How do you prepare for being evaluated by your principal?

My evaluating teacher described how other person being in the classroom normally does not bother him.  He explained that his principal would normally tell him when he is coming, so this would all him to inform the principal of what he will be teaching.  He will typically send the Principal the rubric and standards that will be covered in the lesson ahead of time.  He also explains that he likes to do fun lessons when the principal comes to observe. For instance for his last observation he dressed up as Grandma Moses for the day. It sort of brings a new element to the table.

I think that when it comes time for me to be observed by the principal I will definitely consider some of the things my cooperating teacher has done. I think that it is important to share with them what it is you will be doing in the classroom that day. So I think that sending him my lesson plans and rubrics, which contain the standards that are being met, are important for him to have.  This way they know what the intentions of the lesson are especially when they may not be familiar with the arts. That will give them the background they will need. I think in terms of preparation I would do something that I am comfortable with. For example I would probably not want to dress up in front of my principal because that is not something that suits my personality. I feel like it is a time to be professional and show them I am doing well and the students are learning.  So, I think the best thing I can do is just plan everything out like any other lesson and be prepared  because that will make the lesson run smoothly. 

Day 2

Today students were still working on the slab pots.  This time more of them were creating lids to put on the top of them.  A lot of students appeared to be done and not doing anything so that is when Mr. B asked these students to work on a pinch pot that they could finish with in the hour. They are normally allowed to do other homework or projects but it seemed like several students were not taking advantage of the opportunity.  One of the girls asked me for advice on her project. She wanted to create a slab pot that had a lid that looked like a roof for a log house. We decided upon create strips to add strips to a longer piece of slab that would look like boards with texture. She didn’t get far on the project but hopefully it works out well for her.  Other then that the students again worked very independently on their projects.

The 5^th grade was continuing to work on 1-point perspective. Some of them needed to finish creating perspective with their names but others were ready to come onto coloring them in.  During this time the students were asked to choose colors that would stand out against each other. So, that they would blend together and be hard to see. The students did well they didn’t need as much help picking out colors but those still finishing the perspective part needed guidance.

The 6^th grade was finishing up their Kandinsky pictures. This time they had lots of cutting and gluing to do with there patterned paper choices.  This actually took a long time since students were attempting to create patterns in each of the sections. This was going to be the last day of the project so students were asked to help students that were not done to finish. I thought this was a great way to make sure that everyone was able to finish and move onto the next lesson at the same time. I also thought this was great because it had the students working together.

The other nice part about today was during Mr. B’s prep we were unloading and loading the kiln. Since I don’t really get this opportunity in my ceramics course, I am truly blessed that I will have this opportunity through out the course of the semester. He was using a top-loading Kiln, which is also different, then what we have here at school and more likely to be what I will use in my own classroom. 

What inspired you to become an art teacher?

What inspired my cooperation teacher to become an art teacher? I learned that drawing was something that he always did as a child. This was something that was passed down by his mother, who he actually learned later in life also had gone to school to become an art teacher.  So art was something that he always truly enjoyed. The event that actually made him want to become an art teacher though was when he took over some swimming lessons at his job at the Y.M.C.A. His students ended up doing really well and his boss told him that he has a thing for teaching. This moment really sparked his interest for him.

Listening to his story about what made him want to become an art teacher made me realize that I have similar reasons of my own. I have always known since I was young that I wanted to do something in art.  I just never really knew what exactly. People told me along the way that I would make a great teacher because I have a tremendous amount of patience and I tend to be good at people but at that time I wasn’t ready to follow in my mothers footsteps of teaching. I wanted to do my own thing. It wasn’t until my freshmen year of college that I volunteered at Give kids the world in Florida.  This was an organization like the make a wish foundation that allowed families from all over the world to come that had children with life threatening diseases. It was in that week that I realized I loved working with kids. So, why not take the two things that I find myself passionate and make a career out of it. That is when I decided to become and art educator. Since switching my majors I have never felt more like I am stepping in the right direction everyday.  

Day 1 in the classroom

Day 1 in the classroom

Today was my first day taking part in a new school. It was also my first time working with a high school age group. A complete difference from the elementary school students I have been so use to. The first thing I noticed was that these students were much more independent. It was a workday so each of them knew what they needed to be doing. 

In the high school I take part in the ceramics classes for the first two periods of the day. Today they were working on slab pots that they had started. Some of them were allowed the opportunity to work on other projects. They could either do work from other classes or start an extra credit project with clay. Either way there wasn’t a ton that I could help them with since each of them knew exactly what they needed to do. Every once in awhile I would ask them if they would like help, most did not. 

I also had the opportunity to work with the 5^th grade students. They needed a lot more guidance and were not as independent when it came to working. The 5^th grade started by learning 1-point perspective.   First they were to create bubble letters with their names. Then they were to draw lines from the corners of each letter and make them reach the point.  This was certainly something that was new for these students because each of them sort of struggled in some way as they went.  I didn’t mind though because it allowed me to help them more. This was something that I missed after being with the high school students.  Since the students struggled with this project they didn’t quite get it finished by the end of the class period.

In the 6^th grade they were working on a project inspired by Kandinsky.  The students folded their papers into 12 square sections. They were then to pick 12 colors that they were going to paint each section of the paper. For the most part the students were doing really well with this project, as there was not much that they needed to actually do but some of the students needed to be reminded that they were only going to need to do one color in each square. Later they would be adding patterned paper to the project for layered circles in each of the sections.

Overall Day 1 went pretty well I thought. I do look forward to working with a different age group as the semester progresses. 

Principal P

It was nice to be able to listen to a principle that has been in education for the past 20 years. He spoke a great deal about the interview process, which will help me as I will be looking for jobs within the next year.

Some of his insights he helped us with are what he looks for in a prospective employer during the interview process.  First off make a good first impression. This would mean dressing up to impress. It may also mean that you should probably cover tattoos and if you have piercings that might not be acceptable this is the time to take them out.  He also mentioned that it is a good thing to be kind to the secretaries. Principals will often times ask them what they thought of the interviewers. So, it is good to make them like you because they do have a little bit of a say sometimes.

I also thought that his recommendations for bringing questions to the interview were helpful too. I sometimes have difficulty coming up with things such as that but I thought his ideas were a great place to start and give me an idea of what kind of questions I should be asking. For instance ask more about the position, district, and the security of the job. I also thought it was great to note that you shouldn’t bring up salary and benefits unless they do. Besides me asking questions I was relieved to find out that its ok to ask for a minute to come up with a quality answer when they ask questions. I know interviews can be nerve wracking and it’s nice to know from someone that does the interviews that they do understand.

Even if the interview doesn’t goes as planned. Principal P made a great recommendation to not burn your bridges because it is possible that he may recommend you to another district if you were one of his runners up. Principals talk. I also think he made a great recommendation to write down the questions that they ask. This can only better prepare you for interviews in the future. So, overall I think the information that I obtained from this principal will be a great help as I prepare for the future.