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Cabot Elementary School, Pauline Joseph's K-5 Art Class
Newton, MA
School Type: Public
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School Setting: Suburban
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Level: Elementary
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School Design: Traditional
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Content Presented By:
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Teaching for Artistic Behavior Partnership
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Summary
The practice: CLASSROOM CONTEXT -- Choice-based art education provides resources and opportunities to construct knowledge and meaning in the process of making art.
- Choice-based art classroom served 364 students, grades K- 5, in weekly classes.
- Learning centers provided a wide range of experiences in drawing, painting, simple printmaking, clay, construction and design, fiber arts, and digital art.
- Each center was filled with neatly organized and labeled supplies, plus illustrative materials, references, visual reproductions, books, and art vocabulary words.
- The same standards (art content, skills, etc.) as traditional art education were embedded in each center.
- Some traditional lessons and specialized, temporary centers enhanced the curriculum.
- Students experienced concepts and materials many times, thereby reinforcing understanding and building skills.
- When working in the centers, students made real choices and were engaged in their work.
Thirty years ago, Pauline Joseph developed her art room into a Visual Resource Studio with seven learning centers to support her students as artists. Many factors, including experiences with other educators and students, propelled Joseph to develop a choice-based learning environment that fostered a true partnership between teacher and students. Filled with neatly organized supplies, clear instructions, and books of all types, the learning centers provided rich opportunities for breadth and depth of learning. Students chose the materials they worked with and made choices and decisions just as artists do. The teacher supported their explorations and capitalized on ways to make connections to art history, cultural topics, and new techniques. Joseph even created temporary, specialized centers to provide more opportunities for students to explore. The curriculum combined independent work in the learning centers with traditional lessons and was aligned with local visual art standards.
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