of them would have to be our paint night holiday staff party. I always wanted to do something in my new work place that had to do with my old job at Artini's.

Another favorite was the 5th grade field trip to the High Museum. The students got to attend a STEAM workshop and see my favorite exhibit that has ever been displayed at the High. The exhibit was Iris Van Herpen, Transforming Fashion. Students learned about how her artwork and how her fashion design was inspired by a mix of science, technology, and even nature. We tied in a 3D printing unit at school to go along with her art.

Last but not least was the community canvas project. I've always dreamed about doing a school wide collaborative project and our Cultural Arts committee at our school made that dream possible. They hired a resident artist to come in and help make a giant canvas of our school by directing the kids on how to do it. Every single student (PreK-5th) got to participate in this project by making their mark somewhere in the painting either using color or texture. It turned out so good that we hung it in the front of the school and used the final design as our spirit wear shirts.