Week 4 - Blog post #4 Response to Karlene Young

Karlene Young wrote:

Benjamen Zander is a true inspiration and awesome motivational writer. I wrote down two gems this week from chapters 7-9.
Page 119: Performance is not getting your act together, but about opening up to the energy of the audience and of the music, and letting it sing in your unique voice.
For our Celebration of the Arts last week, the 1st graders were darling. I tried to get them to see they just needed to get up and have fun and feel the music for their dance and accompaniment with instruments. I was out there trying to pair up students whose partner wasn’t there, and I got to dance with several students that were alone. The energy of the audience was electric, and we truly had a lot of fun.
Page 126: The Practice of Enrollment
1. Imagine that people are an invitation for enrollment.
2. Stand ready to participate, willing to be moved and inspired.
3. Offer that which lights you up.
4. Have no doubt that others are eager to catch the spark.
The arts are what truly lights me up, and I am always throwing sparks out hoping to inspire students to love the arts. Children truly are “eager to catch the spark.”

Hilary Burchett responded: 

You are completely right Karlene. I am a K-3rd grade art teacher and I am also on a mission to give my students the opportunity to create art. I feel the spark is expressing and showing you passion for the Arts, painting, and or music and they get interested. I don't only teach my students how to paint I paint with them. They watch me very intently. They like my art and they want to be artist too when they grow up. I tell them that it is the best job in the whole world. You just have to play all day:).

The energy of little children is priceless. There are no worries, issues, or holds bar. They just create. Their artworks are more beautiful than some of the renowned artists in museums.

I am glad you are enjoying this book. I am too.

April 28, 2010 1:42 PM 

Week 4 - Blog post #3 - Response to Amy Barnabi

Amy posted:

Amy Barnabi_Week 3_CH 7-9_Art of Possibility

One of the things I like most about the book, "The Art of Possiblity" is that it doesn't just apply to one thing in life, but to all things in life.

I was reminded in CH 7, The Way Things Are, "Where are you on the continuum?" About a conversation I had with Dr. Deason earlier this week. Dr. Deason thought that I was measuring way too much with my THIINKFit© Project. He said to "narrow my scope." And that has really made a lot of difference in the way I've been approaching my project this weekend, focusing on just two important keys: 1. Attendance (Can the THIINKFit© Project increase attendance?), and 2. Increasing academic achievement scores in standardized testing (math and reading), through exercising five days a week, twenty minutes a day. So I ask myself, "Where am I on this continuum?" I'd like to think, as this year at Full Sail comes to a close, that I feel confident in my research and the direction my project has taken (often on its own). And much like undergraduate school, I'm confident that I'm now ready to face the world!

Another thing that Dr. Deason and I discussed, that reminded me so much of that conversation while reading this weeks reading, was not to temper my enthusiasm into falsifying any data I may collect. I have a great deal of energy and passion for this project, and sometimes, it's very hard to take that out of the equation. But I've learned that my data is backed up by current research, and as luck would have it, Michelle Obama's push to fight childhood obesity with Let's Move, and Jamie Oliver's "Food Revolution," I see nothing but positive things ahead for THIINKFit©.

I responded:


Amy I appreciate you writing about your AR project because it helped me with mine:). I was worried that I wasn't measuring enough areas, because I was focusing on student behavior and engagement. I'm glad things are turning out well for you as you finish up. Can you believe we are one month away from being done!! I can't it has been a wild ride. Amy you have a heart for kids and I really like that about you. Keep it up.

Week 4 - Blog post #2 - Link to my AR Summary

http://web.me.com/hilaryburchett/Hyperlinks_Action_research/Summary.html

Week 4 - Blog post #1 - Pub/Lead Project 3 of 3 - Link to my presentation

http://web.me.com/hilaryburchett/Hyperlinks_Action_research/Publishing_Leadership_Project.html

Week 3 - Blog Post #5 - Response to Mark Benn

Mark Wrote:

Week 4-blog 6 Topic quickies

Topic #1: Briefly share what your dream teaching or presentation environment would be like, be specific about what such a place would include (beyond just the tech toys).

My dream assignment would be with colleagues that are interested in improving how they teach and discussing best practices. They go out and read the research on their own and then apply it to their pedagogy. Everyone would work as a team within the school to make 21st century learning a priority. Of course, we'd want the technology tools to go with all this including one to one computing. I'm tired of being basically the lone wolf when it comes to moving forward. Another important part of this environment would be administrators that shared our vision and worked hard to fulfill it. I don't care if it is K-12 or above this would be the environment I'd love to teach in.

My response:

Wouldn't that be wonderful Mark.  My favorite Art Professor in college is in the process of creating a brain based learning school.  Im not sure if it will be a charter/magnet/or private school, but he wants to teach all subjects through the creative process.  I told him if he comes to a point where he needs teachers let me know.  He lives in Glenn Michigan so it would be a stretch to drive that distance everyday, but the thought of teaching with individuals who love teaching so much that they are willing to create their own school entices me.  I fail to find that passion within most of my colleagues and if the passion is there it is for the "test scores" and moving up into administration.  I need to see the kids at heart of the teachers passion.  Loving kids just how they are.  Letting them learn in the easiest form for them may it be through play, computers, discovery, or creativity.  We adults want our students to learn in the easiest way possible for us.  You sit I tell you take test.  We need to be big kids and get dirty, have fun, and use the tools the students love.

Week 3 - Blog Post # 4 - Response to Andrew Barrabas

Andrew Wrote:

Week 3 Free Topic - Both sides of the coin.

One of the most fascinating things about people is how they can ignore things when they don't fit their beliefs.  I think everyone does this to a certain extent.  I still do.  With the dawn of the Internet, it is easy now to find information that completely reinforces our own world view.

From this myopia comes the Law of Unintended Consequences, or as I like to call it, The Other Side of the Coin.  No choice in life is a certain thing but some people think it is because they choose not to see the other side of the coin.  For example:

No Child Left Behind.  When it was written I at first liked the idea.  Let's put down some standards for students to measure up to.  Encourage success, and punish failure.  Sounds good.

Of course there are many problems with this.  Just the name itself is loaded with problems.  No Child Left Behind indicates that all children will do equally well and nobody will fail (aka be left behind).  The problem is when you look at the other side of the coin.  If you want all children to do equally well then you have to hold back the high achievers too.  Enforcing this standardization on everyone is a left over from the factory model education system. Teachers are handcuffed to Teaching to the Test.

The only skill the students will really have after they graduate is a skill of taking standardized tests.

So here is my radical idea.  Disband the Department of Education entirely. Let states try 50 different approaches to education and see what happens.  Let kids excel and provide guidance to help them get there.  Over time the best approaches will become clear and will then be passed around to other schools.  What makes this country great is American Ingenuity, not government.

Most critically, make sure from an early age young kid's native gifts are recognized and nurtured before the factory school beats it out of them.  So who's with me?

My response:

What a great post Andrew:).  I agree that a belief system causes a person to hold strong to the side they are putting their faith in and the individuals in congress who believe in NCLB are blinded by their ambition to save public education or to save children from being left behind.  There are huge problems with the bill and no one in "Charge" wants to admit that the venture is a failure and is causing schools to be an unwelcoming place for students and Teachers. 

 Frankly, I sometimes fell like getting out of education because of the politics.  I love kids.  Obviously, I am an art teacher and I want to have a fun loving atmosphere free from judgement and full of self expression.  This becomes very hard when the atmosphere in the school is high stress, no fun, pass the test or the state is taking over.   The fear is squelching the teachers ability to be a creative and fun learning mentor to these children.  

School should be an awesome fun place that kids love to explore and discover new things like in children's museums.  Unfortunately the schools I have been within are more like a pressure cooker with 9 day old pea soup with a off smell.  Kids don't want to go and the teachers are tired.  I have to guess that this was not the vision congress had in mind when they passed NCLB.  

Week 3 - Blog Post #3 Pub/Lead Projece 2 of 3 - Choosing Audience

Week 3 - Blog Post #2 Pub/Lead Project 1 of 3 - Where-o-where-will-I-present?

Week 3 - Blog Post #1 Art of Possibilities Ch 10-12

Week 2 - Blog post #5 - Publish/Leadership project

Week 2 - Blog post #4 - Response to Erin Lodes Post

Erin Lodes wrote in her blog:

It’s interesting to me, in any reading I do, to observe the difference between what stands out to me most when I’m first reading and what lingers with me and still comes to mind several days later.

When I first read this, “Rule Number 6” stood out to me a lot, and I remember thinking how powerful it could be for me in general to remember not to take things so seriously. While I thought about it a lot as I read that chapter and continued to meditate on it throughout that day, I had forgotten it until I looked back at the reading now. What amuses me is that even today, in my forgetfulness, I need the reminder of that rule. I taught a workshop last night to a group of teachers about Digital Storytelling, and while it went fine and they loved it, I spent yesterday evening and most of today mentally dwelling on what I should have done differently, what should have been better, etc. While there is power to learning and growing in all that you do, I can be an extreme perfectionist who is merely frustrated that I wasn’t perfect the first time around. Remembering rule number six would be good for me, and I think I might try to post it around me as Ben mentions others doing.

What really stuck with me and popped into my mind even throughout my day today was the idea of “leading from any chair.” I think this stayed with me because the metaphor Ben is drawing from, of the second violinist who leads from his position, is a truth in my life each day as a band director. I look at students who sit in all different places, on twelve different instruments, and think about how they are all leaders. I have thought continuously in rehearsals about how I can help them be leaders from their chair, how I can empower and embolden them to take a role of musical leadership and pull the others around them into a fuller experience. I of course can relate to this concept in my own life as well, and can remember myself to lead from my own position, with the strengths that I have.

My Response:

Erin, I totally related to your post:). I am also a perfectionist and I feel that I gain my self worth through my perfection. I feel, for myself, it is a downfall because it brings unwanted stress and anxiety. I do the same exact thing after a presentation...rethink...realize...ponder...and replay from every angle. I also do this with most lessons I teach; even when they have turned out fine I look to enhance the engagement, excitement, and learning. A good mix of perfectionism and relaxation is good, but sometimes imperfection is picture perfect when it doesn't matter if it is perfect or not. Like children's artworks, and Zanders writing on Right and Wrong are man made ideas:)

Week 2 - Blog Post #3 - Response to Jennifer Kubeczko

Thank you so much Jennifer for posting this video.  I loved it.  I was inspired by the 21st century way of teaching at the beginning of the school year, so I allowed my students to "free range" art.  We were talking about recycling and they proposed that we recycle by creating sculptures out of trash.  They collected the trash and built their own ideas.

I was a bit discouraged when my principal said "that doesn't look like to usual art that comes out of your classroom".  I told him about the project being student lead and he discouraged me to change my lessons because the artwork wasn't as beautiful:( as it was when I guided the lesson.

This video has inspired me to reconsider another student lead lesson 21st century style.  Thanks Again!

Week 2 - Blog Post #2 - Ch 7-9 Art of Possibilities - Response

Week 1 Blog Post #1 - WIMBA week 2

Week 1 Blog Post #5 - Response to Devin Bryant

Week 1 Reading- Smash the boxby: Devin Bryant

The Art of Possibility definitely spoke to me. I was immediately drawn into the message because it speaks my language. I was not completely aware of the ability to change your perspective and look at the world around you in a new light until my freshman year of college. I had little glimpses of it through out my life. Times when I felt more in power and in control of what was going on, but I could never really pinpoint why. When I finished my freshman year of college I went to work at a camp for the summer and my whole reality shifted. Part of it was being in the woods, away from civilization for so long, surrounded by strangers and none of the material trappings I usually had. Another aspect was all the time spent talking, reflecting, having conversations with other people who were feeling this shift as well. It felt as though I was in another universe where all my priorities were changing. I could really hear myself and others in a way I'd never experienced before, because my perspective had changed, the way I looked at the world had been altered. Forget about thinking outside the box, I had smashed the box and felt like I was floating in space looking around going, "why on earth was I living in that tiny little can"?

So as I was reading about the need and ability to "reinvent" the way you look at situations, it really struck a chord with me. I truly feel that we as humans get so caught up in our lives, schedules, paths that we feel we need to be on, that we are almost wearing blinders. And there are little things that happen every once in a while that shake us up, get our attention and make us look to the left and right and see how closeted we really are. But unfortunately, I have not figured out how to stay in this place where I can be in control of shifting my perspective, and I think that is something a lot of people struggle with as well because we get so caught up in the drama of daily life and forget how to look at our lives differently.

The story about white water rafting and "toes to nose and look for the boat" really clicked with the way I was raised. I think that when you are "thrown out of the boat" as Roz said, it is really like being sucked underwater with no idea of what is up or down ad there is an awful fear that you may never make it to the surface. And what I've realized over the years is that many people in the world have absolutely no idea what to do when this happens because they've never been told that there is a way to help yourself. Either they focus on the negative and can't even see the light streaming through the water, or they completely give up hope when something goes wrong and don't even bother swimming to save themselves. But in my family, the motto I've heard all my life is "everything happens for a reason". I've heard others use this in a religious way, to say that God is taking care of the situation, but that wasn't the way my family looked at it. I remember when I was little my mom explaining to me that with every situation in life there is an upside and a downside. You can always find a way to make something good or to make it bad. All you have to do is make the choice to look at it in a positive way and then it's easy to find a way to change the way you look at anything. I think this was what Roz was talking about when she told her story, because having that mantra in my head has really helped me get through rough times in my life when I've fallen out of the boat. I didn't worry about drowning because I had the voice in my head telling me what to do. And I think that's what this book is really trying to say, that if you can take control over the way you look at situations in life, you can make anything happen.

My Response: 

Week 1 Blog #4 Response to Chris Gemp

Giving an A
by: Chris Gemp

This chapter really spoke to me.  I had a very similar experience to Mr. Z recently.  Two weeks ago, third quarter ended in my school system, so consequently I was giving tests to finalize their grades.  My sixth graders took a fairly standard test, with fill-in the blank, multiple choice, and short answer questions. My class averages were 95, 97.5, and 102(there were 5 points available for extra credit).  I made a comment to my colleague that I must have made the test “too easy”.  She responded: “Why shouldn’t everyone get an A?”  I have to say that I agreed with her.  I did not make the test any easier than in previous years. I was reminded of my first year teaching, when a different colleague told me her philosophy when making tests: “I make it hard enough so one student will fail”. 

Why should that be our goal?  I think teachers should strive to have each of our students earn an A.  I do not think we should just give out A’s, but there should certainly be no limit to the amount of A’s allowed.  We want our students to strive for greatness, so why shouldn’t we strive for that same level.  I think it is our success and our failure as much as it is the students. 

Michelangelo is often quoted as having said that inside every block of stone or marble dwells a beautiful statue; one need only remove the excess material to reveal the work of art within.  If we were to apply this visionary concept to education, it would be pointless to compare one child to another.  Instead, all the energy would be focused on chipping away at the stone, getting ride of what is in the way of each child’s developing skills, mastery, and self-expression. (Zander)

I have a student that is fairly resistant to putting forth a lot of effort into any class.  I sat down with him one day while he was supposed to be practicing the guitar and asked him why he wasn’t practicing.  He said that he was never going to pick up the guitar again after he left my class. I thought that was a pretty narrow-minded statement for a seventh grader to make. I consequently asked him what he wanted to do after he got out of school.  He mentioned that he wanted to be a mechanic.  I said, well there was a possibility that he would never pick up the guitar again after my class, but that there were still many skills he could take with him into his future endeavors.  I mentioned that work is sometime stressful and that coming home and jamming on the guitar could be a fun and relaxing activity.  Also I said that learning how to read music, would strengthen his reading ability, and that was a skill he would need all of his life.  He asked my why, and I said: “well, you may not read for pleasure, but they are always coming out with new products and someday you might have to read a users manual, and those are never easy to read, so its would be a good idea to be an excellent reader.”  Lastly we talked about when playing the guitar your hands are doing separate tasks, as well as so are your fingers.  I correlated that with the hands on requirements of being a mechanic.  He was satisfied with our short discussion and has now been very productive for the past few classes.  I am sure that will not last till the end of the year, but it has lit his fire now and when the time comes, I am sure we will have a new conversation to continue his efforts. 

Week 1 Blog post #3 - Assessment within a K-3rd grade Art Room. To be or not to be. That is the question.

Week 1 Blog Post #2 - Art of Possibilities Ch 1-3 - Reaction

Week 1 Blog Post #1 - WIMBA

Oh, my Holiness!! I made a huge mistake and watched the wrong archived wimba!! An entire hour of Thesis stuff when I am within Action Research. I did not realize this until I could not find the assignments that were discussed.


So, today I watched the correct wimba archive and I have to say; I am wimba'ed out.


I enjoyed to detailed explanations of our Action Research Report that is due the 13th and I now see that all the un-posted data will now need to commit to. I am glad there is a deadline though b/c I have so little social life anymore that I have now become a procrastinator which I had never been before. I have found myself putting things off so I can spend time with my husband, family, and children.


Luckily I have everything done and just need to put it into words which won't take too long.


On the other hand the Publishing assignment discussed at the tail end of Wimba does alarm me a bit. I guess I didn't hear about our that future venture, but my AR is pesentation worthy and I am very excited about my research and findings, so what's the worry; eh?


Thank you Mr. Bustillos for you positive attitude and your patient composure. I appreciate your great efforts in assisting us on our walk out of Full Sail's EMDT program:(.