Miss Art of Teaching

I love when teachers share ideas! A teacher friend commented on one of my Instagram posts (missartofteaching) about a cool online planner that she uses daily. She introduced me to 'Planboard' (free teacher online planner) where you can set up your timetable and then attach lesson plans, worksheets, and outcomes to each lesson.  It also syncs to Google Drive making it convenient. You can work on it from the computer or download an app for Iphones and Andriods. It took a while to set up, but I can see the benefits of using this online planner. I can edit my notes, select my standards and view my lesson attachments all under my fingertips. You can literally plan lessons anywhere and everything is in one place! I'll be using it to record class discussions and attach photos. A few examples:

Back to school... the three words that you probably love and hate at the same time. I will miss the holiday sleep in, naps, dog cuddles and taking my time for my morning run. But I am ready for another year of learning and nurturing my students with love and care.  Recently I stocked up at The Reject Shop and purchased half price pens from Woolworths. I am looking at implementing a system in my classroom where students are held accountable for borrowed resources: pencils and pens. I will be in two classrooms this year and have decided that I will need two caddies filled with supplies. One caddy will have pencils and pens based on the table number/colour and the other caddy will be based on numbers from 1-20 (since it is a flexible classroom). To be dismissed from class, I will need the pen/pencil to be returned. No more walkabouts. 

Being a NSW teacher requires one to pay their Teacher Accreditation fee (aka teaching license). My first teaching gig was given to me because another temporary teacher forgot to pay her accreditation fee. This jeopardise her capacity to teach in any school or service in NSW under the Education Standards Authority. Tonight I decided to pay my $100 (tax deductible) Teacher Accreditation Fee before being penalised for forgetting. I also tick a few things off my To-Do list. This included evaluating all my tasks on the NESA eTAMS dashboard (a website built for teachers to record all professional learning). I decided to look into the final processes of my maintenance of accreditation since it is due on Feb 2019. The process has been simplified and one only needs to have a total of 100 hrs (50 NESA Registered and 50 TIPD), all courses evaluated, confirm employment details and press the submit maintenance button. On the NESA e-TAMS website, it is op...

What I am doing?.... A few weeks ago we had a guest speaker coming in to the school to talk about our teacher well being. He recommended that we name our to-do list as the ta-da list. This means crossing off the completed job, waving your arms around and do a little happy dance. I have been working my way through my list. Not much of a dancer so you will not see me wiggling around after every task. I have logically categorised my workload: marking, work samples, reports, program submissions, Year 8 camp organisation, Positive Behaviour for Learning team planning.... This year I have all my theory work uploaded onto Google Classroom for grades 7-12. It makes life so much easier for the student and for the teacher. This virtual classroom allows students to ask questions, submit tasks and for teachers to mark and send back the feedback. I no longer have to take piles of papers home to mark and drain the ink from my pen. My Year 7 students are making print making, drawing and paint...

I've been away from my blog for about 9 months. A quick overview of the past 9 months: 1. Invitation to be an admin for the Art Teachers Australia Facebook page. 2. Got engaged. 3. Purchased a house and moved out. 4. Appointed as the Positive Behaviour for Learning Coordinator at my school. Why I am back: 1. To be more proactive. 2. Exchange and share ideas about teaching pedagogy. 3. Implement classroom and school-wide systems. 4. Encouragement from people:

So I went crazy today! I started using my Thinc Product voice amplifier. I purchased it on sale during the weekend for $109 Aud including postage (Rrp is $185). I used it in my classroom from Period 1 till Period 6. This includes 3 x Year 7 classes, 1 x 9/10 Elective Art class and 1 x Year 11 class.  It was great to use the voice amplifier. It made giving out instructions and demonstrations easier. I even sang and dance around. Some students loved it, some thought it was hilarious and a few begged me to stop singing. It made teaching so much more fun. Wearing this made me feel like I'm Britney Spears, a flight attendant and a belief that I can generally be anything!

I have been teaching since mid 2012. I started off teaching casually and gained longer blocks in the Home Economics Faculty and the Creative and Performing Arts faculty. I have taught every single subject through my casual days. I valued these experiences as it allowed me to be flexible, work with different teachers and bond with students in a short period of time. Some days it was challenging and other days it was quite rewarding.  Fast forward to 2017, I am now a permanent Visual Arts teacher. I am also trained in Technological and Applied Studies area but my heart has always been set to become an art teacher. Late last year, I was asked to prepare a workshop on 'Classroom Management' for Term 1 school development day. While researching through the school holidays, I became interested in everything related to my teaching practice. I started considering how the 'look' of the classroom can influence the way students engage with the classroom content. I looked at teac...

Surveys are a useful way to gain student feedback. If you want students to be honest with their answers, always make the survey anonymous.  I'm working with a small group of teachers to improve risk taking behaviours in the classroom. The purpose of the survey is to understand the link between students taking learning risks and the development of a safe classroom. The survey allows us to understand whether our existing strategies are helpful to our students. It also provides us with an insight into how students are going at the moment. Last week, I gave my Year 11 students a link to the online survey. I was surprised with the positive feedback from my Yr 11 Visual Arts class.  Surveys are a great way to understand what is working and what needs improvement in the classroom. From reading the responses, I can also identify areas that I need to improve- provide more positive / constructive feedback, understand my students and make the classroom a comfortable place ...

I am now officially appointed as a permanent teacher at my high school. I have been working for a total of 5 years and this is my fourth year at my current school. It feels like a long journey but it is only the start with a lot of learning to take place. I hope to grow into a better teacher by regularly reflecting on my teaching and being aware of new pedagogy practices. First day back means updating the theme/look of my classroom. I may have gone crazy with buying new containers and falling into the trap of liking blue-mints-turquoise. 

What do teachers do in the school holidays? -Relax and c atch up with friends -Resist temptation to visit stores (JUST JOKING!) -Do school work For the last two days I have visited: -Kmart -Target -Big W -Kikki.K -Aldi -Typo  -Tk Maxx -and many more. I can't switch my teacher mind off and always seem to be considering what I can do to make my classroom look and function better. I'm a teacher who enjoys organisation. I also love working on my own living space.  I made an earring holder using a Kmart $6 storage grid. Shoes seem to be my latest obsession. Four new pairs came home with me. I'm excited about the new comfortable work shoes! Above: Teacher shopping! Above: I love these storage systems but unfortunately the colours don't work for me. Above: The storage systems are from Tk Maxx and prices range from $16- 35 Aud. Above: Cute prints! Above: This was $20 but not necessary in my classroom as I organise my resou...